docs(oauth): stdio OAuth login guide + OAuth-first install config (4/4) by SamMorrowDrums · Pull Request #2717 · github/github-mcp-server

SamMorrowDrums · 2026-06-17T11:10:16Z

Stack: #2704 (1/4) → #2710 (2/4) → #2711 (3/4) → this (4/4). Review/merge bottom-up. Base is the PR3 branch; diff is the docs layer only.

Closes the OAuth stdio work by documenting it and flipping the local install configs to OAuth-first now that no PAT is required on github.com.

What's here (3 files)

docs/oauth-login.md (new) — dedicated guide:
- How it works: PKCE preferred; display channels (browser → URL elicitation → tool-response message); transparent GitHub App token refresh.
- Quick start (native binary recommended; VS Code config).
- Configuration reference: --oauth-client-id/-secret/-scopes/-callback-port + GITHUB_OAUTH_* env vars; PAT still takes precedence.
- Scope filtering (requested scopes also filter the tool list).
- Running in Docker: fixed port 8085, -p 127.0.0.1:8085:8085, register http://localhost:8085/callback; documents the two fixed-port safety properties — loopback-only publish + a busy port is fatal (no silent device fallback).
- Headless / device-code fallback; URL-elicitation security advisory.
- Bring your own app: links to create an OAuth App vs register a GitHub App; loopback redirect-URL rules.
- GHES / ghe.com (Proxima): must bring their own app; --gh-host directs login at that instance's authorization server.
- Build-from-source with baked-in creds via ldflags.
README.md — stdio Docker install badges are now OAuth-first (fixed callback port 8085, no PAT prompt); Prerequisites reframed (OAuth default, PAT optional) with a pointer to the guide; one-line OAuth pointer by the manual examples. No README pollution beyond that.
server.json — GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN is now optional; the package publishes the OAuth callback port so the registry default works with zero token.

Validation

server.json validated against the 2025-12-11 registry schema (valid) and python -m json.tool (the registry-releaser check).
Install badge URLs decoded and round-tripped to the intended Docker configs.
All new-doc TOC anchors and cross-doc links resolve.
Reverted the inherited generated-docs churn (docs/feature-flags.md, docs/insiders-features.md) so this PR is docs-for-OAuth only; that drift is already correct on main and resolves on rebase.

No workflow scope needed (no workflow files touched).

Copilot

Pull request overview

This PR completes the stdio OAuth rollout by documenting the OAuth login flow and updating default install/config surfaces to be OAuth-first (with PAT optional), including the fixed Docker callback-port setup needed for containerized login.

Changes:

Adds a dedicated docs/oauth-login.md guide covering stdio OAuth (PKCE/device flow), Docker fixed-port requirements, and BYO app guidance for GHES/ghe.com.
Updates README.md one-click Docker install badges and prerequisites wording to default to OAuth-first while keeping PAT as an optional precedence override.
Updates server.json so GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN is optional and publishes the fixed OAuth callback port configuration for container installs.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
`docs/oauth-login.md`	New end-to-end stdio OAuth login documentation (including Docker fixed-port guidance).
`README.md`	Switches local Docker install badges + prerequisites messaging to OAuth-first with a link to the new guide.
`server.json`	Makes PAT optional and adds fixed callback port publish/env defaults for registry-driven Docker installs.

Copilot's findings

Files reviewed: 3/3 changed files
Comments generated: 1

+| Flag | Environment variable | Description |
+|------|----------------------|-------------|
+| `--oauth-client-id` | `GITHUB_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID` | OAuth App or GitHub App client ID. Enables OAuth login when no token is set. Defaults to the baked-in app on github.com for official builds. |
+| `--oauth-client-secret` | `GITHUB_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET` | Client secret, **if your app requires one**. For distributed clients this is a public, non-confidential credential. |


… config Add a dedicated Local Server OAuth Login guide (docs/oauth-login.md) covering the PKCE/device flows, display channels and the URL-elicitation security advisory, scope-based tool filtering, the fixed-port Docker recipe and its loopback/port-safety behavior, bringing your own OAuth or GitHub App, and the GitHub Enterprise Server / ghe.com requirement to register an app on that host (custom --gh-host directs login at that instance's authorization server). Reflect that the local server now logs in with OAuth by default on github.com: - README: make the stdio Docker install badges OAuth-first (fixed callback port 8085 published to loopback), drop the PAT prompt, and reframe the PAT as an optional alternative with a pointer to the new guide. - server.json: make GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN optional and publish the OAuth callback port so the registry default works without a token. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

… (3/4) (#2711) * build(oauth): bake in default OAuth credentials via build-time ldflags Inject the public OAuth client credentials (stored as the OAUTH_CLIENT_ID and OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET repo secrets) at build time via -ldflags so official binaries and images ship a working default app for zero-config login. Security relies on PKCE, not on the secret. Local/dev builds leave the values empty and continue to require an explicit token or --oauth-client-id. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * fix(oauth): recognize github.com host aliases for the baked-in client Match the default host via oauth.NormalizeHost instead of only an empty host string, so an explicit GITHUB_HOST=github.com (or api.github.com) still counts as the default and keeps zero-config baked-in login working. GHES and ghe.com users continue to bring their own --oauth-client-id. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(oauth): document stdio OAuth login; make PAT optional in install config (#2717) Add a dedicated Local Server OAuth Login guide (docs/oauth-login.md) covering the PKCE/device flows, display channels and the URL-elicitation security advisory, scope-based tool filtering, the fixed-port Docker recipe and its loopback/port-safety behavior, bringing your own OAuth or GitHub App, and the GitHub Enterprise Server / ghe.com requirement to register an app on that host (custom --gh-host directs login at that instance's authorization server). Reflect that the local server now logs in with OAuth by default on github.com: - README: make the stdio Docker install badges OAuth-first (fixed callback port 8085 published to loopback), drop the PAT prompt, and reframe the PAT as an optional alternative with a pointer to the new guide. - server.json: make GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN optional and publish the OAuth callback port so the registry default works without a token. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

* feat(oauth): wire stdio OAuth 2.1 login into the server Connect the internal/oauth core library to the stdio MCP server so users can authenticate with an OAuth App or GitHub App client ID instead of a static personal access token. - BearerAuthTransport gains a TokenProvider that is consulted per request, letting the lazily-acquired, auto-refreshing OAuth token take effect without rebuilding the client. - createGitHubClients uses BearerAuthTransport (and skips go-github's WithAuthToken, which would pin a static token) when a TokenProvider is set. - RunStdioServer starts without a token and installs receiving middleware that runs the authorization flow on the first tool call, surfacing the auth URL or device code via elicitation (or a tool result as a fallback). - Tool filtering uses the requested OAuth scopes; the default supported set hides nothing, while a narrower --oauth-scopes both narrows the grant and filters tools accordingly. - A sessionPrompter adapts the MCP server session to oauth.Prompter, keeping the authorization URL off the model's context. - New stdio flags: --oauth-client-id/-client-secret/-scopes/-callback-port. This is stdio-only and deliberately does not touch MCP-HTTP auth. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * refactor(oauth): address review — omit empty bearer header, guard token/oauth - BearerAuthTransport omits the Authorization header entirely when the token is empty (pre-authorization) rather than sending an empty "Bearer " value. - RunStdioServer rejects the ambiguous combination of a static Token and an OAuthManager up front, enforcing the documented mutual exclusivity. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(oauth): clarify SupportedScopes is the stdio default and tool filter Document that stdio OAuth login requests these scopes by default and then filters the exposed tools to the scopes actually granted, so a tool whose required scope is absent from this list is hidden under default OAuth even though a PAT carrying that scope would expose it. Keep the list in sync with tool scope requirements when scopes change. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * Distinguish undeliverable auth prompts from user declines An elicitation prompt that the client cannot deliver (a transport or protocol failure) was treated the same as a user actively declining: any display error cancelled the flow. That conflated a system failure with a deliberate "no", so a client that advertised URL elicitation but failed to deliver it would hard-fail the login instead of degrading. Add an ErrPromptUnavailable sentinel alongside ErrPromptDeclined and have the MCP adapter return it when Elicit fails at the transport level. The manager now falls back to the manual user-action channel on an undeliverable prompt (keeping the background flow alive so the user can still authorize out of band), while a genuine decline still aborts. A context-cancelled prompt is checked first so an ending flow is never misread as a transport failure. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * build(oauth): bake in default OAuth credentials for official releases (3/4) (#2711) * build(oauth): bake in default OAuth credentials via build-time ldflags Inject the public OAuth client credentials (stored as the OAUTH_CLIENT_ID and OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET repo secrets) at build time via -ldflags so official binaries and images ship a working default app for zero-config login. Security relies on PKCE, not on the secret. Local/dev builds leave the values empty and continue to require an explicit token or --oauth-client-id. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * fix(oauth): recognize github.com host aliases for the baked-in client Match the default host via oauth.NormalizeHost instead of only an empty host string, so an explicit GITHUB_HOST=github.com (or api.github.com) still counts as the default and keeps zero-config baked-in login working. GHES and ghe.com users continue to bring their own --oauth-client-id. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(oauth): document stdio OAuth login; make PAT optional in install config (#2717) Add a dedicated Local Server OAuth Login guide (docs/oauth-login.md) covering the PKCE/device flows, display channels and the URL-elicitation security advisory, scope-based tool filtering, the fixed-port Docker recipe and its loopback/port-safety behavior, bringing your own OAuth or GitHub App, and the GitHub Enterprise Server / ghe.com requirement to register an app on that host (custom --gh-host directs login at that instance's authorization server). Reflect that the local server now logs in with OAuth by default on github.com: - README: make the stdio Docker install badges OAuth-first (fixed callback port 8085 published to loopback), drop the PAT prompt, and reframe the PAT as an optional alternative with a pointer to the new guide. - server.json: make GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN optional and publish the OAuth callback port so the registry default works without a token. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

* feat(oauth): add stdio OAuth 2.1 stdio login Introduce internal/oauth, a self-contained library that performs the user-facing GitHub OAuth login the stdio server uses to obtain a token without a pre-provisioned PAT. It is independent of MCP: client concerns (elicitation) sit behind the Prompter interface so the flows are testable without a live session. What it provides: - Authorization-code + PKCE flow with a local loopback callback server, state/CSRF validation, and XSS-safe result pages. - Device-authorization flow as a fallback (headless, containers). - A Manager that selects the most secure available channel (browser auto-open -> URL elicitation -> last-resort user action), runs a single flow at a time, and exposes a refreshing token source. Both GitHub OAuth Apps and GitHub Apps are supported without special casing: the token is modeled as an x/oauth2 refreshing TokenSource, so expiring GitHub App user tokens are renewed transparently (the gap that made a stored-token approach silently die after ~8h). When a client lacks secure URL elicitation and the flow falls back to a tool-response message, the message advises the user that their agent/CLI/ IDE does not appear to support URL elicitation and suggests requesting it for improved security. Tests exercise real protocol behavior against an httptest GitHub stand-in: PKCE challenge/verifier, GitHub App refresh-on-expiry, device polling, URL elicitation, declined prompts, the last-resort action with advisory, and single-flight concurrency. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * fix(oauth): reap browser launcher and keep native callback on loopback Address code review: - openBrowser: reap the launcher process asynchronously so it does not linger as a zombie for the lifetime of the server. - listenCallback: take an explicit bindAll flag and bind to all interfaces only inside a container (where the published port arrives via eth0). A native run, even with a fixed callback port, now stays on 127.0.0.1 instead of 0.0.0.0. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * fix(oauth): fail fast when a fixed callback port is unavailable A fixed --oauth-callback-port is registered with the OAuth app and chosen deliberately, so a bind failure means another process holds the port and could intercept the authorization redirect. Treat that as fatal instead of silently downgrading to the device flow, which would mask the conflict. Also warn, when binding the callback inside a container, that the listener is on all interfaces and should be published to loopback only so the authorization code is not exposed on the container network. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * fix(oauth): surface refresh failures, bound refresh, prefer device flow when headless Addresses pre-merge review of the OAuth stdio core: - Log a one-time warning when token refresh fails instead of silently returning an empty access token, so a forced re-login isn't a surprise. - Bound each background token refresh with a 30s HTTP client timeout so a stalled GitHub token endpoint can't block tool calls indefinitely. - On a headless host (no display server) with a random callback port, fall back to the device-code flow — the only channel reachable from a browser on another machine — instead of dead-ending on an unreachable localhost redirect. A generic browser-open failure still offers the manual URL. - Mark the callback bind failure with a sentinel so the fixed-port-busy fatal path can't misreport an unrelated error as a port conflict. - Export NormalizeHost so callers can recognize the default github.com host (consumed by the build-time baked-in credential guard). Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * feat(oauth): wire stdio OAuth 2.1 login into the server (2/4) (#2710) * feat(oauth): wire stdio OAuth 2.1 login into the server Connect the internal/oauth core library to the stdio MCP server so users can authenticate with an OAuth App or GitHub App client ID instead of a static personal access token. - BearerAuthTransport gains a TokenProvider that is consulted per request, letting the lazily-acquired, auto-refreshing OAuth token take effect without rebuilding the client. - createGitHubClients uses BearerAuthTransport (and skips go-github's WithAuthToken, which would pin a static token) when a TokenProvider is set. - RunStdioServer starts without a token and installs receiving middleware that runs the authorization flow on the first tool call, surfacing the auth URL or device code via elicitation (or a tool result as a fallback). - Tool filtering uses the requested OAuth scopes; the default supported set hides nothing, while a narrower --oauth-scopes both narrows the grant and filters tools accordingly. - A sessionPrompter adapts the MCP server session to oauth.Prompter, keeping the authorization URL off the model's context. - New stdio flags: --oauth-client-id/-client-secret/-scopes/-callback-port. This is stdio-only and deliberately does not touch MCP-HTTP auth. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * refactor(oauth): address review — omit empty bearer header, guard token/oauth - BearerAuthTransport omits the Authorization header entirely when the token is empty (pre-authorization) rather than sending an empty "Bearer " value. - RunStdioServer rejects the ambiguous combination of a static Token and an OAuthManager up front, enforcing the documented mutual exclusivity. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(oauth): clarify SupportedScopes is the stdio default and tool filter Document that stdio OAuth login requests these scopes by default and then filters the exposed tools to the scopes actually granted, so a tool whose required scope is absent from this list is hidden under default OAuth even though a PAT carrying that scope would expose it. Keep the list in sync with tool scope requirements when scopes change. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * Distinguish undeliverable auth prompts from user declines An elicitation prompt that the client cannot deliver (a transport or protocol failure) was treated the same as a user actively declining: any display error cancelled the flow. That conflated a system failure with a deliberate "no", so a client that advertised URL elicitation but failed to deliver it would hard-fail the login instead of degrading. Add an ErrPromptUnavailable sentinel alongside ErrPromptDeclined and have the MCP adapter return it when Elicit fails at the transport level. The manager now falls back to the manual user-action channel on an undeliverable prompt (keeping the background flow alive so the user can still authorize out of band), while a genuine decline still aborts. A context-cancelled prompt is checked first so an ending flow is never misread as a transport failure. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * build(oauth): bake in default OAuth credentials for official releases (3/4) (#2711) * build(oauth): bake in default OAuth credentials via build-time ldflags Inject the public OAuth client credentials (stored as the OAUTH_CLIENT_ID and OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET repo secrets) at build time via -ldflags so official binaries and images ship a working default app for zero-config login. Security relies on PKCE, not on the secret. Local/dev builds leave the values empty and continue to require an explicit token or --oauth-client-id. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * fix(oauth): recognize github.com host aliases for the baked-in client Match the default host via oauth.NormalizeHost instead of only an empty host string, so an explicit GITHUB_HOST=github.com (or api.github.com) still counts as the default and keeps zero-config baked-in login working. GHES and ghe.com users continue to bring their own --oauth-client-id. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(oauth): document stdio OAuth login; make PAT optional in install config (#2717) Add a dedicated Local Server OAuth Login guide (docs/oauth-login.md) covering the PKCE/device flows, display channels and the URL-elicitation security advisory, scope-based tool filtering, the fixed-port Docker recipe and its loopback/port-safety behavior, bringing your own OAuth or GitHub App, and the GitHub Enterprise Server / ghe.com requirement to register an app on that host (custom --gh-host directs login at that instance's authorization server). Reflect that the local server now logs in with OAuth by default on github.com: - README: make the stdio Docker install badges OAuth-first (fixed callback port 8085 published to loopback), drop the PAT prompt, and reframe the PAT as an optional alternative with a pointer to the new guide. - server.json: make GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN optional and publish the OAuth callback port so the registry default works without a token. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

SamMorrowDrums requested a review from Copilot June 17, 2026 11:10

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of SamMorrowDrums June 17, 2026 11:10 View session

Copilot AI reviewed Jun 17, 2026

View reviewed changes

SamMorrowDrums force-pushed the sammorrowdrums/oauth-build-release branch from 3709f58 to 7157db4 Compare June 18, 2026 09:00

SamMorrowDrums force-pushed the sammorrowdrums/oauth-docs branch from a9aa0ce to 4600087 Compare June 18, 2026 09:01

SamMorrowDrums marked this pull request as ready for review June 19, 2026 08:27

SamMorrowDrums requested a review from a team as a code owner June 19, 2026 08:27

SamMorrowDrums mentioned this pull request Jun 19, 2026

Add OAuth 2.1 authentication for stdio mode with MCP URL elicitation and performance optimizations #1836

Closed

4 tasks

SamMorrowDrums force-pushed the sammorrowdrums/oauth-build-release branch from 7157db4 to 61cba4c Compare June 25, 2026 19:28

SamMorrowDrums force-pushed the sammorrowdrums/oauth-docs branch from 4600087 to 79f1163 Compare June 25, 2026 19:28

omgitsads approved these changes Jun 26, 2026

View reviewed changes

SamMorrowDrums merged commit 4d8e216 into sammorrowdrums/oauth-build-release Jun 26, 2026
16 checks passed

SamMorrowDrums deleted the sammorrowdrums/oauth-docs branch June 26, 2026 09:58

SamMorrowDrums mentioned this pull request Jun 26, 2026

docs: lead local/stdio install with OAuth login #2776

Open

Provide feedback

Saved searches

Use saved searches to filter your results more quickly

Uh oh!

docs(oauth): stdio OAuth login guide + OAuth-first install config (4/4)#2717

docs(oauth): stdio OAuth login guide + OAuth-first install config (4/4)#2717
SamMorrowDrums merged 1 commit into
sammorrowdrums/oauth-build-releasefrom
sammorrowdrums/oauth-docs

SamMorrowDrums commented Jun 17, 2026

Uh oh!

Copilot AI left a comment

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

Reviewers

Assignees

Labels

Projects

Milestone

Development

Uh oh!

3 participants

Uh oh!

Conversation

SamMorrowDrums commented Jun 17, 2026

What's here (3 files)

Validation

Uh oh!

Copilot AI left a comment

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Pull request overview

Copilot's findings

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

Reviewers

Assignees

Labels

Projects

Milestone

Development

Uh oh!

3 participants