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Quick Start Guide

Get RedQuanta MCP up and running in under 5 minutes with this comprehensive quick start guide.

Prerequisites

System Requirements

  • OS: Windows 10+, Linux (Ubuntu 18.04+), macOS 10.14+
  • CPU: 2 cores, 2.0 GHz
  • RAM: 4 GB
  • Storage: 2 GB free space
  • Network: Internet connection for tool downloads
  • OS: Windows 11, Linux (Ubuntu 22.04+), macOS 12+
  • CPU: 4+ cores, 3.0 GHz
  • RAM: 8+ GB
  • Storage: 10+ GB free space (for logs and reports)
  • Network: High-bandwidth connection for large scans

Required Software

# Install Node.js 20 LTS
winget install OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS

# Install Git
winget install Git.Git

# Install Docker Desktop (optional)
winget install Docker.DockerDesktop

# Verify installations
node --version  # Should be v20.x.x
npm --version   # Should be 10.x.x
git --version   # Should be 2.x.x

# Update package list
sudo apt update

# Install Node.js 20 LTS
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

# Install Git
sudo apt install git

# Install Docker (optional)
sudo apt install docker.io docker-compose
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

# Verify installations
node --version  # Should be v20.x.x
npm --version   # Should be 10.x.x
git --version   # Should be 2.x.x

# Install Homebrew (if not installed)
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# Install Node.js 20 LTS
brew install node@20

# Install Git
brew install git

# Install Docker Desktop (optional)
brew install --cask docker

# Verify installations
node --version  # Should be v20.x.x
npm --version   # Should be 10.x.x
git --version   # Should be 2.x.x

Installation Methods

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/sc4rfurry/RedQuanta-MCP.git
cd RedQuanta-MCP

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

# Run tests to verify installation
npm test

# Start in development mode
npm run start:dev

# Clone and setup for production
git clone --depth 1 --branch main https://github.com/sc4rfurry/RedQuanta-MCP.git
cd RedQuanta-MCP

# Install production dependencies only
npm ci --only=production

# Build optimized version
npm run build:prod

# Start in production mode
npm run start:prod

Method 2: Docker Installation

# Pull and run the latest image
docker run -d \
  --name redquanta-mcp \
  -p 5891:5891 \
  -e LOG_LEVEL=info \
  redquanta/mcp:latest

# Check container status
docker ps

# View logs
docker logs redquanta-mcp

# docker-compose.yml
version: '3.8'

services:
  redquanta-mcp:
    image: redquanta/mcp:latest
    container_name: redquanta-mcp
    ports:
      - "5891:5891"
    environment:
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - LOG_LEVEL=info
      - JAIL_ROOT=/app/vol
    volumes:
      - ./config:/app/config:ro
      - ./logs:/app/logs
      - ./reports:/app/reports
    restart: unless-stopped
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "curl", "-f", "http://localhost:5891/health"]
      interval: 30s
      timeout: 10s
      retries: 3
      start_period: 40s

volumes:
  logs:
  reports:

# Start with Docker Compose
docker-compose up -d

# Check status
docker-compose ps

# View logs
docker-compose logs -f

Method 3: Pre-built Binaries

# Download the latest release
curl -L https://github.com/sc4rfurry/RedQuanta-MCP/releases/latest/download/redquanta-mcp-linux-x64 \
     -o redquanta-mcp

# Make executable
chmod +x redquanta-mcp

# Run directly
./redquanta-mcp --help

# Download the latest release
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://github.com/sc4rfurry/RedQuanta-MCP/releases/latest/download/redquanta-mcp-win-x64.exe" `
                  -OutFile "redquanta-mcp.exe"

# Run directly
.\redquanta-mcp.exe --help

# Download the latest release
curl -L https://github.com/sc4rfurry/RedQuanta-MCP/releases/latest/download/redquanta-mcp-macos-x64 \
     -o redquanta-mcp

# Make executable
chmod +x redquanta-mcp

# Run directly (may require security approval)
./redquanta-mcp --help

Initial Configuration

1. Environment Setup

Create a .env file in the project root:

# .env
NODE_ENV=development
LOG_LEVEL=info
MCP_MODE=rest
PORT=5891
HOST=localhost
JAIL_ROOT=/opt/redquanta/vol
DANGEROUS_MODE=false
CACHE_ENABLED=true
CACHE_TTL=3600
WEB_SEARCH_ENABLED=true

2. Security Configuration

The default configuration is secure by default. For custom setups:

// config/allowedCommands.json
{
  "nmap": {
    "binary": "nmap",
    "allowedArgs": ["-A", "-T4", "-sV", "-sC", "--reason"],
    "dangerousArgs": ["--script", "vuln"],
    "maxTargets": 1000,
    "timeout": 300
  }
}

// config/allowedPaths.json
{
  "jailRoot": "/opt/redquanta/vol",
  "allowedDirs": ["tmp", "reports", "config", "logs"],
  "allowedExtensions": [".txt", ".json", ".xml", ".csv"],
  "maxFileSize": 104857600,
  "readOnly": true
}

3. Tool Verification

Run the doctor command to verify tool availability:

# Check system requirements and tool availability
node dist/cli.js doctor

# Expected output:
# 🏥 RedQuanta MCP System Check:
# ✅ Node.js v20.11.0 (OK)
# ✅ Platform: win32 x64
# ✅ Config: allowedCommands.json found
# ✅ Config: allowedPaths.json found
# 💡 Run `redquanta-mcp server` to perform complete tool detection

Verification & Testing

1. Health Check

# Start the server in background
npm run start:prod &

# Wait for startup
sleep 5

# Check health endpoint
curl http://localhost:5891/health

# Expected response:
# {
#   "status": "healthy",
#   "version": "0.3.0",
#   "mode": "rest",
#   "platform": "linux",
#   "uptime": 5.234,
#   "timestamp": "2025-06-25T10:00:00.000Z"
# }

# List available tools
node dist/cli.js tools

# Expected output:
# 🛠️  Available RedQuanta MCP Tools:
# 
#   nmap_scan            - Network discovery and port scanning
#   masscan_scan         - High-speed port scanning
#   ffuf_fuzz           - Web fuzzing and directory discovery
#   nikto_scan          - Web vulnerability scanning
#   workflow_enum       - Automated enumeration workflow
#   workflow_scan       - Automated vulnerability scanning

2. First Security Scan

# Safe network discovery (no actual scanning)
node dist/cli.js enum 127.0.0.1 --scope network --depth light

# Expected output includes:
# 🎯 Starting enumeration workflow...
# Target: 127.0.0.1
# Scope: network
# Depth: light
# ✅ Enumeration workflow completed successfully!

# Safe web application assessment
node dist/cli.js scan httpbin.org --services http --coaching beginner

# Expected output includes:
# 🔍 Starting vulnerability scanning...
# Target: httpbin.org
# Services: http
# ✅ Vulnerability scanning workflow completed successfully!

3. API Testing

# Test tool listing endpoint
curl -s http://localhost:5891/tools | jq

# Test tool execution (safe example)
curl -X POST http://localhost:5891/tools/web_search \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "query": "security testing methodology",
    "maxResults": 5,
    "safeSearch": true
  }' | jq

# Install MCP client for testing
npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/client-cli

# Test MCP connection
mcp-client --transport stdio -- node dist/server.js

Next Steps

Immediate Actions

  1. Configure Your Environment - Customize settings for your needs
  2. Run Your First Scan - Perform a real security assessment
  3. Explore the Tools - Learn about available security tools

Learning Path

  1. Security Best Practices
  2. Basic Scanning Examples
  3. Understanding Results
  4. Common Workflows
  1. Advanced Workflows
  2. Custom Plugin Development
  3. Enterprise Deployment
  4. CI/CD Integration

Troubleshooting

If you encounter issues:

Installation Complete!

Congratulations! RedQuanta MCP is now installed and ready for use.

Next: Run your first security scan →