# GhostBus (npm · ghostbus)

Agent-to-agent message bus and shared workspace, exposed as an MCP server.

- Trust score: 71/100 (medium)
- Registry status: active
- Liveness: live
- Owner verified: no
- Last scored: 2026-11-05

## Components

- npm · `ghostbus`: 71/100 (this document), [markdown](https://verifymcp.io/servers/littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus/ghostbus.md), [page](https://verifymcp.io/servers/littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus/ghostbus)

## Channel facts

- Registry: `npm`
- Package: `ghostbus`
- Version: `0.5.11`
- Transport: `stdio`

## Trust breakdown

How this component scores in each security and reliability category. Every signal is checked automatically from public evidence about the published package, including repeated runs of it in an isolated sandbox, and we only credit what we can confirm. Scores are 0–100 per category. Scoring method: https://verifymcp.io/docs/scoring (what has changed: https://verifymcp.io/docs/scoring/changelog)

Scored 2026-11-05.

- **Supply Chain Security**: 100/100
  - No malware found by supply-chain analysis.
  - No known CVEs affecting this package version or its production dependencies.
  - No install/post-install scripts declared.
  - No production dependencies, so there is no dependency health to assess.
- **Provenance & Transparency**: 100/100
  - Source repository is publicly reachable at the declared URL.
  - Cryptographically verified build provenance (signed, bound to littlestjames82-sys/ghostbus).
  - Clear OSI-approved license (MIT).
  - Actively maintained (last published 0 days ago).
  - Publishes a security disclosure policy (SECURITY.md).
- **Schema Quality & AI Usability**: 55/100
  - AI-judged instruction clarity (fair).
  - Tool/resource definitions use about 1219 tokens (~42/item across 29 items; 29 tools + 0 resources), lean.
  - Usage-examples check failed: none of the tools include examples.
- **Stability & Change Management**: 3/100
  - Stability observed for 1 of 30 days with no destabilising changes; credit accrues until the full window elapses.
- **Tool Coverage**: 67/100
  - 100% of tools have a non-trivial description (not blank, and not just the tool's name).
  - 0% of tool parameters carry a description.
- **Tool Safety**: 75/100
  - No prompt-injection markers were found in the server instructions, tool names or descriptions we captured.
  - 0 of 3 tool(s) whose name or description implies an irreversible operation declare an MCP destructiveHint annotation; "bus_send" implies "send" and declares no destructiveHint at all, which the MCP spec reads as destructive by default.
  - An AI judge read all 29 captured unit(s) of tool text and found none that tries to manipulate the model reading it.
- **Capabilities**: 20/100
  - Spec-recency check failed: implements MCP spec 2024-11-05; the latest is 2026-07-28.

## Install

### How do I install the GhostBus MCP server?

GhostBus runs locally as an npm package, launched with npx -y ghostbus. Ready-made configuration for Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Codex and 5 more is on this page, copied from each client's own documentation.

### Claude

```bash
claude mcp add littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus -- npx -y ghostbus
```

### Cursor

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "ghostbus"
      ]
    }
  }
}
```

### VS Code

```json
{
  "servers": {
    "littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "ghostbus"
      ]
    }
  }
}
```

### Codex

```bash
codex mcp add littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus -- npx -y ghostbus
```

### opencode

```json
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus": {
      "type": "local",
      "command": [
        "npx",
        "-y",
        "ghostbus"
      ],
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
```

### OpenClaw

```bash
openclaw mcp add littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus --command npx --arg -y --arg ghostbus
```

### Hermes

```yaml
mcp_servers:
  littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus:
    command: "npx"
    args: ["-y", "ghostbus"]
```

### Netclaw

```json
{
  "McpServers": {
    "littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus": {
      "Transport": "stdio",
      "Command": "npx",
      "Arguments": [
        "-y",
        "ghostbus"
      ]
    }
  }
}
```

### Vellum

```bash
assistant mcp add littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus -t stdio -c npx -a -y ghostbus
```

### Other

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "ghostbus"
      ]
    }
  }
}
```

## Changelog

Every change recorded for this component, newest first. Days that predate change tracking, or that we cannot explain, say so: "we were watching and nothing happened" and "we were not watching" are different claims.

### 2026-11-04 (score 71)

First indexed and scored.

## MCP tools (29)

### `bus_status` (~20 tokens)

Workspace status: agents, message/task/file counts, version.

### `bus_register` (~84 tokens)

Register (or rejoin) this agent on the bus with a role and capabilities. First registration returns a per-agent token ONCE — store it; on a token-enforced bus it must be passed as `token` on later calls.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `capabilities` (array)
- `role` (string)
- `token` (string)

### `bus_rotate_token` (~51 tokens)

Rotate this agent's token (requires the current token on an enforced bus). The old token stops working; the new one is shown once.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `token` (string)

### `bus_heartbeat` (~40 tokens)

Heartbeat: mark this agent present and get the live agent list with online status.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `token` (string)

### `bus_search` (~33 tokens)

Search messages, tasks, and shared files by text.

Input parameters:

- `limit` (number)
- `query` (string, required)

### `bus_channels` (~15 tokens)

List message channels with message counts.

### `bus_agents` (~22 tokens)

List registered agents with roles, capabilities, and last-seen times.

### `bus_send` (~72 tokens)

Send a message to one agent (to = its name) or broadcast (to = "*"). Set threadId to reply in a thread.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `body` (string, required)
- `channel` (string)
- `threadId` (number)
- `to` (string)

### `bus_inbox` (~62 tokens)

Read messages visible to this agent (direct, broadcast, and its own). Marks them read unless markRead=false.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `limit` (number)
- `markRead` (boolean)
- `unreadOnly` (boolean)

### `bus_thread` (~26 tokens)

Read a message thread (root message + its replies).

Input parameters:

- `id` (number, required)

### `bus_create_task` (~87 tokens)

Create a handoff task. Optionally assign it, mark urgent, or gate it behind human/agent approval (needsApproval).

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `assignee` (string)
- `blockedBy` (array)
- `body` (string)
- `needsApproval` (boolean)
- `priority` (string)
- `title` (string, required)

### `bus_list_tasks` (~37 tokens)

List tasks, optionally filtered by status or assignee/claimer.

Input parameters:

- `assignee` (string)
- `status` (string)

### `bus_approve_task` (~42 tokens)

Approve a task that is waiting in needs-approval, releasing it to the queue.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `id` (number, required)

### `bus_claim_task` (~41 tokens)

Claim a queued task exclusively (15-minute lease). Fails if another agent holds it.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `id` (number, required)

### `bus_complete_task` (~44 tokens)

Complete a task you claimed, with a result summary for the sender.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `id` (number, required)
- `result` (string)

### `bus_cancel_task` (~28 tokens)

Cancel an open task.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `id` (number, required)

### `workspace_put_file` (~50 tokens)

Write a shared workspace file (capsule, note, deliverable). Path may not contain "..".

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `path` (string, required)
- `text` (string, required)

### `workspace_get_file` (~22 tokens)

Read a shared workspace file.

Input parameters:

- `path` (string, required)

### `workspace_list_files` (~19 tokens)

List shared workspace files with size and last writer.

### `workspace_put_context` (~36 tokens)

Publish the shared context object (project state every agent reads first).

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `context` (object, required)

### `workspace_get_context` (~15 tokens)

Read the shared context object.

### `workspace_board` (~23 tokens)

Render the shared board: agents, open tasks, files, recent activity.

### `bus_comment_task` (~53 tokens)

Comment on a task (discussion lives on the task, next to its history).

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `body` (string, required)
- `id` (number, required)
- `token` (string)

### `workspace_delete_file` (~36 tokens)

Delete a shared workspace file.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `path` (string, required)
- `token` (string)

### `bus_sync` (~57 tokens)

Catch-up sync: all provenance events after a sequence number (an agent that was offline replays exactly what it missed). Returns headSeq to store as the next cursor.

Input parameters:

- `limit` (number)
- `sinceSeq` (number)

### `workspace_get_capsule` (~75 tokens)

Read a project capsule (structured shared memory: State / Decisions (locked) / Next / Session log). Creates it from the template when create=true.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string)
- `create` (boolean)
- `slug` (string, required)
- `title` (string)
- `token` (string)

### `workspace_update_capsule` (~70 tokens)

Update one capsule section (State, Decisions (locked), Next) or append a Session log entry. Other sections are preserved.

Input parameters:

- `agent` (string, required)
- `section` (string, required)
- `slug` (string, required)
- `text` (string, required)
- `token` (string)

### `workspace_file_history` (~32 tokens)

Version history of a shared file (current version + up to 10 previous).

Input parameters:

- `path` (string, required)

### `bus_events` (~27 tokens)

Read the provenance event log (who did what, when).

Input parameters:

- `limit` (number)

## Diagnostics

Captured diagnostic sections: Provenance, Dependencies. The full working is on the page: https://verifymcp.io/servers/littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus/ghostbus#diagnostics

## Score history

- 2026-11-05: 71
- 2026-11-04: 71

## Common questions

### What is the GhostBus MCP server?

GhostBus is an MCP server listed in the public MCP registry as io.github.littlestjames82-sys/ghostbus. Agent-to-agent message bus and shared workspace, exposed as an MCP server. This page covers its npm package (ghostbus).

### Is the GhostBus MCP server safe to use?

GhostBus scores 71 out of 100 on VerifyMCP. We found no known CVEs affecting it as of 5 November 2026. It declares no install or post-install scripts. Its build provenance is signed and verified. That is a record of what we were able to check automatically, not an endorsement. The category breakdown on this page shows every signal behind the number, including the ones we could not confirm.

### What tools does the GhostBus MCP server expose?

GhostBus exposes 29 tools: bus_status, bus_register, bus_rotate_token, bus_heartbeat, bus_search, and 24 more. Their descriptions and schemas cost roughly 1,219 tokens of context every time the server is loaded.

### Is the GhostBus MCP server still maintained?

GhostBus is still listed as active in the MCP registry. We last reached this channel on 5 November 2026. Those dates come from our own scans of the registry and the channel itself, not from anything the publisher announced.

### What licence is the GhostBus MCP server under?

GhostBus declares the MIT licence, which is OSI-approved. That covers the source only, and says nothing about the cost of any service it calls.

## Links

- npm package: https://www.npmjs.com/package/ghostbus
- Socket report: https://socket.dev/npm/package/ghostbus
- Repository: https://github.com/littlestjames82-sys/ghostbus
- Changelog RSS feed: https://verifymcp.io/servers/littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus/ghostbus.xml
- Changelog JSON feed: https://verifymcp.io/servers/littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus/ghostbus.json
- HTML version of this page: https://verifymcp.io/servers/littlestjames82-sys-ghostbus/ghostbus