v1.7.3 release notes

Release Date: 2025-12-17

Release Type: Minor Release (Documentation)

Overview

Version 1.7.3 is a comprehensive documentation release that adds reference documentation for 11 security tools and complete v2.0.0 integration planning. This release lays the groundwork for the upcoming Phase 3 (Maturity) with 80-120 new MCP tools planned from 8 external security tool projects.

Key Highlights

Reference Documentation: 12 new files (~312KB) documenting 11 security tools
v2.0.0 Integration Planning: 30 comprehensive planning documents (~23,600 lines)
Phase/Sprint Breakdown: 4 phases, 12 sprints, 24-week development timeline
Tool Integration Strategies: 8 per-tool integration plans
Technical Guides: 4 implementation guides for algorithm porting and tool registration

Changes by Category

Reference Documentation (docs/reference/)

A comprehensive documentation library for security tools relevant to CyberChef MCP’s v2.0.0 expansion.

New Files (12 total, ~312KB)

File	Description
`README.md`	Master index with categorized tool listings
`ares.md`	Automated decoding and cipher identification
`ciphey.md`	AI-powered auto-decode tool and algorithms
`cryptii.md`	Modular encoding/decoding system
`cyberchef-recipes.md`	Community recipe collection and patterns
`cyberchef-server.md`	Alternative CyberChef server implementations
`cyberchef-upstream.md`	Upstream GCHQ/CyberChef documentation
`john-the-ripper.md`	Password cracking and hash identification
`katana.md`	CTF automation and flag hunting
`pwntools.md`	Binary exploitation and CTF toolkit
`rsactftool.md`	RSA attack collection and factorization
`xortool.md`	XOR analysis and key recovery

Documentation Structure

Each reference document includes:

Project overview and purpose
Key features and capabilities
Installation instructions
Usage examples
Integration notes for CyberChef MCP
Relevant algorithms and techniques

External Project Integration Planning (docs/planning/ext-proj-int/)

Complete planning documentation for integrating 80-120 new MCP tools from external security projects.

Overview Documents (2 files)

README.md - Navigation and quick reference
overview.md - Integration strategy, architecture, and timeline

Phase Plans (4 files)

Phase	File	Focus	Duration
1	`phase-1-foundation.md`	Tool registry infrastructure, testing framework	6 weeks
2	`phase-2-js-native.md`	JavaScript native integrations (cryptii, recipes, pwntools)	6 weeks
3	`phase-3-algorithm-port.md`	Algorithm ports (ciphey, xortool, rsactftool)	6 weeks
4	`phase-4-advanced.md`	Advanced integrations (john, workflows, v2.0.0 release)	6 weeks

Sprint Plans (12 files)

Phase 1 Sprints:

sprint-1.1-tool-registry.md - Tool registry and configuration infrastructure
sprint-1.2-testing-framework.md - Testing framework extensions

Phase 2 Sprints:

sprint-2.1-cryptii-integration.md - cryptii.js modular encoding system
sprint-2.2-recipes-presets.md - Community recipe presets
sprint-2.3-pwntools-binary.md - Binary utilities from pwntools

Phase 3 Sprints:

sprint-3.1-ciphey-autodecode.md - Ciphey auto-decode algorithms
sprint-3.2-xortool-analysis.md - XOR key analysis tools
sprint-3.3-rsactftool-factorization.md - RSA factorization attacks
sprint-3.4-katana-patterns.md - CTF pattern detection

Phase 4 Sprints:

sprint-4.1-john-hash-id.md - John the Ripper hash identification
sprint-4.2-composite-workflows.md - Multi-tool workflow compositions
sprint-4.3-documentation-release.md - Documentation and v2.0.0 release

Tool Integration Plans (8 files)

File	Target Tools	Estimated MCP Tools
`ciphey-integration.md`	Auto-decode engine	8-12 tools
`cryptii-integration.md`	Modular encoding	15-25 tools
`john-integration.md`	Hash identification	5-8 tools
`katana-integration.md`	CTF patterns	8-12 tools
`pwntools-integration.md`	Binary utilities	10-15 tools
`recipes-integration.md`	Recipe presets	20-30 tools
`rsactftool-integration.md`	RSA attacks	10-15 tools
`xortool-integration.md`	XOR analysis	4-6 tools

Technical Guides (4 files)

tool-registration.md - How to register new MCP tools
algorithm-porting.md - Guidelines for porting Python/C algorithms to JavaScript
testing-strategy.md - Test requirements and coverage expectations
dependencies.md - Dependency management and security guidelines

README and Documentation Updates

README.md Changes

Added “v2.0.0 Integration Planning” section linking to ext-proj-int docs
Added “Reference Documentation” section linking to security tool references
Enhanced Roadmap section with v2.0.0 planning summary
Updated Phase 2 status to “v1.7.3 Released”
Added v1.7.3 release notes link to documentation section

Version Updates

package.json: mcpVersion 1.7.2 -> 1.7.3
src/node/mcp-server.mjs: VERSION “1.7.2” -> “1.7.3”
CLAUDE.md: Updated version and project description
tests/mcp/mcp-server.test.mjs: Updated version expectation
tests/mcp/server-integration.test.mjs: Updated version expectation

File Inventory

Documentation Files Added (42 new files)

Reference Documentation (12 files)

docs/reference/
├── README.md
├── ares.md
├── ciphey.md
├── cryptii.md
├── cyberchef-recipes.md
├── cyberchef-server.md
├── cyberchef-upstream.md
├── john-the-ripper.md
├── katana.md
├── pwntools.md
├── rsactftool.md
└── xortool.md

Integration Planning (30 files)

docs/planning/ext-proj-int/
├── README.md
├── overview.md
├── phases/
│   ├── phase-1-foundation.md
│   ├── phase-2-js-native.md
│   ├── phase-3-algorithm-port.md
│   └── phase-4-advanced.md
├── sprints/
│   ├── sprint-1.1-tool-registry.md
│   ├── sprint-1.2-testing-framework.md
│   ├── sprint-2.1-cryptii-integration.md
│   ├── sprint-2.2-recipes-presets.md
│   ├── sprint-2.3-pwntools-binary.md
│   ├── sprint-3.1-ciphey-autodecode.md
│   ├── sprint-3.2-xortool-analysis.md
│   ├── sprint-3.3-rsactftool-factorization.md
│   ├── sprint-3.4-katana-patterns.md
│   ├── sprint-4.1-john-hash-id.md
│   ├── sprint-4.2-composite-workflows.md
│   └── sprint-4.3-documentation-release.md
├── technical/
│   ├── algorithm-porting.md
│   ├── dependencies.md
│   ├── testing-strategy.md
│   └── tool-registration.md
└── tools/
    ├── ciphey-integration.md
    ├── cryptii-integration.md
    ├── john-integration.md
    ├── katana-integration.md
    ├── pwntools-integration.md
    ├── recipes-integration.md
    ├── rsactftool-integration.md
    └── xortool-integration.md

Files Modified (7 files)

CHANGELOG.md - Added v1.7.3 section
CLAUDE.md - Updated version references
README.md - Added documentation sections, updated roadmap
package.json - mcpVersion bump
src/node/mcp-server.mjs - VERSION constant update
tests/mcp/mcp-server.test.mjs - Version expectation update
tests/mcp/server-integration.test.mjs - Version expectation update

Upgrade Guide

From v1.7.2 to v1.7.3

No breaking changes. This is a drop-in replacement.

Docker Users

# Pull new version from GHCR
docker pull ghcr.io/doublegate/cyberchef-mcp_v1:v1.7.3
docker tag ghcr.io/doublegate/cyberchef-mcp_v1:v1.7.3 cyberchef-mcp

# Or from Docker Hub
docker pull doublegate/cyberchef-mcp:latest
docker tag doublegate/cyberchef-mcp:latest cyberchef-mcp

# Or download offline tarball from releases
wget https://github.com/doublegate/CyberChef-MCP/releases/download/v1.7.3/cyberchef-mcp-v1.7.3-docker-image.tar.gz
docker load < cyberchef-mcp-v1.7.3-docker-image.tar.gz

Source Build Users

cd CyberChef-MCP
git pull origin master
git checkout v1.7.3
npm install
npx grunt configTests
npm run mcp

No configuration changes required. All existing environment variables and settings remain compatible.

Testing

Test Execution

# Run all MCP server tests
npm run test:mcp

# Run with coverage report
npm run test:coverage

Validation Results

493 tests passing (all)
All coverage thresholds met (70% lines/functions, 65% branches)
ESLint: Zero errors
Docker build: Successful
MCP protocol compliance: Verified

Known Issues

None identified in this release.

This is a documentation-only release with no functional changes.

Migration Notes

For Documentation Consumers

New reference documentation is available at docs/reference/
v2.0.0 planning documentation is at docs/planning/ext-proj-int/
Both are linked from the main README.md

For v2.0.0 Contributors

The integration planning provides:

Sprint-level task breakdowns
Per-tool integration strategies
Technical implementation guides
Testing requirements and coverage expectations

v2.0.0 Preview

This release completes the planning phase for v2.0.0, which will add 80-120 new MCP tools:

Target Capabilities

Category	Source	New Tools
Auto-Decode	Ciphey, ares	15-20
Encoding	cryptii	15-25
Binary Analysis	pwntools	10-15
Cryptanalysis	xortool, RsaCtfTool	15-20
Hash Analysis	John the Ripper	5-8
CTF Automation	katana	8-12
Recipe Presets	cyberchef-recipes	20-30

Timeline

Phase 1 (Sprints 1.1-1.2): Foundation - 6 weeks
Phase 2 (Sprints 2.1-2.3): JavaScript Native - 6 weeks
Phase 3 (Sprints 3.1-3.4): Algorithm Ports - 6 weeks
Phase 4 (Sprints 4.1-4.3): Advanced + Release - 6 weeks
Total: 24 weeks to v2.0.0

Contributors

Release Manager: DoubleGate (doublegate@pm.me)

AI Assistance: Claude Opus 4.5 (Anthropic)

Next Steps

v1.8.0 (Planned Q3 2026): API stabilization and preparation for external tool integration

v2.0.0 (Planned Q3 2026): Major release with 80-120 new tools from external projects

See Roadmap for full release schedule through v3.0.0 (Q3 2027).

Feedback

Found an issue or have suggestions? Please:

Bug Reports: https://github.com/doublegate/CyberChef-MCP/issues
Security Vulnerabilities: See SECURITY.md for responsible disclosure
Feature Requests: Check roadmap first, then open an issue

Thank you for using CyberChef MCP Server!