[FEATURE]: OS service management - systemd, launchd, and Windows service support

[crivetimihai]

Summary

Implement OS-level service management for ContextForge, enabling it to run as a managed system service with proper lifecycle management (start, stop, restart, enable, disable).

Motivation

Currently, ContextForge must be started manually or via container orchestration. For bare-metal or VM deployments, users need proper OS integration to:

• Auto-start on boot
• Graceful shutdown handling
• Service health monitoring
• Log integration with system journals
• Standard service management commands

Proposed Implementation

1. Systemd (Linux)

Create a systemd service unit file (contextforge.service):

• Type=notify or Type=simple with proper readiness signaling
• Socket activation support (optional)
• Hardening options (PrivateTmp, NoNewPrivileges, etc.)
• Proper dependency ordering (After=network-online.target)
• Environment file support (/etc/contextforge/contextforge.env)
• User/group configuration (run as non-root)

2. Launchd (macOS)

Create a launchd plist file (com.contextforge.gateway.plist):

• KeepAlive with proper restart policies
• StandardOutPath/StandardErrorPath for logging
• Environment variables support
• User agent or system daemon options

3. Windows Service (Optional)

Consider pywin32 or NSSM wrapper for Windows service support:

• Service registration and removal
• Start/stop/restart commands
• Event log integration

4. CLI Commands

Extend mcpgateway CLI with service management:

mcpgateway service install    # Install service files
mcpgateway service uninstall  # Remove service files
mcpgateway service start      # Start the service
mcpgateway service stop       # Stop the service
mcpgateway service restart    # Restart the service
mcpgateway service status     # Show service status
mcpgateway service enable     # Enable auto-start on boot
mcpgateway service disable    # Disable auto-start on boot
mcpgateway service logs       # Show/tail service logs

5. Installation Scripts

• scripts/install-service.sh for Linux/macOS
• scripts/install-service.ps1 for Windows (if supported)
• Makefile targets: make install-service, make uninstall-service

Configuration

Service configuration via environment or config file:

# /etc/contextforge/contextforge.env
MCPGATEWAY_USER=contextforge
MCPGATEWAY_GROUP=contextforge
MCPGATEWAY_WORKDIR=/var/lib/contextforge
MCPGATEWAY_CONFIG=/etc/contextforge/config.yaml
MCPGATEWAY_PORT=4444

Acceptance Criteria

• Systemd service file with hardening options
• Launchd plist for macOS support
• CLI commands for service lifecycle management
• Installation/uninstallation scripts
• Documentation for service deployment
• Graceful shutdown signal handling (SIGTERM)
• Health check integration for systemd watchdog (optional)
• SELinux/AppArmor policy considerations documented

Related

• Container deployment already handles this via orchestration
• Kubernetes deployment uses native pod lifecycle
• This addresses bare-metal/VM deployment scenarios

Labels

enhancement, devops, deployment