High Risk →

locate_device

Trigger locate LED on a UniFi device.

How to control locate_device ↓

What locate_device does on UniFi MCP

AI agents invoke locate_device to trigger actions in UniFi MCP. What it does depends on the arguments the agent supplies, and its effects often reach beyond the immediate call — builds kicked off, notifications sent, workflows started.

High Risk

Why locate_device needs a policy

This tool triggers a physical action on a device (activating the locate/LED flash), which is an external operation with side effects. It does not read data, write persistent data, or destroy anything, but it does execute a command on a physical device. The blast radius is very low as it only causes an LED to blink.

From the tool's definition Trigger locate LED on a UniFi device

Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access locate_device gives an agent:

How to control locate_device

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and UniFi MCP, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for locate_device:

policy.json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "locate_device": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "locate_device_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 10,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

locate_device stays usable, but rate-capped — a runaway agent can't fire it dozens of times a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

  1. Create a free account and register UniFi MCP — nothing to install.
  2. Add this policy — paste it, or build it visually.
  3. Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.
RATE-LIMIT THIS TOOL →

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Related tools and policies

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Questions about locate_device

What does the locate_device tool do? +

Trigger locate LED on a UniFi device. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the UniFi MCP MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.

How do I enforce a policy on locate_device? +

Register the UniFi MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for locate_device: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches UniFi MCP. Nothing to install.

What risk level is locate_device? +

locate_device is a Execute tool with high risk. Execute tools should be rate-limited and have argument validation enabled.

Can I rate-limit locate_device? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the locate_device rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.

How do I block locate_device completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for locate_device. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.

What MCP server provides locate_device? +

locate_device is provided by the UniFi MCP server (jmagar/unifi-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every UniFi MCP tool call.

Start from UniFi MCP, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.

Free to start. No card required.

29 UniFi MCP tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.

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