Go · Model Context Protocol server
Open-source GitLab MCP server that exposes 850+ GitLab actions (1,000+ on Enterprise) to AI assistants through a dynamic 2-tool find/execute design, with stdio/HTTP/OAuth transports and safe & read-only modes.
Profile
The engineer behind the notebook.
I'm José Manuel — a firmware and software engineer based in Valencia, Spain, with an R&D background. Day to day I'm programming across a range of languages, building and maintaining open-source projects, and keeping up with what's new in software and the open-source world.
I came to engineering from acoustics and instrumentation — a degree in Telecommunication Engineering and a Master's in Acoustical Engineering, followed by predoctoral research at the UPV on ultrasound and acoustic metamaterials, before redirecting toward software. I still gravitate to problems that sit where signal, system and software meet.
Most recently I built industrial embedded firmware in C on STM32 and FreeRTOS for solar inverters and storage — low-level optimization, industrial communications (Modbus) and hardware test automation. The open-source projects I maintain are used by developers worldwide, and I care about doing the work with engineering rigor and a focus on quality.
This site is my notebook: what I learn I write down, what I build I publish.
I build
- Embedded firmware (C, STM32, FreeRTOS)
- Industrial comms & test automation (Modbus)
- MCP servers & tooling in Go
- Self-hosted infrastructure & security
I write about
- Firmware & low level
- Networking (MikroTik, nginx)
- Homelab & security (CSP)
- Acoustics & DSP
Say hi
- git · github.com/jmrplens
- mail ·
- cv · /cv
Featured open source
Python · DSP · Acoustics
Standards-conformant acoustics library: sound level metrology, psychoacoustics, room, building, environmental and underwater acoustics, vibration, electroacoustics and wave simulation — every method implemented from the standard, with 429 CI-enforced conformance checks across 279 standards. Formerly PyOctaveBand.
Go · Firewall · MikroTik · WAF
CrowdSec bouncer for MikroTik RouterOS: feeds the collaborative IPS/WAF CrowdSec decisions into the RouterOS firewall (address lists) through its API, blocking malicious IPs in real time.
LaTeX · Academic template
LaTeX template for Bachelor's and Master's theses at the University of Alicante (EPS), with an automated CI build pipeline.
Education
- 2019–2023Predoctoral research — Health & Wellness Technologies UPV · i3M / UMIL Acoustic metamaterials & ultrasound imaging; redirected to industry.
- 2019Master's in Acoustical Engineering UPV · EPSG Gandia Graduated with honors; thesis with special distinction.
- 2018Degree in Telecommunication Engineering (Sound & Image) University of Alicante Acoustic Engineering + Audiovisual Technology.
// EDITORIAL & CORRECTIONS
Everything published here comes from work actually done: commands run on real hardware and real servers, configuration quoted from systems that are running it, and, where a guide depends on a specific software version, that version stated in the article. Claims that are not mine to make — protocol behavior, cryptographic properties, vendor defaults — are checked against primary sources (RFCs, standards bodies, vendor documentation) and cited, and links are re-checked automatically in CI, except for a documented list of domains that reject automated checkers.
Each post carries an AI-assistance disclosure, so here is exactly what it means. AI tools help with drafting, structure, copy-editing and the Spanish translation. They do not decide what is true: every command, configuration snippet and measurement is executed and verified by me before it ships, and nothing is published straight from a model's output. The Spanish version is a translation of the same verified material, not a separately generated article.
If something here is wrong, tell me. A short email with the article and the problem is enough — no account, no form. Vulnerability reports have their own channel and PGP key in security.txt.
Corrections are made in the article itself rather than in a comment thread. A fix that changes the technical substance updates the article's revision date, which is shown on the page and in its structured data, and the change is noted in the article so a returning reader can see what moved. Typos are simply fixed. The full edit history of this site is public in its repository.