IACR Cryptology ePrint Archive MCP server

The IACR Cryptology ePrint Archive MCP server provides a programmatic interface to access cryptographic research papers from the IACR archive. It allows you to search papers, retrieve metadata, and access research publications securely through a Model Context Protocol implementation.

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v16+)
• npm or yarn

Installation

Installing via Smithery

To install the IACR MCP server automatically using Smithery:

npx -y @smithery/cli install iacr-mcp-server --client claude

Manual Installation

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/iacr-mcp-server.git
cd iacr-mcp-server
npm install

Configuration

No additional configuration is required. The server automatically uses the IACR ePrint Archive's RSS feed for data retrieval.

Usage

The server provides two main tools that you can utilize:

Search Papers

Use the search_papers tool to find papers matching specific criteria:

{
  "query": "lattice cryptography",
  "year": "2023",
  "max_results": 10
}

Parameters:

• query: Search term (required)
• year: Publication year (optional)
• max_results: Maximum number of results (default: 20)

Get Paper Details

Retrieve comprehensive information about a specific paper using the get_paper_details tool:

{
  "paper_id": "2023/123"
}

Parameters:

• paper_id: Unique paper identifier (required)

Example Usage Workflow

1. Search for papers related to a topic:

   • Use search_papers with a query like "post-quantum cryptography"
   • Review the list of returned papers

2. Get detailed information about a specific paper:

   • Note the paper_id from search results
   • Use get_paper_details with that paper_id
   • Access the complete metadata, abstract, and publication details

How to add this MCP server to Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > MCP and click "Add new global MCP server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "cursor-rules-mcp": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "cursor-rules-mcp"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explictly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.