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FFMPEG MCP Server

Provides an MCP interface to run common FFmpeg operations via a stdio server.

Installation

Add the following to your MCP client configuration file.

Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "egoist-ffmpeg-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "ffmpeg-mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "FFMPEG_PATH": "use to specify the exact FFmpeg binary path"
      }
    }
  }
}

ffmpeg-mcp provides a stdio MCP server that lets you interact with FFmpeg through a structured MCP interface. It enables common media operations by running FFmpeg on your system while you issue commands via an MCP client, making media processing easier and automatable.

How to use

You use this MCP server by starting it from your MCP client. Ensure FFmpeg is installed on your system first. By default, the server uses the FFmpeg binary found on your system PATH. You can override this by setting the FFMPEG_PATH environment variable to the full path of your FFmpeg binary.

npx -y ffmpeg-mcp

How to install

Prerequisites you need before running the MCP server: Node.js and npm/npx, and FFmpeg installed on your system. You do not need to install additional dependencies if you rely on npx to fetch and run the server.

node -v
npm -v
ffmpeg -version

Then start the MCP server using the following command. It will run the server without a global install, using the FFmpeg binary found on your PATH by default.

npx -y ffmpeg-mcp

If you need to point the server to a specific FFmpeg binary, set the environment variable FFMPEG_PATH to the full path of that binary before starting the server.

export FFMPEG_PATH=/path/to/ffmpeg
# or on Windows:
# set FFMPEG_PATH=C:\path\to\ffmpeg.exe
npx -y ffmpeg-mcp

Notes and tips

- The MCP server operates as a local stdio endpoint. Use the npx command shown above to launch it, and then connect with an MCP client to issue FFmpeg-related operations.

- If you prefer not to rely on the system PATH, set FFMPEG_PATH to the exact location of the FFmpeg binary, and the server will use that binary instead.

Security and environment

Only expose this MCP server within trusted environments. Do not run with elevated privileges unless necessary, and ensure network access to the MCP client is controlled if you publish the server in a shared environment.