DeepWebResearch MCP server

The MCP Deep Web Research Server is a powerful tool that enhances Claude with real-time web research capabilities, intelligent search queuing, and advanced content extraction. This server follows the Model Context Protocol to seamlessly integrate with Claude Desktop, allowing for comprehensive online research without leaving your chat interface.

Installation

Via Smithery

The easiest way to install is through Smithery:

npx -y @smithery/cli install @PedroDnT/mcp-deepwebresearch --client claude

Global Installation (Recommended)

# Install globally using npm
npm install -g mcp-deepwebresearch

# Or using yarn
yarn global add mcp-deepwebresearch

# Or using pnpm
pnpm add -g mcp-deepwebresearch

Local Project Installation

# Using npm
npm install mcp-deepwebresearch

# Using yarn
yarn add mcp-deepwebresearch

# Using pnpm
pnpm add mcp-deepwebresearch

Required Browser Dependencies

After installation, run this command to install required browser dependencies:

npx playwright install chromium

Claude Desktop Integration

You'll need to add an entry to your Claude Desktop configuration file:

Windows Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "deepwebresearch": {
      "command": "mcp-deepwebresearch",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Location: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

macOS Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "deepwebresearch": {
      "command": "mcp-deepwebresearch",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Location: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Usage

Simply start a chat with Claude and use prompts that would benefit from web research. For an optimized experience, you can use the built-in agentic-research prompt by clicking the Paperclip icon in the chat input and then selecting Choose an integration → deepwebresearch → agentic-research.

Available Tools

deep_research

Performs comprehensive research with content analysis:

// Arguments
{
  topic: string;
  maxDepth?: number;      // default: 2
  maxBranching?: number;  // default: 3
  timeout?: number;       // default: 55000 (55 seconds)
  minRelevanceScore?: number;  // default: 0.7
}

// Returns
{
  findings: {
    mainTopics: Array<{name: string, importance: number}>;
    keyInsights: Array<{text: string, confidence: number}>;
    sources: Array<{url: string, credibilityScore: number}>;
  };
  progress: {
    completedSteps: number;
    totalSteps: number;
    processedUrls: number;
  };
  timing: { /* timing information */ };
}

parallel_search

Performs multiple Google searches in parallel with intelligent queuing:

// Arguments
{ 
  queries: string[],
  maxParallel?: number  // Limited to 5 to ensure reliability
}

visit_page

Visit a specific webpage and extract its content:

// Arguments
{ url: string }

// Returns
{
  url: string;
  title: string;
  content: string;  // Markdown formatted content
}

Configuration Options

The server can be configured through environment variables:

• MAX_PARALLEL_SEARCHES: Maximum number of concurrent searches (default: 5)
• SEARCH_DELAY_MS: Delay between searches in milliseconds (default: 200)
• MAX_RETRIES: Number of retry attempts for failed requests (default: 3)
• TIMEOUT_MS: Request timeout in milliseconds (default: 55000)
• LOG_LEVEL: Logging level (default: 'info')

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Rate Limiting

• Symptom: "Too many requests" error
• Solution: Increase SEARCH_DELAY_MS or decrease MAX_PARALLEL_SEARCHES

Network Timeouts

• Symptom: "Request timed out" error
• Solution: Ensure requests complete within the 60-second MCP timeout

Browser Issues

• Symptom: "Browser failed to launch" error
• Solution: Ensure Playwright is properly installed (npx playwright install)

Checking Logs

View Claude Desktop's MCP logs:

# On macOS
tail -n 20 -f ~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp*.log

# On Windows
Get-Content -Path "$env:APPDATA\Claude\logs\mcp*.log" -Tail 20 -Wait

Enable Debug Logging

export LOG_LEVEL=debug

Supported Platforms

• ✅ macOS
• ✅ Windows
• ❓ Linux (not verified)

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.