File Format Converter (Pandoc) MCP server

The MCP Pandoc server provides document format conversion capabilities through the Model Context Protocol. It allows you to seamlessly transform content between various formats like Markdown, HTML, PDF, DOCX, and more while preserving structure and formatting.

Installation

Option 1: Configure Claude Desktop Manually

To add the MCP Pandoc server to Claude Desktop, you'll need to edit the configuration file:

• MacOS: Open the config file with:

  open ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
  

• Windows: Edit the config file at:

  %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
  

Add the following configuration to the file:

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

Option 2: Automatic Installation via Smithery

For a more streamlined installation, you can use Smithery:

npx -y @smithery/cli install mcp-pandoc --client claude

Critical Requirements

PDF Conversion Prerequisites

Before attempting PDF conversion, you must install TeX Live:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install texlive-xetex

# macOS
brew install texlive

# Windows
# Install MiKTeX or TeX Live from:
# https://miktex.org/ or https://tug.org/texlive/

Usage

Document Conversion Tool

The primary tool provided is convert-contents, which transforms content between supported formats.

Supported Formats

Basic formats (direct conversion):

• Plain text (.txt)
• Markdown (.md)
• HTML (.html)

Advanced formats (requires complete file paths):

• PDF (.pdf) - requires TeX Live installation
• DOCX (.docx)
• RST (.rst)
• LaTeX (.tex)
• EPUB (.epub)

Input Parameters

• contents (string): Source content to convert (required if input_file not provided)
• input_file (string): Complete path to input file (required if contents not provided)
• input_format (string): Source format of the content (defaults to markdown)
• output_format (string): Target format (defaults to markdown)
• output_file (string): Complete path for output file (required for pdf, docx, rst, latex, epub formats)

Examples

Converting Text Content

Convert this markdown to HTML:

# My Document
This is a **bold** statement with *italics*.

- Item 1
- Item 2

Converting Between File Formats

Convert /Users/me/Documents/report.md to PDF and save as /Users/me/Documents/report.pdf

Important Usage Notes

1. File Path Requirements

   • When saving or converting files, you MUST provide complete file paths including filename and extension
   • The tool does not automatically generate filenames or extensions

2. Format-Specific Requirements

   • For advanced formats (PDF, DOCX, RST, LaTeX, EPUB), an output file path is required
   • When no output path is specified:
     • Basic formats: Displays converted content in the chat
     • Advanced formats: May save in system temp directory

Troubleshooting

Common Issues and Solutions

1. PDF Conversion Fails

   • Error: "xelatex not found"
   • Solution: Install TeX Live first (see installation commands above)

2. File Conversion Fails

   • Error: "Invalid file path"
   • Solution: Provide complete path including filename and extension

3. Format Conversion Fails

   • Error: "Unsupported format"
   • Solution: Use only supported formats listed above

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.