Foxit PDF API MCP Server

Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that exposes Foxit Cloud PDF API operations as tools for AI agents like Claude Desktop, Cursor, and other MCP-compatible applications.

Features

30+ PDF Operations Available:

• 📄 Document Lifecycle - Upload, download, delete documents
• 🔄 PDF Creation - Convert Word, Excel, PPT, HTML, URL, text, images to PDF
• 📤 PDF Conversion - Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PPT, HTML, text, images
• ✂️ Manipulation - Split, extract, flatten, compress, manipulate pages
• 🔒 Security - Add/remove passwords, set permissions
• 🎨 Enhancement - Merge, watermark, linearize PDFs
• 🔍 Analysis - Get properties, compare PDFs, etc.

Quick Start

1. Get API Credentials

Sign up at Foxit Developer Portal to get your:

• Client ID
• Client Secret

2. Set Environment Variables

The server reads API credentials from environment variables:

| Variable | Description | Default | | ------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- | | FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_ID | Your Foxit API client ID | (required) | | FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_SECRET | Your Foxit API client secret | (required) | | FOXIT_CLOUD_API_HOST | Foxit API base URL | https://na1.fusion.foxit.com/pdf-services | | FOXIT_CLOUD_API_BASE_URL | Alias for FOXIT_CLOUD_API_HOST (takes priority) | — |

export FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_ID="your_client_id"
export FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_SECRET="your_client_secret"
# Optional — override the default API host:
# export FOXIT_CLOUD_API_HOST="https://na1.fusion.foxit.com/pdf-services"

3. Run the Server

The server supports two transport types: stdio (default) and HTTP stream. Choose based on how your MCP client connects.

Using npx (no installation needed)

# stdio transport (default) — for Claude Desktop, VS Code, Cursor, etc.
npx @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport stdio

# HTTP stream transport — for web-based clients or remote access
npx @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport httpStream --port 8080

Using node (after global install or from source)

# Install globally
npm install -g @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server

# Run with stdio transport
foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport stdio

# Run with HTTP stream transport
foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport httpStream --port 8080

CLI Options

| Option | Description | Default | | --------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------- | --------- | | --transport <stdio\|httpStream> | Transport type | stdio | | --host <host> | HTTP stream bind address | 0.0.0.0 | | --port <port> | HTTP stream port | 8080 | | --endpoint <path> | HTTP stream endpoint path | /mcp | | --stateless | Enable stateless HTTP stream mode | false | | --enable-json-response | Enable JSON response mode for HTTP stream | false | | --ssl-cert <path> | Path to SSL certificate | — | | --ssl-key <path> | Path to SSL private key | — | | --ssl-ca <path> | Path to SSL CA bundle | — | | -h, --help | Show help | — |

HTTP stream env var defaults: SERVER_HOST and SERVER_PORT override the built-in defaults for --host and --port.

Run npx @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --help to see all options.

Verifying the HTTP Server

When running with --transport httpStream, the server exposes a health check endpoint:

# Start the server
npx @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport httpStream --port 8080

# In another terminal, verify it's running
curl http://localhost:8080/healthz
# → "healthy"

The MCP endpoint is available at http://localhost:8080/mcp by default.

Integration

Claude Desktop

Claude Desktop uses stdio transport — it spawns the server as a child process.

Add to your Claude Desktop config file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "foxit-pdf": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server",
        "--transport",
        "stdio"
      ],
      "env": {
        "FOXIT_CLOUD_API_HOST": "https://na1.fusion.foxit.com/pdf-services",
        "FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_ID": "your_client_id",
        "FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_SECRET": "your_client_secret"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop. The PDF tools will appear in the tools menu.

Tip: The --transport stdio flag is optional (stdio is the default), but including it makes the config self-documenting.

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

VS Code has native MCP support via .vscode/mcp.json. Both stdio and HTTP stream transports are supported.

Option A: stdio transport (recommended for local use)

Create a .vscode/mcp.json file in your workspace root:

{
  "servers": {
    "foxit-pdf": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server",
        "--transport",
        "stdio"
      ],
      "env": {
        "FOXIT_CLOUD_API_HOST": "https://na1.fusion.foxit.com/pdf-services",
        "FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_ID": "your_client_id",
        "FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_SECRET": "your_client_secret"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option B: HTTP stream transport (for shared/remote servers)

First, start the server in a terminal:

npx @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport httpStream --port 8080

Then create a .vscode/mcp.json file in your workspace root:

{
  "servers": {
    "foxit-pdf": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "http://localhost:8080/mcp"
    }
  }
}

After saving the file, VS Code will prompt you to approve the MCP server. Once approved, the Foxit PDF tools will be available in Copilot Chat.

Note: You can also configure MCP servers via the VS Code Command Palette → Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON) → chat.mcp.discovery.enabled and the MCP view in the sidebar.

Other MCP Clients

For any MCP-compatible client (Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, etc.), configure the server using one of these patterns:

stdio transport (client spawns the server):

• Command: npx
• Args: ["-y", "@foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server", "--transport", "stdio"]
• Environment: Set FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_ID, FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_SECRET, and optionally FOXIT_CLOUD_API_HOST

HTTP stream transport (connect to a running server):

• URL: http://localhost:8080/mcp (or wherever the server is running)
• Start the server first with npx @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --transport httpStream --port 8080

Usage Examples

Converting Documents to PDF

Ask your AI assistant:

"Convert my Word document report.docx to PDF"

The agent will:

1. Upload the document
2. Convert it to PDF
3. Download the result
4. Clean up temporary files

Merging PDFs

"Merge chapter1.pdf, chapter2.pdf, and chapter3.pdf into one document"

Adding Watermarks

"Add a watermark 'CONFIDENTIAL' to my PDF document"

Converting PDF to Other Formats

"Convert this PDF to a Word document so I can edit it"

Available Tools

The server exposes 35+ tools organized by category:

Document Management

• upload_document - Upload files for processing
• download_document - Download processed documents
• delete_document - Remove uploaded documents
• create_share_link - Generate a temporary share link for a document
• get_task_result - Poll the status of an async operation and retrieve the result

PDF Creation (to PDF)

• pdf_from_word - Word → PDF
• pdf_from_excel - Excel → PDF
• pdf_from_ppt - PowerPoint → PDF
• pdf_from_html - HTML → PDF
• pdf_from_url - Web page → PDF
• pdf_from_text - Plain text → PDF
• pdf_from_image - Images → PDF

PDF Conversion (from PDF)

• pdf_to_word - PDF → Word
• pdf_to_excel - PDF → Excel
• pdf_to_ppt - PDF → PowerPoint
• pdf_to_html - PDF → HTML
• pdf_to_text - PDF → Plain text
• pdf_to_image - PDF → Images

PDF Operations

• pdf_merge - Combine multiple PDFs
• pdf_split - Split PDF by page count
• pdf_extract_pages - Extract selected pages into a new PDF
• pdf_extract_text - Extract plain text from selected pages
• pdf_compress - Reduce file size
• pdf_flatten - Flatten form fields and annotations
• pdf_manipulate - Apply batch page operations (rotate, delete, reorder)
• pdf_delete_pages - Delete specific pages
• pdf_rotate_pages - Rotate specific pages
• pdf_reorder_pages - Reorder pages

Security

• pdf_protect - Add password protection
• pdf_remove_password - Remove password protection

Enhancement

• pdf_watermark - Add text/image watermarks
• pdf_linearize - Optimize for web viewing

Analysis & Forms

• pdf_compare - Compare two PDFs
• export_pdf_form_data - Extract form field values as JSON
• import_pdf_form_data - Fill form fields from a JSON object
• get_pdf_properties - Retrieve PDF metadata

Async model: Most PDF operations return a taskId immediately. Use get_task_result to poll for completion and retrieve the download link. Tools that complete synchronously (e.g., pdf_protect, form tools) return the result directly.

Troubleshooting

Server Not Starting

• Ensure FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_ID and FOXIT_CLOUD_API_CLIENT_SECRET are set in your MCP client config
• Verify your API credentials at Foxit Developer Portal
• Check that npx can access the npm registry (try npx -y @foxitsoftware/foxit-pdf-api-mcp-server --version)

Tools Not Appearing

• Restart your MCP client (Claude Desktop, etc.) after configuration changes
• Check the client logs for connection errors
• Ensure the -y flag is included in npx args to auto-accept installation

API Errors

• Ensure your API credentials are valid and not expired
• Check your API usage quota at the developer portal
• Verify the API host URL is correct for your region

Development

See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup, architecture details, and contribution guidelines.

License

MIT

Links

• Foxit Cloud PDF API Documentation
• Report Issues
• Model Context Protocol
• Claude Desktop