latexmk-mcp

A Model Context Protocol server that exposes latexmk tooling as MCP tools, allowing any MCP-compatible client or agent to compile, check, clean, and inspect LaTeX documents.

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• latexmk on $PATH — bundled with most TeX distributions (TeX Live, MiKTeX)
• A TeX distribution with the engines and packages your project requires

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install latexmk texlive-full

# macOS
brew install --cask mactex

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S texlive

Usage

Simply add this to your MCP client configuration:

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

The example above applies for clients such as Gemini CLI, Claude Desktop, etc. The -y flag is omittable for brevity, but is best kept in for unexpected scenarios. Additionally, some tools allow you to add MCP servers imperatively:

codex mcp add latexmk -- npx -y latexmk-mcp

Global install via npm

Alternatively, you can install the package globally and invoke it directly without npx:

npm install -g latexmk-mcp
which latexmk-mcp  # note the absolute path

Then point your MCP client at the resolved binary using node:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "latexmk": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/node/vX.Y.Z/bin/latexmk-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Development

bun install
bun test
bun run build
node dist/index.js

Tools

latexmk_compile

Full compile of a LaTeX document with configurable engine, output format, bibliography processor, and latexmk flags.

| Parameter | Type | Default | Description | | --------------- | -------------------------------------------- | ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | | tex_content | string | — | Raw LaTeX source (mutually exclusive with file_path) | | file_path | string | — | Path to existing .tex file | | output_format | pdf\|dvi\|ps\|xdv | pdf | Target format | | engine | pdflatex\|xelatex\|lualatex\|latex\|pdftex | pdflatex | TeX engine | | bibtex | bibtex\|biber\|none | none | Bibliography processor | | shell_escape | boolean | false | Enable --shell-escape | | synctex | boolean | false | Generate SyncTeX data | | extra_args | string[] | [] | Extra latexmk CLI flags | | working_dir | string | temp dir | Build directory | | return_pdf | boolean | false | Return compiled PDF as base64 when building PDF output |

Returns: success, exit_code, output_file, page_count, structured errors[], structured warnings[], missing_packages[], install_hints[], working_dir, stdout, stderr, and optional pdf_base64.

latexmk_draft_compile

Fast single-pass compile (no reruns, no bibliography) — ideal for quick syntax/error checks while editing.

| Parameter | Type | Default | Description | | ------------- | ------ | ---------- | ------------------- | | tex_content | string | — | Raw LaTeX source | | file_path | string | — | Path to .tex file | | engine | string | pdflatex | TeX engine | | working_dir | string | temp dir | Build directory |

Returns: success, structured errors[], structured warnings[], missing_packages[], install_hints[], stdout, stderr.

latexmk_clean

Remove build artifacts using latexmk -c (auxiliaries only) or latexmk -C (auxiliaries + output files).

| Parameter | Type | Default | Description | | ------------- | ------- | ------------ | ------------------------- | | working_dir | string | required | Directory to clean | | job_name | string | — | Clean a specific job only | | clean_all | boolean | false | -C instead of -c |

latexmk_check

Detect whether latexmk is installed and which TeX engines are available on the system.

Returns: latexmk_available, latexmk_version, latexmk_path, engines_available map.

latexmk_list_dependencies

List all file dependencies of a document (included .tex files, .bib files, packages, images…) via latexmk -deps.

| Parameter | Type | Description | | ------------- | ------ | ------------------- | | tex_content | string | Raw LaTeX source | | file_path | string | Path to .tex file | | working_dir | string | Working directory |

Returns: dependencies[] (deduplicated list of file paths).

latexmk_watch_start / latexmk_watch_stop / latexmk_watch_list

Manage background latexmk -pvc watch sessions. Start returns a session_id; stop terminates it; list shows active sessions with PID, job name, and start time.

latexmk_write_config / latexmk_read_config

Write or inspect .latexmkrc files. The write tool can set engine, output mode, shell escape, extra pdflatex args, and custom Perl rules.

latexmk_list_citations

Extract citation keys from LaTeX source and optionally compare them to a .bib file.

Returns: cited_keys[], cited_count, and when bib_path is provided, bib_entries[], missing_from_bib[], and unused_in_bib[].

License

MIT