Document Generation MCP Server

A comprehensive Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for generating professional documents (PDF, DOCX, HTML) using Pandoc. This server enables iterative document building with support for books, reports, articles, and letters.

Features

• Document Types: Support for books, reports, articles, and letters
• Iterative Building: Create and refine documents over multiple interactions
• Automatic Numbering: Sequential numbering for chapters, sections, figures, and tables
• Export Formats: PDF, DOCX, and HTML output via Pandoc
• File-based Storage: Transparent storage using markdown and YAML files
• Comprehensive Toolset: 18 tools for complete document management

Prerequisites

• Go 1.21 or later
• Pandoc (for document export)

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/gomcpgo/docgen
cd docgen

2. Build the server:

./run.sh build

3. Set up environment variables:

export DOCGEN_ROOT_DIR="/path/to/your/documents"
export PANDOC_PATH="pandoc"  # optional, defaults to "pandoc"

Configuration

The server is configured via environment variables:

Variable	Required	Default	Description
DOCGEN_ROOT_DIR	Yes	-	Root directory for document storage
PANDOC_PATH	No	pandoc	Path to pandoc executable
DOCGEN_DEFAULT_STYLE	No	-	Path to default style template
DOCGEN_MAX_DOCUMENTS	No	100	Maximum number of documents
DOCGEN_MAX_FILE_SIZE	No	10MB	Maximum file size for uploads
DOCGEN_EXPORT_TIMEOUT	No	300s	Export operation timeout

Usage

Running the Server

# Run the MCP server
./bin/docgen

# Show version information
./bin/docgen -version

# Run integration tests (temporary files deleted after)
./bin/docgen -test

# Run integration tests and keep generated files for inspection
./bin/docgen -test -keep-files

Document Structure

Each document is stored in the following structure:

DOCGEN_ROOT_DIR/
├── exports/                # Exported documents (PDF, DOCX, HTML)
│   ├── document1.pdf
│   └── document2.docx
├── DocumentID/
│   ├── manifest.yaml       # Document metadata and structure
│   ├── style.yaml         # Document-specific styling
│   ├── pandoc-config.yaml # Pandoc settings
│   ├── chapters/
│   │   ├── 01/
│   │   │   ├── chapter.md    # Chapter content
│   │   │   └── metadata.yaml # Chapter metadata
│   │   └── 02/
│   │       ├── chapter.md
│   │       └── metadata.yaml
│   └── assets/
│       └── images/
│           ├── fig-1.1.png   # Numbered figures
│           └── fig-2.3.png
└── AnotherDocumentID/
    └── ...

Available Tools

Document Management

• create_document - Create a new document
• get_document_structure - Get complete document structure
• delete_document - Remove a document
• configure_document - Update document styling and settings

Chapter Operations

• add_chapter - Add a new chapter
• get_chapter - Retrieve chapter content
• update_chapter_metadata - Update chapter title/metadata
• delete_chapter - Remove a chapter (with automatic renumbering)
• move_chapter - Reorder chapters

Content Operations

• add_section - Add sections to chapters
• update_section - Modify section content
• delete_section - Remove sections

Asset Management

• add_image - Add figures with captions
• update_image_caption - Modify figure captions
• delete_image - Remove figures (with automatic renumbering)

Export Operations

• export_document - Export to PDF/DOCX/HTML
• preview_chapter - Generate single chapter previews
• validate_document - Check document integrity

Examples

Creating a Book

{
  "name": "create_document",
  "arguments": {
    "title": "My Technical Book",
    "author": "John Doe",
    "type": "book"
  }
}

Adding a Chapter

{
  "name": "add_chapter",
  "arguments": {
    "document_id": "my-technical-book-123456",
    "title": "Introduction to the Topic"
  }
}

Exporting to PDF

{
  "name": "export_document",
  "arguments": {
    "document_id": "my-technical-book-123456",
    "format": "pdf"
  }
}

Integration Tests

The server includes comprehensive integration tests that create sample documents and test all major functionality:

# Run tests (files cleaned up automatically)
./bin/docgen -test

# Run tests and keep generated files for inspection
./bin/docgen -test -keep-files

This will:

1. Create sample book and report documents
2. Add chapters with realistic content
3. Test document configuration
4. Export to PDF (if Pandoc is available)
5. Validate document integrity
6. Test chapter management operations

When using -keep-files, the generated documents and PDF exports are preserved in a temporary directory for manual inspection.

Development

Building

# Build the server
./run.sh build

# Run tests
./run.sh test

# Run integration tests
./run.sh integration-test

# Clean build artifacts
./run.sh clean

Project Structure

docgen/
├── cmd/
│   └── main.go              # MCP server entry point
├── pkg/
│   ├── types/               # Core data structures
│   ├── config/              # Configuration management
│   ├── storage/             # File system operations
│   ├── document/            # Document management logic
│   ├── export/              # Pandoc export functionality
│   └── handler/             # MCP tool handlers
├── test/
│   └── integration_test.go  # End-to-end tests
└── README.md

Architecture

The server follows clean architecture principles:

• Types: Core data structures and domain models
• Storage: File system abstraction layer
• Document Manager: High-level document operations
• Export: Pandoc integration and document generation
• Handler: MCP protocol implementation

Pandoc Integration

The server uses Pandoc for professional document generation with support for:

• Multiple output formats (PDF, DOCX, HTML)
• Table of contents generation
• Cross-references and citations
• Custom styling and templates
• Professional typography

Security

• All operations are restricted to the configured root directory
• Input validation prevents directory traversal attacks
• File size limits prevent resource exhaustion
• No arbitrary code execution

Limitations (MVP)

• Single user/agent access only
• No version control or change tracking
• Basic error recovery
• Images only for assets (no data files)
• Markdown tables only
• No collaborative editing

Building

# Build the server
go build -o bin/docgen cmd/main.go

# Or use the run script
./run.sh build

License

MIT License

Contributing

Pull requests welcome. Please ensure:

• Tests pass (./run.sh test)
• Integration tests pass (./run.sh integration-test)
• New features include documentation
• Code follows project style