Directus MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides comprehensive tools for managing Directus schema and content. This server enables AI assistants and other MCP clients to interact with Directus instances programmatically.

Installation

From npm (once published)

npm install -g directus-mcp-server

From source

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/directus-mcp.git
cd directus-mcp
npm install
npm run build

Features

• Schema Management: Create, read, update, and delete collections, fields, and relations
• Content Management: Full CRUD operations on items with advanced querying
• Type Safety: Built with TypeScript and Zod validation
• Official SDK: Uses the official @directus/sdk for reliable API interactions
• Flexible Authentication: Supports both static tokens and email/password authentication

Installation

npm install

Configuration

Create a .env file in the root directory with your Directus configuration:

# Directus Instance URL
DIRECTUS_URL=https://your-directus-instance.com

# Authentication - Use either token OR email/password
DIRECTUS_TOKEN=your_static_token_here

# Alternative: Email/Password authentication
# DIRECTUS_EMAIL=admin@example.com
# DIRECTUS_PASSWORD=your_password

Authentication Options

1. Static Token (Recommended for production):

   • Generate a static token in Directus Admin App
   • Set DIRECTUS_TOKEN environment variable

2. Email/Password:

   • Use for development or when static tokens aren't available
   • Set DIRECTUS_EMAIL and DIRECTUS_PASSWORD environment variables

Toolset Configuration

The Directus MCP server organizes tools into logical toolsets, similar to GitHub's MCP implementation. This allows you to control which tools are exposed to the MCP client.

Available Toolsets:

• default - Contains collections, fields, relations, and content tools (default behavior when no toolset is specified)
• collections - Collection management tools (list, get, create, update, delete collections)
• fields - Field management tools (list, create, update, delete fields)
• relations - Relation management tools (list, create, delete relations)
• schema - Schema snapshot and diff tools (get snapshot, get diff, apply diff) - NOT included in default toolset
• content - Content management tools (items CRUD operations)
• flow - Flow management tools (workflow automation) - NOT included in default toolset
• dashboards - Dashboard and panel management tools (list, get, create, update, delete dashboards and panels) - NOT included in default toolset
• all - All available tools regardless of toolset membership

Default Behavior: When MCP_TOOLSETS is not set or empty, only tools in the default toolset are exposed. The default toolset contains collections, fields, relations, and content tools, but not schema, flow, or dashboard tools. Schema, flow, and dashboard tools must be explicitly requested by including schema, flow, or dashboards in the MCP_TOOLSETS environment variable.

Configuration: Set the MCP_TOOLSETS environment variable to a comma-separated list of toolsets:

# Expose only collections tools
MCP_TOOLSETS=collections

# Expose only schema snapshot/diff tools
MCP_TOOLSETS=schema

# Expose collections and fields tools
MCP_TOOLSETS=collections,fields

# Expose only dashboard and panel tools
MCP_TOOLSETS=dashboards

# Expose all schema-related toolsets
MCP_TOOLSETS=collections,fields,relations,schema

# Expose all toolsets (includes flow and dashboard tools)
MCP_TOOLSETS=default,flow,dashboards
# OR
MCP_TOOLSETS=collections,fields,relations,schema,content,flow,dashboards
# OR simply use 'all' to expose everything
MCP_TOOLSETS=all

Examples:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "directus-schema": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/directus-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "DIRECTUS_URL": "https://your-directus-instance.com",
        "DIRECTUS_TOKEN": "your_token",
        "MCP_TOOLSETS": "schema"
      }
    },
    "directus-content": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/directus-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "DIRECTUS_URL": "https://your-directus-instance.com",
        "DIRECTUS_TOKEN": "your_token",
        "MCP_TOOLSETS": "content"
      }
    }
  }
}

Notes:

• Toolset names are case-insensitive
• Invalid toolset names are ignored (with a warning)
• If all requested toolsets are invalid, the server defaults to the default toolset
• Collections, fields, relations, and content tools belong to both default and their specific toolset
• Schema, flow, and dashboard tools belong ONLY to their respective toolsets (not in default)

Building

npm run build

Usage

Running the Server

npm start

Or use the built binary:

node dist/index.js

MCP Client Configuration

Add to your MCP client configuration (e.g., Claude Desktop, Cline):

Option 1: Using npx (recommended - no installation needed):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "directus": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "directus-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "DIRECTUS_URL": "https://your-directus-instance.com",
        "DIRECTUS_TOKEN": "your_static_token_here",
        "MCP_TOOLSETS": "default"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option 2: Using global installation:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "directus": {
      "command": "directus-mcp",
      "env": {
        "DIRECTUS_URL": "https://your-directus-instance.com",
        "DIRECTUS_TOKEN": "your_static_token_here",
        "MCP_TOOLSETS": "default"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option 3: Using local source:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "directus": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/directus-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "DIRECTUS_URL": "https://your-directus-instance.com",
        "DIRECTUS_TOKEN": "your_static_token_here",
        "MCP_TOOLSETS": "default"
      }
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

Schema Management Tools

list_collections

List all collections in the Directus instance.

Parameters: None

Example:

{}

get_collection

Get detailed information about a specific collection.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles"
}

create_collection

Create a new collection (database table) with optional fields. This automatically creates a proper database table, not just a folder.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• meta (object, optional): Collection metadata (icon, note, singleton, etc.)
• schema (object, optional): Database schema configuration (automatically set if not provided)
• fields (array, optional): Initial fields to create

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "meta": {
    "icon": "article",
    "note": "Blog articles collection"
  },
  "fields": [
    {
      "field": "id",
      "type": "integer",
      "schema": {
        "is_primary_key": true,
        "has_auto_increment": true
      }
    },
    {
      "field": "title",
      "type": "string",
      "meta": {
        "required": true
      }
    },
    {
      "field": "status",
      "type": "string",
      "meta": {
        "interface": "select-dropdown",
        "options": {
          "choices": [
            {"text": "Draft", "value": "draft"},
            {"text": "Published", "value": "published"}
          ]
        }
      }
    }
  ]
}

update_collection

Update collection metadata.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• meta (object): Metadata to update

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "meta": {
    "icon": "article",
    "note": "Updated description"
  }
}

delete_collection

Delete a collection and all its data.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles"
}

list_fields

List all fields in a collection.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles"
}

create_field

Add a new field to a collection.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• field (string): Field name
• type (string): Field type (string, integer, text, boolean, json, uuid, timestamp, etc.)
• meta (object, optional): Field metadata
• schema (object, optional): Database schema configuration

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "field": "author",
  "type": "uuid",
  "meta": {
    "interface": "select-dropdown-m2o",
    "required": true,
    "special": ["m2o"]
  }
}

update_field

Update field properties.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• field (string): Field name
• type (string, optional): Field type
• meta (object, optional): Metadata to update
• schema (object, optional): Schema to update

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "field": "title",
  "meta": {
    "note": "Article title (required)"
  }
}

delete_field

Remove a field from a collection.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• field (string): Field name

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "field": "old_field"
}

list_relations

List all relations in the Directus instance.

Parameters: None

Example:

{}

create_relation

Create a relation between collections.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Many collection (with foreign key)
• field (string): Field name in many collection
• related_collection (string, optional): One collection
• meta (object, optional): Relation metadata
• schema (object, optional): Database relation configuration

Example (Many-to-One):

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "field": "author",
  "related_collection": "users",
  "schema": {
    "on_delete": "SET NULL"
  }
}

Example (One-to-Many):

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "field": "author",
  "related_collection": "users",
  "meta": {
    "one_field": "articles"
  }
}

delete_relation

Delete a relation.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• field (string): Field name

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "field": "author"
}

Content Management Tools

query_items

Query items with filtering, sorting, and pagination.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• fields (array, optional): Fields to return
• filter (object, optional): Filter criteria
• search (string, optional): Search query
• sort (array, optional): Sort fields (prefix with - for descending)
• limit (number, optional): Maximum items to return
• offset (number, optional): Items to skip
• page (number, optional): Page number
• aggregate (object, optional): Aggregation functions
• groupBy (array, optional): Group by fields
• deep (object, optional): Deep relational queries

Filter Operators: _eq, _neq, _lt, _lte, _gt, _gte, _in, _nin, _null, _nnull, _contains, _ncontains, _starts_with, _nstarts_with, _ends_with, _nends_with, _between, _nbetween

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "filter": {
    "status": {"_eq": "published"},
    "date_created": {"_gte": "2024-01-01"}
  },
  "sort": ["-date_created"],
  "limit": 10
}

get_item

Get a single item by ID.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• id (string|number): Item ID
• fields (array, optional): Fields to return
• deep (object, optional): Deep relational queries

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "id": 1,
  "fields": ["id", "title", "status", "author.first_name"]
}

create_item

Create a new item.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• data (object): Item data

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "data": {
    "title": "My New Article",
    "status": "draft",
    "body": "Article content here...",
    "author": "user-uuid-here"
  }
}

update_item

Update an existing item.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• id (string|number): Item ID
• data (object): Fields to update

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "id": 1,
  "data": {
    "status": "published"
  }
}

delete_item

Delete an item.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• id (string|number): Item ID

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "id": 1
}

bulk_create_items

Create multiple items at once.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• items (array): Array of item data objects

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "items": [
    {"title": "Article 1", "status": "draft"},
    {"title": "Article 2", "status": "draft"}
  ]
}

bulk_update_items

Update multiple items at once.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• items (array): Array of items with id and fields to update

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "items": [
    {"id": 1, "status": "published"},
    {"id": 2, "status": "published"}
  ]
}

bulk_delete_items

Delete multiple items at once.

Parameters:

• collection (string): Collection name
• ids (array): Array of item IDs

Example:

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "ids": [1, 2, 3]
}

Common Use Cases

Setting up a new content model

1. Create a collection with create_collection
2. Add fields with create_field
3. Create relations with create_relation
4. Start adding content with create_item

Querying content with relations

{
  "collection": "articles",
  "fields": ["*", "author.first_name", "author.last_name"],
  "filter": {"status": {"_eq": "published"}},
  "sort": ["-date_created"],
  "limit": 10
}

Bulk operations

Use bulk_create_items, bulk_update_items, or bulk_delete_items for efficient batch operations.

Development

# Watch mode for development
npm run dev

# Build for production
npm run build

Tool Authoring

This project provides utilities to streamline MCP tool development and reduce code duplication:

Tool Helpers

Use createTool for tools that return data, and createActionTool for tools that perform actions:

import { createTool, createActionTool } from './tools/tool-helpers.js';

// Data-returning tool
const myTool = createTool({
  name: 'my_tool',
  description: 'Description of what the tool does',
  inputSchema: MySchema,
  toolsets: ['default', 'my-category'],
  handler: async (client, args) => client.someMethod(args)
});

// Action tool (returns success message)
const myActionTool = createActionTool({
  name: 'delete_something',
  description: 'Delete something',
  inputSchema: DeleteSchema,
  toolsets: ['default'],
  handler: async (client, args) => client.deleteMethod(args.id),
  successMessage: (args) => `Successfully deleted item ${args.id}`
});

Shared Validators

Common Zod schemas are available in src/tools/validators.ts:

• CollectionNameSchema - For collection names
• ItemIdSchema - For item IDs (string | number)
• FieldsSchema - For field arrays
• FilterSchema - For Directus filter objects
• Query parameter schemas (SortSchema, LimitSchema, etc.)
• Flow-related schemas (FlowTriggerSchema, FlowStatusSchema, etc.)

Example usage:

import { CollectionNameSchema, ItemIdSchema } from './tools/validators.js';

const MyToolSchema = z.object({
  collection: CollectionNameSchema,
  id: ItemIdSchema,
  // ... other fields
});

Directus Client Resource Factory

The client uses a resource factory pattern for consistent CRUD operations. When adding new Directus resources, define them in the client constructor using createResourceMethods().

Error Handling

All tools include error handling and will return descriptive error messages for:

• Authentication failures
• Invalid parameters
• API errors
• Network issues
• Validation errors

License

MIT

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.