md-server
Converts documents, webpages, and media files into markdown for AI assistants using Microsoft's MarkItDown and Crawl4AI. It enables tools to read PDFs, Office files, and JavaScript-rendered websites with support for OCR and image extraction.
README
md-server
Convert any document, webpage, or media file to markdown. Works as an HTTP API or directly with AI tools via MCP.
md-server converts files, URLs, or raw content into markdown. It automatically detects input types, handles everything from PDFs and Office documents, YouTube videos, images, to web pages with JavaScript rendering, and requires zero configuration to get started.
Two ways to use it:
- HTTP API — REST API to convert documents and websites to markdown
- MCP Server — Local MCP Server for integration with AI tools (OpenCode, Claude Desktop, Cursor, custom agents)
Under the hood, it uses Microsoft's MarkItDown for document conversion and Crawl4AI for intelligent web scraping.
HTTP API
Prerequisites:
- uv
- (Optional) Install browser for JavaScript-rendered pages:
uvx playwright install --with-deps chromium
# Starts server at localhost:8080
uvx md-server
# Convert a file
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert --data-binary @document.pdf
# Convert a URL
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"url": "https://example.com"}'
# Convert HTML text
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"text": "<h1>Title</h1><p>Content</p>", "mime_type": "text/html"}'
MCP Server for AI Assistants
md-server runs as a local MCP server, giving AI assistants like Claude Desktop, Cursor, Copilot, and OpenCode the ability to read documents and web pages directly.
Prerequisites:
- uv
- (Optional) Install browser for JavaScript-rendered pages:
uvx playwright install --with-deps chromium
Add to your MCP configuration:
{
"mcpServers": {
"md-server": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": ["md-server[mcp]", "--mcp-stdio"]
}
}
}
The first run downloads dependencies and may take a minute.
Once configured, your AI gets the read_resource tool:
- Fetch web pages, articles, documentation, online PDFs via URL
- Read uploaded documents (PDF, DOCX, XLSX, PPTX, images with OCR)
- Supports token-based truncation and markdown-aware sectioning
See MCP Guide for all options and troubleshooting.
HTTP API Server Installation
For MCP server setup (AI tools), see MCP Server above.
Using uvx (Recommended)
uvx md-server
Using Docker
The Docker image includes browser support for JavaScript rendering.
docker run -p 127.0.0.1:8080:8080 ghcr.io/peteretelej/md-server
- Memory: 1GB recommended (minimum 512MB)
- Storage: ~1.2GB image size
API
POST /convert
Single endpoint that accepts multiple input types and automatically detects what you're sending.
Input Methods
# Binary file upload
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert --data-binary @document.pdf
# Multipart form upload
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert -F "file=@presentation.pptx"
# URL conversion
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"url": "https://example.com"}'
# Base64 content
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"content": "base64_encoded_file_here", "filename": "report.docx"}'
# Raw text
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"text": "# Already Markdown\n\nBut might need cleaning"}'
# Text with specific format (HTML, XML, etc.)
curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"text": "<h1>HTML Title</h1><p>Convert HTML to markdown</p>", "mime_type": "text/html"}'
Response Format
{
"success": true,
"markdown": "# Converted Content\n\nYour markdown here...",
"metadata": {
"source_type": "pdf",
"source_size": 102400,
"markdown_size": 8192,
"conversion_time_ms": 245,
"detected_format": "application/pdf"
},
"request_id": "req_550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000"
}
Options
{
"url": "https://example.com",
"options": {
"js_rendering": true, // Use headless browser for JavaScript sites
"extract_images": true, // Extract and link images
"ocr_enabled": true, // OCR for scanned PDFs/images
"preserve_formatting": true // Keep complex formatting
}
}
GET /formats
Returns supported formats and capabilities.
curl localhost:8080/formats
GET /health
Health check endpoint.
curl localhost:8080/health
Supported Formats
Documents: PDF, DOCX, XLSX, PPTX, ODT, ODS, ODP Web: HTML, URLs (with JavaScript rendering) Images: PNG, JPG, JPEG (with OCR) Audio: MP3, WAV (transcription) — requires ffmpeg Video: YouTube URLs Text: TXT, MD, CSV, XML, JSON
Advanced Usage
JavaScript-Rendered Pages
Docker includes browser support out of the box.
Local installations use MarkItDown for URL conversion by default. To read pages that require JavaScript (SPAs, dashboards, interactive apps):
uvx playwright install --with-deps chromium
When a browser is available, md-server automatically uses Crawl4AI for these pages.
Pipe from Other Commands
# Convert HTML from stdin
echo "<h1>Hello</h1>" | curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
--data-binary @- \
-H "Content-Type: text/html"
# Chain with other tools
pdftotext document.pdf - | curl -X POST localhost:8080/convert \
--data-binary @-
Python SDK
pip install md-server[sdk]
from md_server.sdk import MDConverter
converter = MDConverter(ocr_enabled=True, js_rendering=True)
# Async
result = await converter.convert_file('document.pdf')
result = await converter.convert_url('https://example.com')
print(result.markdown)
# Sync
result = converter.convert_file_sync('document.pdf')
For remote API usage and advanced patterns, see the Python SDK documentation.
Error Handling
Errors include actionable information:
{
"success": false,
"error": {
"code": "UNSUPPORTED_FORMAT",
"message": "File format not supported",
"details": {
"detected_format": "application/x-rar",
"supported_formats": ["pdf", "docx", "html", "..."]
}
},
"request_id": "req_550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000"
}
Documentation
Full documentation is available in the docs directory:
- API Reference - HTTP endpoints, options, and responses
- MCP Guide - Claude Desktop, Cursor, and AI tool setup
- Python SDK - Library usage for Python applications
- Configuration - Environment variables reference
- Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions
Development
See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup, testing, and contribution guidelines.
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