Overleaf MCP Server

An MCP server focused only on Overleaf projects (via Overleaf Git sync).

What This Server Does

• Connects MCP-compatible clients to your Overleaf project through Git sync.
• Exposes file-level tools to list, read, write, and sync project content.
• Keeps workflow simple: pull latest files, edit, then push back to Overleaf.

Architecture

flowchart LR
  C[MCP Client\nClaude Desktop / other MCP host] -->|Tool Call| S[Overleaf MCP Server]
  S -->|Git Sync| O[Overleaf Git Remote]
  S -->|Read / Write| L[Local Repo Mirror]
  L -->|Commit + Push| O
  O -->|Pull / Fetch| L
  S -->|Tool Result| C

Tool Workflow

sequenceDiagram
  participant Client as MCP Client
  participant Server as Overleaf MCP Server
  participant Local as Local Mirror
  participant Overleaf as Overleaf Git

  Client->>Server: list_files / read_file
  Server->>Local: Ensure local clone
  Server->>Overleaf: git pull
  Overleaf-->>Server: latest content
  Server-->>Client: file list / file content

  Client->>Server: write_file(path, content)
  Server->>Local: update file
  Server->>Local: git commit
  Server->>Overleaf: git push
  Server-->>Client: success + metadata

Quick Start

git clone https://github.com/younesbensafia/overleaf-mcp-server.git
cd overleaf-mcp-server

uv sync

# Configure environment
cp .env.example .env
# then edit .env with your token/project id

PYTHONPATH=. uv run src/main.py

If you are running from an activated virtual environment, you can also use:

PYTHONPATH=. python src/main.py

Environment

.env example:

OVERLEAF_TOKEN=your_git_token
PROJECT_ID=your_project_id

Notes:

• OVERLEAF_TOKEN is required.
• project_id can be passed per tool call, or use default PROJECT_ID.
• Overleaf Git access requires a plan that supports Git integration.

Available Tools

Tool	Description
list_files	Pull and list files from Overleaf project
read_file	Read file content
write_file	Update file, commit, and push to Overleaf
sync_project	Force a pull/sync from Overleaf

Claude Desktop Setup

Add to ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "overleaf": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": ["--directory", "/path/to/overleaf-mcp-server", "run", "src/main.py"],
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": ".",
        "OVERLEAF_TOKEN": "your_git_token",
        "PROJECT_ID": "your_project_id"
      }
    }
  }
}

Troubleshooting

• Authentication fails:
  • Confirm OVERLEAF_TOKEN is valid and has Git access.
  • Re-check your Overleaf subscription supports Git integration.
• Wrong project content:
  • Set the correct PROJECT_ID in .env.
  • Or pass project_id explicitly in tool calls.
• Sync conflicts:
  • Run sync_project before write_file if the remote changed.
• Server not starting:
  • Ensure dependencies are installed with uv sync.
  • Verify Python 3.13+ is available.

Requirements

• Python 3.13+
• uv package manager

License

MIT - See LICENSE