Puppeteer MCP Server

This MCP server provides browser automation capabilities through Puppeteer, allowing interaction with both new browser instances and existing Chrome windows.

Acknowledgment

This project is an experimental implementation inspired by @modelcontextprotocol/server-puppeteer. While it shares similar goals and concepts, it explores alternative approaches to browser automation through the Model Context Protocol.

Features

• Navigate web pages
• Take screenshots
• Click elements
• Fill forms
• Select options
• Hover elements
• Execute JavaScript
• Smart Chrome tab management:
  • Connect to active Chrome tabs
  • Preserve existing Chrome instances
  • Intelligent connection handling

Project Structure

/
├── src/
│   ├── config/        # Configuration modules
│   ├── tools/         # Tool definitions and handlers
│   ├── browser/       # Browser connection management
│   ├── types/         # TypeScript type definitions
│   ├── resources/     # Resource handlers
│   └── server.ts      # Server initialization
├── index.ts          # Entry point
└── README.md        # Documentation

Installation

Option 1: Install from npm

npm install -g puppeteer-mcp-server

You can also run it directly without installation using npx:

npx puppeteer-mcp-server

Option 2: Install from source

1. Clone this repository or download the source code

2. Install dependencies:

npm install

3. Build the project:

npm run build

4. Run the server:

npm start

MCP Server Configuration

To use this tool with Claude, you need to add it to your MCP settings configuration file.

For Claude Desktop App

Add the following to your Claude Desktop configuration file (located at `%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json` on Windows or `~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json` on macOS):

If installed globally via npm:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer": {
      "command": "puppeteer-mcp-server",
      "args": [],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Using npx (without installation):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "puppeteer-mcp-server"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

If installed from source:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["path/to/puppeteer-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "NODE_OPTIONS": "--experimental-modules"
      }
    }
  }
}

For Claude VSCode Extension

Add the following to your Claude VSCode extension MCP settings file (located at `%APPDATA%\Code\User\globalStorage\saoudrizwan.claude-dev\settings\cline_mcp_settings.json` on Windows or `~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/globalStorage/saoudrizwan.claude-dev/settings/cline_mcp_settings.json` on macOS):

If installed globally via npm:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer": {
      "command": "puppeteer-mcp-server",
      "args": [],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Using npx (without installation):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "puppeteer-mcp-server"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

If installed from source:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["path/to/puppeteer-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "NODE_OPTIONS": "--experimental-modules"
      }
    }
  }
}

For source installation, replace `path/to/puppeteer-mcp-server` with the actual path to where you installed this tool.

Usage

Standard Mode

The server will launch a new browser instance by default.

Active Tab Mode

To connect to an existing Chrome window:

1. Close any existing Chrome instances completely

2. Launch Chrome with remote debugging enabled:

# Windows
   "C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe" --remote-debugging-port=9222

   # macOS
   /Applications/Google\ Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google\ Chrome --remote-debugging-port=9222

   # Linux
   google-chrome --remote-debugging-port=9222

3. Navigate to your desired webpage in Chrome

4. Connect using the `puppeteer_connect_active_tab` tool:

{
     "targetUrl": "https://example.com", // Optional: specific tab URL
     "debugPort": 9222 // Optional: defaults to 9222
   }

The server will:

• Detect and connect to the Chrome instance running with remote debugging enabled
• Preserve your Chrome instance (won't close it)
• Find and connect to non-extension tabs
• Provide clear error messages if connection fails

Available Tools

puppeteer_connect_active_tab

Connect to an existing Chrome instance with remote debugging enabled.

• Optional:
  • `targetUrl` - URL of the specific tab to connect to
  • `debugPort` - Chrome debugging port (default: 9222)

puppeteer_navigate

Navigate to a URL.

• Required: `url` - The URL to navigate to

puppeteer_screenshot

Take a screenshot of the current page or a specific element.

• Required: `name` - Name for the screenshot
• Optional:
  • `selector` - CSS selector for element to screenshot
  • `width` - Width in pixels (default: 800)
  • `height` - Height in pixels (default: 600)

puppeteer_click

Click an element on the page.

• Required: `selector` - CSS selector for element to click

puppeteer_fill

Fill out an input field.

• Required:
  • `selector` - CSS selector for input field
  • `value` - Text to enter

puppeteer_select

Use dropdown menus.

• Required:
  • `selector` - CSS selector for select element
  • `value` - Option value to select

puppeteer_hover

Hover over elements.

• Required: `selector` - CSS selector for element to hover

puppeteer_evaluate

Execute JavaScript in the browser console.

• Required: `script` - JavaScript code to execute

Security Considerations

When using remote debugging:

• Only enable on trusted networks
• Use a unique debugging port
• Close debugging port when not in use
• Never expose debugging port to public networks

Logging and Debugging

File-based Logging

The server implements comprehensive logging using Winston:

• Location: `logs/` directory
• File Pattern: `mcp-puppeteer-YYYY-MM-DD.log`
• Log Rotation:
  • Daily rotation
  • Maximum size: 20MB per file
  • Retention: 14 days
  • Automatic compression of old logs

Log Levels

• DEBUG: Detailed debugging information
• INFO: General operational information
• WARN: Warning messages
• ERROR: Error events and exceptions

Logged Information

• Server startup/shutdown events
• Browser operations (launch, connect, close)
• Navigation attempts and results
• Tool executions and outcomes
• Error details with stack traces
• Browser console output
• Resource usage (screenshots, console logs)

Error Handling

The server provides detailed error messages for:

• Connection failures
• Missing elements
• Invalid selectors
• JavaScript execution errors
• Screenshot failures

Each tool call returns:

• Success/failure status
• Detailed error message if failed
• Operation result data if successful

All errors are also logged to the log files with:

• Timestamp
• Error message
• Stack trace (when available)
• Context information

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please read our Contributing Guidelines for details on how to submit pull requests, report issues, and contribute to the project.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.