LimeSurvey MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that exposes LimeSurvey Remote API functionality as MCP tools. This server provides a standardized way to interact with LimeSurvey's powerful survey management capabilities through MCP clients.

Table of Contents

• Installation
• Configuration
• Usage
• API Reference
  • Survey Management
  • Question Management
  • Response Management
  • Participant Management
  • Statistics Management
• Development
• License

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/TonisOrmisson/limesurvey-mcp.git
cd limesurvey-mcp

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

# Start the server
npm start

Configuration

Create a `.env` file in the root directory with the following variables:

# LimeSurvey Remote API Settings
LIMESURVEY_API_URL=https://your-limesurvey-instance.com/admin/remotecontrol
LIMESURVEY_USERNAME=your_username
LIMESURVEY_PASSWORD=your_password

# Server settings
PORT=3000
ENABLE_SSE=false

# Optional: run in read‑only mode
# When true, all write tools short‑circuit and return an error message
# instead of calling LimeSurvey.
READONLY_MODE=false

Usage

Once the server is running, you can use any MCP client to connect to it and access LimeSurvey functionality.

By default the server starts with `stdio` only. Set `ENABLE_SSE=true` when you need the HTTP/SSE transport on `/sse` and `/messages`, for example when the MCP server runs remotely instead of being spawned locally by the client.

Headless survey construction (addSurvey → groups → questions)

You can build a survey without the LimeSurvey admin UI by combining write tools:

1. `addSurvey` — create an inactive survey; note the returned survey ID (`sid`).

2. `addGroup` — create one or more question groups; each call returns a group ID (`gid`) for the next step.

3. `importQuestion` — for each question, pass base64-encoded `.lsq` content (export a prototype question once from the UI, or generate compatible XML). Use `importDataType: lsq`.

4. `setSurveyProperties` — welcome text, description, end URL, etc.

5. `activateSurvey` — when the structure is ready.

Idempotent rebuilds: use `deleteQuestion` (per `qid`, with `confirmDeletion: true`) and `deleteGroup` (per survey + `gid`) to tear down a group or individual questions before re-importing `.lsq` templates. Deleting a group removes that group’s content; confirm behaviour on your LimeSurvey version in a dev survey first.

Participant link pattern: `https:///index.php/` (use `sid` from `addSurvey` or `listSurveys`). Tokenised access uses your existing participant tools.

Example MCP client snippet (pseudo‑YAML) to list surveys:

tool: listSurveys
args: {}

API Reference

RemoteControl2 Coverage

The table below shows how LimeSurvey RemoteControl2 methods are exposed as MCP tools

in this server. Methods that are not implemented here are either not available in

the target LimeSurvey instance or intentionally skipped (for example unstable or

undocumented endpoints).

When `READONLY_MODE=true` is set in the environment, all tools marked as “write

(guarded)” above will return a clear error message without calling LimeSurvey.

Survey Management

listSurveys

Lists all surveys that the authenticated user has permission to access.

Parameters: None

Returns:

• Array of survey objects with properties:
  • `sid`: Survey ID
  • `surveyls_title`: Survey title
  • `active`: Whether the survey is active ("Y" or "N")
  • `expires`: Expiration date (if set)
  • `startdate`: Start date (if set)
  • And other survey metadata

Example Response:

[
  {
    "sid": "123456",
    "surveyls_title": "Customer Satisfaction Survey",
    "active": "Y",
    "expires": null,
    "startdate": "2023-01-01 00:00:00"
  },
  {
    "sid": "789012",
    "surveyls_title": "Employee Feedback",
    "active": "N",
    "expires": "2023-12-31 23:59:59",
    "startdate": "2023-06-01 00:00:00"
  }
]

getSurveyProperties

Gets detailed properties of a specific survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey to get properties for

Returns:

• Object containing survey properties including settings, configuration, and metadata

activateSurvey

Activates a survey that is currently inactive.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey to activate

Returns:

• Result of the activation process

getSurveyLanguageProperties

Gets language-specific properties for a survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `language`: The language code

Returns:

• Object containing language-specific properties for the survey

getAvailableLanguages

Gets available languages in the LimeSurvey installation.

Parameters: None

Returns:

• List of available language codes and their names

getSurveyLanguages

Gets available languages for a specific survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey

Returns:

• Array of language codes available for the survey

getQuotaProperties

Gets properties for a specific quota.

This tool wraps the `get_quota_properties` RemoteControl method:

`get_quota_properties($sessionKey, $iQuotaId, $aQuotaSettings = null, $sLanguage = null)`.

Listing all quotas for a survey is not supported via this MCP server.

Parameters:

• `quotaId`: Specific quota ID (required)
• `language` (optional): Language for quota descriptions

Returns:

• Quota information for the given quota ID

addQuota

Adds a new quota to a survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `name`: Quota name
• `limit`: Maximum number of responses for the quota

Returns:

• Result object from LimeSurvey containing the created quota data

setQuotaProperties

Updates properties of an existing quota.

Parameters:

• `quotaId`: The ID of the quota to update
• `properties`: Object with quota fields to update (for example `name`, `limit`, `active`, `action`, `message`, `url`)

Returns:

• Result object describing the updated quota

deleteQuota

Deletes an existing quota.

Parameters:

• `quotaId`: The ID of the quota to delete

Returns:

• Result object indicating whether the quota was deleted successfully

addSurveyLanguage

Adds a new language to a survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `language`: Language code to add (for example `"de"`, `"fr"`)

Returns:

• Result object from LimeSurvey for the language addition

deleteSurveyLanguage

Deletes a language from a survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `language`: Language code to remove

Returns:

• Result object indicating whether the language was deleted

setSurveyLanguageProperties

Sets language‑specific properties for a survey language.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `language` (optional): Language code; omit to target the base language
• `localeData`: Object with locale fields to update (for example `surveyls_title`, `surveyls_description`, `surveyls_welcometext`)

Returns:

• Result object describing the updated language properties

setSurveyProperties

Sets properties for a survey.

This tool wraps the `set_survey_properties` RemoteControl method:

`set_survey_properties($sessionKey, $iSurveyID, $aSurveyData)`. Some fields

(for example `sid`, `active`, `language`, `additional_languages`, and several

fields on active surveys) cannot be changed and will be ignored by LimeSurvey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `properties`: Object of survey fields to update

Returns:

• Result object describing which fields were updated successfully

Question Management

listQuestions

Lists all questions for a specific survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `groupId` (optional): Get only questions from this group
• `language` (optional): Language for question texts

Returns:

• Array of question objects with properties including ID, text, type, and other settings

listQuestionGroups

Lists all question groups for a specific survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `language` (optional): Language for group texts

Returns:

• Array of question group objects with properties including ID, title, description, and order

addGroup

Creates an empty question group on a survey. Wraps RemoteControl `add_group` and returns the new group ID (integer on success), which you pass to `importQuestion` as `groupId`.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: Survey ID
• `title`: Group title
• `description` (optional): Group description; default empty string

importQuestion

Imports a question from base64-encoded `.lsq` data into a group. Same idea as `importSurvey` with `.lss`: prepare templates (e.g. export one question per type from LimeSurvey once), then call this tool repeatedly with different payloads.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`, `groupId`: Target survey and group
• `importData`: Base64-encoded `.lsq` content
• `importDataType`: Must be `lsq` (default)
• `mandatory`: `Y` or `N` (default `N`)
• `newQuestionTitle`, `newQuestionText`, `newQuestionHelp` (optional): Overrides matching RemoteControl optional arguments after import

Returns: New question ID on success (integer), or an error structure from LimeSurvey on failure.

deleteGroup

Removes a question group from a survey. Wraps RemoteControl `delete_group`. Typically deletes questions inside the group as well; verify on your instance.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`, `groupId`: Survey and group to remove
• `confirmDeletion`: Must be `true` (safety guard)

deleteQuestion

Removes one question by `qid`. Wraps RemoteControl `delete_question`. Complex types (e.g. ranking) may use additional rows in `listQuestions` (subquestions); delete or rebuild according to what your export/import cycle produced.

Parameters:

• `questionId`: Question ID to delete
• `confirmDeletion`: Must be `true`

getQuestionProperties

Gets properties for a specific question.

Parameters:

• `questionId`: The ID of the question
• `language` (optional): Language for question texts
• `properties` (optional): Array of property names to retrieve

Returns:

• Object containing the requested properties for the question

setQuestionProperties

Updates writable fields on a question via RemoteControl `set_question_properties`. Discovery first: call `getQuestionProperties` (optionally with a list of setting names) so you only send keys LimeSurvey accepts. The API blocks changes to structural fields such as `qid`, `gid`, `sid`, `parent_qid`, `type`, and `language`.

Common edits

• `question`: Stem text (often HTML).
• `help`: Help text below the stem.
• Pass `language` when updating a non-base survey language.

Ranking questions (type R)

The participant-facing rank labels usually live on subquestion rows (`parent_qid` points at the parent). Update each subquestion’s `question` text with `setQuestionProperties` on that row’s `qid`, or adjust the `.lsq` template and re-import.

List / list-with-comment types

The main prompt is still `question` / `help` on the parent. Answer labels may be separate answer records; if RemoteControl does not expose what you need, prefer editing the `.lsq` template and using `importQuestion` (or admin UI) for choice lists, and use this tool for wording tweaks the API allows.

Response Management

getResponseSummary

Gets summary information about a survey's collected responses.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey

Returns:

• Summary object containing information about response counts and status

listResponseExportFormats

Lists available response export formats globally, including plugin-provided types.

Parameters:

• None

Returns:

• A list of export format objects with:
  • `type`
  • `pluginClass`
  • `label` (nullable)
  • `tooltip` (nullable)
  • `onclick` (nullable)
  • `isDefault` (boolean)

exportResponses

Exports responses from a survey in the specified format.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `documentType`: Export format type (dynamic/plugin-aware). Call `listResponseExportFormats` first - default: "csv"
• `language` (optional): Language for response export
• `completionStatus`: Filter by completion status ('complete', 'incomplete', 'all') - default: "all"
• `headingType`: Type of headings ('code', 'full', 'abbreviated') - default: "code"
• `responseType`: Response type ('short' or 'long') - default: "short"
• `fields` (optional): Array of field names to export

Returns:

• A success summary plus the raw export payload
• For text formats with `decodeOutput: true`, also includes a decoded preview

Discovery-first export workflow

1. Call `listResponseExportFormats` to discover valid `type` values exposed by the current LimeSurvey instance.

2. Pick one returned `type` (for example `csv`, `json`, or a custom plugin format).

3. Call `exportResponses` with that `documentType`.

Example:

tool: listResponseExportFormats
args: {}
---
tool: exportResponses
args:
  surveyId: "123456"
  documentType: "csv"

listResponses

Lists IDs of responses for a specific survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `start`: Starting response index - default: 0
• `limit`: Number of responses to return - default: 10
• `attributes` (optional): Array of attribute names to include

Returns:

• Array of response IDs and requested attributes

Participant Management

addParticipant

Adds a participant to a survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `email`: Participant email address
• `firstName` (optional): First name
• `lastName` (optional): Last name
• `language` (optional): Language code
• `usesLeft`: Number of times the participant can access the survey - default: 1
• `validFrom` (optional): Valid from date (YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm:ss)
• `validUntil` (optional): Valid until date (YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm:ss)

Returns:

• Participant data including the generated token

listParticipants

Lists participants for a specific survey.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `start`: Starting participant index - default: 0
• `limit`: Number of participants to return - default: 10
• `unused`: Only show unused tokens - default: false
• `attributes` (optional): Array of attribute names to include

Returns:

• Array of participant objects with requested attributes

getParticipantProperties

Gets properties of a specific participant/token.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey
• `tokenId`: The token ID
• `attributes` (optional): Array of attribute names to include

Returns:

• Object containing properties for the specified participant

Statistics Management

exportStatistics

Exports survey statistics in PDF, Excel, or HTML format with optional graphs.

Parameters:

• `surveyId`: The ID of the survey to export statistics for
• `documentType`: Format of the export: 'pdf', 'xls', or 'html' - default: "pdf"
• `language` (optional): Language for statistics export (default: survey's default language)
• `includeGraphs`: Whether to include graphs in the export (only applicable for PDF) - default: false
• `groupIds` (optional): Specific question group ID(s) to include in statistics, can be a single ID or array of IDs

Returns:

• Base64 encoded string containing the statistics file in the requested format

Example Usage:

exportStatistics:
  surveyId: "123456"
  documentType: "pdf"
  includeGraphs: true

Development

This project is built using:

• Node.js
• @modelcontextprotocol/sdk - MCP server SDK
• TypeScript - For type safety and modern JavaScript features
• dotenv - For environment variable management
• Axios - For HTTP requests to LimeSurvey Remote API

Building

npm run build

Development Mode

npm run dev

License

MIT