Local Manpage Mcp Server
What is Local Manpage Mcp Server
local-manpage-mcp-server is an MCP server that extracts and exposes the man pages of all executables in your $PATH as MCP resources. Its primary goal is to provide an LLM with direct access to up-to-date documentation for commands installed on the host system.
Use cases
Use cases include enhancing LLM capabilities by providing contextual command information, automating command usage descriptions in applications, and serving as a documentation resource for developers and system administrators.
How to use
To use local-manpage-mcp-server, clone the repository, set up a Python virtual environment, install the required dependencies, and run the server. Additionally, run the create_all_manpage_files tool to generate the necessary MCP resources.
Key features
Key features include the ability to dynamically load man pages from executables in the user’s $PATH, a wrapper tool for compatibility with host applications, and a focus on providing real-time documentation for command-line tools.
Where to use
local-manpage-mcp-server is intended for use in environments where Linux distributions are deployed, particularly for applications that require access to command-line documentation.
Overview
What is Local Manpage Mcp Server
local-manpage-mcp-server is an MCP server that extracts and exposes the man pages of all executables in your $PATH as MCP resources. Its primary goal is to provide an LLM with direct access to up-to-date documentation for commands installed on the host system.
Use cases
Use cases include enhancing LLM capabilities by providing contextual command information, automating command usage descriptions in applications, and serving as a documentation resource for developers and system administrators.
How to use
To use local-manpage-mcp-server, clone the repository, set up a Python virtual environment, install the required dependencies, and run the server. Additionally, run the create_all_manpage_files tool to generate the necessary MCP resources.
Key features
Key features include the ability to dynamically load man pages from executables in the user’s $PATH, a wrapper tool for compatibility with host applications, and a focus on providing real-time documentation for command-line tools.
Where to use
local-manpage-mcp-server is intended for use in environments where Linux distributions are deployed, particularly for applications that require access to command-line documentation.
Content
local-manpage-mcp-server
Submission Demo Video
Summary
local-manpage-mcp-server is an MCP server that extracts and exposes the man pages of all executables in your $PATH as MCP resources. Its primary goal is to give an LLM (or any MCP client) direct access to up-to-date documentation for the commands installed on the host system. This server is intended to run on Linux distributions only (see Disclaimer below).
The create_all_manpage_files tool generates the manpages/ directory where the extracted man pages are stored. These files are then served when an MCP resource is requested. A wrapper tool is also provided in case your host application does not support MCP resources directly.
Disclaimer
Linux Only: This server is designed exclusively for Linux distributions. It relies on the man and col utilities (and a standard $PATH structure) to extract man pages. It has not been tested on macOS, BSD, or Windows, and may not function correctly on those systems.
Permissions: You must have read access to all directories in your $PATH and write permissions for a local manpages/ folder (created automatically).
Resource Limits: Generating man pages for a large number of binaries can be CPU- and disk-intensive.
Argument Safety: The arguments passed to man and col are not sanitized or validated. This could potentially allow command injection if malicious input is provided.
Setup
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/local-manpage-mcp-server.git
cd local-manpage-mcp-server
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
Starting the MCP Server and Inspector
uv run mcp dev server.py
Usage
One goal of this project is to provide a self-explanatory server that exposes usage information as a prompt for your host application. This way, your LLM can describe the workflow automatically.
In addition, you must run the create_all_manpage_files tool to generate the MCP resources based on the commands available on your system. After execution, all relevant man pages should be accessible as MCP resources.
With the Inspector
Discover prompts for yourself
- Go to Prompts
- Click List Prompts
- e.g. Select guide and click Get Prompt
Create the manpage resources
- Go to Tools
- Click List Tools
- Select create_all_manpage_files and click Run Tool
example response:
Now you can
- Go to Resources
- Click List Resources
- Select a man page e.g.
Man page for 7z - Check the response on the right side
example response:
