What is Mcp Ui Explorer

mcp-ui-explorer is an MCP server that provides tools for exploring and interacting with UI elements on your computer screen.

Use cases

Use cases include automating repetitive tasks in applications, testing UI elements for functionality, and recording workflows for later playback.

How to use

To use mcp-ui-explorer, install it via pip or git clone, then run the provided scripts to record and playback UI workflows. You can also explore UI hierarchies and control mouse clicks based on coordinates.

Key features

Key features include exploring UI hierarchies, taking screenshots with highlights, controlling mouse clicks, focusing on specific screen regions, and macro recording for UI workflows.

Where to use

mcp-ui-explorer can be used in software testing, UI automation, and any scenario where interaction with UI elements is required.

UI Explorer MCP Server

An MCP server that provides tools for exploring and interacting with UI elements on your screen.

Features

• Explore UI hierarchies: Scan and analyze all UI elements on your screen
• Screenshot UI with highlights: Visualize UI elements with boundaries and hierarchy
• Control mouse clicks: Click on UI elements based on coordinates
• Explore specific regions: Focus on parts of the screen like top-left, center, etc.
• 🎬 Macro Recording: Record and playback UI workflows independently or through MCP

🚀 Quick Start: Standalone Macro Recording

New! You can now record UI workflows without running the MCP server:

# Record a workflow
python record_macro.py --name "Login Workflow"

# Play it back
python play_macro.py --file "macros/Login Workflow.json"

Windows users can use the batch files:

record_macro.bat "My Workflow"
play_macro.bat "macros/My Workflow.json"

👉 See QUICK_START.md for a 2-minute tutorial
👉 See MACRO_TOOLS.md for complete documentation

What Gets Recorded?

• ✅ Mouse clicks with exact coordinates
• ✅ Keyboard input with smart text buffering
• ✅ UI context for reliable playback
• ✅ Screenshots for verification
• ✅ Timing information for natural replay

Recording Controls

• F9: Start/Stop recording
• F10: Pause/Resume
• ESC: Emergency stop

Installation Options

Option 1: Using pip (recommended)

Install the package globally or in a virtual environment:

pip install mcp-ui-explorer

Option 2: Using git clone

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/modularflow/mcp-ui-explorer
cd mcp-ui-explorer

2. Install the package:

   • Using pip in development mode:

   pip install -e .
   

   • OR using uv (recommended for development):

   uv venv
   source .venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate
   uv pip install -e .
   

MCP Server Configuration

After installing the package, you need to configure your MCP client to use the UI Explorer server.

For Roo in Cursor

Add this JSON to your MCP Server config at:
C:\Users\<user_name>\AppData\Roaming\Cursor\User\globalStorage\rooveterinaryinc.roo-cline\settings\mcp_settings.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ui-explorer": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "mcp-ui-explorer"
      ]
    }
  }
}

For Claude Desktop App

Add the server configuration to:
C:\Users\<user_name>\AppData\Roaming\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ui-explorer": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "mcp-ui-explorer"
      ]
    }
  }
}

For Direct Use with uvx

If you’ve installed the package (either globally or in a virtual environment), you can directly use uvx to run the server without additional configuration:

uvx mcp-ui-explorer

MCP Tools

The UI Explorer provides several MCP tools for UI automation and exploration. These tools are available when using the MCP server interface.

Usage Guide

1. Explore UI Structure

Use the explore_ui tool to get a complete hierarchy of UI elements:

Parameters:

• region: Screen region to analyze (“screen”, “top”, “bottom”, “left”, “right”, “center”, etc.)
• depth: Maximum hierarchy depth to analyze (default: 5)
• min_size: Minimum element size to include (default: 5px)
• focus_window: Only analyze the foreground window (default: False)
• visible_only: Only include elements visible on screen (default: True)
• control_type: Type of control to search for (default: “Button”)
• text: Filter elements by text content (optional)

2. Take a Screenshot with UI Elements Highlighted

Use the screenshot_ui tool to visualize the UI elements:

Parameters:

• region: Screen region to analyze
• highlight_levels: Use different colors for hierarchy levels (default: True)
• output_prefix: Prefix for output files (default: “ui_hierarchy”)

3. Click at Screen Coordinates

Use the click_ui_element tool to click at specific coordinates:

Parameters:

• x: X coordinate to click (required)
• y: Y coordinate to click (required)
• wait_time: Seconds to wait before clicking (default: 2.0)

4. Keyboard Input and Shortcuts

The tool also provides options for keyboard input and shortcuts. See the UI Explorer guide in the MCP interface for details.

Example Workflow

1. First, explore the UI to understand what’s on the screen:

   explore_ui(region="screen", control_type="Button")
   

2. Take a screenshot to visualize the elements:

   screenshot_ui(region="screen")
   

3. Note the coordinates of elements you want to click, then click at those coordinates:

   click_ui_element(x=500, y=300)
   

4. Type text or use keyboard shortcuts as needed:

   keyboard_input(text="Hello world", press_enter=true)
   

Requirements

• Windows operating system
• Python 3.10+
• MCP 1.6.0+
• PyAutoGUI
• PyWinAuto
• Pillow
• Pydantic 2.0+