MCP Outline Server

What is MCP Outline Server about?

MCP Outline Server bridges AI assistants and Outline's document platform, exposing Outline functionality—search, collection browsing, document read/write, comments, and backlinks—via the Model Context Protocol. This lets natural‑language interactions manipulate and retrieve documentation without direct API calls.

How to use MCP Outline Server?

Set up environment variables in a .env file:

OUTLINE_API_KEY=<YOUR_OUTLINE_API_KEY>
# Optional – defaults to https://app.getoutline.com/api
OUTLINE_API_URL=<YOUR_OUTLINE_API_URL>

Run the server (recommended with Docker):

docker buildx build -t mcp-outline .
docker run -i --rm --init \
  -e DOCKER_CONTAINER=true \
  -e OUTLINE_API_KEY \
  -e OUTLINE_API_URL \
  mcp-outline

Or use the provided ./start_server.sh script for local development.

Add to Cursor via the MCP Servers tab using the configuration below.
Interact through any MCP‑compatible tool (e.g., Claude, MCP Inspector) by issuing natural‑language commands such as “Search for documents containing project planning”.

Key features of MCP Outline Server

Document search by keyword
Collection listing and hierarchical view
Read document content and export as Markdown
Create, update, and move documents across collections
View and add comments on documents
Backlink discovery (documents that link to a given document)
Fully Dockerized for easy deployment

Use cases of MCP Outline Server

Knowledge base assistants: Quickly retrieve internal docs for support agents.
AI‑augmented authoring: Generate or edit Outline pages directly from prompts.
Automated documentation upkeep: Scripts can add comments or move pages based on workflow events.
Research assistance: Pull relevant sections from multiple Outline documents in a single query.
Team collaboration bots: Summarize recent comments or suggest document reorganizations.

FAQ from the MCP Outline Server

Q: Do I need to run the server locally? A: No, you can run it in Docker, on a cloud VM, or any environment that can expose the MCP endpoint.

Q: Is the Outline API URL mandatory? A: Only if you host Outline yourself. The default points to https://app.getoutline.com/api.

Q: How do I test the server? A: Use uv run pytest tests/ or the MCP Inspector (mcp dev src/mcp_outline/server.py).

Q: Can I extend the server with custom tools? A: Yes, the underlying MCP Python SDK lets you add additional endpoints.

Q: What Python version is required? A: Python 3.10 or newer.

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server enabling AI assistants to interact with Outline (https://www.getoutline.com)

Overview

This project implements a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants (like Claude) to interact with Outline document services, providing a bridge between natural language interactions and Outline's document management capabilities.

Features

Currently implemented:

Document Search: Search for documents by keywords
Collection Management: List collections and view document structure
Document Reading: Read document content, export as markdown
Comment Management: View and add comments on documents
Document Creation: Create new documents in collections
Document Editing: Update document content and move documents
Backlink Management: View documents that link to a specific document

Add to Cursor with Docker

We recommend running this python MCP server using Docker to avoid having to install dependencies on your machine.

Install and run Docker (or Docker Desktop)
Build the Docker image docker buildx build -t mcp-outline .

In Cursor, go to the "MCP Servers" tab and click "Add Server"

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-outline": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "--init",
        "-e",
        "DOCKER_CONTAINER=true",
        "-e",
        "OUTLINE_API_KEY",
        "-e",
        "OUTLINE_API_URL",
        "mcp-outline"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OUTLINE_API_KEY": "<YOUR_OUTLINE_API_KEY>",
        "OUTLINE_API_URL": "<YOUR_OUTLINE_API_URL>"
      }
    }
  }
}

OUTLINE_API_URL is optional, defaulting to https://app.getoutline.com/api

Debug the docker image by using MCP inspector and passing the docker image to it:

npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector docker run -i --rm --init -e DOCKER_CONTAINER=true --env-file .env mcp-outline

Development

Prerequisites

Python 3.10+
Outline account with API access
Outline API key (get this from your Outline account settings)

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/Vortiago/mcp-outline.git
cd mcp-outline

# Install in development mode
uv pip install -e ".[dev]"

Configuration

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

# Outline API Configuration
OUTLINE_API_KEY=your_outline_api_key_here

# For cloud-hosted Outline (default)
# OUTLINE_API_URL=https://app.getoutline.com/api

# For self-hosted Outline
# OUTLINE_API_URL=https://your-outline-instance.example.com/api

Running the Server

# Development mode with the MCP Inspector
mcp dev src/mcp_outline/server.py

# Or use the provided script
./start_server.sh

# Install in Claude Desktop (if available)
mcp install src/mcp_outline/server.py --name "Document Outline Assistant"

When running the MCP Inspector, go to Tools > Click on a tool > it appears on the right side so that you can query it.

Usage Examples

Search for Documents

Search for documents containing "project planning"

List Collections

Show me all available collections

Read a Document

Get the content of document with ID "docId123"

Create a New Document

Create a new document titled "Research Report" in collection "colId456" with content "# Introduction\n\nThis is a research report..."

Add a Comment

Add a comment to document "docId123" saying "This looks great, but we should add more details to the methodology section."

Move a Document

Move document "docId123" to collection "colId789"

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Development

# Run tests
uv run pytest tests/

# Format code
uv run ruff format .

License

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

Acknowledgments

Built with MCP Python SDK
Uses Outline API for document management

{ "mcpServers": { "mcp-outline": { "command": "docker", "args": [ "run", "-i", "--rm", "--init", "-e", "DOCKER_CONTAINER=true", "-e", "OUTLINE_API_KEY", "-e", "OUTLINE_API_URL", "mcp-outline" ], "env": { "OUTLINE_API_KEY": "<YOUR_OUTLINE_API_KEY>", "OUTLINE_API_URL": "<YOUR_OUTLINE_API_URL>" } } } }

MCP Outline Server