BookStack
Connects BookStack knowledge bases to Claude through 47+ tools covering complete CRUD operations for books, pages, chapters, shelves, users, search, attachments, and permissions. Enables full management of BookStack content and configuration through
What is BookStack?
BookStack is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to connects bookstack knowledge bases to claude through 47+ tools covering complete crud operations for books, pages, chapters, shelves, users, search, attachments, and permissions. enables full manageme...
Connects BookStack knowledge bases to Claude through 47+ tools covering complete CRUD operations for books, pages, chapters, shelves, users, search, attachments, and permissions. Enables full management of BookStack content and configuration through
This server falls under the Knowledge & Memory and Developer Tools categories on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- Connects BookStack knowledge bases to Claude through 47+ too
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
NPM
npx -y bookstack-mcp-serverManual Installation
npx -y bookstack-mcp-serverConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use BookStack
BookStack MCP Server connects Claude and other AI assistants to a BookStack knowledge base through more than 47 tools covering complete CRUD operations for books, chapters, pages, shelves, users, roles, attachments, images, permissions, the recycle bin, audit log, and system health. It supports both STDIO and HTTP transport modes, making it compatible with Claude Desktop, Claude Code, and headless pipeline deployments. Teams use it to let AI assistants read, write, and reorganize their internal documentation without switching to the BookStack web interface.
Prerequisites
- Node.js 18 or higher
- A running BookStack instance with API access enabled (self-hosted or cloud)
- A BookStack API token (token_id:token_secret format, generated in your BookStack profile under API Tokens)
- An MCP-compatible client such as Claude Desktop or Claude Code
Install the MCP server
Install bookstack-mcp-server globally from npm, or use npx to run it on demand without a global install.
npm install -g bookstack-mcp-serverGenerate a BookStack API token
Log in to your BookStack instance, click your profile avatar → Edit Profile → API Tokens → Create Token. Copy the token_id and token_secret — they form your BOOKSTACK_API_TOKEN.
Test connectivity from the command line
Run the server manually in STDIO mode with your credentials to confirm it can reach your BookStack API before adding it to your client config.
BOOKSTACK_BASE_URL=https://your-bookstack.com/api \
BOOKSTACK_API_TOKEN=token_id:token_secret \
MCP_TRANSPORT=stdio \
npx bookstack-mcp-serverAdd the server to Claude via the CLI
Use the claude mcp add command to register the server with all required environment variables. This writes the configuration automatically.
claude mcp add bookstack npx bookstack-mcp-server \
--env BOOKSTACK_BASE_URL=https://your-bookstack.com/api \
--env BOOKSTACK_API_TOKEN=token_id:token_secret \
--env MCP_TRANSPORT=stdioVerify the connection
Restart your MCP client and ask Claude to list all books in your BookStack instance to confirm the tools are working.
BookStack Examples
Client configuration
Manual claude_desktop_config.json configuration for the BookStack MCP server in STDIO mode.
{
"mcpServers": {
"bookstack": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "bookstack-mcp-server"],
"env": {
"BOOKSTACK_BASE_URL": "https://your-bookstack.com/api",
"BOOKSTACK_API_TOKEN": "token_id:token_secret",
"MCP_TRANSPORT": "stdio"
}
}
}
}Prompts to try
Once connected, use these prompts to manage your BookStack documentation through Claude.
- "List all books in my BookStack and summarize what each one covers."
- "Create a new page in the 'Engineering' book titled 'API Rate Limiting Guide' with markdown content."
- "Search my knowledge base for everything related to deployment pipelines."
- "Move the 'Onboarding' chapter into the 'HR' book."
- "Show me the audit log entries from the past 7 days to see who made changes."Troubleshooting BookStack
401 Unauthorized errors when calling any tool
Verify BOOKSTACK_API_TOKEN is in the exact format token_id:token_secret (colon-separated, no spaces). Also confirm API access is enabled on your BookStack instance under Settings → API → Enable API.
BOOKSTACK_BASE_URL returns 404 for all API calls
The URL must end with /api (e.g. https://docs.example.com/api). Do not include a trailing slash or a specific endpoint path — the server appends endpoint paths automatically.
Server starts but no tools appear in the MCP client
Confirm MCP_TRANSPORT=stdio is set when using Claude Desktop. The HTTP transport mode is for programmatic clients and will not work correctly with stdio-based MCP clients.
Frequently Asked Questions about BookStack
What is BookStack?
BookStack is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that connects bookstack knowledge bases to claude through 47+ tools covering complete crud operations for books, pages, chapters, shelves, users, search, attachments, and permissions. enables full management of bookstack content and configuration through It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install BookStack?
Install via npm with the command: npx -y bookstack-mcp-server. Then add the server configuration to your AI client's JSON config file (e.g., claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json).
Which AI clients work with BookStack?
BookStack works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is BookStack free to use?
Yes, BookStack is open source and available under the MIT License license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
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