Box MCP Server

Quick Start

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/box-community/mcp-server-box.git
cd mcp-server-box

Optional but recommended uv installation for virtual environment and dependency management:

Homebrew (macOS)

brew install uv

WinGet (Windows)

winget install --id=astral-sh.uv  -e

On macOS and Linux

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

On Windows

powershell -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

Set up the virtual environment and install dependencies:

uv sync

Set environment variables:

Set the following environment variables for Box authentication in a .env file or your system environment.

For comprehensive authentication configuration options, see the Authentication Guide.

Using OAuth2.0 with a Box App

BOX_CLIENT_ID = YOUR_CLIENT_ID
BOX_CLIENT_SECRET = YOUR_CLIENT_SECRET
BOX_REDIRECT_URL = http://localhost:8000/callback

# MCP Server Authentication (for HTTP transports)
BOX_MCP_SERVER_AUTH_TOKEN = YOUR_BOX_MCP_SERVER_AUTH_TOKEN
OAUTH_PROTECTED_RESOURCES_CONFIG_FILE = .oauth-protected-resource.json

Note:

• The BOX_MCP_SERVER_AUTH_TOKEN is used to authenticate the MCP client to the MCP server when using --mcp-auth-type=token (independent of Box authentication)

Run the MCP server in STDIO mode:

uv run src/mcp_server_box.py

Box Community MCP Server Tools

Below is a summary of the available tools:

| Tools available | Description | |--------------------------|--------------------------------------------------| | box_tools_ai | AI-powered file and hub queries | | box_tools_collaboration | Manage file/folder collaborations | | box_tools_docgen | Document generation and template management | | box_tools_files | File operations (read, upload, download) | | box_tools_folders | Folder operations (list, create, delete, update) | | box_tools_generic | Generic Box API utilities | | box_tools_groups | Group management and queries | | box_tools_metadata | Metadata template and instance management | | box_tools_search | Search files and folders | | box_tools_shared_links | Shared link management for files/folders/web-links| | box_tools_tasks | Task and task assignment management | | box_tools_users | User management and queries | | box_tools_web_link | Web link creation and management |

Box Community MCP Server Operations Details

Command line interface parameters

To run the MCP server with specific configurations, you can use the following command line parameters:

uv run src/mcp_server_box.py --help

usage: mcp_server_box.py [-h] [--transport {stdio,sse,http}] [--host HOST] [--port PORT] [--mcp-auth-type {oauth,token,none}] [--box-auth-type {oauth,ccg,jwt,mcp_client}]

Box Community MCP Server

options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  --transport {stdio,sse,http}
                        Transport type (default: stdio)
  --host HOST           Host for SSE/HTTP transport (default: localhost)
  --port PORT           Port for SSE/HTTP transport (default: 8005)
  --mcp-auth-type {oauth,token,none}
                        Authentication type for MCP server (default: token)
  --box-auth-type {oauth,ccg,jwt,mcp_client}
                        Authentication type for Box API (default: oauth)

For detailed information about authentication types, configurations, and use cases, see the Authentication Guide.

Claude Desktop Configuration

STDIO mode

Edit your claude_desktop_config.json:

code ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Add the configuration:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "mcp-server-box": {
            "command": "uv",
            "args": [
                "--directory",
                "/path/to/mcp-server-box",
                "run",
                "src/mcp_server_box.py"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Restart Claude if it is running.

HTTP Mode

Assuming your MCP server is running on https://mcp.myserver.com/mcp

1. Go to Claude -> Settings -> Connectors
2. Select Add custom connector
3. Configurations:
   1. Give it a name
   2. Enter the URL e.g. https://mcp.myserver.com/mcp
   3. Optionally enter the client id and client secret
4. Click add
5. Click connect. The OAuth flow should start. Complete the flow
6. Back in Claude, click Configure. You should see all the tools available.