Content
# Canvas LMS MCP Server
[](https://smithery.ai/server/@ahnopologetic/canvas-lms-mcp)
A minimal Canvas LMS MCP (Machine Conversation Protocol) server for easy access to education data through your Canvas LMS instance. This server provides a bridge between AI systems (like Cursor) and Canvas Learning Management System.
## Features
- List planner items (assignments, quizzes, etc.)
- Get and list assignments
- Get and list quizzes
- Get and list courses
- Get course syllabus
- Get course modules
- List files
## Installation
### Installing via Smithery
To install Canvas LMS Server for Claude Desktop automatically via [Smithery](https://smithery.ai/server/@ahnopologetic/canvas-lms-mcp):
```bash
npx -y @smithery/cli install @ahnopologetic/canvas-lms-mcp --client claude
```
### Prerequisites
- Python 3.13+
- Canvas LMS API token
- `uv` package manager (recommended)
### Installation Methods
#### Option 1: Install with uvx (Recommended)
The easiest way to install and run canvas-lms-mcp is using uvx:
```bash
uvx canvas-lms-mcp
```
This will run the server in an isolated environment without installing it permanently.
To install the tool permanently:
```bash
uv tool install canvas-lms-mcp
```
#### Option 2: Install from Source
1. Clone the repository:
```bash
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/canvas-lms-mcp.git
cd canvas-lms-mcp
```
2. Install with uv:
```bash
# Install uv if you don't have it yet
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
# Create a virtual environment and install dependencies
uv venv
uv pip install -e .
```
Alternatively, use traditional methods:
```bash
python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate # On Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -e .
```
## Configuration
Set the following environment variables:
```bash
export CANVAS_API_TOKEN="your_canvas_api_token"
export CANVAS_BASE_URL="https://your-institution.instructure.com" # Default: https://canvas.instructure.com
```
You can get your Canvas API token from your Canvas account settings.
## Running the Server
Start the server with uv:
```bash
uv run src/canvas_lms_mcp/main.py
```
If installed with uvx tool:
```bash
canvas-lms-mcp
```
By default, the server runs on http://localhost:8000. You can use the FastMCP interface at http://localhost:8000/docs to interact with the API.
## Available Tools
The server provides the following tools for interacting with Canvas LMS:
### Courses
#### `list_courses`
List courses that the user is actively enrolled in.
Parameters:
- `page` (optional, default=1): Page number (1-indexed)
- `items_per_page` (optional, default=10): Number of items per page
#### `get_course`
Get a single course by ID.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
- `include` (optional): List of additional data to include
#### `get_course_syllabus`
Get a course's syllabus.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
#### `get_course_modules`
Get modules for a course.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
- `include` (optional): List of additional data to include
### Assignments
#### `list_assignments`
List assignments for a course.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
- `bucket` (required): Filter assignments by ("past", "overdue", "undated", "ungraded", "unsubmitted", "upcoming", "future")
- `order_by` (required): Field to order assignments by ("due_at", "position", "name")
- `page` (optional, default=1): Page number (1-indexed)
- `items_per_page` (optional, default=10): Number of items per page
#### `get_assignment`
Get a single assignment by ID.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
- `assignment_id` (required): Assignment ID
### Quizzes
#### `list_quizzes`
List quizzes for a course.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
- `include` (optional): List of additional data to include
- `page` (optional, default=1): Page number (1-indexed)
- `items_per_page` (optional, default=10): Number of items per page
#### `get_quiz`
Get a single quiz by ID.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (required): Course ID
- `quiz_id` (required): Quiz ID
### Files
#### `list_files`
List files for a course or folder.
Parameters:
- `course_id` (optional): Course ID
- `folder_id` (optional): Folder ID
- `include` (optional): List of additional data to include
- `page` (optional, default=1): Page number (1-indexed)
- `items_per_page` (optional, default=10): Number of items per page
### Planner Items
#### `list_planner_items`
List planner items for the authenticated user.
Parameters:
- `start_date` (required): Start date in ISO 8601 format
- `end_date` (required): End date in ISO 8601 format
- `context_codes` (optional): List of context codes (e.g., ["course_123"])
- `page` (optional, default=1): Page number (1-indexed)
- `items_per_page` (optional, default=10): Number of items per page
## Integration with Cursor
Cursor is an AI-powered IDE that can interact with the Canvas LMS MCP server to provide education data directly within your development environment.
### Setting Up Cursor Integration
1. Install the Cursor IDE from [https://cursor.sh/](https://cursor.sh/)
2. Create a `.cursor/mcp.json` file in your project directory with the following content:
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"canvas": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"canvas-lms-mcp"
],
"env": {
"CANVAS_API_TOKEN": "your_canvas_api_token",
"CANVAS_BASE_URL": "https://your-institution.instructure.com"
}
}
}
}
```
Replace:
- `your_canvas_api_token` with your actual Canvas API token
- `your-institution.instructure.com` with your Canvas institution URL
3. Restart Cursor for the changes to take effect.
### Cursor Time Integration (Optional)
You can also integrate a time server for timezone-related queries by adding a "time" server to your mcp.json:
```json
"time": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"mcp-server-time",
"--local-timezone=America/New_York"
]
}
```
This allows you to use time-related functions with your Canvas data.
### Usage Examples
Once connected, you can ask Cursor AI about your Canvas data:
- "What assignments do I have due next week?"
- "Show me the syllabus for my Biology course"
- "List all my upcoming quizzes"
- "What's on my schedule for tomorrow?"
Example conversation:
```
YOU: What assignments do I have due soon?
CURSOR: I'll check your upcoming assignments.
Based on your Canvas data, here are your upcoming assignments:
- "Final Project" for CS101 due on December 10, 2023
- "Lab Report #5" for BIOL200 due on December 7, 2023
- "Research Paper" for ENGL301 due on December 15, 2023
```
## Development
For detailed development instructions, please see the [DEVELOPMENT.md](DEVELOPMENT.md) file.
## License
This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for details.
