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# MCP Email Server
This Python script implements an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server using the `mcp` library (`FastMCP`) that allows an LLM (like Claude) to interact with an email account using POP3 (for reading/deleting emails) and SMTP (for sending emails), both secured with TLS encryption. It uses `python-dotenv` to load configuration from a `.env` file.
## Features
* **Poll Emails:** Polls the inbox for email headers (`pollEmails`).
* **Fetch Full Emails:** Retrieves specific emails (headers and body) by ID (`getEmailsById`).
* **Delete Emails:** Deletes specific emails by ID (`deleteEmailsById`).
* **Send Emails:** Sends plain text (`sendTextEmail`) or HTML formatted (`sendHtmlEmail`) emails.
* **Secure Connections:** Uses POP3 over SSL (default port 995). For SMTP, supports both STARTTLS (explicit TLS, default port 587) and direct SSL/TLS (implicit TLS, default port 465), configurable via environment variable.
* **Configuration:** Loads credentials and server details from environment variables or a `.env` file.
## Tools Provided
The server exposes the following tools (defined using `@mcp.tool()`) to the connected LLM:
1. **`pollEmails()`**
* **Description:** Returns the message ID and key headers (Subject, From, Date, Message-ID) of all emails currently in the selected mailbox.
* **Inputs:** None.
* **Returns:** `list[dict]` - A list of dictionaries, each containing `id` and headers. Example: `[{"id": 1, "Subject": "Hello", "From": "...", "Date": "...", "Message-ID": "..."}]`
2. **`getEmailsById(ids: list)`**
* **Description:** Returns the full details (ID, headers, parsed body) of the specified emails. It attempts to parse the body, preferring HTML over plain text if available.
* **Inputs:**
* `ids` (`list[int]`): A list of email IDs to retrieve (IDs correspond to the order returned by `pollEmails` *at the time of polling*).
* **Returns:** `list[dict]` - A list of dictionaries, each containing `id`, `headers` (dict), and `body` (str). If an ID is invalid or fetching fails, an `error` key will be present. Example: `[{"id": 1, "headers": {"Subject": "..."}, "body": "..."}]`
3. **`deleteEmailsById(ids: list)`**
* **Description:** Marks specified emails for deletion based on their ID. **Important:** Deleting emails invalidates the current ID sequence. It's recommended to perform deletions *after* all necessary read operations in a given session. The actual deletion occurs when the POP3 connection is closed after the command.
* **Inputs:**
* `ids` (`list[int]`): A list of email IDs to delete.
* **Returns:** `dict` - A dictionary indicating which IDs were marked for deletion and which failed. Example: `{"deleted": [1, 3], "failed": {2: "Error message"}}`
4. **`sendTextEmail(fromAddress: str, toAddresses: list, subject: str, body: str)`**
* **Description:** Sends a plain text email via SMTP.
* **Inputs:**
* `fromAddress` (`str`): The email address to send from. *Note: Sending may fail if this doesn't match the authenticated user, depending on SMTP server policy.*
* `toAddresses` (`list[str]`): A list of recipient email addresses.
* `subject` (`str`): The email subject line.
* `body` (`str`): The plain text content of the email body.
* **Returns:** `dict` - Status indication. Example: `{"status": "success"}` or `{"error": "..."}`
5. **`sendHtmlEmail(fromAddress: str, toAddresses: list, subject: str, body: str)`**
* **Description:** Sends an HTML formatted email via SMTP.
* **Inputs:**
* `fromAddress` (`str`): The email address to send from. *Note: Sending may fail if this doesn't match the authenticated user, depending on SMTP server policy.*
* `toAddresses` (`list[str]`): A list of recipient email addresses.
* `subject` (`str`): The email subject line.
* `body` (`str`): The HTML content of the email body.
* **Returns:** `dict` - Status indication. Example: `{"status": "success"}` or `{"error": "..."}`
## Setup and Installation
1. **Prerequisites:**
* Python 3.12+ installed (check `pyproject.toml` for specific version, e.g., >=3.12).
* [uv](https://github.com/astral-sh/uv) installed (recommended for environment management and running).
2. **Environment Setup & Dependencies:**
* Navigate to the `email-mcp-server` directory in your terminal.
* Create and activate a virtual environment using `uv`:
```bash
uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate # Linux/macOS
# .venv\Scripts\activate # Windows
```
* Install dependencies using `uv` (it reads `pyproject.toml` and installs `mcp` and `python-dotenv`):
```bash
uv pip install -e .
# or 'uv pip sync' if uv.lock exists
```
*(This installs the package in editable mode, which is good practice for development).*
3. **Configuration (`.env` file):**
* Create a file named `.env` in the `email-mcp-server` directory.
* Add your email credentials and server details to this file:
```dotenv
EMAIL_USER=YourEmailUsername@example.com
EMAIL_PASS=YourEmailAppPasswordOrRegularPassword
POP3_SERVER=pop.example.com
POP3_PORT=995 # Optional, defaults to 995
# SMTP Configuration (Choose ONE method: STARTTLS or SSL)
SMTP_SERVER=smtp.example.com
# For STARTTLS (usually port 587, default method):
SMTP_PORT=587 # Optional, defaults to 587 if SMTP_USE_SSL is false/unset
# SMTP_USE_SSL=false # Optional, defaults to false
# OR For direct SSL (usually port 465):
# SMTP_PORT=465 # Optional, defaults to 465 if SMTP_USE_SSL is true
# SMTP_USE_SSL=true
```
* **Security:** Ensure the `.env` file is kept secure and **never** committed to version control (add `.env` to your `.gitignore` file).
4. **Configuration (Claude Desktop):**
* Add this server to your Claude Desktop developer configuration file (`developer_config.json`).
* Replace `/path/to/email-mcp-server` with the **full, absolute path** to the `email-mcp-server` directory on your system.
* Note: The `env` section in the JSON is now less critical if you use a `.env` file, but it can still be used to override `.env` variables if needed.
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"email-mcp-server": {
"command": "uv",
"args": [
"--directory",
"/path/to/email-mcp-server",
"run",
"main.py"
],
"env": {
# These can override .env file settings if needed
# "EMAIL_USER": "...",
# "EMAIL_PASS": "...",
# "POP3_SERVER": "...",
# "POP3_PORT": "...",
# "SMTP_SERVER": "...",
# "SMTP_PORT": "...",
# "SMTP_USE_SSL": "false" # or "true"
}
}
}
}
```
5. **Restart Claude Desktop:** After modifying the configuration, restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect. The server should connect automatically.
## Important Notes
* **.env File:** Using a `.env` file is the recommended way to manage credentials for this server.
* **App Passwords:** If your email provider uses Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), you will likely need to generate an "App Password" specifically for this server instead of using your regular account password. Use this App Password in your `.env` file for `EMAIL_PASS`. Consult your email provider's documentation (e.g., Gmail, Outlook).
* **Security:** Ensure the `.env` file and potentially the `developer_config.json` file are kept secure. Add `.env` to your `.gitignore`.
* **Error Handling:** The server uses the `mcp` library's error handling. Connection errors or tool execution failures should result in appropriate MCP error responses.
* **Email IDs:** POP3 email IDs are typically sequential numbers assigned by the server for the current session. They are only valid for the duration of that session and *will change* if emails are deleted. Use `pollEmails` to get current IDs before using `getEmailsById` or `deleteEmailsById`.
