Printer MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI assistants to control printers on Linux/macOS systems via CUPS.

透過 MCP 協議讓 AI 助手控制印表機，支援列印檔案、測試頁、查詢狀態、取消工作等操作。

Prerequisites / 前置需求

1. CUPS printing system

This MCP server relies on the CUPS (Common UNIX Printing System) command-line tools (lp, lpstat, cancel). Most Linux distributions and macOS come with CUPS pre-installed.

本伺服器依賴 CUPS 列印系統的命令列工具，大多數 Linux 發行版及 macOS 已內建。

Check if CUPS is installed / 確認 CUPS 是否已安裝：

lpstat -v

If the command is not found, install CUPS:

# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt install cups

# Fedora / RHEL
sudo dnf install cups

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S cups

# macOS — CUPS is included by default

2. At least one printer must be configured / 至少需要設定一台印表機

This is required. The MCP server controls printers through CUPS — if no printer is configured, all tools will return errors.

這是必要條件。 MCP 伺服器透過 CUPS 控制印表機，如果系統中沒有設定任何印表機，所有工具都無法正常運作。

Check if a printer is configured / 確認是否已設定印表機：

lpstat -a

If no printers are listed, you need to add one. Here are common methods:

Method A: GUI (recommended for desktop users)

• Open Settings → Printers (GNOME) or System Settings → Printers (KDE)
• Click "Add Printer" and follow the wizard

Method B: Command line

# 1. Find available printers on the network
lpinfo -v

# 2. Find the matching driver
lpinfo --make-and-model "YOUR_PRINTER_BRAND" -m

# 3. Add the printer
sudo lpadmin -p PRINTER_NAME -E \
  -v "DEVICE_URI_FROM_STEP_1" \
  -m "DRIVER_PATH_FROM_STEP_2"

# 4. Set as default printer (optional)
sudo lpadmin -d PRINTER_NAME

Example — adding a Ricoh network printer:

sudo lpadmin -p MP-C2004ex -E \
  -v "dnssd://RICOH%20MP%20C2004ex._pdl-datastream._tcp.local/" \
  -m "openprinting-ppds:0/ppd/openprinting/Ricoh/PDF/Ricoh-MP_C2004ex_PDF.ppd"
sudo lpadmin -d MP-C2004ex

Verify the printer works / 驗證印表機是否正常：

echo "test" | lp

Installation / 安裝

Using uv (recommended)

uv pip install printer-mcp

Using pip

pip install printer-mcp

Configuration / 設定

Claude Code

Add to your Claude Code MCP settings (~/.claude/mcp.json or project .mcp.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "printer": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["printer-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config (claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "printer": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["printer-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Running directly

# With uv
uv run printer-mcp

# With python
python server.py

Available Tools / 可用工具

Tool	Description	說明
list_printers	List all available printers	列出所有可用的印表機
print_test_page	Print a test page to verify printer connectivity	列印測試頁以驗證印表機連線
print_file	Print a file with optional printer and copies settings	列印指定檔案，可選擇印表機及份數
printer_status	Query printer status and job queue	查詢印表機狀態與列印佇列
cancel_job	Cancel a specific print job or all jobs	取消指定或所有列印工作

Tool Parameters / 工具參數

print_file

• file_path (required) — Path to the file to print. Supported formats: PDF, text, and image files (PNG, JPG, JPEG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, WebP — images are automatically converted to PDF before printing)
• printer (optional) — Printer name, defaults to system default
• copies (optional) — Number of copies, defaults to 1
• page_size (optional) — Paper size, defaults to A4. Options: A3, A4, A5, B4, B5, Letter, Legal, Tabloid
• orientation (optional) — Print orientation, defaults to portrait. Options: portrait, landscape
• color_mode (optional) — Color mode, defaults to gray (grayscale). Options: gray, color

print_test_page

• printer (optional) — Printer name, defaults to system default
• page_size (optional) — Paper size, defaults to A4. Options: A3, A4, A5, B4, B5, Letter, Legal, Tabloid
• orientation (optional) — Print orientation, defaults to portrait. Options: portrait, landscape
• color_mode (optional) — Color mode, defaults to gray (grayscale). Options: gray, color

printer_status

• printer (optional) — Printer name, leave empty to query all

cancel_job

• job_id (optional) — Job ID to cancel, leave empty to cancel all

Usage Examples / 使用範例

Once configured, you can ask your AI assistant:

"Print the file /home/user/report.pdf"
"List available printers"
"Print 3 copies of invoice.pdf to the HP printer"
"What's the printer status?"
"Cancel all print jobs"
"Print a test page"

Supported Platforms / 支援平台

• Linux — Any distribution with CUPS installed
• macOS — CUPS is built-in

Note: Windows is not supported. CUPS is not available on Windows natively.

Troubleshooting / 疑難排解

Problem	Solution
lpstat: No destinations added	No printer configured. See Prerequisites above.
lp: command not found	CUPS is not installed. See CUPS installation.
Print job sent but nothing prints	Check printer_status for errors. Verify printer is online and connected.
Permission denied	Your user may need to be in the lpadmin group: sudo usermod -aG lpadmin $USER
Image file won't print	Image files (PNG, JPG, etc.) are auto-converted to PDF via Pillow. Ensure Pillow is installed: pip install Pillow

License

MIT