Cover Letter MCP Server

# Cover Letter MCP Server A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that generates professional PDF cover letters using LaTeX. This server integrates seamlessly with Claude Desktop to create beautifully formatted cover letters with a clean, professional design and advanced folder management capabilities. ## Features - 🎯 **Professional Design**: Clean, modern layout matching professional resume standards - 📄 **PDF Generation**: High-quality PDF output using LaTeX - 🔧 **Claude Desktop Integration**: Works directly within Claude Desktop interface - 📁 **Advanced Folder Management**: Create custom folders and organize cover letters by job, company, or category - 🗂️ **Directory Navigation**: List and browse your cover letter collection with built-in file explorer - ⚡ **Fast Generation**: Dockerized environment for consistent, quick processing - 🛡️ **Input Sanitization**: Automatic escaping of special characters for LaTeX safety - 🔒 **Secure Paths**: Built-in path sanitization prevents security issues ## Prerequisites - **Docker**: Make sure Docker Desktop is installed and running - **Claude Desktop**: Latest version with MCP support - **Git**: For cloning the repository ## Quick Start ### 1. Clone the Repository ```bash git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/cover-letter-mcp.git cd cover-letter-mcp ``` ### 2. Create Downloads Directory ```bash mkdir downloads ``` ### 3. Build the Docker Image ```bash docker build -t cover-letter-mcp . ``` ### 4. Configure Claude Desktop Add the following configuration to your Claude Desktop config file: **Location of config file:** - **Windows**: `%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json` - **macOS**: `~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json` - **Linux**: `~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json` **Configuration:** ```json { "mcpServers": { "cover-letter-generator": { "command": "docker", "args": [ "run", "--rm", "-i", "-v", "/path/to/your/cover-letter-mcp/downloads:/downloads", "cover-letter-mcp", "python", "server.py" ] } } } ``` **Replace `/path/to/your/cover-letter-mcp/downloads` with your actual path:** - **Windows**: `"C:/Users/YourUsername/path/to/cover-letter-mcp/downloads:/downloads"` - **macOS/Linux**: `"/Users/YourUsername/path/to/cover-letter-mcp/downloads:/downloads"` ### 5. Restart Claude Desktop Restart Claude Desktop to load the new MCP server configuration. ## Usage Once configured, you can generate cover letters directly in Claude Desktop with advanced organization features: ### Example Usage #### Basic Cover Letter Generation ``` Generate a cover letter for: - Name: John Smith - Company: Tech Innovations Inc - Position: Software Engineer - Body: I am writing to express my interest in the Software Engineer position at your company. With 5 years of experience in software development, I believe I would be a great fit for your team. My skills in JavaScript and Python align well with your requirements. I look forward to discussing this opportunity further. ``` #### Organized Cover Letter with Custom Folder ``` Generate a cover letter for Jane Doe applying to Google for a Senior Developer position and save it in the "FAANG-applications/google" folder ``` #### Advanced Organization ``` Create a cover letter for the Product Manager role at Netflix. Save it in "streaming-companies/netflix" with filename "pm-application-2024" ``` #### Folder Management ``` Create a folder structure for organizing my job applications: "job-search-2024/tech-companies" and "job-search-2024/startups" ``` ``` Show me what cover letters I have in my "tech-companies" folder ``` ### Smart Organization Features - **🗂️ Auto-Folder Creation** - Folders are created automatically when generating cover letters - **📁 Custom Directory Structure** - Organize by company, role type, industry, or any system that works for you - **🔍 Directory Browser** - List contents of any folder to see your cover letter collection - **📊 File Information** - View file sizes, creation dates, and organize by metadata - **🛡️ Path Security** - Built-in sanitization prevents directory traversal and invalid characters ### Organization Examples **By Company:** - `applications/google/` - `applications/microsoft/` - `applications/amazon/` **By Role Type:** - `roles/software-engineer/` - `roles/product-manager/` - `roles/data-scientist/` **By Industry:** - `industries/fintech/` - `industries/healthcare/` - `industries/gaming/` **By Status:** - `drafts/` - `submitted/2024/` - `archived/old-versions/` ### Advanced Options **Custom filename with organization:** ``` Generate a cover letter with filename "tech_innovations_application" for John Smith applying to Tech Innovations Inc and save it in the "applications/tech-startups" folder ``` **Multiple applications organization:** ``` I'm applying to several FAANG companies. Create cover letters for: 1. Google - Software Engineer role (save in "faang/google") 2. Meta - Frontend Developer role (save in "faang/meta") 3. Amazon - Backend Engineer role (save in "faang/amazon") ``` ## API Reference ### Tools Available #### `generate_cover_letter` Generates a PDF cover letter from structured data with optional folder organization. **Parameters:** - `name` (string): Full name of the applicant - `company` (string): Company name - `position` (string): Position being applied for - `body` (string): Main body text of the cover letter - `filename` (string, optional): Custom filename (without .pdf extension) - `folderPath` (string, optional): Custom folder path within downloads directory **Example:** ```json { "name": "John Smith", "company": "Tech Corp", "position": "Software Engineer", "body": "I am writing to express my strong interest...", "filename": "john-smith-tech-corp-application", "folderPath": "job-applications/tech-companies/tech-corp" } ``` #### `create_folder` Creates a new folder within the downloads directory. **Parameters:** - `folderPath` (string): Folder path to create (supports nested folders) **Example:** ```json { "folderPath": "applications/2024/q1" } ``` #### `list_folders` Lists all folders and files in the downloads directory. **Parameters:** - `path` (string, optional): Specific subdirectory to list **Example:** ```json { "path": "applications/tech-companies" } ``` ## File Structure ``` cover-letter-mcp/ ├── server.py # Main MCP server with folder management ├── Dockerfile # Docker container configuration ├── requirements.txt # Python dependencies ├── downloads/ # Generated PDFs organized in folders │ ├── applications/ │ │ ├── google/ │ │ │ ├── john-smith-swe-2024.pdf │ │ │ └── jane-doe-pm-2024.pdf │ │ ├── microsoft/ │ │ └── startups/ │ ├── drafts/ │ └── templates/ └── README.md # This file ``` ## Technical Details ### LaTeX Template The server uses a custom LaTeX template that creates: - Clean, centered header with applicant name - Professional spacing and typography - Automatic date insertion - Proper business letter formatting - High-quality PDF output ### Security Features - **Input Sanitization**: All user input is properly escaped for LaTeX - **Filename Safety**: Generated filenames are sanitized to prevent path traversal - **Path Security**: Folder paths are sanitized to prevent directory traversal attacks - **Isolated Environment**: Docker container provides secure, isolated execution - **Character Filtering**: Removes or replaces invalid filesystem characters ### MCP Protocol This server implements the Model Context Protocol specification: - **Tools**: `generate_cover_letter`, `create_folder`, `list_folders` - **Resources**: Lists and provides access to generated PDFs (including nested folders) - **Capabilities**: Full read/write access to cover letter generation and folder management ## Troubleshooting ### Common Issues **"Docker command not found"** - Ensure Docker Desktop is installed and running - Verify Docker is in your system PATH **"Permission denied" on Windows** - Make sure Docker Desktop has access to your drive - Try running PowerShell as Administrator - Ensure the downloads folder has write permissions **"Container not found"** - Rebuild the Docker image: `docker build -t cover-letter-mcp .` - Check that the image name matches your configuration **"LaTeX compilation failed"** - This usually indicates special characters in the input - The server automatically escapes most characters, but some complex formatting may need adjustment **"Folder creation errors"** - Verify write permissions in the downloads directory - Check that folder paths don't contain invalid characters - Ensure Docker has access to the mounted volume **"Path-related issues"** - Folder paths are automatically sanitized for security - Invalid characters are replaced with underscores - Directory traversal attempts (../) are automatically blocked ### Debug Mode To see detailed logs from the MCP server, check the Claude Desktop developer console or run the Docker container manually: ```bash docker run --rm -i -v "./downloads:/downloads" cover-letter-mcp python server.py ``` For verbose debugging: ```bash docker run --rm -i -v "./downloads:/downloads" -e DEBUG=1 cover-letter-mcp python server.py ``` ## Development ### Local Development For development without Docker: 1. Install Python dependencies: ```bash pip install -r requirements.txt ``` 2. Install LaTeX (varies by system): ```bash # Ubuntu/Debian sudo apt-get install texlive-latex-base texlive-latex-recommended # macOS with Homebrew brew install --cask mactex # Windows # Download and install MiKTeX or TeX Live ``` 3. Run the server: ```bash python server.py ``` ### Security Considerations - **Path Validation**: All folder paths are validated and sanitized - **Input Escaping**: LaTeX special characters are properly escaped - **Container Isolation**: Docker provides process and filesystem isolation - **Volume Mounting**: Only the downloads directory is accessible to the container ### Contributing 1. Fork the repository 2. Create a feature branch: `git checkout -b feature-name` 3. Make your changes 4. Test thoroughly with various folder structures 5. Submit a pull request ## License MIT License - see LICENSE file for details. ## Support If you encounter issues: 1. Check the [troubleshooting section](#troubleshooting) 2. Review the [Claude Desktop MCP documentation](https://modelcontextprotocol.io) 3. Open an issue on GitHub with: - Your operating system - Claude Desktop version - Docker version - Complete error messages - Steps to reproduce ## Changelog ### v2.0.0 - Folder Management Update - ✨ **NEW:** Custom folder organization within downloads directory - ✨ **NEW:** `create_folder` tool for creating organized directory structures - ✨ **NEW:** `list_folders` tool for browsing and managing cover letter collections - ✨ **NEW:** Enhanced `generate_cover_letter` with `folderPath` parameter - 🛡️ **NEW:** Path sanitization and security features - 📊 **NEW:** File metadata display (size, date) in directory listings - 🗂️ **NEW:** Auto-creation of folder paths when generating cover letters - 📁 **NEW:** Support for nested folder structures - 🔍 **NEW:** Directory navigation and file organization tools - 🔒 **NEW:** Enhanced security with Docker volume isolation ### v1.0.0 - Initial release - Professional LaTeX cover letter generation - Docker containerization - Claude Desktop integration - Basic PDF output to downloads folder --- **Made with ❤️ for the Claude Desktop and MCP community**