MATLAB MCP Server

Instructions

Implementation Reference

• src/index.ts:66-111 (handler)

  Core implementation of the MATLAB code execution logic. Sanitizes input code for ASCII compatibility, writes to temporary .m file, executes via MATLAB batch mode using child_process.exec, handles optional script saving, cleans up temp files, and returns stdout/stderr.
  async executeCode(code: string, saveScript: boolean = false, scriptPath?: string): Promise<{ output: string; error?: string; scriptPath?: string }> { try { // Create a temporary .m file with ASCII-only code const tempFile = path.join(this.config.tempDir, `script_${Date.now()}.m`); // Convert any non-ASCII characters to their ASCII equivalents const asciiCode = code .replace(/[']/g, "'") // Replace smart quotes .replace(/["]/g, '"') // Replace smart quotes .replace(/[—]/g, '--') // Replace em dash .replace(/[–]/g, '-') // Replace en dash .replace(/[…]/g, '...'); // Replace ellipsis fs.writeFileSync(tempFile, asciiCode); // If saveScript is true, save the script to the specified path or to the current directory let savedScriptPath: string | undefined; if (saveScript) { const targetPath = scriptPath || path.join(process.cwd(), `matlab_script_${Date.now()}.m`); fs.copyFileSync(tempFile, targetPath); savedScriptPath = targetPath; } // Execute the MATLAB script using a simple command const command = `"${this.config.executablePath}" -batch "run('${tempFile.replace(/\\/g, '/')}'); pause(1);"`; const { stdout, stderr } = await execAsync(command); // Clean up the temporary file if not saving if (!saveScript) { fs.unlinkSync(tempFile); } return { output: stdout, error: stderr || undefined, scriptPath: savedScriptPath }; } catch (error) { console.error("Error executing MATLAB code:", error); return { output: "", error: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error) }; } }
• src/index.ts:358-401 (handler)

  MCP tool call handler for 'execute_matlab_code'. Validates input parameters, invokes the executeCode method on MatlabHandler, formats the response with output/error and saved script path if applicable, marks as error if failed.
  case 'execute_matlab_code': { const code = String(request.params.arguments?.code || ''); const saveScript = Boolean(request.params.arguments?.saveScript || false); const scriptPath = request.params.arguments?.scriptPath as string | undefined; if (!code) { throw new McpError( ErrorCode.InvalidParams, 'MATLAB code is required' ); } try { const result = await this.matlabHandler.executeCode(code, saveScript, scriptPath); let responseText = result.error ? `Error executing MATLAB code:\n${result.error}` : `MATLAB execution result:\n${result.output}`; if (result.scriptPath) { responseText += `\n\nMATLAB script saved to: ${result.scriptPath}`; } return { content: [ { type: 'text', text: responseText, }, ], isError: !!result.error, }; } catch (error) { return { content: [ { type: 'text', text: `Error executing MATLAB code: ${error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)}`, }, ], isError: true, }; } }
• src/index.ts:292-312 (schema)

  Input schema definition for the execute_matlab_code tool, registered in the ListToolsRequestSchema handler. Specifies required 'code' parameter and optional saveScript/scriptPath.
  name: 'execute_matlab_code', description: 'Execute MATLAB code and return the results', inputSchema: { type: 'object', properties: { code: { type: 'string', description: 'MATLAB code to execute', }, saveScript: { type: 'boolean', description: 'Whether to save the MATLAB script for future reference', }, scriptPath: { type: 'string', description: 'Custom path to save the MATLAB script (optional)', }, }, required: ['code'], }, },
• src/index.ts:289-336 (registration)

  Registration of available tools including execute_matlab_code in the MCP server's ListToolsRequestSchema handler.
  this.server.setRequestHandler(ListToolsRequestSchema, async () => ({ tools: [ { name: 'execute_matlab_code', description: 'Execute MATLAB code and return the results', inputSchema: { type: 'object', properties: { code: { type: 'string', description: 'MATLAB code to execute', }, saveScript: { type: 'boolean', description: 'Whether to save the MATLAB script for future reference', }, scriptPath: { type: 'string', description: 'Custom path to save the MATLAB script (optional)', }, }, required: ['code'], }, }, { name: 'generate_matlab_code', description: 'Generate MATLAB code from a natural language description', inputSchema: { type: 'object', properties: { description: { type: 'string', description: 'Natural language description of what the code should do', }, saveScript: { type: 'boolean', description: 'Whether to save the generated MATLAB script', }, scriptPath: { type: 'string', description: 'Custom path to save the MATLAB script (optional)', }, }, required: ['description'], }, }, ], }));
• src/index.ts:146-154 (helper)

  Helper method to check if MATLAB executable is available on the system, used before executing code.
  async checkMatlabAvailability(): Promise<boolean> { try { await execAsync(`"${this.config.executablePath}" -nosplash -nodesktop -r "disp('MATLAB is available'); exit;"`); return true; } catch (error) { console.error("MATLAB is not available:", error); return false; } }