Built on Python with comprehensive video downloading capabilities, supporting video extraction and processing.
Uses TOML for secure configuration management, allowing customization of download locations, security settings, and yt-dlp options.
Supports downloading videos from YouTube with various quality options, format selection, and metadata extraction.
Click on "Install Server".
Wait a few minutes for the server to deploy. Once ready, it will show a "Started" state.
In the chat, type
@followed by the MCP server name and your instructions, e.g., "@Video Downloader MCP Serverdownload this YouTube video in 720p quality"
That's it! The server will respond to your query, and you can continue using it as needed.
Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots.
π¬ Video Downloader MCP Server
Give your agents the ability to download videos from 1000+ sites with built-in security. This MCP server provides 7 discrete tools that agents can use to check, analyze, and download videos from nearly any web page. Built on yt-dlp with security validation and fallback analysis.
π Features
π οΈ 7 MCP Tools - Discrete capabilities for checking, analyzing, and downloading videos
π Built-in Security - Path validation, location restrictions, and input sanitization
π 1000+ Sites Supported - YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and hundreds more via yt-dlp
π Fallback Analysis - Pattern matching when yt-dlp doesn't support a site
π Organized Downloads - Configurable secure locations with filename templates
βοΈ Agent-Friendly - Clean JSON responses and structured error handling
Related MCP server: YARR Media Stack MCP Server
π Quick Start
Installation
# Install dependencies
pip install mcp yt-dlp requests aiohttp
# For Python < 3.11, also install:
pip install tomli
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/chazmaniandinkle/video-downloader-mcp.git
cd video-downloader-mcpConfiguration
Add to your MCP client configuration (e.g., Claude Desktop):
{
"mcpServers": {
"video-downloader": {
"command": "python",
"args": ["/path/to/video-downloader-mcp/server.py"]
}
}
}First Download
Your agent can now download videos with simple tool calls:
# Agent workflow example
1. check_ytdlp_support("https://youtube.com/watch?v=example") # β supported: true
2. get_video_formats(url) # β analyze available qualities
3. download_video(url, location_id="default", format_id="best") # β download to ~/video-downloader/π οΈ Available Tools
Tool | Purpose | Example Usage |
| Quick URL validation | "Is this video URL supported?" |
| Extract metadata | "What's the video duration and quality?" |
| List quality options | "What download formats are available?" |
| Secure download | "Download this video in 1080p" |
| Show safe locations | "Where can I save downloaded files?" |
| Fallback analysis | "yt-dlp failed, analyze the page" |
| Pattern matching | "Find video URLs in this HTML" |
π Security Features
Built-in Protection
Path Traversal Prevention - Blocks
../directory escape attemptsLocation Restrictions - Downloads only to configured safe directories
Extension Validation - Allows only safe file types (video/audio/subtitles)
Template Sanitization - Removes dangerous shell characters
TOML Configuration - No deserialization vulnerabilities
Secure Download Example
{
"url": "https://example.com/video",
"location_id": "default", // Uses configured secure location
"relative_path": "movies/action", // Validated relative path
"filename_template": "%(title)s.%(ext)s" // Sanitized template
}Default Security Configuration
[security]
enforce_location_restrictions = true
max_filename_length = 255
allowed_extensions = ["mp4", "webm", "mkv", "avi", "mov", "m4a", "mp3", "aac", "ogg", "wav", "vtt", "srt"]
block_path_traversal = true
[download_locations]
default = "~/video-downloader"π― Agent Integration Examples
Simple Video Download
User: "Download this YouTube video in good quality"
Agent:
β check_ytdlp_support("https://youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ") # β supported
β get_video_formats(url) # finds 720p format
β download_video(url, format_id="22", location_id="default") # downloads to ~/video-downloader/Quality-Aware Selection
User: "Get the best quality under 100MB"
Agent:
β get_video_formats(url) # lists all formats with sizes
β [agent analyzes: 480p=45MB, 720p=95MB, 1080p=180MB]
β download_video(url, format_id="720p") # selects 95MB optionChained with Web Search
User: "Find and download the latest Corridor Crew video"
Agent:
β web_search("Corridor Crew latest video YouTube") # finds URL
β check_ytdlp_support(found_url) # β supported
β download_video(found_url, location_id="default")Unsupported Site Analysis
User: "This custom streaming site has a video I need"
Agent:
β check_ytdlp_support(url) # β not supported
β analyze_webpage(url) # finds video player type
β extract_media_patterns(url) # extracts manifest URLs
β [returns streaming URLs for manual processing]βοΈ Configuration
The server creates ~/.config/video-downloader-mcp/config.toml automatically. Customize as needed:
[download_locations]
default = "~/video-downloader"
movies = "~/Movies/Downloads"
music = "~/Music/Downloads"
temp = "/tmp/video-downloads"
[security]
enforce_location_restrictions = true
max_filename_length = 255
allowed_extensions = [
"mp4", "webm", "mkv", "avi", "mov", # Video
"m4a", "mp3", "aac", "ogg", "wav", # Audio
"vtt", "srt", "ass", "ssa" # Subtitles
]
[ytdlp]
default_format = "best[height<=1080]"
default_filename_template = "%(title)s.%(ext)s"
[logging]
log_security_events = true
log_downloads = trueπ§ LLM Integration Examples
With Claude Code
You: Download this Corridor Crew video in the highest quality available
Claude: I'll help you download that video. Let me check what formats are available and download the best quality.
[Uses check_ytdlp_support β get_video_formats β download_video]
β
Downloaded: "VFX Artists React to MEGALOPOLIS" (1080p, 250MB)
π Location: ~/video-downloader/VFX Artists React to MEGALOPOLIS.mp4With ChatGPT + MCP
User: Get video information for this educational YouTube video and download the audio-only version
ChatGPT: I'll extract the video information and download just the audio for you.
[Uses get_video_info β analyzes metadata β download_video with audio format]
π Video Info: "Introduction to Machine Learning" (45:32 duration)
π΅ Downloaded: Audio-only version (m4a, 42MB)ποΈ MCP Architecture Patterns
This server demonstrates several reusable patterns for building secure, agent-friendly MCP servers:
Tool Declaration Pattern
# Reusable pattern for tool definitions
types.Tool(
name="check_ytdlp_support",
description="Check if a URL is supported by yt-dlp and get basic info",
inputSchema={
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"url": {"type": "string", "description": "Video URL to check"}
},
"required": ["url"]
}
)Security Validation Pattern
# Multi-layer security validation
def validate_and_construct_path(self, location_id: str, relative_path: str):
# 1. Validate location exists in config
# 2. Check path traversal attempts
# 3. Canonicalize and verify boundaries
# 4. Sanitize filename templates
return validated_pathStructured Response Pattern
# Consistent success/error responses
try:
result = perform_operation()
return [types.TextContent(
type="text",
text=json.dumps({"success": True, "data": result})
)]
except Exception as e:
return [types.TextContent(
type="text",
text=json.dumps({"success": False, "error": str(e)})
)]Configuration Management Pattern
# TOML-based secure configuration
class SecureConfigManager:
def __init__(self):
self.config_path = Path.home() / ".config" / "app-name" / "config.toml"
self.load_or_create_default()
def get(self, key_path: str, default=None):
# Safe nested key access with defaultsTesting
# Run security tests
python test_security.py
# Test MCP tool functionality
python test_mcp_security.py
# Run comprehensive workflow tests
python test_final_comprehensive.pyπ€ Contributing
We welcome contributions! Please see our contributing guidelines for details.
Development Setup
git clone https://github.com/your-username/video-downloader-mcp.git
cd video-downloader-mcp
# Install development dependencies
pip install -r requirements-dev.txt
# Run tests
python -m pytest tests/
# Format code
black .
isort .π Requirements
Python 3.8+
yt-dlp (latest version recommended)
MCP library (
pip install mcp)Additional dependencies:
requests,aiohttp,tomli(Python < 3.11)
π Troubleshooting
Common Issues
MCP server not loading:
# Check MCP configuration
# Ensure full absolute path to server.py
# Verify Python environment has required packagesDownloads failing:
# Check yt-dlp installation
yt-dlp --version
# Verify download directory permissions
ls -la ~/video-downloader
# Check configuration
cat ~/.config/video-downloader-mcp/config.tomlSecurity validation errors:
# Check that paths don't contain ../
# Verify location_id exists in configuration
# Ensure file extensions are in allowed listDebug Mode
# Enable verbose logging
export MCP_DEBUG=1
export YTDLP_DEBUG=1
python server.pyπ License
This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.
π Acknowledgments
yt-dlp - The powerful video extraction engine that makes this possible
Model Context Protocol - Enabling seamless LLM-tool integration
Anthropic - For Claude and the MCP specification
π Related Projects
MCP Specification - Official MCP documentation
Claude Code - Claude's code editing environment
yt-dlp - The underlying video extraction library
Give your agents video downloading capabilities across 1000+ platforms. π¬
This server cannot be installed
Resources
Looking for Admin?
Admins can modify the Dockerfile, update the server description, and track usage metrics. If you are the server author, to access the admin panel.