MarkItDown MCP

# Windows Installation Guide for Optional Dependencies This guide helps you install optional dependencies for MarkItDown MCP NPX on Windows. ## 🎵 FFmpeg (for audio file processing) FFmpeg is needed to process audio files (.mp3, .wav, etc.) and extract speech transcription. ### Method 1: Using Chocolatey (Recommended) 1. **Install Chocolatey** (if not already installed): - Open PowerShell as Administrator - Run: `Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072; iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))` 2. **Install FFmpeg**: ```powershell choco install ffmpeg ``` 3. **Verify installation**: ```powershell ffmpeg -version ``` ### Method 2: Manual Installation 1. **Download FFmpeg**: - Go to https://ffmpeg.org/download.html#build-windows - Download the latest release build - Extract to `C:\ffmpeg` 2. **Add to PATH**: - Open System Properties → Advanced → Environment Variables - In System Variables, find and edit "Path" - Add `C:\ffmpeg\bin` - Click OK and restart Command Prompt 3. **Verify installation**: ```cmd ffmpeg -version ``` ### Method 3: Using winget ```powershell winget install ffmpeg ``` ## 📷 ExifTool (for advanced image metadata) ExifTool extracts detailed metadata from images and other files. ### Method 1: Using Chocolatey ```powershell choco install exiftool ``` ### Method 2: Manual Installation 1. **Download ExifTool**: - Go to https://exiftool.org/ - Download "Windows Executable" - Extract `exiftool(-k).exe` to `C:\Windows\System32` and rename to `exiftool.exe` 2. **Verify installation**: ```cmd exiftool -ver ``` ## 🧪 Testing Your Installation After installing the optional dependencies, test your MarkItDown MCP setup: ```bash # Test the NPX wrapper node C:\Users\ekirjad\MCP\markitdown-mcp-npx\bin\markitdown-mcp-npx.js --help # You should see: # ✓ ffmpeg found - audio file processing available # ✓ exiftool found - advanced image metadata available ``` ## ❓ Troubleshooting ### "Command not found" errors 1. **Restart your terminal** after installation 2. **Check PATH**: Ensure the tools are in your system PATH 3. **Verify installation**: Run `where ffmpeg` and `where exiftool` ### Permission errors - Run PowerShell/Command Prompt **as Administrator** when installing - Some antivirus software may block downloads - temporarily disable if needed ### Still getting warnings? - The warnings are **harmless** - MarkItDown works fine without these tools - They're only needed for specific file types (audio files and advanced image metadata) - Most common use cases (PDF, Word, Excel, basic images) work without them ## 💡 What Each Tool Does | Tool | Purpose | File Types | Required? | |------|---------|------------|-----------| | **FFmpeg** | Audio processing & transcription | .mp3, .wav, .m4a | Optional | | **ExifTool** | Advanced image metadata | .jpg, .png, .tiff | Optional | **✅ Core MarkItDown functionality works perfectly without these tools!** They're only needed for specialized use cases like transcribing audio files or extracting GPS coordinates from photos.