PowerDirector MCP

A Windows x64 MCP server that lets MCP-capable assistants launch CyberLink PowerDirector and edit video projects — inspect the timeline and media, add tracks and clips, stabilize footage, and export finished videos. It ships as a Claude Desktop MCPB extension and also registers with OpenAI Codex (CLI and IDE/desktop) as a stdio MCP server.

The MCP server is written in Node.js. In Claude Desktop it is started with the bundled Node runtime; in Codex it is started with the system Node.js (20+) executable. The server talks to PowerDirector directly over the \\.\pipe\PowerDirectorMCP named pipe: the first tool call launches PowerDirector in MCP mode (clpdrMCP plus the server's PID), and PowerDirector exits automatically when the server does.

End users do not need Python, uv, or any separate helper process. Claude Desktop additionally does not require a system Node.js installation; Codex does.

This release supports 64-bit Windows on x64 processors. Windows ARM64 is not currently supported.

Architecture

graph TD
    subgraph "MCP Host"
        A[Claude Desktop / Codex / Claude Code]
    end

    subgraph "MCP Server Bundle"
        B[Node.js MCP Server<br/>server.js]
    end

    subgraph "Target Application"
        D[CyberLink PowerDirector]
    end

    A -->|1. Launches via Stdio| B
    B -->|2. Launches with clpdrMCP + server PID| D
    B -->|3. Sends JSON Command + \n| C["\\.\pipe\PowerDirectorMCP"]
    C --> D
    D -->|4. Watches server PID and exits with it| B

Related MCP server: CapCutAPI-Complete MCP Server

Capabilities

• Launches PowerDirector automatically on the first tool call

• Reads the timeline structure — every track and clip with its GUID, type, and timing

• Reads metadata of the user's uploaded media (duration, resolution, audio streams)

• Adds video, audio, effect, and subtitle tracks to the timeline

• Adds and trims clips on the timeline

• Stabilizes shaky footage on selected clips

• Exports the timeline to an H.264 MP4 file and returns the output path

End-user installation

Claude Desktop

Install PowerDirector.mcpb in Claude Desktop. Claude Desktop launches the packaged server with:

{
  "command": "node",
  "args": ["${__dirname}/server/server.js"]
}

For a Node-type MCPB, node selects Claude Desktop's bundled Node runtime. It does not depend on the user's PATH.

If the packaged-extension file picker in Claude Desktop fails, use Extensions > Install Unpacked Extension... and select staging.

Codex (CLI and IDE/desktop)

Codex shares one configuration file across the CLI and the IDE extension at ~/.codex/config.toml (or %CODEX_HOME%\config.toml). The install script copies the built server to %LOCALAPPDATA%\PowerDirectorMCP and registers a stdio MCP server:

[mcp_servers.PowerDirector]
command = "C:/Program Files/nodejs/node.exe"
args = ["C:/Users/<you>/AppData/Local/PowerDirectorMCP/server/server.js"]
startup_timeout_sec = 30
tool_timeout_sec = 120

Codex does not bundle Node.js, so Node 20+ must be installed and on PATH. After running the build, register and unregister with:

install-codex-mcp.bat
uninstall-codex-mcp.bat

After installing, restart Codex and run /mcp to confirm the PowerDirector server is active.

Codex plugin (MCP server + skills)

Instead of registering only the MCP server, you can install a full Codex plugin that bundles the MCP server together with skills that teach Codex how to drive PowerDirector. The plugin is assembled into a local marketplace and installed with the Codex CLI:

install-codex-plugin.bat
uninstall-codex-plugin.bat

This requires the Codex CLI (npm i -g @openai/codex) and Node 20+ on PATH. The installer:

1. Assembles the plugin under %LOCALAPPDATA%\PowerDirectorMCP\codex-plugin (manifest, skills/, .mcp.json, and the Node server).

2. Registers a local marketplace named CyberLink.

3. Runs codex plugin add powerdirector@CyberLink.

The bundle layout follows the Codex plugin spec:

marketplace/
  .agents/plugins/marketplace.json
  plugins/powerdirector/
    .codex-plugin/plugin.json   # plugin manifest
    .mcp.json                   # bundled MCP server (command + args)
    skills/
      powerdirector-control/SKILL.md
      powerdirector-produce/SKILL.md
    server/                     # server.js
    assets/icon.png

After installing, restart Codex and run /plugins to confirm PowerDirector is enabled, or type $ to invoke its skills (powerdirector-control, powerdirector-produce).

Claude Code (CLI) MCP server

To register only the MCP server with the Claude Code CLI (no skills), run:

install-claude-mcp.bat
uninstall-claude-mcp.bat

This requires the Claude Code CLI and Node 20+ on PATH. The installer copies the server to %LOCALAPPDATA%\PowerDirectorMCP\claude-mcp and registers it at user scope with claude mcp add PowerDirector --scope user -- <node> <server.js>. Confirm with claude mcp list or /mcp inside Claude Code.

Claude Code plugin (MCP server + skills)

You can also install a full Claude Code plugin that bundles the MCP server together with the same skills. The plugin is assembled into a local marketplace and installed with the Claude Code CLI:

install-claude-plugin.bat
uninstall-claude-plugin.bat

This requires the Claude Code CLI and Node 20+ on PATH. The installer:

1. Assembles the plugin under %LOCALAPPDATA%\PowerDirectorMCP\claude-plugin (manifest, skills/, .mcp.json, and the Node server).

2. Registers a local marketplace named CyberLink.

3. Runs claude plugin install powerdirector@CyberLink.

The bundle layout follows the Claude Code plugin spec:

marketplace/
  .claude-plugin/marketplace.json
  plugins/powerdirector/
    .claude-plugin/plugin.json  # plugin manifest
    .mcp.json                   # bundled MCP server (mcpServers map)
    skills/
      powerdirector-control/SKILL.md
      powerdirector-produce/SKILL.md
    server/                     # server.js
    assets/icon.png

After installing, restart Claude Code and run /plugin to confirm PowerDirector is enabled.

Local Installation & Uninstallation (Claude Desktop)

For local development installs after running a release build, run:

install-claude-mcpb.bat

To uninstall the extension and clean up all Claude Desktop settings and staged files, run:

uninstall-claude-mcpb.bat

PowerDirector Lifetime Management

PowerDirector is launched by the Node.js MCP server in named-pipe MCP mode (clpdrMCP <server pid>):

• PowerDirector watches the server's PID and exits automatically when the server does (e.g., when Claude Desktop is closed) — there is no manual close step.

Developer setup

Development requires Node.js 20 or later.

npm install
npm run build
npm test

Run the development server:

npm start

Project layout

• src/: Node.js MCP server source.

• assets/: Packaged extension assets such as the icon.

• plugin/: Shared plugin template used by both install-codex-plugin.bat and install-claude-plugin.bat. Holds the Codex manifest under .codex-plugin/, the Claude Code manifest under .claude-plugin/, and a single shared skills/ folder.

• scripts/: Build verification helpers.

• tests-node/: Node test code for the server and the PowerDirector named-pipe client.

• dist/: Generated bundled server output.

• staging/: Generated unpacked MCPB contents used for local install and packaging.

Release build

npm run build:mcpb

The build:

1. Installs the locked npm dependencies.

2. Bundles the JavaScript server into one file.

3. Creates staging with only the server, manifest, icon, and license.

4. Performs a real MCP stdio handshake.

5. Creates PowerDirector.mcpb.

build.bat is kept as a Windows convenience wrapper around npm run build:mcpb.

License

This project is commercially licensed. See LICENSE for the distribution terms.

Tools

Tool definitions (name, description, input/output schema) are generated from PowerDirector's Iris skill catalog by scripts/generate-tools.js into src/tools.generated.js; run npm run gen:tools to refresh them (the build script does this automatically). src/server.js adds only MCP-specific metadata (titles, read-only/destructive hints, and a few polished descriptions).

• Connectivity: ping_powerdirector

• Inspect: get_media_info, get_timeline_info

• Build: add_track, add_clip, set_project_settings, set_video_stabilizer, clear_timeline

• Effects: list_effect_categories, list_effects, add_effect, remove_effect

• Transitions: list_transition_categories, list_transitions, add_transition

• Music: add_bgm

• AI generation (consume CyberLink credits): list_auto_edit_themes, gen_auto_edit, list_image_by_text_styles, gen_image_by_text, edit_video_by_text

• Export: export_timeline_to_video

get_timeline_info, add_track, and add_clip return GUIDs; subsequent calls target tracks and clips by those GUIDs. Inspect the timeline with get_timeline_info before editing.

Not every tool is served by every PowerDirector build — the server advertises the full catalog, and tools the installed build has not registered on the pipe return an error when called.