MCP Map Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides a dynamic map interface.

Quick Start

Add the hosted MCP endpoint to your LLM client, like so:

Using VSCode

create a .vscode/mcp.json like this: (as in this repo)

{
	"servers": {
		"map-server": {
			"command": "uv",
			"args": [
				"run",
				"mcp-map-server",
				"--transport",
				"stdio",
				"--prompt-file",
				"system-prompt.example.md"
			]
		},
	}
}

You should see a little icon appear above the entry to "Start" server, like so:

Configuring Data Layer Information

The server supports MCP prompts to provide AI agents with information about available data layers. This helps agents understand which layers are available, their attributes, and how to use them effectively.

Recommended: Use a Markdown file

You can provide a system prompt as a plain markdown file:

mcp-map-server --prompt-file my-layers.md

Related MCP server: Earthdata MCP Server

Tooling & API

Every map-modifying tool returns the full, updated map configuration in JSON format.

Available Tools

• add_layer: Adds a raster (XYZ/Tiles) or vector (MVT/PMTiles) layer.

• set_map_view: Moves the camera to a specific center and zoom.

• filter_layer: Applies MapLibre filter expressions to an existing layer.

• set_layer_paint: Dynamically modifies paint properties (colors, opacity, etc.).

• remove_layer: Deletes a layer by ID.

• get_map_config: Returns the current session/provided state as JSON.

MCP Client Configuration

To use this with MCP-compatible clients like Claude Desktop or VSCode extensions, point them to the server.

Local Development (Recommended):

Local clients like Claude Desktop and VSCode expect StdIO transport when launching a command. The server now defaults to stdio.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "map-server": {
      "command": "uv run mcp-map-server"
    }
  }
}

Passing CLI Arguments (Transport, Prompts, etc.):

If you need to specify the transport explicitly or provide a custom system prompt file, use the args array.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "map-server": {
      "command": "uv run mcp-map-server",
      "args": [
        "--transport", "stdio",
        "--prompt-file", "/path/to/my-layers.md"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Note: The server defaults to stdio when run as a command.

Using the Shared Production Server:

Web-based or remote clients connect via HTTP.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "map-server": {
      "url": "https://mcp-map.nrp-nautilus.io/mcp/"
    }
  }
}

License

MIT