MCP OpenAI Tools

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides access to OpenAI's advanced models (including o3) with web search, code interpreter, and combined analysis capabilities.

Features

• Web Search: Search the web using OpenAI's integrated web search capability

• Code Interpreter: Execute Python code in OpenAI's sandboxed environment

• Search & Analyze: Combine web search with code analysis in a single operation

• Direct Prompting: Send prompts directly to OpenAI models with optional web search

• Health Check: Monitor server status and configuration

• Configurable Reasoning: Adjust reasoning effort levels (low, medium, high) for optimal performance

Related MCP server: MCP Server

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11 or higher

• OpenAI API key with access to o3 or other supported models

• uv package manager (recommended) or pip

Installation

Option 1: Install from Source (Recommended for Development)

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/evandavid1/mcp-openai-tools.git
cd mcp-openai-tools

2. Create a virtual environment and install dependencies:

# Using uv (recommended)
uv venv
uv pip install -e .

# Or using pip
python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -e .

Option 2: Install as a Dependency in Your Project

# Using uv
uv add /path/to/mcp-openai-tools

# Or using pip
pip install /path/to/mcp-openai-tools

Configuration

1. Set up your API Key

Create a .env file in your project root (not in the mcp-openai-tools directory):

OPENAI_API_KEY=your-api-key-here
OPENAI_MODEL=o3  # Optional, defaults to gpt-5

Security Note: Never commit your .env file to version control. Add it to your .gitignore.

2. Configure MCP Server

Add the mcp-openai-tools server to your .mcp.json configuration:

For Local Development:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-openai-tools": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "/path/to/mcp-openai-tools/.venv/bin/python",
      "args": ["-m", "mcp_openai_tools.main"],
      "cwd": "/path/to/your/project",
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_MODEL": "o3"
      }
    }
  }
}

For Installed Package:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-openai-tools": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "mcp_openai_tools.main"],
      "cwd": "/path/to/your/project",
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": "/path/to/mcp-openai-tools/src",
        "OPENAI_MODEL": "o3"
      }
    }
  }
}

3. Environment Variable Options

The server supports multiple ways to specify the .env file location:

• Default: Looks for .env in the current working directory

• Parent Directories: Searches up to 3 parent directories

• Custom Path: Set ENV_FILE environment variable to specify a custom path:

  "env": {
    "ENV_FILE": "/custom/path/to/.env",
    "OPENAI_MODEL": "o3"
  }

Usage

Available Tools

Once configured, the following tools are available in your MCP client (e.g., Claude Code):

1. openai_web_search: Search the web for current information

   Parameters:
   - query: Search query string
   - reasoning_effort: "low" | "medium" | "high" (default: "medium")
   - model: Optional model override

2. openai_code_interpreter: Execute Python code in a sandboxed environment

   Parameters:
   - instruction: What to do with the code
   - code: Optional Python code (generated if not provided)
   - reasoning_effort: "low" | "medium" | "high" (default: "medium")
   - model: Optional model override

3. openai_search_and_analyze: Combine web search with code analysis

   Parameters:
   - task: Description of what to search and analyze
   - reasoning_effort: "low" | "medium" | "high" (default: "medium")
   - model: Optional model override

4. openai_prompt: Direct prompting with optional web search

   Parameters:
   - text: Prompt text
   - reasoning_effort: "low" | "medium" | "high" (default: "medium")
   - model: Optional model override
   - include_web_search: Enable web search (default: true)

5. openai_health_check: Check server status and configuration

   Parameters: None

Example Usage in Claude Code

# Web search example
result = openai_web_search(
    query="latest developments in quantum computing 2024",
    reasoning_effort="high"
)

# Code interpreter example
result = openai_code_interpreter(
    instruction="Create a visualization of fibonacci sequence growth",
    code="import matplotlib.pyplot as plt\n# Generate fibonacci...",
    reasoning_effort="medium"
)

# Combined search and analysis
result = openai_search_and_analyze(
    task="Find current S&P 500 data and create a performance chart",
    reasoning_effort="high"
)

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. "OPENAI_API_KEY environment variable is not set"

   • Ensure your .env file exists and contains OPENAI_API_KEY=your-key

   • Check that the working directory (cwd) in .mcp.json points to your project directory

   • Try setting ENV_FILE environment variable to the absolute path of your .env file

2. "No .env file found. Using system environment variables only"

   • This warning appears when no .env file is found but may still work if you've set environment variables in your system

   • Check the server logs to see which directories were searched

3. Module not found errors

   • Ensure PYTHONPATH is set correctly in .mcp.json if using the package from another location

   • Verify the virtual environment is activated if running locally

4. API errors or model access issues

   • Verify your API key has access to the specified model (o3, gpt-5, etc.)

   • Check OpenAI API status and your account limits

Debugging

Enable detailed logging by checking the server output. The server logs:

• Where it's looking for .env files

• Which .env file was loaded (if any)

• API configuration status

• Tool execution details

Development

Running Tests

# Using pytest
pytest tests/

# With coverage
pytest tests/ --cov=mcp_openai_tools

Project Structure

mcp-openai-tools/
├── src/
│   └── mcp_openai_tools/
│       ├── __init__.py
│       ├── main.py           # Entry point
│       ├── server.py         # MCP server setup
│       ├── core/            
│       │   ├── config.py     # Configuration management
│       │   └── client.py     # OpenAI client setup
│       ├── tools/           
│       │   ├── web_search.py
│       │   ├── code_interpreter.py
│       │   ├── search_analyze.py
│       │   ├── prompt.py
│       │   └── health_check.py
│       └── prompts/         
│           └── user_prompts.py
├── tests/
├── .env.example              # Example environment file
├── .mcp.json.example         # MCP configuration example
├── pyproject.toml           # Package configuration
└── README.md                # This file

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

1. Fork the repository

2. Create a feature branch

3. Make your changes with tests

4. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

Support

For issues, questions, or suggestions:

• Open an issue on GitHub

• Check existing issues for solutions

• Review the server logs for debugging information