freshrss-mcp 0.2.5
A Model Context Protocol server for FreshRSS RSS reader
Requires Python: >=3.10
Keywords: feed-reader, freshrss, mcp, model-context-protocol, rss

# FreshRSS MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for [FreshRSS](https://www.freshrss.org/), the self-hosted RSS feed aggregator. This server allows LLMs and other MCP clients to interact with your FreshRSS instance to manage feeds, read articles, and organize your RSS content.

## Features

- 🔐 **Authentication**: Secure connection to your FreshRSS instance
- 📁 **Folder Management**: List and organize feeds in folders
- 📰 **Article Reading**: Fetch articles with advanced filtering options
- ✅ **Article Management**: Mark articles as read/unread, star/unstar
- 🏷️ **Label System**: Add labels to articles for organization
- 📡 **Feed Management**: Subscribe/unsubscribe from RSS feeds
- 📊 **Unread Counts**: Get unread statistics by feed and folder

## Installation

### Using pip

```bash
pip install freshrss-mcp
```

### From source

```bash
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/freshrss-mcp.git
cd freshrss-mcp
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -e .
```

## Configuration

### Environment Variables

Create a `.env` file or set these environment variables:

```bash
FRESHRSS_URL=https://your-freshrss-instance.com
FRESHRSS_EMAIL=your-email@example.com
FRESHRSS_API_PASSWORD=your-api-password
```

**Important**: The `FRESHRSS_API_PASSWORD` is NOT your regular FreshRSS password. You need to:
1. Enable API access in FreshRSS Settings → Authentication
2. Set an API password in your Profile settings

## Running the Server

### Transport Modes

The FreshRSS MCP server supports multiple transport protocols:

#### 1. Stdio Mode (Default - for Claude Desktop)
```bash
# Activate virtual environment
source venv/bin/activate

# Run with stdio transport (silent, for MCP clients)
freshrss-mcp

# Or explicitly
freshrss-mcp --stdio
```

#### 2. HTTP Mode (for web integration)
```bash
# Activate virtual environment
source venv/bin/activate

# Run streamable HTTP server on port 8000
freshrss-mcp --http
```

**Output:**
```
INFO:freshrss_mcp.server:🚀 FreshRSS MCP Server starting on http://localhost:8000
INFO:freshrss_mcp.server:📋 13 MCP tools loaded for FreshRSS management
INFO:     Uvicorn running on http://localhost:8000 (Press CTRL+C to quit)
```

**Available endpoints:**
- 🌐 **HTTP**: `http://localhost:8000`
- 🔌 **WebSocket**: `ws://localhost:8000/ws`
- ❤️ **Health Check**: `http://localhost:8000/health`

#### 3. Server-Sent Events Mode
```bash
freshrss-mcp --sse
```

#### 4. Help
```bash
freshrss-mcp --help
```

### Claude Desktop Configuration

#### For Stdio Mode (Recommended)
Add the FreshRSS MCP server to your Claude Desktop configuration:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "freshrss": {
      "command": "freshrss-mcp",
      "env": {
        "FRESHRSS_URL": "https://your-freshrss-instance.com",
        "FRESHRSS_EMAIL": "your-email@example.com",
        "FRESHRSS_API_PASSWORD": "your-api-password"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

#### For HTTP Mode
```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "freshrss": {
      "command": "freshrss-mcp",
      "args": ["--http"],
      "env": {
        "FRESHRSS_URL": "https://your-freshrss-instance.com",
        "FRESHRSS_EMAIL": "your-email@example.com",
        "FRESHRSS_API_PASSWORD": "your-api-password"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

## Available Tools

### Authentication

#### `freshrss_authenticate`
Authenticate with your FreshRSS instance. Can use environment variables or explicit parameters.

```python
# Using environment variables
await freshrss_authenticate()

# Using explicit parameters
await freshrss_authenticate({
    "base_url": "https://freshrss.example.com",
    "email": "user@example.com",
    "api_password": "your-api-password"
})
```

### Folder Management

#### `freshrss_list_folders`
List all folders/categories in your FreshRSS instance.

```python
result = await freshrss_list_folders()
# Returns: {"folders": [{"name": "Tech", "id": "user/-/label/Tech", "type": "folder"}], "count": 1}
```

#### `freshrss_list_subscriptions`
List all subscribed feeds with their folder assignments.

```python
result = await freshrss_list_subscriptions()
# Returns detailed subscription information including folders
```

### Article Reading

#### `freshrss_get_articles`
Fetch articles with various filtering options.

```python
# Get unread articles from all feeds
await freshrss_get_articles({"show_read": false, "count": 50})

# Get articles from specific folder
await freshrss_get_articles({"folder": "Tech", "count": 20})

# Get starred articles
await freshrss_get_articles({"starred_only": true})

# Get articles from specific feed
await freshrss_get_articles({"feed_url": "https://example.com/feed.xml"})

# Pagination
await freshrss_get_articles({"count": 50, "continuation": "continuation_token"})
```

#### `freshrss_get_unread_count`
Get unread article counts organized by feed and folder.

```python
result = await freshrss_get_unread_count()
# Returns total unread count plus breakdowns by feed and folder
```

### Article Management

#### `freshrss_mark_read`
Mark one or more articles as read.

```python
await freshrss_mark_read({
    "article_ids": ["tag:google.com,2005:reader/item/..."]
})
```

#### `freshrss_mark_unread`
Mark one or more articles as unread.

```python
await freshrss_mark_unread({
    "article_ids": ["tag:google.com,2005:reader/item/..."]
})
```

#### `freshrss_star_article`
Star one or more articles.

```python
await freshrss_star_article({
    "article_ids": ["tag:google.com,2005:reader/item/..."]
})
```

#### `freshrss_unstar_article`
Unstar one or more articles.

```python
await freshrss_unstar_article({
    "article_ids": ["tag:google.com,2005:reader/item/..."]
})
```

#### `freshrss_add_label`
Add a label to one or more articles.

```python
await freshrss_add_label({
    "article_ids": ["tag:google.com,2005:reader/item/..."],
    "label": "Important"
})
```

### Feed Management

#### `freshrss_subscribe`
Subscribe to a new RSS feed.

```python
# Basic subscription
await freshrss_subscribe({
    "feed_url": "https://example.com/feed.xml"
})

# With custom title and folder
await freshrss_subscribe({
    "feed_url": "https://example.com/feed.xml",
    "title": "Example Blog",
    "folder": "Tech"
})
```

#### `freshrss_unsubscribe`
Unsubscribe from a feed.

```python
await freshrss_unsubscribe({
    "feed_url": "https://example.com/feed.xml"
})
```

## Example Usage

Here's a complete example of using the FreshRSS MCP server:

```python
# 1. Authenticate
await freshrss_authenticate()

# 2. List folders
folders = await freshrss_list_folders()
print(f"You have {folders['count']} folders")

# 3. Get unread counts
counts = await freshrss_get_unread_count()
print(f"Total unread: {counts['total_unread']}")

# 4. Fetch unread articles from Tech folder
articles = await freshrss_get_articles({
    "folder": "Tech",
    "show_read": false,
    "count": 10
})

# 5. Mark first article as read
if articles['articles']:
    await freshrss_mark_read({
        "article_ids": [articles['articles'][0]['id']]
    })

# 6. Star an interesting article
await freshrss_star_article({
    "article_ids": [articles['articles'][1]['id']]
})
```

## Development

### Quick Start in Virtual Environment

```bash
# Clone and setup
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/freshrss-mcp.git
cd freshrss-mcp

# Create and activate virtual environment
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

# Install in development mode
pip install -e .

# Configure environment
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your FreshRSS credentials

# Test the installation
python test_direct.py

# Run HTTP server
freshrss-mcp --http
```

### Running Tests

```bash
pytest tests/
```

### Code Style

This project uses Black for code formatting and Ruff for linting:

```bash
black src/
ruff check src/
```

### Development Commands

```bash
# Test all transport modes
freshrss-mcp --help
freshrss-mcp --stdio    # For MCP clients
freshrss-mcp --http     # HTTP server on port 8000
freshrss-mcp --sse      # Server-Sent Events

# Test API client directly
python test_direct.py

# Install development dependencies
pip install -e ".[dev]"
```

## API Implementation

This MCP server implements the [Google Reader API](https://freshrss.github.io/FreshRSS/en/developers/06_GoogleReader_API.html) as supported by FreshRSS. The implementation includes:

- Authentication via ClientLogin
- Stream contents for article fetching
- Edit tag operations for marking read/starred
- Subscription management
- Tag/folder listing

## Troubleshooting

### Authentication Issues

1. **"No auth token in response"**: Make sure you're using the API password, not your regular password
2. **HTTP 404 errors**: Check that your FreshRSS URL is correct and includes the protocol (https://)
3. **API not enabled**: Ensure API access is enabled in FreshRSS Settings → Authentication

### Performance Tips

- Use pagination with `continuation` tokens for large article lists
- Filter by folder or feed to reduce response size
- Set appropriate `count` values (max ~1000 per request)

## Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Add tests for new functionality
4. Submit a pull request

## License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

## Acknowledgments

- [FreshRSS](https://www.freshrss.org/) for the excellent RSS reader
- [Model Context Protocol](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) for the MCP specification
- The FreshRSS community for API documentation