Canvas MCP Server v2.0

A comprehensive Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Canvas LMS with complete student and instructor functionality

What's New in v2.0

• Complete Student Experience: 40+ tools covering all student workflows
• Remote Ready: Docker, Kubernetes, and cloud deployment support
• Fully Tested: Comprehensive test suite with 90%+ coverage
• Production Grade: Robust error handling, retry logic, health monitoring
• Modern Stack: TypeScript, async/await, automatic pagination
• Real-time: Dashboard updates, upcoming assignments, calendar integration

Key Features

For Students

• Course Management: Access all courses, syllabi, and course materials
• Assignment Workflow: View, submit (text/URL/files), and track assignments
• Communication: Participate in discussions, read announcements, send messages
• Progress Tracking: Monitor grades, module completion, and calendar events
• Quizzes: Take quizzes, view results and feedback
• File Access: Browse and download course files and resources

For Instructors

• Course Creation: Create and manage course structure
• Grading: Grade submissions, provide feedback, manage rubrics
• User Management: Enroll students, manage permissions
• Content Management: Create assignments, quizzes, discussions

Technical Excellence

• Robust API: Automatic retries, pagination, comprehensive error handling
• Cloud Ready: Docker containers, Kubernetes manifests, health checks
• Well Tested: Unit tests, integration tests, mocking, coverage reports
• Type Safe: Full TypeScript implementation with strict types

Quick Start

Option 1: Claude Desktop Integration (Recommended MCP Setup)

Add to claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "canvas-mcp-server": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "canvas-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "CANVAS_API_TOKEN": "your_token_here",
        "CANVAS_DOMAIN": "your_school.instructure.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option 2: NPM Package

# Install globally
npm install -g canvas-mcp-server

# Configure
export CANVAS_API_TOKEN="your_token_here"
export CANVAS_DOMAIN="your_school.instructure.com"

# Run
canvas-mcp-server

Option 3: Docker

docker run -d \
  --name canvas-mcp \
  -e CANVAS_API_TOKEN="your_token" \
  -e CANVAS_DOMAIN="school.instructure.com" \
  ghcr.io/dmontgomery40/mcp-canvas-lms:latest

Student Workflow Examples

Check Today's Assignments

"What assignments do I have due this week?"

Lists upcoming assignments with due dates, points, and submission status

Submit an Assignment

"Help me submit my essay for English 101 Assignment 3"

Guides through text submission with formatting options

Check Grades

"What's my current grade in Biology?"

Shows current scores, grades, and assignment feedback

Participate in Discussions

"Show me the latest discussion posts in my Philosophy class"

Displays recent discussion topics and enables posting responses

Track Progress

"What modules do I need to complete in Math 200?"

Shows module completion status and next items to complete

Getting Canvas API Token

1. Log into Canvas → Account → Settings
2. Scroll to "Approved Integrations"
3. Click "+ New Access Token"
4. Enter description: "Claude MCP Integration"
5. Copy the generated token Save securely!

Production Deployment

Docker Compose

git clone https://github.com/DMontgomery40/mcp-canvas-lms.git
cd mcp-canvas-lms
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your Canvas credentials
docker-compose up -d

Kubernetes

kubectl create secret generic canvas-mcp-secrets \
  --from-literal=CANVAS_API_TOKEN="your_token" \
  --from-literal=CANVAS_DOMAIN="school.instructure.com"

kubectl apply -f k8s/

Health Monitoring

# Check application health
curl http://localhost:3000/health

# Or use the built-in health check
npm run health-check

Development

# Setup development environment
git clone https://github.com/DMontgomery40/mcp-canvas-lms.git
cd mcp-canvas-lms
npm install

# Start development with hot reload
npm run dev:watch

# Run tests
npm run test
npm run coverage

# Code quality
npm run lint
npm run type-check

📚 Available Tools

Core Student Tools (Click to expand)

• canvas_health_check - Check API connectivity
• canvas_list_courses - List all your courses
• canvas_get_course - Get detailed course info
• canvas_list_assignments - List course assignments
• canvas_get_assignment - Get assignment details
• canvas_submit_assignment - Submit assignment work
• canvas_get_submission - Check submission status
• canvas_list_modules - List course modules
• canvas_mark_module_item_complete - Mark items complete
• canvas_list_discussions - List discussion topics
• canvas_post_to_discussion - Post to discussions
• canvas_list_announcements - List course announcements
• canvas_get_user_grades - Get your grades
• canvas_get_dashboard - Get dashboard info
• canvas_get_upcoming_assignments - Get due dates
• canvas_list_calendar_events - List calendar events
• canvas_list_files - List course files
• canvas_list_pages - List course pages
• canvas_get_page - Get page content
• canvas_list_conversations - List messages
• canvas_create_conversation - Send messages

👨‍🏫 Instructor Tools (Click to expand)

• canvas_create_course - Create new courses
• canvas_update_course - Update course settings
• canvas_create_assignment - Create assignments
• canvas_update_assignment - Update assignments
• canvas_submit_grade - Grade submissions
• canvas_enroll_user - Enroll students
• canvas_create_quiz - Create quizzes
• canvas_update_quiz - Update quizzes

🌟 Example Claude Conversations

Student: "I need to check my upcoming assignments and submit my English essay"

Claude: I'll help you check your upcoming assignments and then assist with submitting your English essay. Let me start by getting your upcoming assignments...

[Claude uses canvas_get_upcoming_assignments then helps with canvas_submit_assignment]

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Student: "What's my current grade in Biology and what assignments am I missing?"

Claude: I'll check your Biology grades and identify any missing assignments...

[Claude uses canvas_get_course_grades and canvas_list_assignments with submission status]

🔍 Troubleshooting

Common Issues:

• ❌ 401 Unauthorized: Check your API token and permissions
• ❌ 404 Not Found: Verify course/assignment IDs and access rights
• ❌ Timeout: Increase CANVAS_TIMEOUT or check network connectivity

Debug Mode:

export LOG_LEVEL=debug
npm start

Health Check:

npm run health-check

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Quick Contribution Setup

git clone https://github.com/DMontgomery40/mcp-canvas-lms.git
cd mcp-canvas-lms
npm install
npm run dev:watch
# Make changes, add tests, submit PR

📈 Roadmap

• v2.1: Real-time notifications, bulk operations, advanced search
• v2.2: Mobile support, offline capability, analytics dashboard
• v3.0: Multi-tenant, GraphQL API, AI-powered insights

🙋 Support & Community

• 🐛 Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
• 💬 Questions: GitHub Discussions
• 📖 Documentation: Wiki

📄 License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

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