Canvas MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI assistants like Claude to interact with Canvas LMS. This server provides tools for managing courses, announcements, rubrics, assignments, and student data through the Canvas API.

Features

List active courses and their details
Post announcements to courses
View course rubrics
Get student enrollment information
Access assignment details and submissions
View student submission history and comments

Prerequisites

Node.js (v16 or higher)
A Canvas API token
Canvas instance URL (defaults to "https://fhict.instructure.com")

Installation

Clone this repository and install dependencies:

git clone <repository-url>
cd canvas-mcp
npm install

Build the TypeScript project:
```
npm run build
```

Configure your environment variables:

# Create a .env file
echo "CANVAS_API_TOKEN=your_token_here" > .env
# Optional: Set custom Canvas URL
echo "CANVAS_DOMAIN=https://your-canvas-instance.com" >> .env

Claude Desktop Integration

Open Claude Desktop's configuration file:

MacOS:

code ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Windows:

code %AppData%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Add the Canvas MCP server configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "canvas": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/path/to/canvas-mcp/build/index.js"
      ],
      "env": {
        "CANVAS_API_TOKEN": "your_token_here",
        "CANVAS_DOMAIN": "https://your-canvas-instance.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop to apply changes

Available Tools

list-courses

Lists all active courses for the authenticated user

No required parameters
Returns course names, IDs, and term information

post-announcement

Posts an announcement to a specific course

Required parameters:
- courseId: string
- title: string
- message: string

list-rubrics

Lists all rubrics for a specific course

Required parameters:
- courseId: string
Returns rubric titles, IDs, and descriptions

list-students

Gets a complete list of students enrolled in a course

Required parameters:
- courseId: string
Optional parameters:
- includeEmail: boolean (default: false)
Returns student names, IDs, and optional email addresses

list-assignments

Gets all assignments in a course with submission status

Required parameters:
- courseId: string
Optional parameters:
- studentId: string
- includeSubmissionHistory: boolean (default: false)
Returns assignment details and submission status

list-assignment-submissions

Gets all student submissions for a specific assignment

Required parameters:
- courseId: string
- assignmentId: string
Optional parameters:
- includeComments: boolean (default: true)
Returns submission details, grades, and comments

Available Prompts

analyze-rubric-statistics

Analyzes rubric statistics for formative assignments in a course and creates visualizations

Required parameters:
- courseName: string (The name of the course to analyze)
Creates two comprehensive visualizations:
1. Grouped stacked bar chart showing score distribution per criterion across all assignments
2. Grouped bar chart showing average scores per criterion for all assignments
Provides comparative analysis across assignments and criteria
Includes progression analysis and trend identification

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Server not appearing in Claude Desktop:
- Verify configuration file syntax
- Check file paths are absolute
- Ensure Canvas API token is valid
- Restart Claude Desktop
Connection errors:
- Check Canvas API token permissions
- Verify Canvas instance is accessible
- Review Claude's MCP logs:
```
# MacOS
tail -f ~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp*.log
# Windows
type %AppData%\Claude\Logs\mcp*.log
```

Debug Logging

The server logs errors to stderr. These can be viewed in Claude Desktop's logs or redirected when running manually:

node build/index.js 2> debug.log

Security Notes

API Token Security:
- Never commit your Canvas API token to version control
- Use environment variables or secure configuration
- Regularly rotate your API tokens
Permissions:
- Use tokens with minimum required permissions
- Review Canvas API access logs periodically

License

MIT License

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

Canvas LMS Integration