Puppeteer Real Browser MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI assistants with powerful, detection-resistant browser automation capabilities using puppeteer-real-browser.

Quick Start for Beginners
Introduction
Features
Prerequisites
Installation
Usage
- With Claude Desktop
- With Other AI Assistants
Available Tools
Advanced Features
Configuration
Troubleshooting
Development
Contributing
License

Quick Start for Beginners

What is this?

This is an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that lets AI assistants like Claude control a real web browser. Think of it as giving Claude "hands" to interact with websites - it can click buttons, fill forms, take screenshots, and much more, all while avoiding bot detection.

Step-by-Step Setup

1. Install Node.js

Go to nodejs.org
Download and install Node.js (version 18 or higher)
Verify installation by opening terminal/command prompt and typing: node --version

2. Set Up with Claude Desktop (No Installation Required)

The npx command will automatically download and run the latest version, so no manual installation is needed.

3. Configure Claude Desktop

For Windows:

Open File Explorer and navigate to: %APPDATA%\Claude\
Open (or create) claude_desktop_config.json
Add this configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer-real-browser": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server@latest"]
    }
  }
}

For Mac:

Open Finder and press Cmd+Shift+G
Go to: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/
Open (or create) claude_desktop_config.json
Add the same configuration as above

For Linux:

Navigate to: ~/.config/Claude/
Open (or create) claude_desktop_config.json
Add the same configuration as above

4. Restart Claude Desktop

Close and reopen Claude Desktop completely.

5. Test It Works

In Claude Desktop, try saying:

"Initialize a browser and navigate to google.com, then take a screenshot"

If everything is working, Claude should be able to:

Start a browser
Navigate to Google
Take and show you a screenshot

What Can You Do With It?

Once set up, you can ask Claude to:

Browse websites: "Go to amazon.com and search for laptops"
Fill forms: "Fill out this contact form with my details"
Take screenshots: "Show me what this page looks like"
Extract data: "Get all the product prices from this page"
Automate tasks: "Log into my account and download my invoice"
Solve captchas: "Handle any captchas that appear"

Safety Notes

Claude will show you what it's doing - you can see the browser window
Always review what Claude does before approving sensitive actions
Use headless mode (headless: true) if you don't want to see the browser window
Be respectful of websites' terms of service

Introduction

The Puppeteer Real Browser MCP Server acts as a bridge between AI assistants and browser automation. It leverages puppeteer-real-browser to provide stealth browsing capabilities that can bypass common bot detection mechanisms.

This server implements the Model Context Protocol (MCP), allowing AI assistants to control a real browser with human-like interactions, take screenshots, extract content, and more.

Features

Stealth by default: All browser instances use anti-detection features
Enhanced page methods: Support for page.realClick and page.realCursor
Advanced configuration: Full support for all puppeteer-real-browser options
Human-like actions: Tools for natural interactions to avoid detection
Comprehensive toolset: 16+ tools covering all browser automation needs
Proxy support: Built-in proxy configuration for enhanced privacy
Captcha handling: Support for solving reCAPTCHA, hCaptcha, and Turnstile
Target management: Support for setTarget function
Error handling: Robust error handling and reporting

Prerequisites

Node.js >= 18.0.0
npm or yarn
Basic understanding of TypeScript/JavaScript (for development)

Installation

From npm

npm install -g puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server

From source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/withLinda/puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server.git
cd puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

Usage

With Claude Desktop

Add to Claude Desktop config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "puppeteer-real-browser": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server@latest"]
    }
  }
}

With Other AI Assistants

Start the server:

puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server

Or if installed from source:

npm start

The server communicates via stdin/stdout using the MCP protocol.

Example Interactions

Basic Web Browsing

User: "Initialize a browser and navigate to example.com"
AI: I'll initialize a stealth browser and navigate to the website.
[Uses browser_init and navigate tools]

User: "Take a screenshot of the main content"
AI: I'll capture a screenshot of the page.
[Uses screenshot tool]

Form Automation

User: "Fill in the search form with 'test query'"
AI: I'll type that into the search field using human-like typing.
[Uses human_like_type tool with selector and text]

User: "Click the search button"
AI: I'll click the search button with human-like movement.
[Uses human_like_click tool]

Data Extraction

User: "Get all the product names from this e-commerce page"
AI: I'll extract the product information from the page.
[Uses get_content tool with appropriate selectors]

User: "Save the page content as text"
AI: I'll get the text content of the entire page.
[Uses get_content tool with type: 'text']

Advanced Interactions

User: "Use real click on the dropdown menu"
AI: I'll use the enhanced real_click method for better interaction.
[Uses real_click tool with selector and options]

User: "Move the cursor to coordinates 500, 300 smoothly"
AI: I'll move the cursor using enhanced movement.
[Uses real_cursor tool with x, y coordinates and step options]

Working with Proxies

User: "Initialize a browser with a proxy server"
AI: I'll set up the browser with your proxy configuration.
[Uses browser_init with proxy: "https://proxy.example.com:8080"]

Available Tools

Core Browser Tools

Tool Name	Description	Required Parameters	Optional Parameters
`browser_init`	Initialize stealth browser with advanced options	None	`headless`, `disableXvfb`, `ignoreAllFlags`, `proxy`, `plugins`, `connectOption`
`navigate`	Navigate to a URL	`url`	`waitUntil`
`screenshot`	Take a screenshot of page or element	None	`fullPage`, `selector`
`get_content`	Get page content (HTML or text)	None	`type`, `selector`
`browser_close`	Close the browser instance	None	None

Interaction Tools

Tool Name	Description	Required Parameters	Optional Parameters
`click`	Standard click on element	`selector`	`waitForNavigation`
`type`	Type text into input field	`selector`, `text`	`delay`
`wait`	Wait for various conditions	`type`, `value`	`timeout`

Enhanced Puppeteer-Real-Browser Tools

Tool Name	Description	Required Parameters	Optional Parameters
`real_click`	Enhanced click using page.realClick	`selector`	`options` (button, clickCount, delay)
`real_cursor`	Enhanced cursor movement using page.realCursor	`selector` OR `x`,`y`	`options` (steps)
`set_target`	Use setTarget function for advanced targeting	`target`	None

Human-like Behavior Tools

Tool Name	Description	Required Parameters	Optional Parameters
`human_like_click`	Click with human-like mouse movement	`selector`	None
`human_like_type`	Type text with human-like timing	`selector`, `text`	None
`random_scroll`	Perform random scrolling with natural timing	None	None

Anti-Detection Tools

Tool Name	Description	Required Parameters	Optional Parameters
`solve_captcha`	Attempt to solve captchas	`type`	None

Advanced Features

Human-like Interactions

The server includes several tools designed to mimic human behavior:

Human-like mouse movement: Moves the cursor in a natural, non-linear path
Variable typing speed: Types with random delays between keystrokes
Random scrolling: Performs scrolling with natural timing and variable distances

These features help avoid detection by sophisticated bot-detection systems that analyze user behavior patterns.

Captcha Handling

The server includes basic support for solving common captcha types:

reCAPTCHA
hCaptcha
Cloudflare Turnstile

Note that captcha solving capabilities depend on the underlying puppeteer-real-browser implementation.

Configuration

Configuring Custom Options (like headless mode)

Custom options like headless mode are not configured in the MCP config file. Instead, they're passed when initializing the browser using the browser_init tool:

When you ask Claude to initialize a browser, you can specify options like:

Please initialize a browser with headless mode enabled and a 30-second timeout

Claude will then use the browser_init tool with appropriate parameters:

{
  "headless": true,
  "connectOption": {
    "timeout": 30000
  }
}

Available Browser Options

When initializing with browser_init, you can configure:

headless: true/false (Set to true for headless operation)
disableXvfb: true/false (Disable X Virtual Framebuffer)
ignoreAllFlags: true/false (Ignore all Chrome flags)
proxy: "https://proxy:8080" (Proxy server URL)
plugins: ["plugin1", "plugin2"] (Array of plugins to load)
connectOption: Additional connection options like:
- slowMo: 250 (Slow down operations by milliseconds)
- timeout: 60,000 (Connection timeout)

The MCP config file only tells Claude where to find the server - all browser-specific options are configured through your conversations with Claude.

Browser Options Example

When initializing the browser with browser_init, you can configure:

{
  "headless": false,
  "disableXvfb": false,
  "ignoreAllFlags": false,
  "proxy": "https://proxy:8080",
  "plugins": ["plugin1", "plugin2"],
  "connectOption": {
    "slowMo": 250,
    "timeout": 60000
  }
}

Advanced Configuration Examples

Using a Proxy

{
  "headless": true,
  "proxy": "https://username:[email protected]:8080"
}

Stealth Mode with Custom Options

{
  "headless": false,
  "ignoreAllFlags": true,
  "disableXvfb": false,
  "connectOption": {
    "slowMo": 100,
    "devtools": false
  }
}

Enhanced Real Browser Features

Using real_click with options:

{
  "selector": "#submit-button",
  "options": {
    "button": "left",
    "clickCount": 2,
    "delay": 150
  }
}

Using real_cursor with coordinates:

{
  "x": 500,
  "y": 300,
  "options": {
    "steps": 30
  }
}

Server Configuration

For advanced users, you can modify the server behavior by editing the source code:

Change default viewport size in the initializeBrowser function
Adjust timeout values for various operations
Enable debug logging

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

"command not found" or "syntax error" when using npx
- This was fixed in version 1.0.3 with the addition of a proper shebang line
- Make sure you're using the latest version: npx puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server@latest
- For global installation: npm install -g puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server@latest
- If still having issues, install globally: npm install -g puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server
- Check your PATH includes npm global binaries: npm config get prefix
Browser won't start
- Check if Chrome/Chromium is installed
- On Linux: Install dependencies: sudo apt-get install -y chromium-browser
- On Windows: Make sure you have Chrome installed
- Try with headless: true first
Claude doesn't see the MCP server
- Verify claude_desktop_config.json is in the correct location
- Check JSON syntax is valid (use jsonlint.com)
- Restart Claude Desktop completely
- Check for any error messages in Claude Desktop
Permission denied errors
- On Linux/Mac: Try sudo npm install -g puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server
- Or use nvm to manage Node.js without sudo
- On Windows: Run command prompt as Administrator
Detection issues
- Use real_click and real_cursor instead of basic click
- Enable human-like tools: human_like_click, human_like_type
- Add random delays with random_scroll
- Use proxy if needed: proxy: "http://proxy.example.com:8080"
Memory leaks
- Always close browser instances with browser_close when done
- Don't initialize multiple browsers without closing previous ones
- Check for uncaught exceptions that might prevent cleanup
Timeout errors
- Increase timeout values: { "timeout": 60000 }
- Use wait tool before interacting with elements
- Check network connectivity and website response times

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Does this work with headless browsers? A: Yes, set headless: true in browser_init options.

Q: Can I use multiple browsers at once? A: Currently supports one browser instance. Close the current one before starting a new one.

Q: What captchas can it solve? A: Supports reCAPTCHA, hCaptcha, and Cloudflare Turnstile through puppeteer-real-browser.

Q: Is this detectable by websites? A: puppeteer-real-browser includes anti-detection features, but no solution is 100% undetectable.

Q: Can I use custom Chrome extensions? A: Yes, through the plugins option in browser_init.

Q: Does it work on all operating systems? A: Yes, tested on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Debug Mode

To enable debug logging:

DEBUG=true npm start

Or when running from source:

DEBUG=true npm run dev

Getting Help

If you're still having issues:

Check the GitHub Issues
Create a new issue with:
- Your operating system
- Node.js version (node --version)
- npm version (npm --version)
- Full error message
- Steps to reproduce the problem

Development

Project Structure

puppeteer-real-browser-mcp-server/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts         # Main server implementation
│   └── stealth-actions.ts # Human-like interaction functions
├── test/
│   └── test-server.ts   # Test script
├── package.json
└── tsconfig.json

Building from Source

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run in development mode
npm run dev

# Build for production
npm run build

# Test the server
npm test

Adding New Tools

To add a new tool:

Add the tool definition to the TOOLS array in src/index.ts
Implement the tool handler in the CallToolRequestSchema handler
Test the new tool functionality

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Fork the repository
Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')
Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
Open a Pull Request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.