Run Paperlane tools from your AI agent with MCP
Paperlane for Mac includes a small local MCP server. Once you switch on agent access and approve a folder, MCP clients such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and Codex can list the tools and run them on files in that folder. Processing stays on your Mac, and agent outputs are saved as new files.
What is the Paperlane MCP server?
MCP, the Model Context Protocol, is a standard way for an AI assistant to call tools. Paperlane ships a helper that speaks MCP over standard input and output and forwards each call to the running app over a private local socket. No network port is opened, and Paperlane tools do not send file bytes to the agent.
What can an agent do with it?
It can ask which tools exist, read the options of a tool, run one on a file, check progress and cancel a job. For example: merge these PDFs, compress this video, remove the background from this photo or transcribe this recording.
What can an agent not do?
An agent can only touch folders you approved, and system folders, your home folder itself and credential folders such as .ssh are never approvable. Outputs are written as new files and never replace an existing one. There is no delete tool and no network tool.
How do I set it up?
Open Settings, then Agents, and switch on Allow AI agents to use Paperlane. Add Approved folders, then choose Connect a client. Add automatically merges Claude Desktop or Cursor configuration and keeps a .bak backup. For Claude Code and Codex, the app shows the command or snippet to paste.
Is agent access free?
Yes. Like everything else in the app, agent access is free and needs no account.
What are the limits?
The app must be installed and running to process files; the helper starts it when needed. Very long home folder paths can break the local socket on some setups. Agents cannot enter passwords for protected PDFs without you typing them.
Setup commands
Use Connect a client in Settings, Agents, or run the appropriate helper command yourself.
- Claude Code
paperlane-mcp install claude-code- Claude Desktop
paperlane-mcp install claude-desktop- Cursor
paperlane-mcp install cursor- Codex
paperlane-mcp install codex
Add --print to see the result without changing any file. The helper lives inside the app bundle, so these commands work once the app is installed.
MCP questions
Does the AI model see my files?
Paperlane for Mac sends the agent output paths and status, not file bytes through its tools. If the agent independently opens and reads a file, its contents can reach the agent’s model provider.
Does it work with ChatGPT?
Paperlane for Mac cannot connect directly to ChatGPT if the client only supports remote MCP servers. It works with clients that can launch a local stdio command, including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and Codex.
Can I use it today?
Yes. Install Paperlane for Mac, then switch on agent access in Settings, Agents.