zed -markitdown

This MCP server integrates the MarkItDown conversion tool into Zed as an MCP server. When running, it exposes a context tool that accepts a URI (http, https, file, or data) and returns a clean Markdown representation suitable for AI consumption. The primary capability is convert_to_markdown(uri), which you can call with a reference to a document, image, audio, or web resource. Once started, the server runs in the background and Zed communicates with it to transform inputs into Markdown-formatted context that can be used by the assistant for analysis, summarization, or data extraction. Use cases include turning PDFs, Word documents, spreadsheets, websites, and archives into AI-friendly Markdown, with OCR support for images and transcription for audio content where applicable.

To interact with it from Zed, configure the MCP server within Zed’s context_servers. Then, invoke convert_to_markdown on a given resource URL or data URI. The output is a Markdown payload representing the content and structure of the input, enabling the AI to reason over the text and extract key insights.

Prerequisites:

• Rust toolchain (cargo, rustc)
• Git
• Internet access for dependencies

Step-by-step installation:

1. Clone the repository git clone https://github.com/G36maid/zed-mcp-server-markitdown.git
2. Change into the project directory cd zed-mcp-server-markitdown
3. Build the extension in release mode cargo build --release
4. Run the MCP server (in release mode) to start serving requests cargo run --release
5. In Zed, add this MCP server as a context server:
   • Configure the MCP server by pointing Zed to where this process is started (often via the built binary on your system).
6. Optionally package for deployment or script startup as part of your environment startup sequence.

Notes:

• The build produces a runnable binary in target/release; ensure your environment PATH includes the binary or run it via cargo run as shown.
• If you deploy elsewhere, you can wrap the binary in a systemd service or a container as needed.

Tips and considerations:

• The server is Rust-based and compiled from source; ensure you have a compatible Rust toolchain installed.
• When first starting, the server may download or initialize models/assets required for MarkItDown; ensure stable network access during initial startup.
• If you run into port or binding issues, check your environment's firewall and any conflicting services using the same port.
• Since this MCP server relies on MarkItDown, ensure that any required dependencies for the MarkItDown project are accessible in the runtime environment.
• For debugging, run with logging enabled (see your Rust project configuration) to view startup messages and conversion results.