outlook-mcp-rs

# outlook-mcp-rs A single-binary [Model Context Protocol](https://modelcontextprotocol.io) server that gives AI assistants control of the **classic Microsoft Outlook desktop app** on Windows — email, calendar, tasks, and notes — by driving Outlook's native Win32 COM automation API. No Python, no Node, no cloud/Graph API, and no runtime toolchain: you ship one Windows `.exe`, point your MCP client at it, and it talks to the copy of Outlook already running on the machine, signed in as you. ## Highlights - **One self-contained binary.** A single `.exe` with no runtime dependencies — nothing to install, no interpreter, no service to host. - **Runs against local Outlook, as you.** It drives the desktop app's own COM automation, so it inherits your existing session, accounts, and shared-folder permissions. There are no tokens to manage and no separate authentication step — if you can see it in Outlook, so can the server. - **26 tools across five areas** — email, calendar, attachments, tasks, and notes (full list below). - **Deliberate about side effects.** The handful of tools that actually send mail or meeting responses are explicit and opt-in, and the test suite is built so nothing is delivered by accident (see [Safety and side effects](#safety-and-side-effects)). ## Requirements - Windows - Classic Outlook desktop installed, running, and signed in to a mailbox > **Note:** this drives the *classic* desktop client's COM object model. The "new Outlook" > preview and Outlook on the web expose no such interface and are not supported. ## Install Download the latest `outlook-mcp-rs.exe` from [Releases](https://github.com/adamkopelman/outlook-mcp-rs/releases). It's a standalone executable — there's no install step and no runtime dependencies to add. ## Configure your MCP client `outlook-mcp-rs` speaks MCP over stdio, takes no arguments, and needs no environment variables. Point any MCP-capable client at the executable's path. For example, in Claude Desktop's `claude_desktop_config.json`: ```json { "mcpServers": { "outlook": { "command": "C:\\path\\to\\outlook-mcp-rs.exe" } } } ``` Restart the client after editing its config. The server connects to whatever Outlook is already running, and the 26 tools below become available. ## Available tools 26 MCP tools, grouped by category: **Email** - `list_folders` — list mail folders (name, path, item counts) - `list_emails` — find emails in a folder with an optional text query (matches subject, sender, and body) and filters (sender, category, date range, attachments, flagged, importance) - `get_email` — get the full body and attachment list of one email by id - `send_email` — send a new email immediately - `create_draft` — create a draft email without sending it - `reply_email` — reply to an email, optionally to all recipients, optionally as a draft - `update_email` — change an existing email: move to a folder, mark read/unread, flag (follow_up/complete/clear), add/remove categories, set importance - `delete_email` — delete an email (moves it to Deleted Items) **Calendar** - `list_events` — list/search calendar events by date range, text (subject/location), category, show_as, your response, or attendees; view meetings-only or all-day; or open another person's shared calendar with `calendar_of` - `get_event` — get the full details of one calendar event by id - `create_event` — create a calendar event; supports two tiers of attendees, categories, `show_as`, and recurrence, with `send` controlling whether invites actually go out - `update_event` — change an existing event (subject, times, location, body, attendees, reminder, recurrence…); optionally notify attendees - `respond_to_meeting` — respond to a meeting invite (accept, decline, or tentative) - `delete_event` — delete/cancel an event (moves it to Deleted Items); optionally send a cancellation to attendees - `check_availability` — check free/busy for one or more people over a time window; returns each person's per-slot status plus the windows where everyone is free **Attachments** - `list_attachments` — list an email's attachments (filename and size) - `save_attachments` — save an email's attachments to a local directory **Tasks** - `list_tasks` — list Outlook tasks (filter by category, importance, or a text query matching subject or body) - `create_task` — create a new Outlook task - `update_task` — change an existing task: mark complete/reopen, subject, body, due_date, start_date, importance, add/remove categories, percent_complete, reminder_time - `delete_task` — delete a task (moves it to Deleted Items) **Notes** - `list_notes` — list Outlook notes (filter by category or a text query on the body) - `get_note` — get the full body of one note by id - `create_note` — create a new Outlook note (optional categories, color) - `update_note` — change an existing note: body, add/remove categories, color - `delete_note` — delete a note (moves it to Deleted Items) ## How it works The server links directly against the Windows COM / OLE Automation APIs (via the [`windows`](https://crates.io/crates/windows) crate) and drives the same `Outlook.Application` object model that Outlook VBA macros use. Every request runs against the live desktop client, so it sees exactly the folders, accounts, and shared calendars your Outlook session already has access to — no mailbox data leaves the machine except what your MCP client chooses to send upstream. ## Building from source Building requires a [Rust toolchain](https://rustup.rs) (2024 edition) on Windows: ``` cargo build --release ``` The binary is produced at `target/release/outlook-mcp-rs.exe`. ## Safety and side effects Most tools are read-only or reversible — deletes move items to Deleted Items rather than destroying them. A few have real, outbound effects and are explicit in the tool call: `send_email` delivers mail; `respond_to_meeting` notifies an organizer; and `create_event`, `update_event`, and `delete_event` notify attendees when their send/update/ cancellation flag is set. [`TESTING.md`](TESTING.md) spells out exactly which behaviors are covered by automated tests versus verified by hand precisely because they send real mail. ## Development See [`TESTING.md`](TESTING.md) for how to run the unit test suite and the local live-Outlook system tests. ## License MIT — see [`LICENSE`](LICENSE).