Excel Auto

This MCP server provides a compact, single-file C++ Excel automation interface that exposes a set of MCP tools for interacting with xlsx files. It is designed to be easy to deploy, language-friendly, and capable of performing common Excel operations through LLM-driven clients.

How to use

You connect your MCP client to the server’s SSE endpoint, then invoke the available Excel automation tools to open workbooks, read ranges, modify data, or create new files.

Key workflow you will use most often: first start the server, then run the tool you need in sequence. The recommended first tool is to open an Excel file and list its sheets so you can identify the target sheet and range for subsequent operations.

How to install

Prerequisites you need before building and running this server are a modern C++ toolchain and a build system.

Install required tools and dependencies for a C++ project with CMake and Ninja to accelerate builds.

Follow these steps to set up and build the project from scratch.

1. Prepare your environment by installing a C++17 capable compiler, CMake (>= 3.15), and Ninja.

2. Clone the project repository.

3. Generate build files using Ninja as the generator.

4. Compile the project to produce the executable.

5. Locate the built executable in the bin/ directory.

Usage notes

Start the server by running the built executable. The server will listen on localhost:8888 and expose an MCP endpoint at /sse for client connections.

Example client configuration snippet to connect to the server once it is running.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "excel_auto_cpp": {
      "url": "http://localhost:8888/sse",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Available tools

open_excel_and_list_sheets

Opens an Excel file and lists all sheet names. Also sets the current file path for subsequent operations. Recommended to run first or when you want to switch the target file.

get_sheet_range_content

Reads and outputs table content within a specified range on a given sheet. Opens and closes the workbook automatically as part of the operation.

set_sheet_range_content

Writes a 2D array of values to a specified range on a given sheet. Supports null, boolean, number, and string types. Automatically opens and closes the workbook.

create_xlsx_file_by_absolute_path

Creates a new xlsx file at the given absolute path and closes the file after creation.