Dropbox

What the Dropbox MCP server does

The Dropbox MCP server gives MCP-compatible clients access to selected Dropbox API v2 operations. Its tools cover common file-management tasks without exposing a general-purpose Dropbox API surface. Agents can browse a directory, find files or folders by name or content, inspect detailed metadata, download files as text, and create folders at specified paths.

The server is useful for workflows that need to retrieve or organize existing Dropbox content. For example, an agent can search for a document, inspect its revision and sharing information, then download it for processing. It can also list a directory before deciding where to create a new folder.

How it works

Two connection modes are documented. The hosted option uses the Pipeworx gateway at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/dropbox/mcp. A client connects to that URL and receives the Dropbox tools along with shared Pipeworx meta-tools. Those gateway tools can route questions across the wider Pipeworx catalog, while the Dropbox-specific tools remain the direct interface for Dropbox operations.

The local option runs @pipeworx/mcp-dropbox with npx and communicates over standard input and output. In this mode, the connection exposes only the tools belonging to this pack and does not include the gateway's shared meta-tools. Both modes use the same listed Dropbox capabilities.

Setup and configuration

For a hosted connection, add the gateway URL to an MCP client configuration under a server named dropbox. The connected Dropbox account and a Pipeworx key are required when calling the gateway over HTTP. The documented HTTP workflow uses a bearer token obtained from Pipeworx after signing in and connecting Dropbox.

For local stdio execution, configure the client to run:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dropbox": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@pipeworx/mcp-dropbox"]
    }
  }
}

The package can also be started directly with npx -y @pipeworx/mcp-dropbox to confirm that it launches and responds to MCP initialization, tool listing, and tool calls.

Tools and capabilities

The Dropbox MCP server provides these Dropbox-focused tools:

• dropbox_list_folder lists files and folders at a Dropbox path, including names, types, sizes, and modification dates.
• dropbox_search finds files and folders by name or content and returns matching paths and metadata.
• dropbox_get_metadata returns file or folder details such as size, modification date, ID, sharing status, and revision information.
• dropbox_download retrieves a file and returns its content as text with size, type, and modification metadata.
• dropbox_create_folder creates a folder at a specified Dropbox path and returns folder metadata.

Limitations and notes

The documented tool set is focused on listing, searching, metadata inspection, downloading, and folder creation. It does not list tools for uploading files, editing file contents, deleting items, or changing sharing permissions.

The hosted pack endpoint also lists shared Pipeworx tools, so its tool count is larger than the five Dropbox-specific tools above. The local stdio package avoids those shared gateway tools. The gateway's initialize response is the authoritative source for the exact scope and tool set at a given time.

Downloading returns file content as text, so workflows that require binary-preserving downloads are not described by the provided interface. Gateway use requires a Pipeworx account, a connected Dropbox account, and a Pipeworx key; the local mode is documented as not requiring a Pipeworx account.