DocuGen - Google Sheets MCP Server

A powerful Google Sheets automation server for Claude Desktop using the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Create spreadsheets, analyze data, build dashboards, and automate workflows with 62 operations.

🚀 What is DocuGen?

DocuGen enables Claude to create and manipulate Google Sheets programmatically. Instead of manually clicking through spreadsheets, just tell Claude what you need in plain English:

• "Create a budget tracker for my personal finances"
• "Import this CSV data and create a sales dashboard"
• "Build an inventory management system with reorder alerts"

✨ Features

62 Google Sheets Operations

• Spreadsheet Management: Create, batch update, get metadata
• Data Operations: Read, write, append, clear, import CSV/JSON
• Formatting: Cell styles, borders, merging, conditional formatting
• Advanced Features: Pivot tables, charts, data validation, filters
• Sheet Management: Add, delete, duplicate, rename, hide/show sheets
• Protection: Lock ranges, protect sheets, manage permissions
• Formulas: Add complex formulas, named ranges, calculations

Smart Templates

• Budget trackers with income/expense categories
• Financial dashboards with KPIs and charts
• Project management with Gantt charts
• Inventory systems with automatic reorder alerts
• CRM systems with contact and deal tracking
• Event planning templates
• Loan calculators with amortization schedules

📋 Prerequisites

• Python 3.12 or higher
• Google Cloud account (free tier works)
• Claude Desktop app
• 5 minutes for setup

🛠️ Installation

Step 1: Clone and Install

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/eagleisbatman/docugen.git
cd docugen

# Create virtual environment (recommended)
python3.12 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt
pip install git+https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/python-sdk.git

Step 2: Set Up Google OAuth

1. Go to Google Cloud Console

2. Create a new project (or use existing)

3. Enable Google Sheets API:

   • Navigate to "APIs & Services" > "Library"
   • Search for "Google Sheets API"
   • Click and enable it

4. Create OAuth 2.0 credentials:

   • Go to "APIs & Services" > "Credentials"
   • Click "Create Credentials" > "OAuth client ID"
   • Choose "Desktop app" as application type
   • Download the JSON file
   • Save it somewhere secure (e.g., ~/Desktop/credentials.json)

Step 3: Configure Claude Desktop

Edit ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "docugen": {
      "command": "python3.12",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/docugen/docugen_mcp_server.py"
      ],
      "env": {
        "GOOGLE_OAUTH_PATH": "/path/to/your/credentials.json"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace paths with your actual paths!

Step 4: Restart Claude Desktop

Completely quit and restart Claude Desktop. You should see the MCP icon (🔌) in the chat interface.

Step 5: (Recommended) Set Up a DocuGen Project

For best results, create a dedicated project in Claude Desktop:

1. In Claude Desktop, create a new Project
2. Go to Project Settings → Custom Instructions
3. Copy the content from DOCUGEN_SYSTEM_PROMPT.md
4. Paste it into the project instructions
5. Save the project as "DocuGen" or "Spreadsheets"

Now every conversation in this project will have full knowledge of DocuGen's capabilities!

💬 Usage Examples

Creating a Budget Tracker

"Create a personal budget tracker with income, expenses, and monthly summary"

Importing CSV Data

"Import this CSV data and analyze it:
Date,Product,Sales,Quantity
2024-01-15,Widget A,1500,50
2024-01-16,Widget B,2300,75
Create a pivot table and sales chart"

Building a Dashboard

"Create a financial dashboard for Q4 2024 with revenue tracking, expense categories, and KPI metrics"

Project Management

"Build a project tracker with task list, timeline, status tracking, and Gantt chart visualization"

🧪 Testing

Test the server installation:

# Test server with dummy credentials (no authentication required)
cd docugen
GOOGLE_OAUTH_PATH="/tmp/dummy_credentials.json" python3.12 docugen_mcp_server.py --help

# For actual testing with authentication:
GOOGLE_OAUTH_PATH="/path/to/your/credentials.json" python3.12 docugen_mcp_server.py

📁 Project Structure

docugen/
├── docugen_mcp_server.py    # Main server (3700+ lines, 62 operations)
├── requirements.txt         # Python dependencies
├── LICENSE                  # Apache 2.0 license
├── README.md               # This file
└── docs/
    ├── SETUP_GUIDE.md      # Detailed setup instructions
    ├── DOCUGEN_SYSTEM_PROMPT.md  # Claude's instructions
    └── DOCUGEN_USER_PROMPTS.md   # Example prompts

🔧 How It Works

1. You tell Claude what you want in natural language
2. Claude understands your business need
3. DocuGen executes the appropriate Google Sheets operations
4. You get a professional spreadsheet without writing code

Technical Details

• Uses FastMCP framework for efficient MCP implementation
• OAuth 2.0 authentication with Google
• Token stored securely in ~/.docugen/token.json
• All operations in a single, well-organized file
• Comprehensive error handling and validation

🚨 Important Notes

• CSV Import: Users must paste data as text (Claude can't access local files)
• Permissions: First run opens browser for Google authorization
• Spreadsheet IDs: Claude provides the ID after creating spreadsheets
• Operations: Claude can create, read, update, format - but not delete entire spreadsheets

🐛 Troubleshooting

Server doesn't appear in Claude Desktop

• Ensure paths in config are absolute, not relative
• Check Python version: python3.12 --version
• Restart Claude Desktop completely
• Verify credentials file exists

Authentication issues

• Ensure Google Sheets API is enabled
• Check OAuth consent screen is configured
• Verify you're using Desktop app credentials

Import errors

# Reinstall MCP SDK
pip uninstall mcp
pip install git+https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/python-sdk.git

📚 Resources

Getting Started

• SETUP_GUIDE.md - Detailed setup walkthrough with screenshots
• DOCUGEN_USER_PROMPTS.md - 50+ example prompts to try

Optimizing Claude's Performance

• DOCUGEN_SYSTEM_PROMPT.md - Add to Claude Desktop project instructions for best results (includes 12 detailed workflow examples)

🤝 Contributing

Contributions welcome! The codebase is a single file (docugen_mcp_server.py) with 62 well-organized operations.

To add new operations:

1. Add your function to docugen_mcp_server.py
2. Decorate with @mcp.tool()
3. Follow the existing pattern for parameters and returns
4. Test with the server using dummy or real credentials

📄 License

Apache-2.0 License - see LICENSE file

👨‍💻 Author

Created by Gautam Mandewalker

📍 Cumming, Forsyth County, Georgia, USA

🔗 GitHub | LinkedIn

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Built with Model Context Protocol by Anthropic
• Uses FastMCP framework
• Powered by Google Sheets API v4

📊 Status

✅ Production Ready

• 62 tools available (exactly as shown in Claude Desktop)
• Single-file architecture for simplicity
• FastMCP framework for performance
• Comprehensive error handling
• Ready for immediate use with Claude Desktop