Thunderbird Cli

io.github.vitalio-sh

Give AI agents full read/write email access via Mozilla Thunderbird. Zero credentials.

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code Run on PlugMCP

1{2  "mcpServers": {3    "io.github.vitalio-sh-thunderbird-cli": {4      "command": "npx",5      "args": [6        "-y",7        "[email protected]"8      ],9      "env": {10        "TB_BRIDGE_HOST": "<value>",11        "TB_BRIDGE_PORT": "<value>"12      }13    }14  }15}

.cursor/mcp.jsonMCP server

Transport: stdio
Status: Local

Power your agent

Add this server

The publisher's own command. Not a PlugMCP endpoint.

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code Run on PlugMCP

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

Local command

npx -y [email protected]

Credentials from the publisher

TB_BRIDGE_HOST — Hostname of the thunderbird-cli-bridge (default: 127.0.0.1). Set to host.docker.internal when running inside a container.
TB_BRIDGE_PORT — HTTP port of the thunderbird-cli-bridge (default: 7700).

Claude Code has no install link for a local command. Copy the command below and run it in a terminal.

shClaude Code

1TB_BRIDGE_HOST=<value> TB_BRIDGE_PORT=<value> claude mcp add io.github.vitalio-sh-thunderbird-cli -- npx -y thunderbird-cli-mcp@1.0.2

Run in a terminal.

jsonClaude Desktop

1{2  "mcpServers": {3    "io.github.vitalio-sh-thunderbird-cli": {4      "command": "npx",5      "args": [6        "-y",7        "[email protected]"8      ],9      "env": {10        "TB_BRIDGE_HOST": "<value>",11        "TB_BRIDGE_PORT": "<value>"12      }13    }14  }15}

claude_desktop_config.json

Local · npmPublisher installStep-by-step: add this in Claude

Remote URL or a command on your machine? How the two installs differ

Run on PlugMCP

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

A new server you create. It is not this listing's official endpoint. Use the publisher install when you want their URL and their credentials.

Launch

Server facts

Local

Transport: stdio
Version: 1.0.2
API key: TB_BRIDGE_HOST, TB_BRIDGE_PORT
Last checked: 2026-10-27

Stars: —
Tools: —
Uptime: —

Tools

No tool list yet. Remote servers get one after the first health check.

FAQ

Questions

How do I install Thunderbird Cli?

Copy the stdio config for Cursor, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, or VS Code on this page. It uses the publisher's install, not a PlugMCP proxy.

Does Thunderbird Cli need an API key?

The publisher lists these environment variables: TB_BRIDGE_HOST, TB_BRIDGE_PORT.

What transport does Thunderbird Cli use?

Thunderbird Cli runs locally over stdio.

When was Thunderbird Cli last checked?

Last checked 2026-10-27. Give AI agents full read/write email access via Mozilla Thunderbird. Zero credentials.

From the publisher

Documentation

thunderbird-cli

Give Claude (and other AI agents) full access to your email through Mozilla Thunderbird.

Why

IMAP libraries force you to manage credentials, OAuth flows, and sync state — dangerous in an AI-agent context. Thunderbird already solves all of that. This tool treats Thunderbird as the source of truth and exposes every capability as a CLI command or MCP tool, so AI agents can read, search, and write email without ever touching a password.

Tested at scale: 22 accounts, 249,000+ messages, 86,000+ unread — all managed live through a single CLI.

Features

🔐 Zero credential exposure — all IMAP/SMTP stays in Thunderbird
🤖 Claude Desktop ready — 12 MCP tools, one-line config
📨 38 CLI commands — read, search, compose, reply, bulk ops, folder CRUD, attachments
🛡️ Safe by default — compose/reply/forward save as drafts; permanent delete requires --confirm
🎯 Token-optimized — --fields selection, --compact mode, --max-body truncation
🏠 Localhost-only — no cloud, no telemetry, nothing leaves your machine
✅ Thunderbird 128+ — signed and approved on addons.thunderbird.net
🧪 80 tests — 46 CLI/bridge + 34 MCP integration tests

Quick Start

# 1. Install CLI + bridge from npm
npm install -g thunderbird-cli thunderbird-cli-bridge

# 2. Install the signed Thunderbird extension
#    Download: https://github.com/vitalio-sh/thunderbird-cli/releases/latest
#    Thunderbird → Add-ons → ⚙ → Install Add-on From File… → thunderbird_ai_bridge-*.xpi

# 3. Start the bridge daemon (keep running)
tb-bridge

# 4. Try it
tb health
tb stats

Full setup guide (including background service, Docker, troubleshooting): docs/SETUP.md

Usage

# How many unread across all accounts?
tb stats

# Find invoices from AWS in the last 30 days
tb search "invoice" --from aws --since 30d --fields id,author,subject,date

# Read a message (token-efficient — headers + text only, max 500 chars)
tb read 89900 --max-body 500

# Reply as draft (never auto-sends)
tb reply 89900 --body "Thanks, I'll review tomorrow"

# Download a PDF attachment
tb attachment-download 11 1.2 --output invoice.pdf

# Bulk archive old newsletters
tb bulk move "account1://INBOX" "account1://Archive" \
  --from "newsletter@" --older-than 30

Full command reference: docs/COMMANDS.md

Use with Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "thunderbird": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "thunderbird-cli-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop. Now ask:

"How many unread emails do I have?" "Find invoices from AWS last month" "Reply to message 118 saying I'll attend — save as draft" "Download the PDF attachment from message 245"

Full MCP guide: mcp/README.md

Companion skill for Claude

A Claude Skill ships alongside the MCP server. It teaches Claude how to use the 12 email tools well — token-efficient field selection, draft-by-default safety, trust-metadata checking before acting on links, recipes for common workflows. Install it from skills/thunderbird-cli/:

# Claude Code
cp -r skills/thunderbird-cli ~/.claude/skills/

# Claude.ai — zip and upload via Settings → Capabilities → Skills
cd skills && zip -r thunderbird-cli.zip thunderbird-cli

Without the skill, the MCP still works. With it, Claude automatically uses the safest defaults and most efficient response shapes.

How It Works

Component	Role
Extension (`extension/`)	Thunderbird WebExtension. Calls `messenger.*` APIs. 43 route handlers.
Bridge (`bridge/`)	Stateless HTTP↔WebSocket proxy daemon. No business logic.
CLI (`cli/`)	`tb` command — 38 commands. Thin HTTP client. JSON output.
MCP (`mcp/`)	`tb-mcp` server — 12 curated tools for Claude Desktop.

Thunderbird is the source of truth. The CLI never caches or stores email data.

How this compares

Tool	Credentials	AI-agent ready	Compose / send	Multi-account	Runtime
thunderbird-cli	stay in Thunderbird	✅ CLI + MCP, JSON out	✅ draft / open / send	✅ any Thunderbird account	Node.js
Raw IMAP libs (imapflow, imaplib)	you manage them	you wire it yourself	SMTP, separate	manual per account	varies
notmuch	via your MUA	CLI only, text output	❌ reader only	via config	C
mu / mu4e	via your MUA	CLI only, sexp/text	❌ reader only	via config	C
himalaya	in config files	✅ CLI, JSON out	✅	✅	Rust
mutt / neomutt	in muttrc	❌ interactive TUI	✅	via config	C

The niche: you already trust Thunderbird with your credentials and account state. This tool surfaces that as a machine-readable API without asking you to re-configure IMAP/SMTP anywhere else.

Documentation

Doc	What's inside
docs/SETUP.md	Installation, background service, Docker, troubleshooting
docs/COMMANDS.md	Full reference for all 38 CLI commands
docs/CLAUDE.md	AI-agent-focused quick reference + security rules
skills/thunderbird-cli/SKILL.md	Companion Claude Skill — recipes, safety defaults, token patterns
mcp/README.md	Claude Desktop integration guide
AGENTS.md	Guide for AI agents editing this codebase
SPEC.md	Full technical specification
SECURITY.md	Threat model, prompt-injection defenses
CONTRIBUTING.md	Dev setup, code style, PR process
CHANGELOG.md	Release notes

Contributing

Contributions welcome. Please open an issue first to discuss non-trivial changes. See CONTRIBUTING.md for local dev setup and the 80-test suite.

License

MIT — see LICENSE

Thunderbird Cli

io.github.vitalio-sh

Give AI agents full read/write email access via Mozilla Thunderbird. Zero credentials.

Communication

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code Run on PlugMCP

GitHub npm

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code Run on PlugMCP

1{2  "mcpServers": {3    "io.github.vitalio-sh-thunderbird-cli": {4      "command": "npx",5      "args": [6        "-y",7        "[email protected]"8      ],9      "env": {10        "TB_BRIDGE_HOST": "<value>",11        "TB_BRIDGE_PORT": "<value>"12      }13    }14  }15}

.cursor/mcp.jsonMCP server

Transport: stdio
Status: Local

Power your agent

Add this server

The publisher's own command. Not a PlugMCP endpoint.

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code Run on PlugMCP

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

Local command

npx -y [email protected]

Credentials from the publisher

TB_BRIDGE_HOST — Hostname of the thunderbird-cli-bridge (default: 127.0.0.1). Set to host.docker.internal when running inside a container.
TB_BRIDGE_PORT — HTTP port of the thunderbird-cli-bridge (default: 7700).

Claude Code has no install link for a local command. Copy the command below and run it in a terminal.

shClaude Code

1TB_BRIDGE_HOST=<value> TB_BRIDGE_PORT=<value> claude mcp add io.github.vitalio-sh-thunderbird-cli -- npx -y thunderbird-cli-mcp@1.0.2

Run in a terminal.

jsonClaude Desktop

1{2  "mcpServers": {3    "io.github.vitalio-sh-thunderbird-cli": {4      "command": "npx",5      "args": [6        "-y",7        "[email protected]"8      ],9      "env": {10        "TB_BRIDGE_HOST": "<value>",11        "TB_BRIDGE_PORT": "<value>"12      }13    }14  }15}

claude_desktop_config.json

Local · npmPublisher installStep-by-step: add this in Claude

Remote URL or a command on your machine? How the two installs differ

Run on PlugMCP

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

A new server you create. It is not this listing's official endpoint. Use the publisher install when you want their URL and their credentials.

Launch

Server facts

Local

Transport: stdio
Version: 1.0.2
API key: TB_BRIDGE_HOST, TB_BRIDGE_PORT
Last checked: 2026-10-27

Stars: —
Tools: —
Uptime: —

Tools

No tool list yet. Remote servers get one after the first health check.

FAQ

Questions

How do I install Thunderbird Cli?

Copy the stdio config for Cursor, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, or VS Code on this page. It uses the publisher's install, not a PlugMCP proxy.

Does Thunderbird Cli need an API key?

The publisher lists these environment variables: TB_BRIDGE_HOST, TB_BRIDGE_PORT.

What transport does Thunderbird Cli use?

Thunderbird Cli runs locally over stdio.

When was Thunderbird Cli last checked?

Last checked 2026-10-27. Give AI agents full read/write email access via Mozilla Thunderbird. Zero credentials.

From the publisher

Documentation

thunderbird-cli

Give Claude (and other AI agents) full access to your email through Mozilla Thunderbird.

Why

Tested at scale: 22 accounts, 249,000+ messages, 86,000+ unread — all managed live through a single CLI.

Features

🔐 Zero credential exposure — all IMAP/SMTP stays in Thunderbird
🤖 Claude Desktop ready — 12 MCP tools, one-line config
📨 38 CLI commands — read, search, compose, reply, bulk ops, folder CRUD, attachments
🛡️ Safe by default — compose/reply/forward save as drafts; permanent delete requires --confirm
🎯 Token-optimized — --fields selection, --compact mode, --max-body truncation
🏠 Localhost-only — no cloud, no telemetry, nothing leaves your machine
✅ Thunderbird 128+ — signed and approved on addons.thunderbird.net
🧪 80 tests — 46 CLI/bridge + 34 MCP integration tests

Quick Start

# 1. Install CLI + bridge from npm
npm install -g thunderbird-cli thunderbird-cli-bridge

# 2. Install the signed Thunderbird extension
#    Download: https://github.com/vitalio-sh/thunderbird-cli/releases/latest
#    Thunderbird → Add-ons → ⚙ → Install Add-on From File… → thunderbird_ai_bridge-*.xpi

# 3. Start the bridge daemon (keep running)
tb-bridge

# 4. Try it
tb health
tb stats

Full setup guide (including background service, Docker, troubleshooting): docs/SETUP.md

Usage

# How many unread across all accounts?
tb stats

# Find invoices from AWS in the last 30 days
tb search "invoice" --from aws --since 30d --fields id,author,subject,date

# Read a message (token-efficient — headers + text only, max 500 chars)
tb read 89900 --max-body 500

# Reply as draft (never auto-sends)
tb reply 89900 --body "Thanks, I'll review tomorrow"

# Download a PDF attachment
tb attachment-download 11 1.2 --output invoice.pdf

# Bulk archive old newsletters
tb bulk move "account1://INBOX" "account1://Archive" \
  --from "newsletter@" --older-than 30

Full command reference: docs/COMMANDS.md

Use with Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "thunderbird": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "thunderbird-cli-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop. Now ask:

"How many unread emails do I have?" "Find invoices from AWS last month" "Reply to message 118 saying I'll attend — save as draft" "Download the PDF attachment from message 245"

Full MCP guide: mcp/README.md

Companion skill for Claude

# Claude Code
cp -r skills/thunderbird-cli ~/.claude/skills/

# Claude.ai — zip and upload via Settings → Capabilities → Skills
cd skills && zip -r thunderbird-cli.zip thunderbird-cli

Without the skill, the MCP still works. With it, Claude automatically uses the safest defaults and most efficient response shapes.

How It Works

Component	Role
Extension (`extension/`)	Thunderbird WebExtension. Calls `messenger.*` APIs. 43 route handlers.
Bridge (`bridge/`)	Stateless HTTP↔WebSocket proxy daemon. No business logic.
CLI (`cli/`)	`tb` command — 38 commands. Thin HTTP client. JSON output.
MCP (`mcp/`)	`tb-mcp` server — 12 curated tools for Claude Desktop.

Thunderbird is the source of truth. The CLI never caches or stores email data.

How this compares

Tool	Credentials	AI-agent ready	Compose / send	Multi-account	Runtime
thunderbird-cli	stay in Thunderbird	✅ CLI + MCP, JSON out	✅ draft / open / send	✅ any Thunderbird account	Node.js
Raw IMAP libs (imapflow, imaplib)	you manage them	you wire it yourself	SMTP, separate	manual per account	varies
notmuch	via your MUA	CLI only, text output	❌ reader only	via config	C
mu / mu4e	via your MUA	CLI only, sexp/text	❌ reader only	via config	C
himalaya	in config files	✅ CLI, JSON out	✅	✅	Rust
mutt / neomutt	in muttrc	❌ interactive TUI	✅	via config	C

The niche: you already trust Thunderbird with your credentials and account state. This tool surfaces that as a machine-readable API without asking you to re-configure IMAP/SMTP anywhere else.

Documentation

Doc	What's inside
docs/SETUP.md	Installation, background service, Docker, troubleshooting
docs/COMMANDS.md	Full reference for all 38 CLI commands
docs/CLAUDE.md	AI-agent-focused quick reference + security rules
skills/thunderbird-cli/SKILL.md	Companion Claude Skill — recipes, safety defaults, token patterns
mcp/README.md	Claude Desktop integration guide
AGENTS.md	Guide for AI agents editing this codebase
SPEC.md	Full technical specification
SECURITY.md	Threat model, prompt-injection defenses
CONTRIBUTING.md	Dev setup, code style, PR process
CHANGELOG.md	Release notes

Contributing

Contributions welcome. Please open an issue first to discuss non-trivial changes. See CONTRIBUTING.md for local dev setup and the 80-test suite.

License

MIT — see LICENSE