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PDF Search for Zed

Source

An MCP server extension for Zed that retrieves relevant pieces from a PDF file

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Overview

PDF Search for Zed is a document search extension that allows users to semantically search through PDF documents and utilize the results within Zed's AI Assistant.

To use PDF Search for Zed, clone the repository, set up the Python environment, install the Dev Extension in Zed, build the search database, and then use the /pdfsearch command in Zed's AI Assistant panel to search your documents.

  • Semantic search capabilities for PDF documents - Integration with Zed's AI Assistant - Support for multiple PDF files and directories - Future improvements planned for self-contained vector storage and embeddings
  1. Quickly finding relevant information in large PDF documents.
  2. Enhancing research efficiency by integrating document search with AI assistance.
  3. Supporting multiple file formats for broader usability.

Add to your AI client

Use these steps to connect PDF Search for Zed in Cursor, Claude, VS Code, and other MCP-compatible apps. The same JSON appears in the Use with menu above for one-click copy.

Cursor

Add this to your .cursor/mcp.json file in your project root, then restart Cursor.

.cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pdfsearch-zed-freespirit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-pdfsearch-zed-freespirit"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop

Add this server entry to the mcpServers object in your Claude Desktop config, then restart the app.

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pdfsearch-zed-freespirit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-pdfsearch-zed-freespirit"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

Add this to your project's .mcp.json file. Claude Code will detect it automatically.

.mcp.json (project root)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pdfsearch-zed-freespirit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-pdfsearch-zed-freespirit"
      ]
    }
  }
}

VS Code (Copilot)

Add this to your .vscode/mcp.json file. Requires the GitHub Copilot extension with MCP support enabled.

.vscode/mcp.json

{
  "servers": {
    "pdfsearch-zed-freespirit": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-pdfsearch-zed-freespirit"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Windsurf

Add this to your Windsurf MCP config file, then restart Windsurf.

~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pdfsearch-zed-freespirit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-pdfsearch-zed-freespirit"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Cline

Open Cline settings, navigate to MCP Servers, and add this server configuration.

Cline MCP Settings (via UI)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pdfsearch-zed-freespirit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-pdfsearch-zed-freespirit"
      ]
    }
  }
}

FAQ

What do I need to use this extension?

You need an OpenAI API key and the `uv` tool installed on your system.

Is there a way to use this without an OpenAI API key?

Future versions plan to implement a self-contained alternative for embeddings.

Can I search multiple PDFs at once?

Yes! The extension supports searching through multiple PDF files and directories.7:["$","div",null,{"className":"container mx-auto flex flex-col gap-4","children":["$L26","$L27",["$","$L28",null,{"currentProject":{"id":1088,"uuid":"a9239c85-d6f4-4fbd-8629-00a05b1652c4","name":"pdfsearch-zed","title":"PDF Search for Zed","description":"An MCP server extension for Zed that retrieves relevant pieces from a PDF file","avatar_url":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/222401?v=4","created_at":"2025-01-28T02:30:26.682Z","updated_at":"2025-02-23T07:20:08.045Z","status":"created","author_name":"freespirit","author_avatar_url":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/222401?v=4","tags":"[]","category":"research-and-data","is_featured":false,"sort":1,"url":"https://github.com/freespirit/pdfsearch-zed","target":"_self","content":"$29","summary":"$2a","img_url":null,"type":null,"metadata":"{\"star\":\"2\",\"license\":\"\",\"language\":\"Python\",\"is_official\":false,\"latest_commit_time\":\"2025-05-01 12:26:40\"}","user_uuid":null,"tools":null,"sse_url":null,"sse_provider":null,"sse_params":null,"is_official":false,"server_command":null,"server_params":null,"server_config":null,"allow_call":false,"is_innovation":false,"is_dxt":false,"dxt_manifest":null,"dxt_file_url":null,"is_audit":false},"randomProjects":[],"currentServerKey":"$undefined"}]]}]

Research and data