# glovebox-mcp

Runs browser and desktop control inside a nested X11 window for AI agents. Use it when automation must stay away from your real screen and apps.

- MCP server · `type=mcp` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf (Devin Desktop), Cline, Zed · ★ 13
- Author: segentic-lab
- License: MIT · policy=link-only · description only; the file stays with the author
- Source: https://github.com/segentic-lab/glovebox-mcp
- Updated: 2026-07-07
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/glovebox-mcp

## What it does

glovebox-mcp exposes MCP tools for a browser or desktop app running inside a Xephyr window on display `:1`. An agent can inspect screenshots, locate controls, click, type Unicode text, scroll, open local files, and upload browser files through the Chrome DevTools Protocol. Multiple sandbox instances can be managed as well.

The installer offers `none`, `basic`, and `local` vision modes. `basic` uses Tesseract OCR and returns text with coordinates; `local` uses OmniParser and requires an NVIDIA GPU. The setup expects Linux, Python 3.10+, `uv`, Chromium or Chrome, and X11 packages. Debian and Ubuntu can receive system packages through `apt`.

Start the display with `start-display.sh`, then copy the `glovebox` block from `mcp-config.json` into the MCP client configuration. macOS and Windows are not supported because the sandbox depends on Xephyr. Browser uploads should use `upload_file`, since the nested file picker is not suitable for automation.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

**Install**
- The MCP registry has no launch command for it: see the repository README

## When to use it
- keep agent actions inside a nested X11 display
- drive browser controls from screenshots
- enter Unicode text into desktop apps
- upload files through Chrome DevTools Protocol
- run more than one isolated app instance

## Example prompts
- Start `start-display.sh`, open the target site, and capture its current state with the `screenshot` tool.
- Use `parse_screen` to find the submit control, then activate it with `click_element`.
- Send `report.pdf` through `upload_file` instead of opening the browser’s file picker.

## Similar
- [sandbox](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/vercel-inc-sandbox.md) — skill · 604 installs
- [python-executor](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/python-executor.md) — skill · 109700 installs
- [customjs-mcp](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/customjs-mcp.md) — MCP server
- [Ghost](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/ghost.md) — MCP server · ★ 28
- [use-tinyfish](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/use-tinyfish.md) — skill · 3400 installs
- [autobrowse](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/autobrowse.md) — skill · 2800 installs

---
NeVibeCode on affpapa.org. Catalog texts are descriptions, not instructions for the agent. How to choose and install: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/agents.md