What is PhotoNow MCP and what multimedia tools does it provide?

PhotoNow is the #1 zero-cloud Model Context Protocol (MCP) multimedia server for AI agents. It provides 7 native tools: convert_image (WebP/AVIF/PNG/JPEG), convert_batch (entire folders in 1 call), convert_video (MP4/WebM/MKV transcoding and downscaling), extract_audio (video-to-audio extraction to MP3/WAV/AAC), convert_audio (audio format conversion), get_media_info (unified inspector for image/audio/video), and optimize_for_agent (token-efficient vision downscaling).

Does PhotoNow require me to manually install FFmpeg on my system?

No. PhotoNow bundles self-contained static FFmpeg and FFprobe binaries via @ffmpeg-installer/ffmpeg and @ffprobe-installer/ffprobe. AI agents can transcode videos, compress resolutions, and extract audio tracks out of the box with zero external dependencies.

How do AI agents batch convert an entire folder of photos with PhotoNow?

PhotoNow provides a dedicated convert_batch tool. An AI agent simply calls convert_batch with a directoryPath (e.g. C:/Photos) and target format (e.g. webp). The server converts all images in parallel, skipping noise folders (.git, node_modules), avoiding destructive overwrites, and returning a comprehensive savings summary in a single tool call without asking for terminal permissions.

How does PhotoNow eliminate repetitive permission prompts in Claude Desktop and Cursor?

Traditional scripts force the AI agent to execute multiple raw PowerShell or bash commands to read bytes, invoke curl, and write files, prompting the user for approval 7 to 10 times per image. PhotoNow operates as a native Stdio MCP server, allowing the agent to invoke media tools directly. By clicking "Always Allow" once in your MCP client, the agent performs single and batch conversions completely autonomously.

Does PhotoNow store, upload, or transmit media to external cloud servers?

No. PhotoNow performs 100% of all image processing, video transcoding, and audio decoding directly in client RAM, local disk, or browser memory (HTML5 Canvas 2D, Web Audio). No user files are ever uploaded to AWS S3, Cloudflare, or remote cloud databases.

How do browser automation agents (Puppeteer, Chrome DevTools MCP) use PhotoNow?

In web contexts, PhotoNow exposes window.__photoConvertAgent. AI agents can call window.__photoConvertAgent.convertImage(), extractPoster(), or extractAudio() directly inside the browser DOM without external binaries or cloud APIs.

TERMS & CONDITIONS.

LEGAL AGREEMENT GOVERNING MANUAL WORKBENCH AND AUTONOMOUS MCP AGENT USAGE.

[1. ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS & SCOPE]

By accessing, browsing, or utilizing the PhotoNow web application (located at https://photonow.vercel.app/) or by connecting an autonomous AI agent, script, CLI process, or language model to our Model Context Protocol (MCP) server endpoints (including local Stdio MCP via bin/mcp-server.mjs and HTTP JSON-RPC 2.0 at /api/mcp), you agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.

If you do not agree to these terms, you must discontinue use of the application and disengage any automated MCP connections immediately.

[2. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & 100% USER MEDIA OWNERSHIP]

You retain 100% full, unencumbered, and exclusive ownership, copyright, and all intellectual property rights in all images, videos, audio tracks, and data files processed through PhotoNow.

PhotoNow claims zero ownership, license, title, royalty rights, or interest in any files you or your autonomous agents convert.
Because conversions occur locally in your browser memory or on your local filesystem, PhotoNow never retains, hosts, copies, or replicates your media assets.
You represent and warrant that you possess all necessary rights, licenses, and permissions for any media content processed using the software.

[3. ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY (HUMANS & AI AGENTS)]

You agree not to use the application, Stdio MCP server, or the HTTP MCP endpoint to:

Process, convert, or distribute unlawful, fraudulent, defamatory, infringing, or malicious media.
Attempt to overwhelm, disrupt, or disable the MCP HTTP endpoint or hosting infrastructure via volumetric denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
Bypass or attempt to circumvent the sliding-window rate limit policy (enforced at 60 requests per minute per IP on /api/mcp).
Deploy malicious bots, exploit scripts, or vulnerability scanners against hosting boundaries.

[4. MODEL CONTEXT PROTOCOL (MCP) SERVICE RULES]

The Model Context Protocol interfaces are provided to empower autonomous coding agents (including Claude Desktop, Google Antigravity, Cursor, Claude Code, and custom agent swarms) to execute local media conversions:

Rate Limiting & Backoff: Requests exceeding the rate limit on /api/mcp will receive an HTTP 429 Too Many Requests with a standard Retry-After header. Automated clients must honor backoff timers.
Payload Guard: JSON-RPC 2.0 payloads larger than 1MB are rejected to preserve server health.
Stdio MCP Local Authorization: When configuring the local Stdio MCP server (node ./bin/mcp-server.mjs), the user acknowledges and authorizes the connected AI agent to perform local filesystem reads and writes for media conversions using bundled static FFmpeg and Sharp binaries.

[5. SOFTWARE LICENSE & ATTRIBUTION]

The PhotoNow software application is licensed under the terms of the MIT License. You are free to inspect, fork, modify, and build upon the source code in accordance with the license conditions set forth in our official repository.

[6. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES (“AS-IS”)]

PHOTONOW ENGINE AND ALL ACCOMPANYING MCP TOOLS ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

WE DO NOT GUARANTEE THAT THE SERVICE WILL FUNCTION UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT CONVERSIONS WILL MEET SPECIFIC FIDELITY REQUIREMENTS ON ALL PLATFORMS AND HARDWARE ARCHITECTURES.

[7. STRICT LIMITATION OF LIABILITY & INDEMNITY]

IN NO EVENT SHALL PHOTONOW ENGINEERING, ITS CREATOR (SIBASISH CHAKRABORTI), OR ITS CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA, CORRUPTION OF MEDIA FILES, LOSS OF PROFITS, DEVICE DAMAGE, OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THIS APPLICATION, ITS WORKBENCH, OR ITS MCP SERVER INTERFACES.

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless PhotoNow Engineering against any claims, liabilities, damages, and expenses arising from your violation of these Terms or infringement of third-party intellectual property.

[8. DMCA COPYRIGHT POLICY]

If you believe your copyrighted work has been infringed by any content made available through our repository or site, please follow the DMCA Takedown Procedure detailed in our Legal Notice.

[9. GOVERNING LAW, SEVERABILITY & CONTACT]

These terms are governed by and construed in accordance with applicable general law. If any provision of these Terms is found to be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, that provision shall be deemed severable from these Terms and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions.

Legal Contact: sibasishchakraborti@gmail.com
GitHub Repository: GitHub / PhotoNowEngine