Image Beautifier Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI-powered image generation and UI beautification tools for agents and applications. Built with Node.js and TypeScript, this server enables Claude and other MCP-compatible clients to generate images, icons, hero banners, and beautify UI screenshots.

Powered by Google's Gemini Nano Banana - Uses the official Gemini 2.5 Flash Image API (codename "Nano Banana") for fast, high-quality image generation.

Features

• generate_image: Generate custom images from text prompts with style, size, and format options
• generate_icon: Create icons with different themes (minimal, playful, corporate)
• generate_hero: Generate hero/banner images for products and websites
• beautify_screenshot: Analyze and provide suggestions for UI improvements (stub implementation)

Architecture

• Provider-based design: Easily swap between different image generation backends (Gemini, OpenAI, Replicate, local Stable Diffusion)
• Security-first: Path validation, rate limiting, and safe file operations
• Stdio transport: Compatible with Claude Desktop, Claude Code, and other MCP hosts
• Type-safe: Full TypeScript implementation with Zod validation

Installation

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18.0.0 or higher
• npm or yarn
• A Gemini API key (or configure a different provider)

Setup

1. Clone the repository:

git clone <repository-url>
cd banana-mcp

2. Install dependencies:

npm install

3. Configure environment variables:

cp .env.example .env

Edit .env and add your API credentials:

GEMINI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
GEMINI_BASE_URL=https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com
GEMINI_MODEL=gemini-2.5-flash-image
LOG_LEVEL=info
RATE_LIMIT_PER_MINUTE=20

4. Build the project:

npm run build

5. Run the server:

npm start

Getting Your Gemini API Key

This server uses Google's Gemini 2.5 Flash Image (codename "Nano Banana") for image generation.

1. Visit Google AI Studio
2. Sign in with your Google account
3. Click "Get API Key" or "Create API Key"
4. Copy your API key
5. Add it to your .env file as GEMINI_API_KEY

Available Models:

• gemini-2.5-flash-image - Nano Banana (fast, optimized for speed)
• gemini-3-pro-image-preview - Nano Banana Pro (professional quality, enterprise)

API Documentation:

• Official Gemini Image Generation Docs
• Nano Banana Guide

Configuration

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
GEMINI_API_KEY	Your Gemini API key	(required)
GEMINI_BASE_URL	Gemini API base URL	https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com
GEMINI_MODEL	Model name for image generation	gemini-2.5-flash-image
LOG_LEVEL	Logging level (debug, info, warn, error)	info
RATE_LIMIT_PER_MINUTE	Max requests per minute per tool	20
OUTPUT_DIR	Directory for generated images	./outputs

MCP Host Configuration

Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-beautifier": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/banana-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your_api_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

Add to your MCP settings:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-beautifier": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/banana-mcp/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Make sure your .env file is properly configured in the project directory.

Tools Reference

generate_image

Generate an image from a text prompt with customizable options.

Input:

{
  "prompt": "A cute cartoon banana wearing sunglasses",
  "style": "illustration",
  "size": "1024x1024",
  "background": "solid",
  "output_format": "png",
  "output_path": "my_image.png"
}

Parameters:

• prompt (required): Text description (1-2000 characters)
• style: illustration | 3d | flat | photoreal | anime | pixel (default: illustration)
• size: 1024x1024 | 1024x1536 | 1536x1024 (default: 1024x1024)
• background: transparent | solid (default: solid)
• output_format: png | webp (default: png)
• output_path (optional): Custom filename (must be in outputs/ directory)

Output:

{
  "ok": true,
  "file_path": "outputs/generate_image_2026-02-10T12-30-45_a1b2c3d4.png",
  "mime_type": "image/png",
  "width": 1024,
  "height": 1024
}

generate_icon

Generate an icon from a concept with customizable theme.

Input:

{
  "concept": "A rocket ship launching into space",
  "theme": "minimal",
  "size": "512x512",
  "output_format": "png"
}

Parameters:

• concept (required): Icon concept description (1-2000 characters)
• theme: minimal | playful | corporate (default: minimal)
• size: 256x256 | 512x512 (default: 512x512)
• output_format: png | webp (default: png)

Output:

{
  "ok": true,
  "file_path": "outputs/generate_icon_2026-02-10T12-31-20_e5f6g7h8.png",
  "mime_type": "image/png",
  "width": 512,
  "height": 512
}

generate_hero

Generate a hero/banner image for a product or website.

Input:

{
  "product_name": "BananaMCP",
  "tagline": "The sweetest MCP server for image generation",
  "vibe": "modern",
  "size": "1536x1024",
  "output_format": "png"
}

Parameters:

• product_name (required): Product or website name (1-200 characters)
• tagline (required): Product tagline (1-500 characters)
• vibe (optional): Mood/vibe description (max 200 characters)
• size: 1024x1024 | 1024x1536 | 1536x1024 (default: 1536x1024)
• output_format: png | webp (default: png)

Output:

{
  "ok": true,
  "file_path": "outputs/generate_hero_2026-02-10T12-32-15_i9j0k1l2.png",
  "mime_type": "image/png",
  "width": 1536,
  "height": 1024
}

If provider is not configured:

{
  "ok": false,
  "suggested_prompt": "Hero banner image for \"BananaMCP\"...",
  "message": "Image provider not configured. Configure GEMINI_API_KEY to generate images."
}

beautify_screenshot

Analyze a screenshot and provide UI improvement suggestions (stub implementation).

Input:

{
  "input_image_path": "outputs/screenshot.png",
  "goal": "Make the UI more modern and clean",
  "output_format": "png"
}

Parameters:

• input_image_path (required): Path to screenshot (must be in outputs/ directory)
• goal (required): Beautification goal (1-1000 characters)
• output_format: png | webp (default: png)

Output:

{
  "ok": true,
  "message": "Beautify screenshot is currently a stub implementation",
  "suggested_steps": [
    "Increase whitespace and padding for a cleaner look",
    "Use a consistent color palette throughout the UI",
    "Improve typography hierarchy with varied font sizes",
    "..."
  ],
  "note": "To implement image editing, integrate an image manipulation API or library"
}

Testing

Run the test suite to verify the server is working:

npm run test

This will test all four tools and show example outputs. If GEMINI_API_KEY is not configured, tests will show what would happen with a configured provider.

Output Files

All generated images are saved to the outputs/ directory with automatically generated filenames:

outputs/
  generate_image_2026-02-10T12-30-45_a1b2c3d4.png
  generate_icon_2026-02-10T12-31-20_e5f6g7h8.png
  generate_hero_2026-02-10T12-32-15_i9j0k1l2.png

To clean up generated files:

rm outputs/*.png outputs/*.webp

About the Gemini Nano Banana Provider

This server uses the official Gemini API format for image generation. The implementation is based on Google's documented API structure:

API Details:

• Endpoint: /v1beta/models/{model}:generateContent
• Authentication: x-goog-api-key header
• Request Format: Official contents + generationConfig structure
• Response Format: candidates[0].content.parts[].inline_data.data

Key Features:

• Automatic aspect ratio detection (1:1, 16:9, 3:2, etc.)
• Image size optimization (1K, 2K, 4K)
• Style enhancement via prompt engineering
• Base64 image data in responses

No customization needed - the provider works out-of-the-box with the official Gemini API. Just add your API key!

Advanced: Switching Models

To use Nano Banana Pro (higher quality):

GEMINI_MODEL=gemini-3-pro-image-preview

Troubleshooting API Issues

If you encounter API errors:

1. Enable debug logging:

   LOG_LEVEL=debug
   

2. Check your API key: Visit Google AI Studio

3. Verify model availability: Some models may require enterprise access

4. Review API quotas: Check your usage limits in Google AI Studio

Adding New Providers

To add support for OpenAI, Replicate, or other image generation services:

1. Create a new provider file in src/providers/:

// src/providers/openaiProvider.ts
import { ImageProvider, ImageGenerationOptions, ImageGenerationResult } from './imageProvider.js';

export class OpenAIProvider implements ImageProvider {
  // Implement the interface methods
}

2. Update src/mcp/server.ts to use your provider:

const imageProvider: ImageProvider = new OpenAIProvider();

3. Add necessary environment variables to .env.example

Security Features

• Path validation: All file operations are restricted to the outputs/ directory
• Rate limiting: Configurable per-minute request limits (default: 20)
• Input validation: Prompt length limits (max 2000 characters)
• Error sanitization: API keys and sensitive data are never exposed in error messages
• Safe filename generation: Automatic filename generation prevents path traversal attacks

Troubleshooting

"Provider not configured" error

Make sure GEMINI_API_KEY is set in your .env file or passed via environment variables in your MCP host configuration.

"Rate limit exceeded" error

Reduce the frequency of requests or increase RATE_LIMIT_PER_MINUTE in your .env file.

"Invalid output path" error

Ensure output_path (if provided) is a simple filename without directory separators. The file will automatically be saved to the outputs/ directory.

Images not generating

1. Check your API key is valid
2. Verify the GEMINI_BASE_URL and GEMINI_MODEL match your API setup
3. Enable debug logging: LOG_LEVEL=debug in .env
4. Check the logs for API error messages

TypeScript compilation errors

Make sure you're using Node.js 18+ and have installed all dependencies:

node --version  # Should be >= 18.0.0
npm install
npm run build

Development

Project Structure

banana-mcp/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts              # Server entry point
│   ├── mcp/
│   │   ├── server.ts         # MCP server and tool handlers
│   │   └── schema.ts         # Tool schemas
│   ├── providers/
│   │   ├── imageProvider.ts  # Provider interface
│   │   └── geminiProvider.ts # Gemini implementation
│   └── utils/
│       ├── files.ts          # File operations
│       ├── paths.ts          # Path validation
│       ├── validate.ts       # Input validation
│       └── log.ts            # Logging
├── scripts/
│   └── test.ts               # Test suite
├── outputs/                  # Generated images
├── package.json
├── tsconfig.json
├── .env.example
└── README.md

Building

npm run build

Running in Development

npm run dev

Cleaning Build Artifacts

npm run clean

License

MIT

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues and pull requests.

Support

For issues and questions, please open an issue on the GitHub repository.