MLC Barcode

A modern, cross-platform suite for generating, batch processing, and printing barcodes and QR codes — available as a native Desktop App (GUI) with installer, a Command Line Interface (CLI), and a Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server for AI assistants.

What it does

MLC Barcode brings together rapid visual barcode creation, bulk automation, and AI integration in a single unified tool:

1. Native Desktop GUI (Wails v3 + Svelte): Design barcodes with real-time live preview, custom color swatches, transparent backgrounds, and clean custom caption labels.
2. Batch Processing (Bulk Generator): Import text or CSV files with hundreds of entries, generate entire batches in seconds, and export them into organized folders.
3. DIN A4 Label Sheet Printer: Arrange single or batch barcodes directly onto standard Avery Zweckform sticker sheets (e.g. 2x4, 3x7, 3x8, 4x10) and print them instantly.
4. AI Integration (MCP Server): Enables LLM agents like Claude Desktop, Cursor, and Gemini-CLI to generate barcodes directly in chat.
5. Headless CLI: Ideal for shell scripts, CI/CD automated build pipelines, and server backends.

Key Features

• 10 Barcode Symbologies:
  • 2D Matrix: QR Code, DataMatrix (ideal for URLs, vCards, Wi-Fi, and Events), Aztec (tickets, readable on screens).
  • 2D Stacked: PDF417 (boarding passes, shipping labels, ID cards).
  • 1D Linear: Code 128, Code 39, EAN-13, EAN-8, UPC-A, ITF (Interleaved 2 of 5).
• Structured QR Assistants: Built-in form wizards for:
  • 💶 GiroCode / SEPA Transfers (EPC-QR): Invoicing and bank payments with IBAN, BIC, amount, and reference.
  • 🪙 Crypto Wallets: Payment URIs for Bitcoin (BIP 21), Ethereum (EIP-681), Solana, Dogecoin, and Litecoin.
  • 📍 Maps & Navigation: Geo coordinates (RFC 5870) for Google Maps and Apple Maps.
  • 📞 Phone (tel:) & SMS (smsto:): Direct phone dialing and pre-filled SMS messages.
  • ✉️ Email (mailto:): Recipient, subject line, and body text.
  • 📶 Wi-Fi Access: WPA/WPA2/WPA3, WEP, and open networks.
  • 👤 vCard 3.0: Digital business cards with name, phone, email, and company.
  • 📅 iCalendar: Events with start/end timestamps and timezone support.
• Read & check codes: Read barcodes and QR codes from photos, scans or screenshots – all ten formats including PDF417, with the payload split into fields: IBAN check for payment QRs, PZN, batch and expiry for pharmaceutical pack codes (securPharm). Every generated code is read back automatically.
• Custom Text Captions: Add human-readable subtitles or descriptions below barcodes – adjustable font size, in SVG and PNG.
• Vector & Raster Formats: Pixel-perfect vector graphics (SVG) and high-resolution PNG images.
• Color & Transparency Control: 1-click color palettes for foreground and background, plus transparent alpha channel support.
• Dark & Light Mode: Interface in the colours of mlcgo.eu, dark by default, one click to switch to light.
• Windows Setup Installer: Seamless NSIS installer for Windows x64 with desktop shortcuts and start menu integration.

Tip: is your medicine cabinet up to date?

Take a photo of the square code on a medicine pack (DataMatrix) and drop it into the "Check" tab. MLC Barcode shows the expiry date, batch and PZN – and marks expired packs in red. It works best with the code centred and filling the photo – one pack per photo.

Note: the code (securPharm) is mainly printed on prescription medicines; over-the-counter packs often carry only the PZN barcode without an expiry date. The app reads the printed date – whether a medicine should still be used is best checked with your pharmacy.

Formats & Standards

QR contents by standard — so banking apps, calendars and phones understand them directly:

Quick Setup & Installation

Windows Desktop App

Download and run the installer mlc-barcode-1.7.0-windows-setup.exe. The application installs and integrates with your start menu. A portable standalone executable is also available.

Linux Desktop App

Download the mlc-barcode-gui binary, make it executable, and run:

chmod +x mlc-barcode-gui
./mlc-barcode-gui

MCP Server for AI Assistants

You do not start the server yourself — your AI client (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Gemini CLI, Cursor) does. You only put its absolute path into the client's configuration, for Claude Desktop in claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mlc-barcode": {
      "command": "C:\\Program Files\\MLC Barcode\\mcp-barcode-server.exe"
    }
  }
}

That is the path after the Windows setup. On macOS and Linux use the place you unpacked the archive to, e.g. /Users/me/tools/mlc-barcode/mcp-barcode-server. Then restart the client.

Step by step for every client, with troubleshooting: MCP guide

CLI Quickstart

# Basic QR code as SVG
barcode -type qr -data "https://mlcgo.eu" -out qr.svg

# EAN-13 retail barcode with text
barcode -type ean13 -data "4006381333931" -text -out retail.png

# Wi-Fi access QR code
barcode -wifi-ssid "MyNetwork" -wifi-pass "secret123" -out wifi.png

Changelog & Version History

Version 1.7.0 (Current)

• New: reading PDF417 – boarding passes, shipping labels, ID cards. The app now reads all ten formats it generates, rotated and several per image too.
• New: pharmaceutical pack codes (securPharm) – the DataMatrix on medicine packs is split into PZN, expiry date, batch and serial number, with check-digit verification. Expired packs are marked red. Both permitted data formats (GS1 and IFA) are supported. New – feedback with real packs is welcome.
• Fixed: PDF417 with umlauts was read as garbage by standard-conforming scanners ("GröÅ"). Now properly marked as UTF-8, € and emoji included.
• Licences: the PDF417 reader is a Go port of ZXing (Apache-2.0); all third-party licences ship as THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.txt and are shown in the Help.

Version 1.6.0

• New: read and check codes. New "Check" tab: pick, drop or paste (Ctrl+V) an image – the app recognises QR, DataMatrix, Aztec, EAN/UPC, Code 128, Code 39 and ITF, several per image. Known payloads are split into fields: for a payment QR beneficiary, amount, reference and an IBAN check; likewise business cards, Wi-Fi, events, locations and more. Also as CLI (barcode -decode) and MCP tool decode_barcode.
• New: every generated code is read back. The preview shows "readability checked" – or warns, e.g. when code and background colour have too little contrast.
• New: Aztec and PDF417 (rail and air tickets, shipping labels). Note: phone cameras usually do not read these formats; they are meant for dedicated scanners.
• New: error messages that help – which character at which position does not fit, what is allowed and what to do instead; in German inside the app.
• Fixed: quiet zone. Generated codes had no margin; on coloured or busy backgrounds DataMatrix and ITF could not be read. Now per standard, can be switched off.
• Fixed: business cards and events with comma, semicolon or line break were written incorrectly ("GmbH; Branch" split into two entries). Crypto codes showed "+" instead of spaces. Please regenerate affected codes.
• Fixed: links in the app open in the browser instead of a second window; long Code 128 barcodes could not be generated; the in-app MCP help describes the setup for end users.

Version 1.5.0

• Important — fixed: UPC-A was encoded as the wrong number. A 12-digit UPC-A became an EAN-13 with a different number; scanners read something else. Please regenerate UPC-A codes made with version 1.4.0 or older.
• New: check-digit validation for EAN-13, EAN-8 and UPC-A while you type. A missing check digit is added; a wrong one is named and corrected with one click. Also in CLI and MCP.
• New: interface in the colours of mlcgo.eu, dark by default.
• New: captions with adjustable font size — now in PNG too (previously SVG only); over-long text shrinks to the barcode width.
• New: calendar events with date and time pickers instead of YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS, plus all-day events.
• New: label printing takes over the codes from the batch generator or imports TXT/CSV directly — column 1 content, column 2 optional label text.
• New in the MCP server: Streamable HTTP at /mcp (spec 2026-07-28), structured results, two prompts (payment QR from an invoice, product labels), custom captions (caption). Checked with mlc mcp-tester: score 100/100.
• Changed: the legacy SSE transport now lives at /sse (previously /).
• Fixed: label sheets print without the browser header and footer; input survives switching tabs; the Windows program now shows its icon (taskbar, Explorer) and version details; empty input no longer produces a code; EAN-13 no longer accepts 8 digits.
• Licence: MIT with attribution — shown in the installer, in the Help and as LICENSE.txt in every package.

Version 1.4.0

• New: GiroCode (EPC QR) to EPC069-12 — every European banking app uses it to pre-fill a SEPA credit transfer.
• New: Cryptocurrency payments to BIP 21 and EIP-681 for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Dogecoin and Litecoin.
• New: Geo coordinates to RFC 5870 — opens the destination straight in Google Maps, Apple Maps or OpenStreetMap.
• New: Telephone, SMS and email to RFC 3966 and RFC 6068, with recipient, subject and body pre-filled.
• All six formats are available equally in the desktop GUI, on the command line and as MCP tools for AI agents.
• Fixed: spaces in the subject and body of an email QR code were encoded as +. RFC 6068 gives the plus sign no special meaning, so conforming mail clients showed a plus instead of a space.

Version 1.3.0

• New: Native Desktop GUI (Wails v3 + Svelte) with live visual preview and clipboard export.
• New: Windows Setup Installer (NSIS) for quick installation on Windows machines.
• New: Batch Processing Engine with text/CSV file import and folder export using customizable naming conventions.
• New: DIN A4 Label Sheet Printer supporting standard Avery presets (2x4, 3x7, 3x8, 4x10) and multi-copy repetitions.
• New: Custom Text Captions (customText) below barcodes replacing raw protocol strings.
• New: 1-Click Color Palettes and transparent background support for SVG and PNG.
• New: Dark & Light Mode powered by Bootstrap 5.3 with local persistence.
• New: Custom High-Res App Branding & Icons across desktop, installer, and webview.

Version 1.2.0

• New: Structured QR code generators for Wi-Fi, vCard 3.0, and iCalendar events.
• New: Support for ITF (Interleaved 2 of 5) symbology.
• Improvement: Optimized SVG path generation with horizontal bar grouping for ultra-compact file sizes.

Version 1.0.0

• Initial release of CLI and MCP server supporting QR, DataMatrix, Code 128, Code 39, EAN-13, EAN-8, and UPC-A.