Google Calendar Automation

1---
2name: google-calendar-automation
3description: "Automate Google Calendar events, scheduling, availability checks, and attendee management via Rube MCP (Composio). Create events, find free slots, manage attendees, and list calendars programmatically."
4requires:
5  mcp: [rube]
6---
7 
8# Google Calendar Automation via Rube MCP
9 
10Automate Google Calendar workflows including event creation, scheduling, availability checks, attendee management, and calendar browsing through Composio's Google Calendar toolkit.
11 
12## Prerequisites
13 
14- Rube MCP must be connected (RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS available)
15- Active Google Calendar connection via `RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS` with toolkit `googlecalendar`
16- Always call `RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS` first to get current tool schemas
17 
18## Setup
19 
20**Get Rube MCP**: Add `https://rube.app/mcp` as an MCP server in your client configuration. No API keys needed — just add the endpoint and it works.
21 
22 
231. Verify Rube MCP is available by confirming `RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS` responds
242. Call `RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS` with toolkit `googlecalendar`
253. If connection is not ACTIVE, follow the returned auth link to complete Google OAuth
264. Confirm connection status shows ACTIVE before running any workflows
27 
28## Core Workflows
29 
30### 1. Create and Manage Events
31 
32**When to use**: User wants to create, update, or delete calendar events
33 
34**Tool sequence**:
351. `GOOGLECALENDAR_LIST_CALENDARS` - Identify target calendar ID [Prerequisite]
362. `GOOGLECALENDAR_GET_CURRENT_DATE_TIME` - Get current time with proper timezone [Optional]
373. `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_FREE_SLOTS` - Check availability before booking [Optional]
384. `GOOGLECALENDAR_CREATE_EVENT` - Create the event [Required]
395. `GOOGLECALENDAR_PATCH_EVENT` - Update specific fields of an existing event [Alternative]
406. `GOOGLECALENDAR_UPDATE_EVENT` - Full replacement update of an event [Alternative]
417. `GOOGLECALENDAR_DELETE_EVENT` - Delete an event [Optional]
42 
43**Key parameters**:
44- `calendar_id`: Use 'primary' for main calendar, or specific calendar ID
45- `start_datetime`: ISO 8601 format 'YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS' (NOT natural language)
46- `timezone`: IANA timezone name (e.g., 'America/New_York', NOT 'EST' or 'PST')
47- `event_duration_hour`: Hours (0+)
48- `event_duration_minutes`: Minutes (0-59 only; NEVER use 60+)
49- `summary`: Event title
50- `attendees`: Array of email addresses (NOT names)
51- `location`: Free-form text for event location
52 
53**Pitfalls**:
54- `start_datetime` must be ISO 8601; natural language like 'tomorrow' is rejected
55- `event_duration_minutes` max is 59; use `event_duration_hour=1` instead of `event_duration_minutes=60`
56- `timezone` must be IANA identifier; abbreviations like 'EST', 'PST' are NOT valid
57- `attendees` only accepts email addresses, not names; resolve names first
58- Google Meet link creation defaults to true; may fail on personal Gmail accounts (graceful fallback)
59- Organizer is auto-added as attendee unless `exclude_organizer=true`
60 
61### 2. List and Search Events
62 
63**When to use**: User wants to find or browse events on their calendar
64 
65**Tool sequence**:
661. `GOOGLECALENDAR_LIST_CALENDARS` - Get available calendars [Prerequisite]
672. `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_EVENT` - Search by title/keyword with time bounds [Required]
683. `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_LIST` - List events in a time range [Alternative]
694. `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_INSTANCES` - List instances of a recurring event [Optional]
70 
71**Key parameters**:
72- `query` / `q`: Free-text search (matches summary, description, location, attendees)
73- `timeMin`: Lower bound (RFC3339 with timezone offset, e.g., '2024-01-01T00:00:00-08:00')
74- `timeMax`: Upper bound (RFC3339 with timezone offset)
75- `singleEvents`: true to expand recurring events into instances
76- `orderBy`: 'startTime' (requires singleEvents=true) or 'updated'
77- `maxResults`: Results per page (max 2500)
78 
79**Pitfalls**:
80- **Timezone warning**: UTC timestamps (ending in 'Z') don't align with local dates; use local timezone offsets instead
81- Example: '2026-01-19T00:00:00Z' covers 2026-01-18 4pm to 2026-01-19 4pm in PST
82- Omitting `timeMin`/`timeMax` scans the full calendar and can be slow
83- `pageToken` in response means more results; paginate until absent
84- `orderBy='startTime'` requires `singleEvents=true`
85 
86### 3. Manage Attendees and Invitations
87 
88**When to use**: User wants to add, remove, or update event attendees
89 
90**Tool sequence**:
911. `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_EVENT` or `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_LIST` - Find the event [Prerequisite]
922. `GOOGLECALENDAR_PATCH_EVENT` - Add attendees (replaces entire attendees list) [Required]
933. `GOOGLECALENDAR_REMOVE_ATTENDEE` - Remove a specific attendee by email [Required]
94 
95**Key parameters**:
96- `event_id`: Unique event identifier (opaque string, NOT the event title)
97- `attendees`: Full list of attendee emails (PATCH replaces entire list)
98- `attendee_email`: Email to remove
99- `send_updates`: 'all', 'externalOnly', or 'none'
100 
101**Pitfalls**:
102- `event_id` is a technical identifier, NOT the event title; always search first to get the ID
103- `PATCH_EVENT` attendees field replaces the entire list; include existing attendees to avoid removing them
104- Attendee names cannot be resolved; always use email addresses
105- Use `GMAIL_SEARCH_PEOPLE` to resolve names to emails before managing attendees
106 
107### 4. Check Availability and Free/Busy Status
108 
109**When to use**: User wants to find available time slots or check busy periods
110 
111**Tool sequence**:
1121. `GOOGLECALENDAR_LIST_CALENDARS` - Identify calendars to check [Prerequisite]
1132. `GOOGLECALENDAR_GET_CURRENT_DATE_TIME` - Get current time with timezone [Optional]
1143. `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_FREE_SLOTS` - Find free intervals across calendars [Required]
1154. `GOOGLECALENDAR_FREE_BUSY_QUERY` - Get raw busy periods for computing gaps [Fallback]
1165. `GOOGLECALENDAR_CREATE_EVENT` - Book a confirmed slot [Required]
117 
118**Key parameters**:
119- `items`: List of calendar IDs to check (e.g., ['primary'])
120- `time_min`/`time_max`: Query interval (defaults to current day if omitted)
121- `timezone`: IANA timezone for interpreting naive timestamps
122- `calendarExpansionMax`: Max calendars (1-50)
123- `groupExpansionMax`: Max members per group (1-100)
124 
125**Pitfalls**:
126- Maximum span ~90 days per Google Calendar freeBusy API limit
127- Very long ranges or inaccessible calendars yield empty/invalid results
128- Only calendars with at least freeBusyReader access are visible
129- Free slots responses may normalize to UTC ('Z'); check offsets
130- `GOOGLECALENDAR_FREE_BUSY_QUERY` requires RFC3339 timestamps with timezone
131 
132## Common Patterns
133 
134### ID Resolution
135- **Calendar name -> calendar_id**: `GOOGLECALENDAR_LIST_CALENDARS` to enumerate all calendars
136- **Event title -> event_id**: `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_EVENT` or `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_LIST`
137- **Attendee name -> email**: `GMAIL_SEARCH_PEOPLE`
138 
139### Timezone Handling
140- Always use IANA timezone identifiers (e.g., 'America/Los_Angeles')
141- Use `GOOGLECALENDAR_GET_CURRENT_DATE_TIME` to get current time in user's timezone
142- When querying events for a local date, use timestamps with local offset, NOT UTC
143- Example: '2026-01-19T00:00:00-08:00' for PST, NOT '2026-01-19T00:00:00Z'
144 
145### Pagination
146- `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_LIST` returns `nextPageToken`; iterate until absent
147- `GOOGLECALENDAR_LIST_CALENDARS` also paginates; use `page_token`
148 
149## Known Pitfalls
150 
151- **Natural language dates**: NOT supported; all dates must be ISO 8601 or RFC3339
152- **Timezone mismatch**: UTC timestamps don't align with local dates for filtering
153- **Duration limits**: `event_duration_minutes` max 59; use hours for longer durations
154- **IANA timezones only**: 'EST', 'PST', etc. are NOT valid; use 'America/New_York'
155- **Event IDs are opaque**: Always search to get event_id; never guess or construct
156- **Attendees as emails**: Names cannot be used; resolve with GMAIL_SEARCH_PEOPLE
157- **PATCH replaces attendees**: Include all desired attendees in the array, not just new ones
158- **Conference limitations**: Google Meet may fail on personal accounts (graceful fallback)
159- **Rate limits**: High-volume searches can trigger 403/429; throttle between calls
160 
161## Quick Reference
162 
163| Task | Tool Slug | Key Params |
164|------|-----------|------------|
165| List calendars | `GOOGLECALENDAR_LIST_CALENDARS` | `max_results` |
166| Create event | `GOOGLECALENDAR_CREATE_EVENT` | `start_datetime`, `timezone`, `summary` |
167| Update event | `GOOGLECALENDAR_PATCH_EVENT` | `calendar_id`, `event_id`, fields to update |
168| Delete event | `GOOGLECALENDAR_DELETE_EVENT` | `calendar_id`, `event_id` |
169| Search events | `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_EVENT` | `query`, `timeMin`, `timeMax` |
170| List events | `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_LIST` | `calendarId`, `timeMin`, `timeMax` |
171| Recurring instances | `GOOGLECALENDAR_EVENTS_INSTANCES` | `calendarId`, `eventId` |
172| Find free slots | `GOOGLECALENDAR_FIND_FREE_SLOTS` | `items`, `time_min`, `time_max`, `timezone` |
173| Free/busy query | `GOOGLECALENDAR_FREE_BUSY_QUERY` | `timeMin`, `timeMax`, `items` |
174| Remove attendee | `GOOGLECALENDAR_REMOVE_ATTENDEE` | `event_id`, `attendee_email` |
175| Get current time | `GOOGLECALENDAR_GET_CURRENT_DATE_TIME` | `timezone` |
176| Get calendar | `GOOGLECALENDAR_GET_CALENDAR` | `calendar_id` |
177