MCP Setup Skill

This skill helps configure Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers to connect Claude Code to external tools, databases, and APIs.

What is MCP?

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open-source standard for AI-tool integrations. MCP servers give Claude Code access to:

• Issue trackers (Jira, GitHub Issues)
• Monitoring tools (Sentry, Statsig)
• Databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL)
• Design tools (Figma)
• Communication (Slack, Gmail)
• And hundreds more

Server Types

1. HTTP Servers (Recommended for remote)

Cloud-based services, most widely supported.

claude mcp add --transport http <name> <url>

# Example: Connect to Notion
claude mcp add --transport http notion https://mcp.notion.com/mcp

# With Bearer token authentication
claude mcp add --transport http secure-api https://api.example.com/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer your-token"

2. SSE Servers (Deprecated)

Use HTTP instead where available.

claude mcp add --transport sse <name> <url>

# Example: Connect to Asana
claude mcp add --transport sse asana https://mcp.asana.com/sse

3. Stdio Servers (Local processes)

Run as local processes on your machine.

claude mcp add --transport stdio <name> <command> [args...]

# Example: Airtable server
claude mcp add --transport stdio airtable --env AIRTABLE_API_KEY=YOUR_KEY \
  -- npx -y airtable-mcp-server

# Example: PostgreSQL database
claude mcp add --transport stdio db -- npx -y @bytebase/dbhub \
  --dsn "postgresql://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb"

Note: The -- separates Claude's flags from the server command.

Configuration Scopes

# Add to specific scope
claude mcp add --transport http api --scope project https://api.example.com

Management Commands

# List all configured servers
claude mcp list

# Get details for a specific server
claude mcp get <name>

# Remove a server
claude mcp remove <name>

# Check server status (in Claude Code)
/mcp

Authentication

For OAuth 2.0 authentication:

1. Add the server: claude mcp add --transport http sentry https://mcp.sentry.dev/mcp
2. In Claude Code, run: /mcp
3. Select "Authenticate" and follow browser prompts

Plugin MCP Servers

Plugins can bundle MCP servers. Create .mcp.json at plugin root:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "plugin-server": {
      "command": "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/servers/my-server",
      "args": ["--config", "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/config.json"],
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "${API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Or inline in plugin.json:

{
  "name": "my-plugin",
  "mcpServers": {
    "plugin-api": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://api.example.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Project Shared Configuration

For team-shared servers, create .mcp.json in project root:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "github": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://api.githubcopilot.com/mcp/"
    },
    "database": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@bytebase/dbhub", "--dsn", "${DATABASE_URL}"]
    }
  }
}

Environment Variable Expansion

Supported in .mcp.json:

• ${VAR} - Value of environment variable
• ${VAR:-default} - Value or default if not set

Works in: command, args, env, url, headers

Popular MCP Servers

Using MCP in Claude Code

Reference Resources

Type @ to see available resources from MCP servers:

> Analyze @github:issue://123

Execute Prompts

MCP prompts become slash commands:

> /mcp__github__list_prs
> /mcp__jira__create_issue "Bug title" high

Troubleshooting

Windows Users

Use cmd /c wrapper for npx:

claude mcp add --transport stdio my-server -- cmd /c npx -y @some/package

Output Limits

Set MAX_MCP_OUTPUT_TOKENS for large outputs:

export MAX_MCP_OUTPUT_TOKENS=50000
claude

Timeout Issues

Increase startup timeout:

MCP_TIMEOUT=10000 claude

Setup Checklist

When setting up a new MCP server:

• Choose appropriate transport (HTTP for remote, stdio for local)
• Select correct scope (local/project/user)
• Configure authentication if required
• Set necessary environment variables
• Test with /mcp command
• Verify tools are available