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Add an MCP server to ChatGPT

How to connect a custom MCP server to ChatGPT: what the endpoint needs, the Add custom MCP server steps, testing tool selection and refreshing metadata.

Add an MCP server to Claude Code

claude mcp add for HTTP, SSE and stdio servers, the three config scopes, headers and OAuth, and ${VAR} expansion in .mcp.json.

Add an MCP server to Codex

How OpenAI Codex configures MCP servers: codex mcp add, the [mcp_servers.<name>] tables in config.toml, HTTP headers, bearer tokens and OAuth.

Cursor MCP servers: add an MCP server with mcp.json

Where Cursor's mcp.json lives, the stdio and remote entry formats, ${env:NAME} interpolation, OAuth fields, and how to debug a server.

Add an MCP server to Gemini CLI

How Gemini CLI configures MCP servers: gemini mcp add, mcpServers in settings.json, user and project scope, url vs httpUrl, tool filters and OAuth.

Claude Desktop MCP configuration

Configure MCP servers in Claude Desktop: where claude_desktop_config.json lives, the mcpServers format, remote custom connectors, logs and troubleshooting.

How to use the MCP Inspector

Test and debug an MCP server with the MCP Inspector: the web, CLI and TUI clients, connecting to stdio and remote servers, the tabs to watch, and CI use.

MCP server security checklist

A checklist for installing MCP servers safely: trusted sources, package provenance, least privilege, secrets out of config, and remote endpoint auth.

Remote vs local MCP servers

What changes when an MCP server is a URL instead of a process on your machine: data flow, auth headers, OAuth, and the failure modes of each.

What is an MCP server?

Hosts, clients and servers; tools, resources and prompts; and how stdio and Streamable HTTP carry MCP messages, per the current spec.