Connect an MCP server

Connect an MCP server to inventory its tools and apply rules before a tool can take an action. MCP servers are rules-only subjects: evaluation and improvement apply to full agents, not MCP servers.

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Start with a coding agent (recommended)

1. In Agents & integrations, select Connect → MCP.
2. Save the generated .env block in the root of your MCP server repository.
3. Give the setup prompt to Codex, Claude Code, or your preferred coding agent.
4. Run the server and make a tool call.

The setup prompt installs the SDK, declares the server’s tools, loads the Connection key from the environment, and adds a guard at the tool dispatcher — the place every tool call passes through.

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Verify the connection

Your MCP server is ready when Rippletide shows:

• its tool inventory in Harness management;
• the decision for a real tool call in Runtime events.

Then write rules for the server’s tools and start in observe mode. Nothing is blocked until you explicitly move a rule to enforce mode. Need to wire the server yourself? Follow the manual setup.