MCP

You can build MCP servers in any language capable of writing to stdout or hosting an HTTP endpoint — Python, JavaScript, Go, and more.

How it works

MCP servers expose capabilities through the protocol to connect Kombai with external tools or data sources. Kombai supports three transport methods:

Transport	Execution environment	Deployment	Users	Input	Auth
stdio	Local	Kombai manages	Single user	Shell command	Manual
SSE	Local/Remote	Deploy as server	Multiple users	URL to an SSE endpoint	OAuth
Streamable HTTP	Local/Remote	Deploy as server	Multiple users	URL to an HTTP endpoint	OAuth

Installing MCP servers

Open the MCP server setting

Click the icon below the chat input box to open the External MCP Servers popover. Then click the + Add MCP button to open the External MCP Servers tab on the Settings page.

Open the MCP server setting

Click the ”+ Add MCP” button to open the mcp.json file.

Configure your MCP server

Add your MCP server configuration inside the mcpServers object and save the file.See the examples below for common server configurations.

Verify your MCP server

After saving, the External MCP Servers tab will display your configured server along with its connection status.

Examples

Set up custom MCP servers using a JSON configuration file:

CLI Server - Node.js

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "server-name": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "value"
      }
    }
  }
}

CLI Server - Python

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "server-name": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["mcp-server.py"],
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Remote Server

// MCP server using HTTP or SSE - hosted on a server
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "server-name": {
      "url": "http://localhost:3000/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "API_KEY": "value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Static OAuth for remote servers

For MCP servers that rely on OAuth, you can supply static OAuth client credentials in mcp.json rather than using dynamic client registration. This is useful when:

The MCP provider supplies you with a fixed Client ID (and optionally a Client Secret)
The provider requires whitelisting a redirect URL (e.g. Figma, Linear)
The provider does not support OAuth 2.0 Dynamic Client Registration

Remote Server with Static OAuth

Include an auth object in remote server entries that specify a url:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "oauth-server": {
      "url": "https://api.example.com/mcp",
      "auth": {
        "CLIENT_ID": "your-oauth-client-id",
        "CLIENT_SECRET": "your-client-secret"
      }
    }
  }
}

Field	Required	Description
CLIENT_ID	Yes	OAuth 2.0 Client ID provided by the MCP provider
CLIENT_SECRET	No	OAuth 2.0 Client Secret (applicable when the provider uses confidential clients)
scopes	No	OAuth scopes to request. If left out, Kombai will use /.well-known/oauth-authorization-server to discover scopes_supported

Combining with config interpolation

auth values support the same interpolation syntax as other fields:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "oauth-server": {
      "url": "https://api.example.com/mcp",
      "auth": {
        "CLIENT_ID": "${env:MCP_CLIENT_ID}",
        "CLIENT_SECRET": "${env:MCP_CLIENT_SECRET}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Instead of hardcoding the Client ID and Client Secret in the mcp.json file, it is recommended to use environment variables.

STDIO server configuration

For STDIO servers (local command-line servers), set the following fields in your mcp.json:

Field	Required	Description	Examples
type	Yes	Server connection type	`"stdio"`
command	Yes	Command to launch the server executable. Must be accessible on your system path or specified as a full path.	`"npx"`, `"node"`, `"python"`, `"docker"`
args	No	Array of arguments passed to the command	`["server.py", "--port", "3000"]`
env	No	Environment variables for the server process	`{"API_KEY": "${env:api-key}"}`

Configuration locations

Project Configuration

Place .kombai/mcp.json in your project root for project-specific tools.

Global Configuration

Place ~/.kombai/mcp.json in your home directory for tools accessible across all projects.

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Troubleshooting

How it works

Installing MCP servers

Examples

CLI Server - Node.js

CLI Server - Python

Remote Server

Static OAuth for remote servers

Remote Server with Static OAuth

Combining with config interpolation

STDIO server configuration

Configuration locations

Project Configuration

Global Configuration

​How it works

​Installing MCP servers

​Examples

​CLI Server - Node.js

​CLI Server - Python

​Remote Server

​Static OAuth for remote servers

​Remote Server with Static OAuth

​Combining with config interpolation

​STDIO server configuration

​Configuration locations

Project Configuration

Global Configuration

How it works

Installing MCP servers

Examples

CLI Server - Node.js

CLI Server - Python

Remote Server

Static OAuth for remote servers

Remote Server with Static OAuth

Combining with config interpolation

STDIO server configuration

Configuration locations