> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developer.watson-orchestrate.ibm.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Connecting MCP Clients to the watsonx Orchestrate ADK MCP Server

To use the MCP Server, connect it to an MCP Client. The sections below show how to do that for several popular MCP Clients. If your client isn’t listed, check its documentation for connection instructions.

## STDIO Transport

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Claude Desktop">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Open the Settings Developer">
        <img src="https://mintcdn.com/ibm-2e3153bf/2P4NRcGQ077rab_d/assets/mcp_server/claude_desktop_settings.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=2P4NRcGQ077rab_d&q=85&s=ffc11cf29ff6bfee511f5afa25b314e4" alt="claude_desktop_settings.png" width="1481" height="763" data-path="assets/mcp_server/claude_desktop_settings.png" />
      </Step>

      <Step title="Edit the `claude_desktop_config.json` file">
        Click "Edit Config" to navigate to where the `claude_desktop_config.json` file is on disk.\
        Open the file in any text editor.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Add the MCP Server">
        Paste the following into the file:

        ```json JSON theme={null}
        {
            "mcpServers":{
                "wxo-mcp":{
                    "command":"uvx",
                    "args":[
                        "--with",
                        "ibm-watsonx-orchestrate==1.13.0",
                        "ibm-watsonx-orchestrate-mcp-server"
                    ],
                    "env":{
                        "WXO_MCP_WORKING_DIRECTORY":"sample/working/directory"
                    },
                    "wxo-docs":{
                        "command":"uvx",
                        "args":[
                            "mcp-proxy",
                            "--transport",
                            "streamablehttp",
                            "https://developer.watson-orchestrate.ibm.com/mcp"
                        ]
                    }
                }
            }
        }
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="Restart Claude Desktop" />
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="GitHub Copilot">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create file `.vscode/mcp.json`">
        Create a new file in your workspace called `.vscode/mcp.json`
      </Step>

      <Step title="Add MCP Server configuration">
        ```json JSON theme={null}
        {
            "servers": {
                "wxo-mcp": {
                "command": "uvx",
                "args": [
                    "--with",
                    "ibm-watsonx-orchestrate==1.13.0",
                    "ibm-watsonx-orchestrate-mcp-server"
                ],
                "env": {
                   "WXO_MCP_WORKING_DIRECTORY":"sample/working/directory" 
                }
                },
                "wxo-docs": {
                    "command": "uvx",
                    "args": [
                        "mcp-proxy",
                        "--transport",
                        "streamablehttp",
                        "https://developer.watson-orchestrate.ibm.com/mcp"
                    ],
                }
            }
        }
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="List VSCode MCP Servers">
        Press `Ctrl+P`, type `>MCP: List Servers`, and select `wxo-mcp`.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Start the Server">
        Click the start server option.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Cursor">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create file `.cursor/mcp.json`">
        Create a new file in your workspace called `.cursor/mcp.json`
      </Step>

      <Step title="Add MCP Server configuration">
        ```json JSON theme={null}
        {
            "servers": {
                "wxo-mcp": {
                "command": "uvx",
                "args": [
                    "--with",
                    "ibm-watsonx-orchestrate==1.13.0",
                    "ibm-watsonx-orchestrate-mcp-server"
                ],
                "env": {
                   "WXO_MCP_WORKING_DIRECTORY":"sample/working/directory" 
                }
                },
                "wxo-docs": {
                    "command": "uvx",
                    "args": [
                        "mcp-proxy",
                        "--transport",
                        "streamablehttp",
                        "https://developer.watson-orchestrate.ibm.com/mcp"
                    ],
                }
            }
        }
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="List Cursor MCP Servers">
        Press `Ctrl+P`, type `>MCP: List Servers`, and select `wxo-mcp`.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Start the Server">
        Click the start server option.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="MCP Inspector">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Start MCP Inspector Server">
        ```bash BASH theme={null}
        npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="Entry the MCP Server details">
        1. Set transport to `STDIO`
        2. Command: `pipx`
        3. Argurments: `run ibm-watsonx-orchestrate-mcp-server`
        4. Set any required environment variables
        5. Click **Connect**
                   <img src="https://mintcdn.com/ibm-2e3153bf/2P4NRcGQ077rab_d/assets/mcp_server/inspector_empty.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=2P4NRcGQ077rab_d&q=85&s=ef0a6ce06b39501d1962376b6e015ada" alt="inspector_empty.png" width="1718" height="888" data-path="assets/mcp_server/inspector_empty.png" />
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="🚧 watsonx Orchestrate">
    <Note>
      **Work in Progress**

      STDIO support is currently limited for the watsonx Orchestrate MCP Server when running in watsonx Orchestrate. This is due to watsonx Orchestrate's secure execution architecture preventing the use of configuration files that the Orchestrate ADK relies on for connecting to instances.
    </Note>
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Remote Transports (SSE/HTTP STREAMABLE)

Remote transports let you connect clients to already running instances of the watsonx Orchestrate MCP Server. Use this setup to share a single instance across multiple clients or to connect a remote client to a server running on your local machine.

<Tabs>
  <Tab title=" watsonx Orchestrate">
    For more details on importing remote MCP servers into Orchestrate, see [Importing remote MCP toolkits](/tools/toolkits/remote_mcp_toolkits).

    <Tabs>
      <Tab title="ADK">
        ```bash BASH theme={null}
            orchestrate toolkits add --kind mcp --name <toolkit-name> --description <toolkit-description>  --url <toolkit-url>  --transport <protocol-for-remote-mcp> --tools <tools>  --app-id <connection>
        ```
      </Tab>
    </Tabs>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Claude Desktop">
    Currently Remote MCP is only supported by premium accounts in Claude Desktop. See their docs on [Connecting to a Remote MCP Server](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/docs/develop/connect-remote-servers#connecting-to-a-remote-mcp-server)
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="GitHub Copilot">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create file `.vscode/mcp.json`">
        Create a new file in your workspace called `.vscode/mcp.json`
      </Step>

      <Step title="Add MCP Server configuration">
        ```json JSON theme={null}
        {
            "servers": {
                "wxo-mcp": {
                    "type": "http", // transport either "http" or "sse"
                    "url": <mcp server url>
                },
                "wxo-docs": {
                    "type": "http",
                    "url": "https://developer.watson-orchestrate.ibm.com/mcp"
                }
            }
        }
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="List VSCode MCP Servers">
        Press `Ctrl+P`, type `>MCP: List Servers`, and select `wxo-mcp`.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Start the Server">
        Click the start server option.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Cursor">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create file `.cursor/mcp.json`">
        Create a new file in your workspace called `.cursor/mcp.json`
      </Step>

      <Step title="Add MCP Server configuration">
        ```json JSON theme={null}
        {
            "servers": {
                "wxo-mcp": {
                    "type": "http", // transport either "http" or "sse"
                    "url": <mcp server url>
                },
                "wxo-docs": {
                    "type": "http",
                    "url": "https://developer.watson-orchestrate.ibm.com/mcp"
                }
            }
        }
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="List Cursor MCP Servers">
        Press `Ctrl+P`, type `>MCP: List Servers`, and select `wxo-mcp`.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Start the Server">
        Click the start server option.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="MCP Inspector">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Start MCP Inspector Server">
        ```bash BASH theme={null}
        npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector
        ```
      </Step>

      <Step title="Entry the MCP Server details">
        1. Set transport to `SSE` or `Steamable HTTP`
        2. Set the URL to your watsonx Orchestrate MCP Server
        3. Click **Connect**
                   <img src="https://mintcdn.com/ibm-2e3153bf/2P4NRcGQ077rab_d/assets/mcp_server/remote_inspector_empty.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=2P4NRcGQ077rab_d&q=85&s=6a922de5fb2d5a587d04a351f11a7ea1" alt="remote_inspector_empty.png" width="1433" height="896" data-path="assets/mcp_server/remote_inspector_empty.png" />
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>
</Tabs>