MCP Servers in API Connections

Learn how to connect GenerativeAgent to an MCP server

MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers provide a standardized way to expose tools and capabilities to LLMs. Unlike traditional APIs that implicitly require a developer to read docs, trial and error, and technical support to successfully use, MCP servers are designed with LLM use from the start, making them easier to integrate with GenerativeAgent.

Use MCP Server

1. Create an MCP Server Source

   1. Navigate to API Integration Hub > API Connections

   2. Click Create Connection

   3. Select MCP Server from the connection type list

      

   4. Click Add New to create a new MCP server source

   

   You can create, edit, and delete sources from the Sources page in the API Integration Hub

2. Configure the MCP server

   Configure the MCP server:

   • URL: Enter the URL of your MCP server
   • Authentication Method: Select or create an authentication method for the server

   

   You can reuse MCP server sources across multiple API connections. Once created, they appear in the MCP server dropdown for future connections.

3. Select a Tool

   After configuring the MCP server source, select the tool you want to use:

   1. Browse available tools from the MCP server
   2. Select the tool you want to connect
   3. The tool’s name and purpose are automatically populated from the MCP server response

   

   MCP servers expose tools that are already designed for LLM use, so the request and response schemas are typically well-structured for GenerativeAgent. You may still configure request and response transformations if needed, but they’re often unnecessary.

4. Link to Functions

   Once your MCP server connection is configured, reference it in a Function to enable GenerativeAgent to use the MCP tool.

Configure Request and Response Interfaces

Since MCP servers are designed for LLM interaction, transformations are often not needed. However, you can still configure:

• Request Interface: Modify how GenerativeAgent sends data to the tool
• Response Interface: Transform the tool’s response format

Start with the default schemas and transformations. Only customize if you need to adapt the tool’s interface for your specific use case.

MCP Server Schema Changes

MCP servers are unversioned. When you update the schema of your MCP tools, the existing MCP server source in your system continues to use the original schema.

To incorporate schema changes:

1. Create a new MCP server source with the same URL and authentication
2. The new source will fetch and use the updated schema from your MCP server
3. Update your API connections to reference the new MCP server source instead of the old one

Authentication

MCP server connections support the same authentication methods as standard API connections.

The MCP authorization specification is designed for uses cases where end users authorize bots to access their personal resources, such as internal productivity tools or chatGPT accessing resources on your behalf, such as your Google Drive.

For customer service communication, you typically rely on the user authenticating directly to your system. This either means

• Relying on a service to service authentication method such as API keys, client credentials, or basic authentication.
• Or if your website or app relies on an OAuth type of authentication, you can use the OAuth 2.0 Authorization Code authentication method which can use authentication data from the client.

If your MCP server requires a unique authentication flow, contact your ASAPP account team to discuss your requirements. We’ll work with you to build and implement the solution.

Next Steps

Create Functions

Learn how to create functions that use your MCP server connection to enable GenerativeAgent to call MCP tools.

API Connections Overview

Explore other API connection types and learn how to configure request and response transformations.