Overview

Connections are the foundation of MCP Explorer. They define how to connect to MCP servers via different transports (stdio, HTTP, SSE) and authentication methods.

Creating a Connection

Step 1: Navigate to Connections

Click the 🔌 Connections tab in the navigation menu.

📸 Screenshot needed: connections-tab-overview.png Description: Show the Connections page with the main interface, including the “Add Connection” button and the search filter at the top

Step 2: Click “Add Connection”

Click the Add Connection button to open the connection form.

Step 3: Configure Basic Details

Fill in the connection details:

Name (Required)

A friendly name to identify your connection

  • Example: My First MCP Server, Weather API, Database Tools

Endpoint (Required)

The server connection string based on transport type:

For stdio:

stdio://path/to/your/server-executable

For HTTP:

http://localhost:3000

For SSE (Server-Sent Events):

http://localhost:3000/sse

Note (Optional)

Helper text or description for this connection

  • Example: Development server for testing weather tools

📸 Screenshot needed: connection-form-basic.png Description: Show the connection form with Name, Endpoint, and Note fields filled out with example data

Step 4: Choose Authentication Method

MCP Explorer supports two authentication approaches:

Custom Headers (Default)

Use this for API keys, Bearer tokens, or Basic auth.

  1. Select Custom headers from the Authentication dropdown
  2. Click ➕ Add Header to add headers
  3. For each header, provide:
    • Name: Authorization, X-API-Key, etc.
    • Value: Your key or token
    • Authorization Type (for Authorization headers): Choose Bearer or Basic

Example headers:

NameValueType
Authorizationyour-token-hereBearer
X-API-Keyabc123xyz(none)

📸 Screenshot needed: connection-auth-custom-headers.png Description: Show the Custom Headers section with multiple headers added, including an Authorization header with Bearer type selected

Azure Client Credentials (Advanced)

Use this for Azure Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) authentication.

  1. Select Azure client credentials from the Authentication dropdown
  2. Fill in the required fields:
    • Tenant ID: Your Azure tenant GUID
    • Client ID: Application (client) ID
    • Client Secret: The secret value
    • Scope (optional): API scope (e.g., api://your-api/.default)
    • Authority (optional): Custom authority host

MCP Explorer automatically:

  • Requests access tokens using your credentials
  • Injects the token into Authorization headers
  • Refreshes tokens when needed

📸 Screenshot needed: connection-auth-azure-credentials.png Description: Show the Azure client credentials form with all fields filled (you can use placeholder values)

warning: Security Note: All secrets (API keys, client secrets, tokens) are encrypted using AES-256 and stored securely on disk.

Step 5: Save the Connection

Click Save to create your connection. You’ll see:

  • The connection appears in the list
  • An authentication badge showing the auth type (Custom headers or Entra)
  • Connection status indicator

📸 Screenshot needed: connection-saved-in-list.png Description: Show the connections list with the newly created connection, highlighting the authentication badge

Testing Your Connection

Connect to the Server

  1. Find your connection in the list
  2. Click the Connect button
  3. Watch the status indicator change:
    • Connecting… (orange/yellow)
    • Connected (green)
    • Disconnected (red) - if connection fails

📸 Screenshot needed: connection-status-connected.png Description: Show a connection in “Connected” state with the green status indicator

Verify Connection

Once connected, you can:

  • Navigate to Tools tab to see available tools
  • Navigate to Prompts tab to see available prompts
  • Navigate to Resources tab to see available resources

If tools/prompts/resources appear, your connection is working! 🎉

Connection Management

Search & Filter

Use the search box to quickly find connections:

  • Search by name: weather
  • Search by description: development
  • Search by auth type: entra, custom header

Keyboard shortcuts:

  • Start typing to filter
  • Escape to clear the filter
  • Auto-focus when tab opens

📸 Screenshot needed: connection-search-filter.png Description: Show the search box with a search term entered and matching connections highlighted

Edit a Connection

  1. Click the Edit button (pencil icon) next to a connection
  2. Modify any fields
  3. Click Save

Delete a Connection

  1. Click the Delete button (trash icon)
  2. Confirm the deletion

warning: Warning: Deleting a connection also removes its history of parameter values and favorites.

Common Connection Patterns

Local stdio Server 

Name: Local Development Server
Endpoint: stdio:///usr/local/bin/my-mcp-server
Auth: None (Custom headers with no headers added)

HTTP API with Bearer Token 

Name: Production API
Endpoint: https://api.example.com
Auth: Custom headers
  - Authorization: your-api-key (Bearer)

Azure-Protected API 

Name: Azure MCP Service
Endpoint: https://your-api.azurewebsites.net
Auth: Azure client credentials
  - Tenant ID: <your-tenant-id>
  - Client ID: <your-client-id>
  - Client Secret: <your-secret>
  - Scope: api://your-api/.default

Next Steps

Troubleshooting

Connection Fails

Problem: Status shows “Disconnected” or error message

Solutions:

  1. Verify the endpoint URL/path is correct
  2. Check that the server is running
  3. Ensure authentication credentials are valid
  4. Review console logs for detailed error messages

Stdio Server Not Found

Problem: Error: command not found or similar

Solutions:

  1. Verify the full path to the executable
  2. Ensure the file has execute permissions
  3. Test the command in your terminal first

Authorization Failures

Problem: 401 Unauthorized or 403 Forbidden errors

Solutions:

  1. Verify API key/token is correct and not expired
  2. Check Authorization type (Bearer vs Basic)
  3. For Azure: Ensure client has proper app roles assigned

For more help, see the Troubleshooting Guide.