MCP Servers
What is MCP?
The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that lets AI assistants connect to external tools and data sources. Think of MCP servers as plugins — they give Claude access to databases, APIs, documentation, and more.
Conare makes MCP management visual and painless.
Adding a Server
One-Paste Setup
Most MCP providers give you a command like:
claude mcp add context7 -- npx -y @context7/mcp
In Conare, open the MCP Panel, click Add Server, and paste that command directly. Conare parses it automatically:
- Server name →
context7 - Transport →
stdio(default) - Command →
npx - Args →
-y @context7/mcp - Flags →
--env,--header,--scopeall supported
Click Add and you're done. No JSON editing, no config files.
Manual Setup
For advanced use cases, the Add modal also has fields for:
- Transport type —
stdio(local process),sse(Server-Sent Events),http - Environment variables — key-value pairs passed to the server process
- Scope —
local(project only),project(workspace),user(global)
Server Health
Every server shows a real-time status indicator:
| Status | Icon | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Healthy | Server connected, tools available | |
| Needs Auth | OAuth required — click to authorize | |
| Error | Connection failed — check config | |
| Unknown | Not yet checked |
Hover over any server to see detailed status information.
OAuth Flow
Some MCP servers require authentication (GitHub, Notion, etc.). Conare handles the full OAuth 2.1 PKCE flow:
Click the auth button
On a server showing "Needs Auth", click the key icon.
Authorize in your browser
Conare opens your browser to the OAuth provider's authorization page. A local callback server spins up automatically.
Token saved automatically
After you approve, the token is captured and injected into Claude Code's config. The server status flips to "Healthy".
Token Cost Tracking
Each MCP server adds tools to Claude's context window, which costs tokens. Conare shows the exact token count per server — not just the number of tools, but the actual context window impact.
This appears in the server details modal alongside:
- List of available tools with descriptions
- Server transport type and config
- Enable/disable toggle
Managing Servers
- Enable/Disable — Checkbox toggle per server. Disabled servers use zero tokens.
- Delete — Hover to reveal the trash button. Confirmation modal prevents accidents.
- Scope visibility — Servers show their scope (local/project/user) so you know what's project-specific vs global.
Supported Transports
| Transport | Use Case | Example |
|---|---|---|
| stdio | Local CLI tools, npm packages | npx @context7/mcp |
| SSE | Remote servers with streaming | https://mcp.example.com/sse |
| HTTP | REST-based MCP endpoints | https://api.example.com/mcp |
Most community MCP servers use stdio transport. Remote servers typically use SSE or HTTP.
Popular MCP Servers
Here are some commonly used MCP servers that work great with Conare:
- Context7 — Up-to-date docs for any library
- Filesystem — Read/write files outside the project
- GitHub — Issues, PRs, repos
- Postgres/SQLite — Direct database access
- Brave Search — Web search from Claude