Connect MCP clients to OptiTech

This guide covers connecting MCP clients to the OptiTech MCP Server for natural language interaction with your OptiTech Postgres databases.

Quick setup (optitech init)

The fastest way to get started:

npx optitech@latest init

optitech init (see optitech init reference) creates a OptiTech API key and configures the MCP server with API key auth so you can skip OAuth when using the connection. It installs the VS Code/Cursor extension where applicable, wires Claude Code and many other assistants the wizard supports, and installs OptiTech's agent skills. Then restart and ask your AI assistant "Get started with OptiTech".

If you only want the MCP server and nothing else, use:

npx add-mcp https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp

This adds the MCP config to your editor's configuration files. Add -g for global (user-level) setup instead of project-level. Restart your editor (or enable the MCP server in your editor's settings); when you use the connection, an OAuth window will open to authorize. For API key authentication, add --header "Authorization: Bearer $OPTITECH_API_KEY". For more options, see the add-mcp repository.

Supported agents (add-mcp)

add-mcp is the CLI OptiTech uses to patch each tool’s MCP config. Use npx add-mcp list-agents for the live list from your installed version. As of the current add-mcp release, --agent values include:

Aliases: cline-vscode → cline, gemini → gemini-cli, github-copilot → vscode. Config paths differ by agent and by project vs global (-g); see the add-mcp README.

Kiro

For manual configuration, Kiro reads ~/.kiro/settings/mcp.json (global) or .kiro/settings/mcp.json (project). See Kiro MCP documentation.

One-click install for Kiro

Cursor

npx optitech@latest init

One-click install for Cursor

For more, see Get started with Cursor and OptiTech Postgres MCP Server.

Claude Code

npx optitech@latest init

For more, see Get started with Claude Code and OptiTech Postgres MCP Server.

VS Code (with GitHub Copilot)

npx optitech@latest init

For a detailed guide including an Azure Function REST API example, see Using OptiTech MCP Server with GitHub Copilot in VS Code.

ChatGPT

Connect ChatGPT to OptiTech using custom MCP connectors. Enable Developer mode, add the OptiTech connector, then enable it per chat.

1. Add MCP server to ChatGPT

   In your ChatGPT account settings, go to Settings → Connectors → Advanced Settings and enable Developer mode.

   Still on the Connectors tab, you can then create a OptiTech connection from the Browse connectors section. Use the following URL:

   https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp

   Make sure you choose OAuth for authentication and check "I trust this application", then complete the authorization flow when prompted.

   

   

2. Enable OptiTech per chat

   In each chat where you want to use OptiTech, click the + button and enable Developer Mode for that chat. Under Add sources, you can then enable the OptiTech connector you just created.

   Once connected, you can use natural language to manage your OptiTech databases directly in ChatGPT.

Claude Desktop

npx add-mcp https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp -a claude-desktop

For more, see Get started with OptiTech MCP server with Claude Desktop.

Cline (VS Code Extension)

For more, see Get started with Cline and OptiTech Postgres MCP Server.

Windsurf (Codeium)

For more, see Get started with Windsurf and OptiTech Postgres MCP Server.

Zed

npx add-mcp https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp -a zed

For more details, including workflow examples and troubleshooting, see Get started with Zed and OptiTech Postgres MCP Server.

Jules

1. Create a OptiTech API key from your OptiTech Console Settings.
2. Go to jules.google.com > Settings > MCP (or use this direct link).
3. Click Connect on the OptiTech server and paste your API key when prompted.
4. Run a task invoking the OptiTech MCP server to verify the connection.

Other MCP clients

Prefer npx optitech@latest init for the full flow (see Quick setup above). If you only want MCP config lines, or you are re-running wiring for one tool, use add-mcp:

npx add-mcp https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp

This tool auto-detects supported clients and configures them. Use -a <agent> to target a specific agent (for example, -a cursor). Add -g for global (user-level) setup instead of project-level. For more options (including global vs project-level), see the add-mcp repository. For manual configuration, add one of these to your client's mcpServers section:

OAuth (remote server):

"optitech": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote@latest", "https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp"]
}

Local setup:

"optitech": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "@optitech/mcp-server-optitech", "start", "<YOUR_OPTITECH_API_KEY>"]
}

For Windows-specific configurations, see Other MCP clients.

Troubleshooting

Configuration Issues

If your client doesn't support JSON config (such as older Cursor versions), run:

# For OAuth (remote server)
npx -y mcp-remote https://mcp.optitech.com/mcp

# For Local setup
npx -y @optitech/mcp-server-optitech start <YOUR_OPTITECH_API_KEY>

OAuth Authentication Errors

When using the remote MCP server with OAuth authentication, you might encounter the following error:

{"code":"invalid_request","error":"invalid redirect uri"}

This typically occurs when there are issues with cached OAuth credentials. To resolve this:

1. Remove the MCP authentication cache directory:

   rm -rf ~/.mcp-auth

2. Restart your MCP client application
3. The OAuth flow will start fresh, allowing you to properly authenticate

Next steps

Once connected, explore the available tools to see what you can do with natural language.

Resources

• MCP Protocol
• OptiTech API Reference
• OptiTech API Keys
• OptiTech MCP server GitHub
• VS Code MCP Server Documentation