Connect Guide
Configure Cursor, Claude, Windsurf, OpenClaw, and other MCP clients using Dashboard Connect.
Dashboard → Connect is the single place to copy MCP configuration for your deployment. SmartGate does not auto-register with LLM apps — you paste URL + API key into each host.
Before you start
- An active SmartGate account and API key (Quick Start)
- An MCP client that supports remote Streamable HTTP with custom Bearer headers
Connect workflow
- Open Dashboard → Connect.
- Select your platform tab (Cursor, Claude Desktop, Windsurf, Hermes, OpenClaw, Generic).
- Copy the JSON or CLI command shown.
- Merge into your host config file (Connect shows the path).
- Restart the host app (or use Refresh MCP where supported).
Connect always reflects your current deployment URL: POST {site}/api/mcp (Streamable HTTP, stateless).
Playground is not MCP
Dashboard → Playground runs tests through the REST API. It does not use your MCP Connect config.
Per-host reference
| Host | Config location | Transport |
|---|---|---|
| Cursor | ~/.cursor/mcp.json | streamable-http |
| Claude Desktop | claude_desktop_config.json | type: streamable-http |
| Windsurf | ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json | serverUrl + streamable-http |
| OpenClaw | ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json → mcp.servers | transport: streamable-http |
| Hermes | ~/.hermes/mcp.json | POST JSON-RPC only |
| Generic | Host-specific | streamable-http |
Official host docs:
SmartGate uses MCP 2025-03-26 Streamable HTTP only. Legacy HTTP+SSE dual-endpoint transport has been removed.
OpenClaw tips
- Use
transport: "streamable-http"explicitly. - SmartGate normalizes common JSON-RPC quirks server-side.
Supported clients
Any client with remote Streamable HTTP + Bearer headers, including Cursor, Claude Desktop, Windsurf, Hermes, OpenClaw, Cline, Zed, and custom agents.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Check |
|---|---|
| 401 Unauthorized | API key in Authorization: Bearer … header |
| 405 on GET | Use POST to /api/mcp, not GET SSE |
410 on /messages | Legacy path removed — update config to /api/mcp |
| Tools empty | Complete MCP initialize handshake in client |
Full protocol details: MCP Endpoint.