Integrations
Connect an MCP server
What an MCP server is, and how to connect one, sign in, and choose which of its actions your agent can use.
Normally you teach your agent one action at a time. An MCP server skips that: connecting one is like adding an app to your phone and granting it permissions. The app publishes a list of everything it can do, and your agent reads that list the moment you connect — dozens of ready-made actions from a single sign-in.
MCP stands for Model Context Protocol, a shared standard that apps like Linear, Notion, Stripe and GitHub already speak. You never have to learn it; you just connect the app.
| Custom tool | MCP server | |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | You define each action | The app provides them all |
| Best for | One specific thing you need | Working broadly inside an app |
| Who maintains it | You | The app's makers |
| Stays current | You update it | New actions appear when you sync |
If an app you use offers one, it's almost always the faster path. The catalog in Nirvai is a convenience, not a limit: if an app publishes an MCP address — or your team runs its own — paste the address and it connects the same way.
This page is about your Nirvai agent using an outside app. Connect your agent is the reverse: letting an outside assistant such as Claude Code use your Nirvai account. Both use MCP, in opposite directions.
Before you start
- An account with the app you're connecting, with permission to approve access.
- For a few apps, a small setup step in their own admin area — Nirvai tells you when, and links you there.
Connect it
- Open Integrations and click Connect app.
- Pick the app from the catalog, or choose Other MCP server and paste its address.
- Nirvai checks the address and tells you what it found — how many actions it offers and how it wants you to sign in.
- Sign in using whichever method it asks for (below).
- Choose the actions your agent should get. Select recommended picks a sensible starter set.
- Done — the connection appears on the Integrations page.
- Create issue
linear_create_issueMCPManaged by the app - List issues
linear_list_issuesMCPManaged by the app - Search projects
linear_search_projectsMCPManaged by the app
It sits on the Integrations page like any other connection, with an MCP badge and a lock on each action. Only turn on the actions you need — a server may offer sixty, and a focused handful keeps your agent quick. The actions are read-only: the app decides what each one does, so you can switch them on and off but not rewrite them. To change behaviour, tell your agent when to use them in its instructions.
How apps ask you to sign in
Nirvai detects this for you; you'll only ever see the one that applies.
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| Sign in with [app] | A window opens, you approve, it closes. Nothing to copy or paste. |
| A key or token field | The app gave you a credential — a private code. Paste it in. |
| Nothing at all | Some servers are open to everyone, like public documentation lookups. |
| Use my own app | The app requires you to register Nirvai yourself first. See below. |
When an app requires its own sign-in app
A few apps won't let a shared connection in — HubSpot, GitHub and Asana are the ones we've confirmed. They want you to create a small sign-in app inside their own admin area, dedicated to this connection.
When that's the case, Nirvai opens the Use my own OAuth app section for you, with a link to that app's instructions. You'll need to:
- Follow the link and create the sign-in app in the provider's admin area.
- Copy the redirect address Nirvai shows you into that app's settings — this is how the provider knows where to send you back.
- Paste the client ID and client secret the provider gives you back into Nirvai.
- Continue with Sign in, exactly as normal.
HubSpot's own developer app won't work here — its MCP connection requires a separate MCP Auth App, created under Development → MCP Auth Apps in HubSpot. Existing app credentials will be rejected.
Any app offers this option if you'd rather use your own sign-in app; for most, it's optional.
Keeping it up to date
- Sync re-reads the app's list of actions. New ones appear switched off for you to choose; removed ones are switched off automatically.
- Changed actions are flagged for approval, so an action never quietly starts doing something different.
- Test confirms the connection is still alive.
- Disconnect signs out and removes the connection's actions from every agent using them. Nirvai shows you which agents are affected first.
Your sign-in refreshes itself in the background. If it can't, the card turns amber with Needs sign-in and one click puts it right.
Troubleshooting
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| "We couldn't reach that address" | The address is wrong, or the server is down | Check it starts with https:// and matches the app's documentation |
| "Sign-in required" after connecting | The approval window was closed or cancelled | Click Sign in on the card and finish the approval |
| Card turns amber later | The sign-in expired or was revoked in the app | Click Sign in again; nothing else is lost |
| "This app needs its own sign-in app" | The provider doesn't allow shared connections | Follow the steps above to create one |
| The app won't accept your credentials | You used an existing app instead of a dedicated one | Create a new app as the provider's instructions describe |
| An action disappeared | The app removed it | Nothing to do — it's switched off and your agents skip it |
| Too many actions to choose from | The app offers dozens | Use Select recommended, or search and pick a handful; add more later |