Agent skill

claude-mcp-expert

Model Context Protocol (MCP) expert for Claude Code. Install, configure, and troubleshoot MCP servers. Covers HTTP, SSE, and stdio transports, authentication, popular integrations (Sentry, GitHub, Jira, Notion, databases). Triggers on MCP, Model Context Protocol, MCP server, installing MCP, connecting tools, webhooks, remote server.

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Install this agent skill to your Project

npx add-skill https://github.com/raintree-technology/claude-starter/tree/main/.claude/skills/anthropic/claude-mcp-expert

Metadata

Additional technical details for this skill

author
raintree
version
1.0

SKILL.md

Claude Code MCP Expert

Connect Claude Code to external tools, databases, and services using Model Context Protocol (MCP).

When to Use

  • User wants to connect external services (GitHub, Jira, Sentry)
  • User needs database access (PostgreSQL, MongoDB)
  • User asks about MCP configuration or .mcp.json
  • User has MCP connection or authentication issues

What is MCP?

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that connects AI agents to:

  • External APIs (GitHub, Jira, Notion, Slack)
  • Databases (PostgreSQL, MongoDB, MySQL)
  • File systems (local, Google Drive)
  • Custom integrations

Quick Start

bash
# Add an HTTP server
claude mcp add --transport http sentry https://mcp.sentry.dev/mcp

# Add an SSE server
claude mcp add --transport sse atlassian https://mcp.atlassian.com/v1/sse

# Add a stdio server (npm package)
claude mcp add --transport stdio github -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-github

# Manage servers interactively
/mcp

Transport Types

HTTP (Most Common)

For cloud services with REST-like endpoints.

bash
claude mcp add --transport http sentry https://mcp.sentry.dev/mcp
claude mcp add --transport http github https://api.github.com/mcp
claude mcp add --transport http notion https://mcp.notion.com/mcp

SSE (Server-Sent Events)

For streaming services.

bash
claude mcp add --transport sse atlassian https://mcp.atlassian.com/v1/sse
claude mcp add --transport sse asana https://mcp.asana.com/sse

stdio (Local/NPM Packages)

For local tools or npm packages.

bash
claude mcp add --transport stdio postgres \
  --env POSTGRES_CONNECTION_STRING="postgresql://user:pass@localhost:5432/db" \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

claude mcp add --transport stdio filesystem \
  --env ALLOWED_DIRECTORIES="/path/to/dir" \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem

Popular Integrations

Development Tools

Service Command
Sentry claude mcp add --transport http sentry https://mcp.sentry.dev/mcp
GitHub claude mcp add --transport http github https://api.github.com/mcp
Socket claude mcp add --transport http socket https://mcp.socket.dev/

Project Management

Service Command
Jira claude mcp add --transport sse atlassian https://mcp.atlassian.com/v1/sse
Linear claude mcp add --transport http linear https://mcp.linear.app/mcp
Notion claude mcp add --transport http notion https://mcp.notion.com/mcp
Asana claude mcp add --transport sse asana https://mcp.asana.com/sse

Databases

bash
# PostgreSQL
claude mcp add --transport stdio postgres \
  --env POSTGRES_CONNECTION_STRING="postgresql://localhost:5432/mydb" \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

# MongoDB
claude mcp add --transport stdio mongodb \
  --env MONGODB_URI="mongodb://localhost:27017/mydb" \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-mongodb

Communication

bash
# Slack
claude mcp add --transport stdio slack \
  --env SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token \
  --env SLACK_TEAM_ID=T1234567 \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-slack

# Gmail
claude mcp add --transport stdio gmail \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-gmail

Configuration Files

.mcp.json Structure

json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "server-name": {
      "transport": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.service.com/mcp"
    },
    "database": {
      "transport": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres"],
      "env": {
        "POSTGRES_CONNECTION_STRING": "postgresql://localhost/db"
      }
    }
  }
}

Configuration Scopes

Scope Location Use Case
User ~/.claude/.mcp.json Personal tools, global
Project .claude/.mcp.json Team-shared, git committed
Local .claude/.mcp.local.json Personal overrides, not committed

Add with Scope

bash
claude mcp add --transport http sentry https://mcp.sentry.dev/mcp --user     # Global
claude mcp add --transport http linear https://mcp.linear.app/mcp --project  # Team
claude mcp add --transport http notion https://mcp.notion.com/mcp --local    # Personal override

Authentication

OAuth (Recommended)

bash
# Install server
claude mcp add --transport http github https://api.github.com/mcp

# Authenticate via /mcp command
/mcp
# Select: Authenticate with server
# Browser opens → authorize → done

API Keys (Environment Variables)

bash
claude mcp add --transport stdio server-name \
  --env API_KEY=your_api_key \
  -- npx -y package-name

Via settings.json

json
{
  "env": {
    "GITHUB_TOKEN": "ghp_xxxxx",
    "SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN": "sntrys_xxxxx"
  }
}

Using MCP Features

MCP Tools

Once connected, use naturally:

"Check Sentry for errors in the last 24 hours"
"Create a PR for this feature on GitHub"
"List my assigned Jira tickets"
"Query the users table for active accounts"

MCP Resources

Reference MCP-provided files:

Review @mcp://github/README.md and suggest improvements

MCP Prompts as Commands

MCP prompts become slash commands:

/mcp__github__create_issue "Bug in login" high
/mcp__jira__update_status PROJ-123 "In Progress"

Managing Servers

Interactive Management

bash
/mcp
# Options:
# - View all servers
# - Add new server
# - Remove server
# - Authenticate
# - View tools/prompts/resources

Command Line

bash
claude mcp list                    # List servers
claude mcp add ...                 # Add server
claude mcp remove server-name      # Remove server

Troubleshooting

Server Not Connecting

  1. Verify URL/command - check for typos
  2. Check auth - run /mcp → Authenticate
  3. Test network - can you reach the URL?
  4. Debug mode - run claude --debug

Authentication Failing

  1. Re-authenticate: /mcp → Clear auth → Re-authenticate
  2. Check API key validity
  3. Verify OAuth tokens not expired
  4. Check permissions/scopes

stdio Server Errors

bash
# Test command manually
npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

# Check environment variables are set
echo $POSTGRES_CONNECTION_STRING

# Verify npm package exists
npm info @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

Tools Not Available

  1. Confirm server is connected: /mcp
  2. Check authentication completed
  3. Restart Claude Code
  4. Verify server provides expected tools

Security Best Practices

DO:

  • Use OAuth when available
  • Store secrets in settings.json, not .mcp.json
  • Use project scope for team configs
  • Review server permissions regularly

DON'T:

  • Commit API keys to git
  • Install untrusted servers
  • Share OAuth tokens
  • Use broad permissions unnecessarily

Example Workflows

Issue to PR

bash
# Setup
claude mcp add --transport http github https://api.github.com/mcp
claude mcp add --transport sse atlassian https://mcp.atlassian.com/v1/sse

# Usage
"Read JIRA ticket ENG-123, implement the feature, and create a PR on GitHub"

Error Investigation

bash
# Setup
claude mcp add --transport http sentry https://mcp.sentry.dev/mcp

# Usage
"Check Sentry for errors in the last hour and fix them"

Database Query to Report

bash
# Setup
claude mcp add --transport stdio postgres \
  --env POSTGRES_CONNECTION_STRING="postgresql://localhost/analytics" \
  -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

# Usage
"Find users who signed up this month and summarize their activity"

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