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MCP Server Setup Guides for Claude Desktop
Claude Desktop stores its servers in claude_desktop_config.json, and the most common reason a new server never shows up is that the file was edited in the wrong location or the app was not fully restarted. The troubleshooting guide below walks that failure down step by step.
The guides in this section either target Claude Desktop directly or document its config alongside other clients. Several of them are worth reading even if you use a different app, because the credential handling is identical wherever the server ends up running.
25 guides in this collection.
Claude Desktop setup and troubleshooting
Claude Desktop MCP Setup Complete Guide (2026)
Step-by-step guide to connecting MCP servers with Claude Desktop. Set up local MCP servers, configure tools, and unlock AI automation with the official Anthropic integration.
Claude Desktop Not Recognizing MCP Server? Complete Troubleshooting Guide (2026)
Solve Claude Desktop MCP server connection problems with this comprehensive troubleshooting guide. Covers all common issues and step-by-step solutions.
How to Connect Claude to Local Files Step by Step (Complete Guide 2026)
Learn exactly how to connect Claude Desktop to your local files using MCP filesystem servers. Step-by-step tutorial with screenshots and troubleshooting tips.
Servers documented for Claude Desktop
How to Connect Claude to Notion Using MCP
Step-by-step tutorial to connect Claude Desktop to your Notion workspace using the official MCP Notion server. Search, read, and create pages directly from Claude.
X (Twitter) MCP Server for Claude Desktop Setup Guide (2026)
Connect X (Twitter) to Claude Desktop via MCP. Search tweets, post from Claude, read your timeline — step-by-step setup with copy-paste config for Mac and Windows.
Slack MCP Server Setup Guide (2026)
Connect Slack to Claude or Cursor via MCP. Send messages, read channels, search history — all from AI chat. Step-by-step setup for Mac, Windows & Linux.
Supabase MCP Server: Complete Setup Guide for Claude and Cursor (2026)
How to connect your Supabase database to Claude Desktop, Cursor, and Windsurf using the official Supabase MCP server. Query tables, run migrations, and manage your project with AI.
Docker MCP Server Setup Guide: Run MCP Servers in Containers (2026)
Learn how to run MCP servers in Docker containers for isolated, reproducible AI agent environments. Includes Dockerfile examples, compose configs, and Cursor integration.
How to Set Up the Filesystem MCP Server (2026)
Give Claude, Cursor, and VS Code safe, scoped access to your local files with the Filesystem MCP server. Full setup with copy-paste config, allowed directories, and troubleshooting.
How to Set Up the GitHub MCP Server (2026)
Connect GitHub to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with the official GitHub MCP server. Read issues and PRs, browse code, trigger Actions, and review security alerts from your AI assistant.
How to Set Up the Google Drive MCP Server (2026)
Connect Google Drive to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Search Docs, read Sheets, and pull files into your AI workflow, with OAuth config and troubleshooting.
How to Set Up a Google Sheets MCP Server (2026)
Connect Google Sheets to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Read, write, and analyze spreadsheet data from your AI assistant, with Google Cloud credentials and OAuth or service-account auth.
How to Set Up the Linear MCP Server (2026)
Connect Linear to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Query issues, update status, create tickets, and search projects, with Linear API key setup and troubleshooting.
How to Set Up the Notion MCP Server (2026)
Connect Notion to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Read pages, search your workspace, create and update content, with Notion API key setup and database permissions.
How to Set Up the Playwright MCP Server (2026)
Give Claude, Cursor, and VS Code a real browser with the official Playwright MCP server. Navigate pages, click, fill forms, and scrape using the accessibility tree.
How to Set Up the Redis MCP Server (2026)
Connect Redis to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Query keys, inspect data structures, run commands, and search vector indexes from your AI assistant.
How to Set Up the Sentry MCP Server (2026)
Connect Sentry to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Pull error details, stack traces, and issue context into your AI assistant so it can triage and help fix bugs.
How to Set Up the Stripe MCP Server (2026)
Connect Stripe to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Query customers, payments, and subscriptions, create payment links, and manage billing data from your AI assistant.
How to Set Up the Zapier MCP Server (2026)
Connect Zapier to Claude, Cursor, and VS Code with MCP. Trigger and run workflows from your AI assistant, with hosted server setup and tool selection.
Foundations that apply to any client
What the Model Context Protocol actually is
MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open standard that lets AI applications like Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor connect to external tools and data through a single, reusable interface instead of a custom integration per tool.
Tools, resources and prompts compared
Deep dive into the three core MCP primitives — tools, resources, and prompts. Learn when to use each and how they work together.
Authentication patterns: API keys, OAuth and service accounts
A complete guide to MCP server authentication — API keys in env vars, OAuth flows, bearer tokens, and keeping secrets out of your config files.
Server-side security checklist
A practical, code-first MCP security checklist: input validation, rate limiting, least privilege, and output sanitization patterns you can paste into a server today.
Choosing between local and remote servers
Compare local and remote MCP server deployments. Learn the pros, cons, and use cases for each approach to make the right choice for your needs.
Debugging a server that will not connect
A practical troubleshooting guide for MCP server problems. Learn to diagnose connection failures, tool errors, and performance issues with step-by-step solutions.
MCP setup guides for other clients
Prefer to scan the whole library at once? The complete article index lists every guide by publication date, and both hub views sit side by side on the guides page.