MCP Servers for Agents

Learn how to configure MCP servers in Warp to let ambient agents securely call external tools, local services, and internal APIs using the MCP JSON standard.

Ambient Agents in Warp can call external tools through Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers. This enables agents to extend their capabilities beyond the terminal and interact with systems such as GitHub, dbt, or custom internal services.

Warp currently supports the MCP JSON configuration standard, either inline or via file. This guide explains how to define, load, validate, and troubleshoot MCP configurations when running an Ambient Agent.

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When to Use MCP Servers

Use an MCP server when your agent needs access to:

• External tools or APIs wrapped behind an MCP interface

• Local processes that expose MCP endpoints

• Internal developer tools that you want integrated into your ambient workflows

Agents call MCP tools automatically whenever their workflow requires them.

1. Inline JSON

You can pass the full MCP JSON object directly into the --mcp flag:

warp agent run \
  --mcp '{"mymcp": { "url": "https://fakemcp.com/mcp" }}' \
  -p "Call the MCP tool"

Warp interprets the entire argument as the configuration map for all MCP servers.

2. File Path

Instead of embedding JSON inline, you may supply a path:

warp agent run --mcp ./my-mcp-config.json

The file must contain a valid MCP JSON structure as defined by the specification.

MCP Configuration Schema

Warp accepts any MCP JSON matching the published standard. A typical configuration defines one or more servers:

{
  "github": {
    "url": "https://mcp.example.com/github"
  },
  "dbt": {
    "command": "uvx",
    "args": ["dbt-mcp"],
    "env": {
      "DBT_HOST": "https://example.us1.dbt.com",
      "DBT_SERVICE_TOKEN": "${DBT_SERVICE_TOKEN}"
    }
  }
}

Or in YAML:

mcp_servers:
  github:
    url: https://mcp.example.com/github
  dbt:
    command: uvx
    args:
      - dbt-mcp
    env:
      DBT_HOST: https://example.us1.dbt.com
      DBT_SERVICE_TOKEN: ${DBT_SERVICE_TOKEN}

Supported Fields

• url – Direct URL to an MCP server endpoint

• command / args – Defines a local executable to launch an MCP server

• env – Environment variables passed to the command

You may define any number of MCP servers.

If the agent config includes an mcp_servers field, it overrides the defaults (empty set).

Using MCP Servers in a Full Agent Config

Developers typically declare MCP servers inside the broader agent config file (e.g. warp-agent.json or .yaml). Example:

{
  "name": "my-production-agent",
  "model_id": "claude-4-5-sonnet",
  "system_prompt": "You are a helpful assistant focused on backend development.",
  "environment_id": "SVhg783GBFQHk1OfdPfFU9",
  "mcp_servers": {
    "github": {
      "url": "https://mcp.example.com/github"
    },
    "dbt": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["dbt-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DBT_HOST": "https://example.us1.dbt.com",
        "DBT_SERVICE_TOKEN": "${DBT_SERVICE_TOKEN}"
      }
    }
  }
}

This file can be passed as the agent’s config file or referenced through config_file when creating tasks via API.

Requirements and Defaults

Required

• MCP configuration must follow the MCP JSON specification

• Inline or file-based config must be valid JSON (or YAML inside the agent config)

Defaults

• If mcp_servers is omitted, the agent runs with no MCP servers enabled.

• MCP permissions default to allowing calls, but may inherit profile settings depending on the user’s environment. This default behavior is evolving as Warp plans to phase out profiles for ambient agents.