CLI commands
MCP
openclaw mcp has two jobs:
- run OpenClaw as an MCP server with
openclaw mcp serve - manage OpenClaw-managed outbound MCP server definitions with
list,show,status,doctor,probe,add,set,configure,tools,login,logout,reload, andunset
serve is OpenClaw acting as an MCP server. The other subcommands are OpenClaw acting as an MCP client-side registry for servers its own runtimes may consume later.
Use openclaw acp when OpenClaw should host a coding harness session itself and route that runtime through ACP.
Choose the right MCP path
| Goal | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Let an external MCP client read/send OpenClaw channel conversations | openclaw mcp serve |
OpenClaw is the MCP server and exposes Gateway-backed conversations over stdio. |
| Save third-party MCP servers for OpenClaw-managed agent runs | openclaw mcp add, set, configure, tools, login |
OpenClaw is the MCP client-side registry and later projects those servers into eligible runtimes. |
| Check a saved server without running an agent turn | openclaw mcp status, doctor, probe |
status and doctor inspect config; probe opens a live MCP connection and lists capabilities. |
| Edit MCP config from a browser | Control UI /settings/mcp (/mcp alias) |
The page shows inventory, enablement, OAuth/filter summaries, command hints, and a scoped mcp editor. |
| Give Codex app-server a scoped native MCP server | mcp.servers.<name>.codex |
The codex block only affects Codex app-server thread projection and is stripped before native config handoff. |
| Run ACP-hosted harness sessions | openclaw acp and ACP Agents |
ACP bridge mode does not accept per-session MCP server injection; configure gateway/plugin bridges instead. |
MCP pages
This page is an index. openclaw mcp has six pages, one per reader job. Open
the page that matches your task.
| Page | Read it when |
|---|---|
| Run OpenClaw as an MCP server | An MCP client should read or send OpenClaw channel conversations through openclaw mcp serve. |
| Manage saved MCP servers | You are saving, inspecting, or approving third-party MCP servers for OpenClaw-managed runs. |
| JSON output shapes | You are scripting against status --json, doctor --json, or probe --json. |
| Transports and OAuth | You need a transport config field, or you are running the MCP OAuth login flow. |
| MCP in the Control UI | You want to edit or inspect MCP config from a browser. |
| MCP Apps | You are enabling or securing the MCP Apps host bridge. |
Where each section moved
Every anchor from the previous single-page version still resolves here, so an
existing link such as /cli/mcp#bridge-tools keeps working. Each entry points at
the page that now holds the content.
- OpenClaw as an MCP server
- When to use serve
- How it works
- Client spawns the bridge
- Bridge connects to Gateway
- Sessions become MCP conversations
- Live events queue
- Optional Claude push
- Important behavior
- Choose a client mode
- Generic MCP clients
- Claude Code
- What serve exposes
- Usage
- Local Gateway
- Remote Gateway (token)
- Remote Gateway (password)
- Verbose / Claude off
- Bridge tools
- conversations_list
- conversation_get
- messages_read
- attachments_fetch
- events_poll
- events_wait
- messages_send
- permissions_list_open
- permissions_respond
- Event model
- Claude channel notifications
- off
- on
- auto (default)
- MCP client config
- Options
- --url
- --token
- --token-file
- --password
- --password-file
- --claude-channel-mode
- -v, --verbose
- Security and trust boundary
- Testing
- Troubleshooting
- No conversations returned
- events_poll or events_wait misses older messages
- Claude notifications do not show up
- Approvals are missing
- OpenClaw as an MCP client registry
- Important behavior
- Codex tool approvals
- Saved MCP server definitions
- Common server recipes
- Filesystem
- Memory
- Local script
- Remote HTTP
- Desktop/CUA
- JSON output shapes
- status --json
- doctor --json
- probe --json
- Stdio transport
- SSE / HTTP transport
- SSE / HTTP transport
- OAuth workflow
- Save the server
- Start login
- Use the manual fallback when needed
- Check authorization
- Clear credentials
- Streamable HTTP transport
- Control UI
- MCP Apps
- Current limits
Related
- Connect MCP servers
- CLI reference
- Plugins
openclaw attach— launch Claude Code with a temporary session-scoped Gateway MCP grant
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