> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.aptible.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Servers & Tools

> Register upstream MCP servers with the gateway so agents can call their tools.

## Overview

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/aptible/bjSfJnQ6dTAyKPvb/images/MCP-Servers-1.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=bjSfJnQ6dTAyKPvb&q=85&s=130b7702f1ba86b9c70f823a84c2080f" alt="MCP Servers" width="1280" height="720" data-path="images/MCP-Servers-1.png" />
</Frame>

There are two core concepts on this page:

* **Servers** are the upstream MCP services registered with the gateway: GitHub, Notion, an internal API, or any service that speaks MCP. A server holds credentials, exposes a URL, and defines what capabilities are available.
* **Tools** are the individual functions a server exposes: `list_repos`, `create_issue`, `search_documents`, and so on. Tools are what agents actually call. Connect a server and its tools are discovered and kept in sync automatically.

One server exposes many tools. Access control, audit logging, and grants all operate at the tool level.

<Info>
  Account Owner or Admin permission is required to manage and modify servers and tools.
</Info>

## Connecting a Server

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Register a new server (Admins only)">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Open the Servers tab">
        In the MCP Management Console, navigate to the **Servers** tab and click **New Server**.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Name the server">
        Enter a name for the server. Names must start with a letter and contain only lowercase letters, digits, hyphens, and underscores (e.g. `github`, `internal-api`). The name becomes the namespace prefix for all tools on this server. A server named `github` with a tool called `list_repos` becomes `github_list_repos`.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Enter the server URL">
        Enter the endpoint your upstream MCP server is running on.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Select the transport type">
        Most servers use **Streamable HTTP**. Select **SSE** if your server requires it.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Configure server authentication">
        Choose the credential mode (**shared** or **personal**) and the auth type that matches how your upstream server expects to be authenticated. See [Server Authentication](#server-authentication) below.

        Click **Save**. Aptible connects to the server and discovers its available tools.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Server Authentication

Server authentication controls how the gateway talks to your upstream MCP server, separate from how end users authenticate to the gateway (see [Membership](/mcp-gateway/membership) for that). It comes down to two choices: **who** the credentials belong to, and **how** they're presented to the upstream server.

### Credential Mode

| Mode         | How it works                                                                                      | When to use                                                                                       |
| ------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Shared**   | A single set of credentials is used for every call the gateway routes through this server.        | Service accounts, internal APIs, or servers where the whole team acts as one identity.            |
| **Personal** | Each user connects with their own credentials. Calls use that user's credentials on the upstream. | User-scoped services like GitHub, Notion, or Granola where actions should be attributed per user. |

Shared-mode credentials are configured by account owners and admins only. Personal-mode servers show a **Connect** button for users who haven't yet connected, and a **Reconnect** button when re-authorization is needed. The **Auth** column on the Servers list shows both the credential mode and auth type (e.g. `oauth / personal`, `bearer / shared`).

### Auth Type

| Auth type          | When to use                                                                           |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **None**           | The upstream server requires no authentication.                                       |
| **Bearer**         | The server accepts a static bearer token in the `Authorization` header.               |
| **Custom headers** | The server requires one or more custom HTTP headers.                                  |
| **OAuth**          | The server supports OAuth 2.0 with PKCE. Aptible manages token refresh automatically. |

For **OAuth** servers, clicking **Save** (or **Connect** in personal mode) redirects you to the upstream service to complete authorization. Aptible performs Dynamic Client Registration automatically if the server supports it.

## Tool Discovery

After a server is saved and authorized, Aptible fetches its list of available tools. Each tool is namespaced under the server name: `github_list_repos`, `notion_search`, etc. The **Tools** column on the Servers list shows the count of discovered tools.

Tool definitions refresh automatically. If a server shows **Re-authorize**, the gateway's credentials need to be renewed before tool calls will succeed.

### View Your Tools

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/aptible/sga-2XLXeLkTolqn/images/MCP---My-Tools.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=sga-2XLXeLkTolqn&q=85&s=07d8ee82a5416ea9ae0289621210e721" alt="MCP My Tools" width="1280" height="720" data-path="images/MCP---My-Tools.png" />
</Frame>

Navigate to **MCP > My Tools** to see every tool available to you based on your grant memberships, along with the server it belongs to, its parameters, and a description.

## Next Steps

Connecting a server makes its tools available in the gateway but doesn't grant anyone access to them.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Grants" href="/mcp-gateway/grants">
    Scope which tools each user or agent can call.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Membership" href="/mcp-gateway/membership">
    Set up robots and API keys for automated pipelines.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>