AutomationToolsMCP tools

Connect a server

Add an MCP server and turn on its tools
Not sure where to begin? Explore our Getting started guidelines to set up your first AI Agent, review Key concepts to understand the essentials, or check out Improvement tactics to resolve issues and keep things running smoothly.

Connect an MCP server once, and every tool the server exposes is discovered and listed for you to turn on. This page covers connecting a server, the credentials Ada supports, and how a tool decides whose identity it runs as.

Connect a server

A connection has two parts: your server’s URL and the credential Ada connects with. To connect a server:

  1. Go to the Tools page and add an MCP server.
  2. Enter the server’s URL.
  3. Choose how Ada authenticates to the server (see below).
  4. Save. Ada connects and lists the server’s tools.

Remote MCP servers reachable over HTTPS are supported. The server stays the source of truth. Ada reads the tools it declares, but it does not define or change them.

How Ada connects

The Authentication setting on the connect form controls how Ada connects to the server. You set it once, and Ada connects with a single company account. Pick the option your server requires.

TypeWhat you provideHow it connects
OAuthNothing to paste for servers that support Dynamic Client Registration, or a client ID and secret for servers that need oneOpens the server’s sign-in page in the browser to authorize the connection, then returns to Ada
API keyAn API key and the header to send it inConnects right away, with no browser step
No authenticationNothingConnects directly. Use it for public servers that need no credential

For OAuth, the token refreshes automatically, whether the tool uses the connected account or customer sign-in. You do not manage token expiry.

An API key does not refresh. Rotate it on your own schedule. Each time you rotate the key, update it here to match, or the connection stops working.

By default, every tool on the connection runs with this company account. Set a tool to make the end user sign in when it should reach that person’s own data, as described under Who a tool acts as below. The AI Agent can reach whatever this account can. Use a dedicated service account, scoped to what the enabled tools need. Do not connect a personal or admin login. Some tools read parameters like me or my, so a personal account can act as that person and return the wrong data.

Who a tool acts as

The Authentication setting on each tool decides whose identity a call carries: the company’s, or the identity of the person in the conversation. You set it per tool:

  • Connected account (no sign-in): the tool runs with the company account you connected above. No end user signs in. Use it for company-wide or public data.
  • Customer signs in: the end user signs in during the conversation, and the tool acts as that person, reaching only their own data. Available on OAuth connections only.

For what each option reaches and which channels it works on, see Authentication and channels.

Turn on tools

Every discovered tool starts off. Turn on each tool you want the Agent to use. Connecting a server does not enable anything on its own.

  • Enable tools one at a time, so the Agent can only call the ones you have chosen.
  • Start with read-only tools, and add write tools deliberately. See Limits and best practices.
  • The Agent chooses a tool from its name and description, declared by your server. Clear, specific descriptions make the Agent pick the right tool at the right moment.

Connection status

The Tools page shows the state of each connected server, so a broken connection is visible rather than silent.

StatusWhat it means
ConnectedThe server is reachable, and its enabled tools can be called.
PendingThe connection is being set up, or waiting on authorization to finish.
Reconnect neededThe connection expired. Reconnect to restore the tools.
ErrorThe server could not be reached, or it rejected the credential. Check the URL and credentials.
DisconnectedThe server is turned off. Its tools are unavailable until you reconnect.

When a server is not connected, its tools do not run, and the Agent continues the conversation without them.

Have any questions? Contact your Ada team, or email us at .