MCP Overview

March 5, 2026 · View on GitHub

How Cursor Drive implements the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Maps our setup to the standard MCP concepts.

What is MCP?

MCP lets Cursor connect to external tools, data sources, and services. An MCP server exposes tools, resources, prompts, and apps that Cursor's Agent can use during conversations.

Core concepts — what Drive exposes

Capability	Drive implementation
Tools	40+ tools: TTS, Agent Screen, operators, pipeline, persistence, Cursor CLI, sync, connectors. See mcp-tools.md.
Resources	One MCP App resource: `ui://cursor-drive/agent-screen` (activity feed UI).
Prompts	None.
Apps	Yes. When `cursorDrive.mcp.enableApps` is true, `agent_screen_activity`, `agent_screen_file`, and `agent_screen_decision` return `_meta.ui.resourceUri` for inline UI in chat.

Transport

Transport	Use case	Drive
stdio	Local server, single user	No
SSE	Remote server, OAuth	No
Streamable HTTP	Remote server, OAuth	Yes — Drive uses Streamable HTTP

Drive's MCP server runs inside the VS Code extension host. It binds to 127.0.0.1 and uses StreamableHTTPServerTransport from @modelcontextprotocol/sdk. Cursor connects via url: "http://127.0.0.1:7891/mcp" — the port may be 7892, 7893, etc. if 7891 is in use.

Connecting your server to Cursor

Config locations

Location	Scope
`.cursor/mcp.json`	Project-specific (commit to git for team sharing)
`~/.cursor/mcp.json`	Global

Drive MCP config

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "drive": {
      "url": "http://127.0.0.1:7891/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Registration methods

Programmatic (Extension API) — When the extension activates and the API exists, Drive calls vscode.cursor.mcp.registerServer({ name: "drive", server: { url: "http://127.0.0.1:${port}/mcp" } }). No mcp.json edit needed.
Plugin installer — Drive: Install Drive Plugin to Workspace merges the Drive server into .cursor/mcp.json.
MCP install deeplink — README includes a one-click link. First-run prompt also offers a deep link.
Manual — Add the config above to .cursor/mcp.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json.

Config interpolation

Cursor supports variable interpolation in mcp.json:

Variable	Description
`${env:NAME}`	Environment variable
`${workspaceFolder}`	Project root
`${userHome}`	Home directory
`${pathSeparator}` or `${/}`	OS path separator

Drive's config does not use interpolation (no secrets). For other MCP servers you add, use ${env:API_KEY} etc. to avoid hardcoding.

MCP Apps (interactive UI in chat)

When cursorDrive.mcp.enableApps is true (default), these tools return interactive UI:

Tool	Returns `_meta.ui`
`agent_screen_activity`	Yes
`agent_screen_file`	Yes
`agent_screen_decision`	Yes

The UI resource ui://cursor-drive/agent-screen is an activity feed. Requires Cursor 2.6+ (or another host that supports MCP Apps). Progressive enhancement: if the host cannot render Apps, tools still work with text output. See demo-mcp-apps.

Practice	Drive
No hardcoded API keys	Yes — no secrets in mcp.json
Localhost-only	Yes — binds to `127.0.0.1` only
Restricted API keys	N/A — no external auth
envFile for stdio	N/A — HTTP transport

Debugging

Action	How
MCP logs	Output panel (Cmd+Shift+U / Ctrl+Shift+U) → select "MCP Logs"
Drive output	Output panel → "Cursor Drive"
Verbosity	Developer: Set Log Level… → Cursor Drive
Toggle servers	Settings → Features → Model Context Protocol
Diagnose	`Drive: Diagnose Drive APIs` command

Doc	Content
mcp-tools.md	Full tool reference
config-schema.md	`cursorDrive.mcp.enableApps`, `cursorDrive.mcp.port`
demo-mcp-apps	MCP Apps setup and troubleshooting
MCP reference	Cursor MCP docs
MCP Extension API	Programmatic registration
MCP Apps spec	MCP Apps extension