Activepieces MCP server

Activepieces is an open-source MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that allows you to use AI automation with LLMs through platforms like Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf. The server integrates with over 280 different services and tools through "pieces" written in TypeScript.

Installation

Docker Installation

The easiest way to install the Activepieces MCP server is using Docker:

docker run -d \
  --name activepieces \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -e AP_DB_TYPE=postgres \
  -e AP_POSTGRES_DATABASE=activepieces \
  -e AP_POSTGRES_HOST=localhost \
  -e AP_POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres \
  -e AP_POSTGRES_PORT=5432 \
  -e AP_POSTGRES_USERNAME=postgres \
  activepieces/activepieces:latest

Make sure to replace the database connection details with your own values.

Using Docker Compose

For a more complete setup, you can use Docker Compose:

version: "3.8"
services:
  app:
    image: activepieces/activepieces:latest
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    depends_on:
      - postgres
    environment:
      - AP_DB_TYPE=postgres
      - AP_POSTGRES_HOST=postgres
      - AP_POSTGRES_PORT=5432
      - AP_POSTGRES_DATABASE=activepieces
      - AP_POSTGRES_USERNAME=postgres
      - AP_POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres
  postgres:
    image: postgres:14
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=postgres
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres
      - POSTGRES_DB=activepieces
    ports:
      - "5432:5432"

Save this to a file named docker-compose.yml and run:

docker-compose up -d

Configuration

Environment Variables

You can configure Activepieces using environment variables:

# Database Configuration
AP_DB_TYPE=postgres                 # Database type (postgres or sqlite)
AP_POSTGRES_HOST=localhost          # PostgreSQL host
AP_POSTGRES_PORT=5432               # PostgreSQL port
AP_POSTGRES_DATABASE=activepieces   # PostgreSQL database name
AP_POSTGRES_USERNAME=postgres       # PostgreSQL username
AP_POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres       # PostgreSQL password

# Optional Settings
AP_JWT_SECRET=your-jwt-secret       # JWT secret for authentication
AP_ENCRYPTION_KEY=encryption-key    # Encryption key for sensitive data
AP_FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:8080  # Frontend URL

Connecting to LLMs

Once your Activepieces MCP server is running, you can connect it to LLM clients:

Using with Claude Desktop

1. Open Claude Desktop
2. Go to Settings > Model Context Protocols
3. Add a new MCP server with the URL of your Activepieces instance
4. Authenticate as needed
5. You can now use any of the 280+ pieces as tools with Claude

Using with Cursor

1. Open Cursor IDE
2. Configure the MCP connection to point to your Activepieces server
3. Authenticate as needed
4. Start using the tools in your coding workflows

Using Pieces

Activepieces comes with over 280 pre-built integrations called "pieces." These pieces allow you to connect your LLM to various services like:

• Google Sheets, Docs, and Drive
• OpenAI and other AI services
• Discord, Slack, and other communication tools
• Email services
• Database connectors
• And many more

Example: Using the Google Sheets Piece

When using Claude Desktop with your Activepieces server connected, you could ask:

"Please retrieve data from my Google Sheet and summarize it."

The LLM will be able to use the Google Sheets piece to:

1. Authenticate with Google (first time requires authorization)
2. Access the specified sheet
3. Retrieve the data
4. Process and summarize it

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

• Connection Refused: Ensure your Docker container is running and ports are properly exposed
• Authentication Errors: Check that your database credentials are correct
• Permission Issues: Make sure the service has proper permissions to access required resources

Checking Logs

To view the logs from your Activepieces container:

docker logs activepieces

For more detailed logging, you can add -e AP_LOG_LEVEL=debug to your Docker run command.

Advanced Usage

Using Custom Pieces

While Activepieces comes with many pre-built pieces, you can also develop your own custom pieces to extend functionality. Pieces are written in TypeScript and follow a standardized framework.

Refer to the official documentation at https://www.activepieces.com/docs for detailed instructions on creating custom pieces.

How to add this MCP server to Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > MCP and click "Add new global MCP server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "cursor-rules-mcp": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "cursor-rules-mcp"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explictly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.