Toolbox for Databases MCP server

The MCP Toolbox for Databases is an open-source MCP server that simplifies connecting AI applications to your databases. It handles complex tasks like connection pooling and authentication, making it easier to develop tools that let your AI agents interact with your data.

Getting Started

Installing the Server

Choose one of these installation methods:

Binary Installation

# Linux (AMD64)
export VERSION=0.17.0
curl -L -o toolbox https://storage.googleapis.com/genai-toolbox/v$VERSION/linux/amd64/toolbox
chmod +x toolbox

# macOS (Apple Silicon)
export VERSION=0.17.0
curl -L -o toolbox https://storage.googleapis.com/genai-toolbox/v$VERSION/darwin/arm64/toolbox
chmod +x toolbox

# macOS (Intel)
export VERSION=0.17.0
curl -L -o toolbox https://storage.googleapis.com/genai-toolbox/v$VERSION/darwin/amd64/toolbox
chmod +x toolbox

For Windows (AMD64):

$VERSION = "0.17.0"
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://storage.googleapis.com/genai-toolbox/v$VERSION/windows/amd64/toolbox.exe" -OutFile "toolbox.exe"

You can also install via Homebrew:

brew install mcp-toolbox

Running the Server

Create a tools.yaml configuration file, then start the server:

./toolbox --tools-file "tools.yaml"

The server runs on port 5000 by default and automatically reloads when the configuration changes. Use toolbox help to see all available options.

Configuration

Your tools.yaml file defines data sources, tools, and toolsets:

Sources

Configure your database connections:

sources:
  my-pg-source:
    kind: postgres
    host: 127.0.0.1
    port: 5432
    database: toolbox_db
    user: toolbox_user
    password: my-password

Tools

Define the actions an agent can perform:

tools:
  search-hotels-by-name:
    kind: postgres-sql
    source: my-pg-source
    description: Search for hotels based on name.
    parameters:
      - name: name
        type: string
        description: The name of the hotel.
    statement: SELECT * FROM hotels WHERE name ILIKE '%' || $1 || '%';

Toolsets

Group tools together for easier loading:

toolsets:
    my_first_toolset:
        - my_first_tool
        - my_second_tool
    my_second_toolset:
        - my_second_tool
        - my_third_tool

Integrating with Your Application

Python Integration

Install the SDK:

pip install toolbox-core

Load tools in your code:

from toolbox_core import ToolboxClient

# Connect to your Toolbox server
async with ToolboxClient("http://127.0.0.1:5000") as client:
    # Load all tools in a toolset
    tools = await client.load_toolset("toolset_name")

JavaScript/TypeScript Integration

Install the SDK:

npm install @toolbox-sdk/core

Load tools in your code:

import { ToolboxClient } from '@toolbox-sdk/core';

// Connect to your Toolbox server
const URL = 'http://127.0.0.1:5000';
let client = new ToolboxClient(URL);

// Load all tools in a toolset
const tools = await client.loadToolset('toolsetName');

Go Integration

Install the SDK:

go get github.com/googleapis/mcp-toolbox-sdk-go

Load tools in your code:

package main

import (
  "github.com/googleapis/mcp-toolbox-sdk-go/core"
  "context"
)

func main() {
  URL := "http://127.0.0.1:5000";
  ctx := context.Background()

  client, err := core.NewToolboxClient(URL)
  // Error handling omitted for brevity

  // Load all tools in a toolset
  tools, err := client.LoadToolset("toolsetName", ctx)
}

How to install this MCP server

For Claude Code

To add this MCP server to Claude Code, run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add-json "toolbox-for-databases" '{"command":"toolbox","args":["--tools-file","tools.yaml"]}'

See the official Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

For 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 > Tools & Integrations and click "New MCP Server".

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

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "toolbox-for-databases": {
            "command": "toolbox",
            "args": [
                "--tools-file",
                "tools.yaml"
            ]
        }
    }
}

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 explicitly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.

For Claude Desktop

To add this MCP server to Claude Desktop:

1. Find your configuration file:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

2. Add this to your configuration file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "toolbox-for-databases": {
            "command": "toolbox",
            "args": [
                "--tools-file",
                "tools.yaml"
            ]
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect