Pipedream Workflow Components MCP server

Pipedream's MCP server allows you to run your own Model Context Protocol server for over 2,500 apps and APIs. This lets you manage authentication, configure parameters, and make API requests to various services, all within your own infrastructure.

Prerequisites

Before getting started with the MCP server, you'll need:

1. A Pipedream account
2. A Pipedream project
3. Pipedream API credentials

Installation

Setting Up Your Environment

First, you need to prepare your environment with Pipedream credentials:

1. Sign up for Pipedream
2. Create a project
3. Create a Pipedream OAuth client
4. Set the following environment variables:

PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
PIPEDREAM_PROJECT_ID=your_project_id
PIPEDREAM_PROJECT_ENVIRONMENT=development

Running via NPX

The simplest way to get started is using npx to run the server directly.

Using Stdio Interface

For local testing or editor integration:

npx @pipedream/mcp stdio --app slack

With a specific user ID:

npx @pipedream/mcp stdio --app slack --external-user-id user123

Using SSE Interface

For internet-facing services:

npx @pipedream/mcp sse

This starts a server on port 3010 with these routes:

• GET / - Health check
• GET /:external_user_id/:app - App-specific SSE connection endpoint
• POST /:external_user_id/:app/messages - App-specific message handler

You can specify a custom port and default app:

npx @pipedream/mcp sse --app slack --port 8080

Hosting With Docker

If you prefer Docker, build and run the container:

docker build -t pipedream-connect .
docker run -d --name pd-mcp -p 3010:3010 --env-file .env pipedream-connect:latest

Manual Installation

For a more customized setup:

1. Clone the repository and install dependencies:

npm install

2. Create your environment file:

cp .env.example .env

3. Build the application:

npm run build

4. Start the SSE server:

npm run start:sse:prod

Usage

Understanding Key Concepts

When using the MCP server, especially with the SSE interface, you need to understand two key parameters:

1. external_user_id: Your user's unique identifier in your system
2. app: The app's "name slug" (e.g., "slack", "gmail", "twitter")

Connecting to the Server

For SSE Interface

1. Connect to the server:

http://localhost:3010/:external_user_id/:app

For example, to connect user "123" to Slack:

http://localhost:3010/123/slack

2. After establishing the connection, the server will register tools for the app.

3. To send messages to the server, POST to:

http://localhost:3010/:external_user_id/:app/messages?sessionId=<sessionId>

Where <sessionId> is provided in the response from the initial connection.

Debugging

You can use the MCP Inspector for debugging:

npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node ./dist/src/cli.js stdio --app APP --external-user-id USER_ID

Then open http://localhost:5173/ and set the transport type to STDIO.

Security Considerations

When hosting your own server, implement OAuth support to protect access to customer data. MCP supports server authorization using OAuth as specified in the protocol.

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.