MongoDB MCP Server Setup

This skill guides users through configuring the MongoDB MCP server for use with an agentic client.

Overview

The MongoDB MCP server requires authentication. Users have three options:

1. Connection String (Option A): Direct connection to a specific cluster

   • Quick setup for single cluster
   • Requires MDB_MCP_CONNECTION_STRING environment variable

2. Service Account Credentials (Option B): MongoDB Atlas Admin API access

   • Recommended for Atlas users - simplifies authentication and data access
   • Access to Atlas Admin API and dynamic cluster connection via atlas-connect-cluster
   • No manual DB user credential management
   • Requires MDB_MCP_API_CLIENT_ID and MDB_MCP_API_CLIENT_SECRET environment variables

3. Atlas Local (Option C): Local development with Docker

   • Best for local testing - zero configuration required
   • Runs Atlas locally in Docker, requires Docker installed
   • No credentials or cloud cluster access

This is an interactive step-by-step guide. The agent detects the user's environment and provides tailored instructions, but never asks for or handles credentials, users add those directly to their shell profile or agentic client config in Step 5. Make this clear to the user whenever credentials come up in Steps 3a and 3b.

Step 0: Detect Client

Before anything else, determine which agentic client the user is running. This controls how credentials are configured in Step 1 and Step 5.

Run:

env | grep "^CODEX_"