Model Context Protocol (MCP)

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that allows OpenHands to communicate with external tool servers, extending the agent’s capabilities with custom tools, specialized data processing, external API access, and more. MCP is based on the open standard defined at modelcontextprotocol.io.

How MCP Works

When OpenHands starts, it:

Reads the MCP configuration
Connects to configured servers (SSE, SHTTP, or stdio)
Registers tools provided by these servers with the agent
Routes tool calls to appropriate MCP servers during execution

MCP Support Matrix

Platform	Support Level	Configuration Method	Documentation
CLI	✅ Full Support	`~/.openhands/mcp.json` file	CLI MCP Servers
SDK	✅ Full Support	Programmatic configuration	SDK MCP Guide
Local GUI	✅ Full Support	Settings UI + config files	Local GUI
OpenHands Cloud	✅ Full Support	Cloud UI settings	Cloud GUI

Platform-Specific Differences

CLI
SDK
Local GUI
OpenHands Cloud

Configuration via ~/.openhands/mcp.json file
Real-time status monitoring with /mcp command
Supports all MCP transport protocols (SSE, SHTTP, stdio)
Manual configuration required

Getting Started with MCP

For detailed configuration: See MCP Settings
For CLI usage: See CLI MCP Servers
For SDK integration: See SDK MCP Guide
For architecture details: See MCP Architecture

​How MCP Works

​MCP Support Matrix

​Platform-Specific Differences

​Getting Started with MCP

How MCP Works

MCP Support Matrix

Platform-Specific Differences

Getting Started with MCP