> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://alphacastio.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Other MCP Clients

> Connect VS Code, Zed, Windsurf, and any custom MCP client to the Alphacast MCP server — hosted (OAuth) or local (npx).

Every client can reach Alphacast either way. The **hosted** server lives at `https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp` and authenticates with OAuth; the **local** npm package runs as a subprocess via `npx` and authenticates with `ALPHACAST_API_KEY`. Both expose the same 32 tools.

## Hosted (remote, OAuth)

Clients with native remote-MCP support take the URL directly (see VS Code and Windsurf below). For any client that only speaks local stdio — including Zed and most custom setups — use the **`mcp-remote`** bridge. It runs locally, connects to the hosted URL, and handles the browser OAuth login (caching the token under `~/.mcp-auth`):

| Field       | Value                                                  |
| ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| Command     | `npx`                                                  |
| Args        | `["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp"]` |
| Environment | *(none — auth happens in the browser)*                 |

So anywhere this page shows a local config below, you can swap in the hosted server by replacing `"@alphacast/mcp"` with `"mcp-remote", "https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp"` and dropping the `env` block. The native-URL form is shown per client where supported.

## Local (npm package)

The exact configuration format varies by client, but the local values are always the same:

| Field       | Value                            |
| ----------- | -------------------------------- |
| Command     | `npx`                            |
| Args        | `["-y", "@alphacast/mcp"]`       |
| Environment | `ALPHACAST_API_KEY=YOUR_API_KEY` |

## VS Code (GitHub Copilot Chat / Continue)

VS Code MCP support lives in `.vscode/mcp.json` for project scope or in user settings for global scope.

```json .vscode/mcp.json theme={null}
{
  "servers": {
    "alphacast": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@alphacast/mcp"],
      "env": {
        "ALPHACAST_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Reload VS Code after saving the file. For the hosted server instead, use the HTTP transport — VS Code handles the OAuth login:

```json .vscode/mcp.json theme={null}
{
  "servers": {
    "alphacast": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

## Zed

Zed configures MCP servers in its `settings.json` under `context_servers`.

```json theme={null}
{
  "context_servers": {
    "alphacast": {
      "command": {
        "path": "npx",
        "args": ["-y", "@alphacast/mcp"],
        "env": {
          "ALPHACAST_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Zed runs context servers as local processes, so use the `mcp-remote` bridge to reach the hosted server: set `"path": "npx"` and `"args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp"]`, with no `env` block.

## Windsurf

Windsurf MCP servers are configured in `~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json`:

```json theme={null}
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "alphacast": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@alphacast/mcp"],
      "env": {
        "ALPHACAST_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

For the hosted server, Windsurf accepts a remote URL directly:

```json theme={null}
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "alphacast": {
      "serverUrl": "https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

## Custom clients

You have two options when building your own MCP client with the [official SDKs](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/clients):

* **Hosted** — connect over the Streamable HTTP transport to `https://mcp.alphacast.io/mcp`. The endpoint is an OAuth 2.0 protected resource (authorization-code + PKCE against `https://auth.alphacast.io/`); it advertises its metadata at `/.well-known/oauth-protected-resource` and supports Dynamic Client Registration, so a spec-compliant client can discover and complete the flow automatically. Present the resulting token as a `Bearer` header.
* **Local** — spawn the server as a child process (`npx -y @alphacast/mcp`) with `ALPHACAST_API_KEY` in the environment, then connect via the SDK's stdio transport. No other handshake or registration step is required.