Model Context Protocol (MCP)

1 a. Authentication — API Token (Recommended for Production)

For a permanent AI connection, use a long-lived API token. The token must be generated by an administrator (a member of the pgarachne_admin role):

-- Switch to the administrator role
SET ROLE pgarachne_admin;

-- Generate a new token for the target role (e.g., 'app_user')
SELECT pgarachne.add_api_token('Claude Desktop', 'app_user');

Save the returned string. Use it as Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN in the AI client configuration.

1 b. Authentication — Direct Credentials (Development & Simple Setups)

Alternatively, send the PostgreSQL username and password directly using HTTP Basic Authentication. No API token management is required, and no GRANT … TO pgarachne is needed — PgArachne connects directly as the specified user.

Authorization: Basic <base64(username:password)>

Use this approach for local testing or internal tools where credentials are already managed securely. For production AI integrations with cloud clients, API tokens are preferable.

2. Claude Desktop

Add PgArachne to your Claude Desktop configuration (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pgarachne": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-http",
        "--url",
        "https://your-api.com/db/my_database/mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"
      }
    }
  }
}

Note: HTTP(S) is required for the connection. The example uses the server-http npx bridge from Anthropic, which acts as an intermediary between standard MCP (stdio) and PgArachne (HTTP).

3. Cursor

In Cursor settings (Settings > MCP), add a new server communicating directly via HTTP (or using the bridge mentioned above if your version of Cursor does not support native HTTP MCP servers):

• Type: command (with npx bridge) or http
• Name: PgArachne
• URL: https://your-api.com/db/my_database/mcp
• Auth Header: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN