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Documentation · Claude Desktop

Claude custom connectors: add Toolstile in Claude Desktop and claude.ai

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A Claude custom connector is a remote MCP server you add to Claude by its URL, for a service that isn't in Claude's Connectors Directory or that you want to connect yourself. To add Toolstile, open Customize → Connectors, add a custom connector with the URL https://toolstile.com/mcp, and sign in when Claude asks. Your browser then shows Toolstile's approval screen, where you choose a workspace. Once a workspace admin grants the new agent access to MCP connections, turn the connector on in a conversation and Claude can use those tools.

A custom connector belongs to your Claude account, not to one app. After you add it, it is available in Claude on the web, in Claude Desktop and in the mobile apps. This page follows Anthropic's custom connector documentation as of October 2026.

Custom connectors and the Connectors Directory

Claude has two kinds of remote connector. Directory connectors are listed in Claude's Connectors Directory, and Anthropic labels them as verified or community. A custom connector is one you add yourself by URL, and Anthropic hasn't reviewed it. Claude usually shows it with a Custom label, but a URL whose domain matches a directory listing can show that service's name and branding instead. According to Anthropic's connector verification page, both use the same technology, so any remote MCP server URL can be added as a custom connector whether or not it is in the directory.

Toolstile is an MCP gateway that connects several remote MCP servers through one custom connector, with per-tool rules set in Toolstile.

What you need

  • A Claude plan that includes custom connectors. Anthropic's help center lists Free, Pro, Max, Ultra, Team and Enterprise. Free accounts can add one custom connector. On Team, only Owners and Primary Owners add connectors for the organization; on Enterprise, a custom role with Manage access to Libraries can too. Members then connect with their own accounts.
  • A Toolstile account with at least one MCP connection in the workspace you want Claude to use. See getting started and integrations.

Claude connects to custom connectors from Anthropic's cloud, even when you are typing in Claude Desktop on your own computer, so the server must be reachable over the public internet. The Toolstile gateway is public, so that works. It also means the servers Toolstile reaches must be public HTTPS endpoints; nothing on your laptop or private network is involved.

Custom connector, not claude_desktop_config.json

Claude Desktop has two different ways to use MCP. Local servers run on your machine through claude_desktop_config.json or desktop extensions, and they work only in the desktop app. Remote servers are added as custom connectors by URL and work everywhere you use Claude. Toolstile is a remote server, so use the connector flow below. Do not add the gateway URL to claude_desktop_config.json.

Add Toolstile as a custom connector

Free, Pro, Max and Ultra:

  1. Go to Customize → Connectors.
  2. Choose Add custom connector (some accounts show + Add first).
  3. Enter a name you will recognize, such as Toolstile personal, and the URL https://toolstile.com/mcp.
  4. If Claude shows authentication settings, choose Sign in now or Sign in when needed. Do not choose No sign-in.
  5. For OAuth client, Toolstile works with Use Claude's published identity and Register automatically. You do not need a client ID or secret.
  6. Choose Add.

Team and Enterprise: an Owner opens Organization settings → Connectors, chooses Add, then Custom (and Web if asked for a type), enters the URL and adds it. Each member then finds the connector under Customize → Connectors, usually with a Custom label, and chooses Connect.

The dialog layout differs between accounts. If you see Request headers (a beta that only some organizations have), leave it empty. A Toolstile agent token is not an OAuth client secret, and OAuth connectors cannot set an Authorization header.

Sign in and choose a workspace

When Claude starts the sign-in, Toolstile's approval page opens:

  1. Sign in to Toolstile if asked.
  2. Select the Workspace. This connector will use only that workspace's connections and operation allowance.
  3. Review the agent and device names. The device name comes from the browser you approved in, but requests arrive from Anthropic's servers, not that computer. A name such as Claude account is clearer; change it with Edit names.
  4. Choose Approve and finish any Allow connection screen.

Grant access in Toolstile

The new agent has no MCP access yet. In the workspace you picked, find it under Devices & agents. Open Access, choose a connection, and in that agent's column set each tool to Allow, Require approval or Block. Then choose Save changes.

Chat agents tend to be used for lookups and drafting, so allowing read tools and requiring approval for anything that sends, edits or deletes is a good default. Everything, including ones added later gives full access to current and future tools, with explicit blocks still applying. In a team workspace, an admin grants each agent on its own. See permissions.

When Claude calls a tool set to Require approval, the result tells Claude that approval is needed and includes a link to Toolstile's Approvals page. After you approve there, ask Claude to try the same request again.

Use it in a conversation

Connectors can be switched on per conversation. Choose + in the lower left of the chat box (or type /), open Connectors, and turn on the Toolstile connector. Then ask for something small and read-only, for example "Use Toolstile to list my open issues". Check Activity in the same Toolstile workspace for a matching entry.

Toolstile's Test tool action can also load the agent's permitted tool list without running anything.

Claude's tool permissions and Toolstile's grants

Both apply to every call.

Toolstile decides which tools the connector exposes. Tools that are not granted, or are blocked, never appear in Claude's list, and calling one is refused. The rules sit in the workspace, so changing your Claude settings cannot widen them.

Claude decides whether to ask before using a tool it can see. Under Customize → Connectors, select the connector to see Tool permissions, grouped by type such as read-only and write/delete. Each tool or group can be Always allow, Needs approval or Blocked. When Claude asks during a chat, Always allow stops future prompts for that tool, so use it only for tools you are comfortable running unsupervised. On Team and Enterprise plans, Owners can set these controls for the whole organization.

Both layers can require a person. If Toolstile requires approval, that happens on Toolstile's Approvals page, separately from Claude's own prompt.

Using the same connector in Claude Code

If you sign in to Claude Code with the same claude.ai account, connectors from claude.ai can appear there too, listed under /mcp. If you also add Toolstile directly in Claude Code, the Claude Code entry takes precedence and the connector is hidden. See the Claude Code guide for that setup.

One custom connector per service, or one for all

Adding each provider as its own custom connector is simple for one or two services, and Free accounts are limited to a single custom connector anyway. Through Toolstile, one connector carries every MCP connection you grant, provider sign-ins are managed in Toolstile, and access can be revoked from the dashboard without editing Claude's settings. If a provider is already in Claude's Connectors Directory and you only need it in Claude, connecting it there directly may be enough.

Troubleshooting

The sign-in window never appears. Check that the connector's authentication is not set to No sign-in. Authentication settings cannot be edited after adding a connector, so remove it and add it again with Sign in now or Sign in when needed. If sign-in fails, disconnect and reconnect from Customize → Connectors.

Connected, but Claude has no Toolstile tools. Sign-in does not grant access. Check Access for this agent in the workspace you approved, and that the connection is not marked Needs sign-in or Needs attention. Also check the connector is switched on for the current conversation.

Tools did not update after an access change. Disconnect and reconnect the connector under Customize → Connectors. Toolstile checks current grants on every call either way.

The connector uses the wrong workspace. The workspace is fixed at approval. To use another, add a second custom connector with a different name and approve it for the other workspace, then confirm a separate agent appears there. Free accounts cannot add a second custom connector.

Requests stop with a quota or billing message. The workspace has used its monthly operations or forwarding is paused. A workspace owner can check Usage & billing.

For shared-account and other errors, see troubleshooting.

Remove the connector

Remove it under Customize → Connectors (Owners use Organization settings → Connectors). Turning it off in a single chat only affects that chat. To revoke access on Toolstile's side, choose Remove agent under Devices & agents.

Anthropic's instructions are in Add a connector that isn't in the directory and Get started with custom connectors.