VS Code Setup

Connect your Alation catalog to VS Code using the Remote MCP server with OAuth authentication.

Note

This guide covers Remote MCP setup. For local MCP server setup, see the Local MCP Guide.

Prerequisites

• OAuth Client credentials from your Alation instance (Create OAuth Client)
• VS Code with MCP support enabled

Adding the MCP Server

1. Create the configuration file

   In your project root, create a .vscode folder if it doesn’t exist, then create a file named mcp.json inside it.

2. Add the Alation server configuration

   {
     "servers": {
       "alation_mcp": {
         "url": "https://<YOUR_INSTANCE>.alationcloud.com/ai/mcp/",
         "type": "http"
       }
     },
     "inputs": []
   }

Connecting (Authentication)

1. Start the MCP server

   In the mcp.json file, click Start above the server configuration.

   

2. Proceed through Dynamic Client Registration

   A modal appears saying “Dynamic Client Registration not supported”. Click Proceed.

   

3. Enter your credentials

   VS Code prompts you for:

   • Client ID - Enter your OAuth client ID
   • Client Secret - Enter your OAuth client secret

   Press Enter after each.

4. Allow authentication

   Click Allow when prompted that the MCP server wants to authenticate.

   

5. Cancel the first browser prompt

   A modal asks to open an external website. Check the URL - if it contains 127.0.0.1, click Cancel.

   

6. Accept the second browser prompt

   A toast appears asking “Having trouble authenticating?”. Click Yes.

   Another external website modal appears. This time the URL contains vscode.dev/redirect. Click Open.

   

7. Sign in to Alation

   Your browser opens the Alation login page. Sign in with your credentials.

8. Verify connection

   After signing in, VS Code shows the server as “Running” with available tools.

   

Enabling Tools

Tools are available once connected. Click the tool count (e.g., “26 tools”) to open the Configure Tools panel and select which tools are available to chat.

Example Prompts

Once connected, try queries like:

• “Use catalog context search agent and fetch all columns in the sales table” (You can also point to a specific tool and ask your questions like this)
• “What tables are related to customer data?”

Troubleshooting

• Stuck on “Authentication…”? Restart VS Code and follow the authentication steps again.

• Always showing localhost and never redirecting to your server? Check Managed Trusted Domains and remove your Alation instance:

  1. Cmd+Shift+P (Mac) or Ctrl+Shift+P (Windows)
  2. Select Manage Trusted Domains
  3. Remove your Alation instance URL from the list
  4. Save and retry authentication

• Need to rotate credentials? Clear saved OAuth state:

  1. Cmd+Shift+P (Mac) or Ctrl+Shift+P (Windows)
  2. Select Authentication: Remove Dynamic Authentication Providers
  3. Check the Alation MCP server entry and click OK, then Remove