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title Clients — AI Application Management
description Connect Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code, Windsurf, and other AI clients to McpMux. Configure connection modes and per-Space permissions for each client.

Clients are the AI applications that connect to McpMux's gateway to access MCP tools, resources, and prompts. McpMux lets you manage each client independently with its own permissions and Space behavior.

Supported Clients

McpMux works with any MCP-compatible client, including:

Client Type Connection
Cursor IDE Streamable HTTP
Claude Desktop Desktop App Streamable HTTP
Claude Code CLI Streamable HTTP
VS Code (Copilot) IDE Streamable HTTP
ChatGPT Desktop Desktop App Streamable HTTP
Windsurf IDE Streamable HTTP
JetBrains IDEs IDE Streamable HTTP
Zed Editor Streamable HTTP
Gemini CLI CLI Streamable HTTP

All clients connect to the same endpoint: http://localhost:45818/mcp

Authorization Request dialog — VS Code connecting to McpMux with connection mode selection

Connection Modes

Each client has a connection mode that determines how it interacts with Spaces:

Follow Active

The client automatically uses whichever Space is currently active. When you switch the active Space, the client immediately sees the new Space's servers and tools.

Best for: Your primary development tools that should always match your current context.

Locked

The client always uses a specific Space, regardless of which Space is active. This is useful for:

  • A monitoring tool that should always see production servers
  • A client dedicated to a specific project
  • Background automation that shouldn't change behavior

Ask on Change

When the active Space changes, McpMux prompts you to confirm whether this client should switch too. This provides a safety net for important clients.

Best for: Clients with elevated permissions where an accidental Space switch could be problematic.

Per-Space Permissions

Each client receives FeatureSet grants per Space. This means a single client can have different permissions in different Spaces:

Client Work Space Personal Space
Cursor All tools Read Only
Claude Desktop Developer FeatureSet All tools
Monitoring Bot Read Only — (no access)

This is configured in the Clients page by selecting a client and managing its grants for each Space.

Client detail panel — Cursor with per-Space FeatureSet grants and permission management

Access Keys

Each client authenticates with McpMux using an access key. Access keys are:

  • Generated automatically when a client registers
  • Stored encrypted in the OS keychain
  • Unique per client
  • Revocable at any time

Client Lifecycle

Registration

Clients can be registered in two ways:

  1. Automatic — when a new client connects to the gateway via OAuth, McpMux prompts you to approve it
  2. Manual — add a client through the McpMux UI and copy the access key into your client's configuration

Effective Features view showing 45 tools, 8 prompts, and 3 resources available to Cursor

Monitoring

The Clients page shows:

  • Each registered client's name and type
  • Connection mode (Follow Active / Locked / Ask on Change)
  • Last seen timestamp

Disconnecting

You can disconnect or remove a client at any time from the Clients page. This revokes its access key and it will no longer be able to make MCP requests through the gateway.

Next Steps