REFERENCE · CONNECT

Point your agent at Preston.

Preston is one MCP server, reached over HTTPS at a single endpoint. Any MCP-capable agent can use it — the setup is the same three facts everywhere: the endpoint, a bearer key, and the one line of config your client wants them in. Below is that line for each client. Reads are reflexive and never ask; only request_review confirms first.

THE ESSENTIALS

endpoint: POST https://api.preston.bot/mcp
auth: Authorization: Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>

The host shown is the production default. <PRESTON_API_KEY> is a placeholder — an account admin mints the real one in the app under Settings → API keys. The key is shown once at mint; paste it wherever the placeholder appears below.

NATIVE

speaks remote HTTP MCP directly.

BRIDGED

stdio-only — reaches Preston through mcp-remote.

A native client takes the endpoint and a header as-is. A bridged client can only spawn a local command, so it reaches Preston through mcp-remote — a small proxy (run via npx) that turns the HTTP endpoint into the local server the client expects, and forwards the key. You never install it; npx fetches it on first run.

Claude Codenativeone shell command

Adds Preston as an HTTP MCP server, key and all, in a single command — no file to edit.

claude mcp add --transport http preston \
  https://api.preston.bot/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>"

Run it in the repo you want the agent to work in. claude mcp list confirms it registered.

Cursornative~/.cursor/mcp.json

Cursor speaks remote MCP directly — point it at the endpoint and carry the key in a header.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "preston": {
      "url": "https://api.preston.bot/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>" }
    }
  }
}

Global at ~/.cursor/mcp.json, or per-project at .cursor/mcp.json in the repo root.

Claude Desktopbridgedclaude_desktop_config.json

Bridged through mcp-remote — the most reliable path for a static-key server on current builds.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "preston": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y", "mcp-remote",
        "https://api.preston.bot/mcp",
        "--header", "Authorization: Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>"
      ]
    }
  }
}

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json — restart the app after saving. Newer builds can instead add Preston under Settings → Connectors as a custom connector.

Codexbridged~/.codex/config.toml

Codex's config is TOML and it spawns local processes only, so mcp-remote bridges to the HTTP endpoint.

[mcp_servers.preston]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://api.preston.bot/mcp", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>"]

The mcp-remote bridge is what lets a stdio-only client reach a remote server at all.

Claude Agent SDKnativemcpServers config

The exact server shape the Preston CLI hands any Claude-compatible client — verified against the wiring.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "preston": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://api.preston.bot/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>" }
    }
  }
}

ANY OTHER CLIENT

The rule generalizes. If your client speaks remote MCP, give it the endpoint and the Authorization header. If it only spawns local commands, wrap the endpoint in the bridge:

npx -y mcp-remote https://api.preston.bot/mcp --header "Authorization: Bearer <PRESTON_API_KEY>"

Your client’s own MCP docs are the final word on where its config lives and what keys it expects — these are the current forms, not a contract each vendor owes you.

THE FIRST CALL

Once connected, make one read to ground the agent. New here? Call start_here — it returns a short guided first session built from what this team has climbed. Already know the repo? Call orient with a repo for the session briefing. Both are read-only and require no confirmation.

the endpoint and the auth header are read straight off Preston’s own wiring. the per-client config is each client’s documented MCP surface — verified where this repo can, deferred to the vendor where it can’t. nothing here is invented.

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