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From mcp-tooling
Use this skill when working with Apify's mcpc — a universal CLI client for MCP with persistent sessions, OAuth authentication, and interactive shell mode. Use when the user asks about connecting to remote MCP servers, managing MCP sessions, authenticating with OAuth for MCP, or using Apify's MCP platform. Also use when comparing MCP CLI tools or needing persistent named sessions.
npx claudepluginhub nsheaps/ai-mktpl --plugin mcp-toolingHow this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/mcp-tooling:mcpc-apifyThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
**Repository**: https://github.com/apify/mcp-cli
Manages MCP servers by discovering, analyzing, and executing tools/prompts/resources via CLI scripts. Use for integrations, capability discovery, tool filtering, and context bloat resolution.
Discovers and invokes MCP server capabilities on-demand using the mcp CLI tool. Useful for one-off calls, testing, and avoiding permanent integration.
Handles Claude Code MCP integration: installs/manages servers (HTTP/SSE/stdio), scopes, enterprise configs, OAuth auth, resources/@mentions, prompts, limits, security; delegates to docs-management.
Share bugs, ideas, or general feedback.
Repository: https://github.com/apify/mcp-cli
Package: @apify/mcpc
A universal CLI client for MCP with persistent sessions, OAuth 2.1 authentication, and interactive shell mode. Configure once, reuse across multiple AI coding agents and environments.
# Via npm
npm install -g @apify/mcpc
# Via Bun
bun install -g @apify/mcpc
On Linux, uses the Secret Service API for secure credential storage with automatic fallback to file-based storage on headless systems.
mcpc maintains persistent named sessions — long-lived connections to MCP servers that survive across commands:
# Create a persistent session
mcpc connect mcp.apify.com @apify
# Use the session for any command
mcpc @apify tools-list
mcpc @apify tools-call search-actors keywords:="web scraper"
# List all active sessions
mcpc
# Close/restart a session
mcpc @apify close
mcpc @apify restart
# Interactive OAuth 2.1 login (tokens stored in OS keychain)
mcpc login mcp.apify.com
# Logout
mcpc logout mcp.apify.com
# Use specific auth profile
mcpc --profile my-profile @session tools-list
# List available tools
mcpc @session tools-list
# Get tool details
mcpc @session tools-get <tool-name>
# Call a tool with typed arguments (key:=value syntax)
mcpc @session tools-call search-actors keywords:="website crawler" count:=10
Arguments use key:=value syntax with automatic JSON type parsing.
# Resources
mcpc @session resources-list
mcpc @session resources-read <uri>
# Prompts
mcpc @session prompts-list
mcpc @session prompts-get <prompt-name> arg1:=value1
# Search across tools, resources, prompts
mcpc grep <pattern>
# Interactive shell mode
mcpc @session shell
# JSON output for scripting
mcpc --json @session tools-list
mcpc --json @session tools-call tool-name arg:=value | jq '.result'
# Default: human-readable with colors
mcpc @session tools-list
~/.mcpc/sessions.json~/.mcpc/credentials mode 0600){
"mcpServers": {
"apify": {
"url": "https://mcp.apify.com"
}
}
}
With bearer token:
{
"mcpServers": {
"apify": {
"url": "https://mcp.apify.com",
"headers": {
"Authorization": "Bearer <APIFY_TOKEN>"
}
}
}
}
# Via URL parameters
# https://mcp.apify.com?tools=actors,docs,apify/rag-web-browser
# Via CLI
npx @apify/actors-mcp-server --tools actors,docs,apify/web-scraper
| Feature | mcpc (Apify) | mcp-cli (philschmid) |
|---|---|---|
| Sessions | Persistent named sessions | Stateless per-command |
| Authentication | Full OAuth 2.1 + keychain | Environment variables only |
| Transport | Streamable HTTP + stdio | stdio + HTTP |
| Interactive mode | Shell mode (mcpc @s shell) | No interactive mode |
| Connection model | Session-based (connect once) | Per-invocation |
| Runtime | Node.js | Bun |
# 1. Connect and authenticate
mcpc connect https://mcp.apify.com @apify
mcpc login https://mcp.apify.com
# 2. Discover tools
mcpc @apify tools-list
# 3. Call tools
mcpc @apify tools-call search-actors keywords:="web scraper" count:=10
# 4. Script with JSON output
mcpc --json @apify tools-list | jq '.tools[] | .name'
# 5. Manage session
mcpc @apify close