# MCP: install and connect

> Install DRE MCP, review its licence, validate your reporting project and connect a local stdio MCP client.

DRE MCP requires DRE **0.4.1 or later**, a working DRE project and an AI client that supports local stdio MCP servers. The companion runs with your local connections. Keep credentials in your existing profiles and environment variables.

## Install the companion

Check your core version first:

```bash
dre --version
```

Install the release candidate through DRE’s extension installer:

```bash
dre extension install dre-mcp@0.1.0-rc.1 --accept-proprietary
```

The proprietary-download acknowledgement is separate from accepting the companion’s EULA. Read the full terms:

```bash
dre mcp license show
```

After the authorised user has read and accepted that version:

```bash
dre mcp license accept --version 2026-10
```

DRE core and the companion have separate licences. See [licensing](https://getdre.com/licensing/). The RC has no automatic expiry; accepting it does not accept future terms.

## Prepare and review your project

Start from the [commented example project](https://github.com/get-dre/dre/tree/master/examples/mcp) or an existing report project. Follow [AI-ready reports](https://getdre.com/docs/ai-ready-reports/) to add descriptions, example questions and representative input defaults.

Reports remain unavailable to MCP until an owner enables `meta.ai.expose: true`. Review [configuration and scope](https://getdre.com/docs/mcp-configuration/) before enabling reports or tables.

Install the DuckDB plugin if you want saved-result refinement:

```bash
dre plugin install duckdb
```

From the project directory, check readiness and resolved exposure:

```bash
dre mcp validate
dre mcp test
dre mcp access
```

`validate` checks readiness. `test` checks example-question retrieval; it does not certify business answers. `access` shows the resolved scope. Use an appropriate database role: exposed reports can contain write SQL, and disabling delivery does not suppress those SQL side effects.

## Connect an MCP client

Configure a local stdio server in your client. For clients that use an `mcpServers` JSON object, the following is a starting point:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dre": {
      "command": "dre",
      "args": ["mcp", "--project-dir", "/absolute/path/to/your/project", "serve"]
    }
  }
}
```

Replace the project path. Use the absolute path to `dre` if your client cannot find it on `PATH`. Client configuration files and registration commands vary; use your client’s local stdio instructions if it uses another format.

The launched process must see the environment variables and profiles your DRE project uses. Keep passwords and tokens out of the JSON file. Complete licence acceptance before connecting: `serve` reserves stdout for MCP and does not prompt for acceptance.

Begin by asking the agent to find a report and explain its inputs. Review the described report before requesting execution. Use [tools and provenance](https://getdre.com/docs/mcp-tools/) to interpret the returned result.

## Pin a project’s companion version

For a shared project, declare an exact version in `dependencies.yml`:

```yaml
extensions:
  - name: dre-mcp
    version: "0.1.0-rc.1"
```

`dre deps` installs declared extensions separately from plugins. A project owner may additionally declare `accept_license: "2026-10"` after reviewing those terms through the project’s approval process. Installation and updates never rewrite this field or accept a future EULA. A stale declared terms version must be reviewed and changed manually.

## If setup fails

-   **Companion not found:** install the extension and ensure the client can resolve the `dre` executable.
-   **Licence required:** read the EULA, then complete acceptance as the authorised user before starting the client.
-   **No reports found:** check resolved scope with `dre mcp access`, representative defaults and inherited exposure settings.
-   **Refinement unavailable:** install the DuckDB plugin, even if the report uses another source.
-   **Cards not displayed:** check your client’s MCP Apps support. Structured results remain the fallback; card and download support varies by host.

[Edit page](https://github.com/get-dre/getdre.com/edit/master/content/mcp/mcp-setup.md)

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Overview](https://getdre.com/docs/mcp/)[Next  
Configuration and scope](https://getdre.com/docs/mcp-configuration/)