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Overview

Visual Studio Code supports MCP (Model Context Protocol) through GitHub Copilot for enhanced AI-powered development capabilities. Through Portkey’s MCP Gateway, you can seamlessly connect any MCP server to VS Code without managing infrastructure or authentication.

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Key Benefits

  • Secure Authentication: Portkey handles OAuth flows and token management
  • Unified Authentication: Single OAuth token to rule them all
  • Team Collaboration: Share MCP server configurations, manage access permissions, and ensure everyone on your team has the tools they need—configured correctly, every time
  • Complete Observability: See every request, track latency, monitor errors, and understand usage patterns

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Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:
  1. Visual Studio Code installed (latest version)
  2. GitHub Copilot access and extension installed
  3. MCP support enabled in VS Code (enabled by default)
  4. Portkey account with workspace access
  5. MCP server registered in Portkey’s MCP Hub

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Verify MCP Support

Check that MCP is enabled in VS Code:
  • Open Settings (Cmd/Ctrl + ,)
  • Search for chat.mcp.access
  • Ensure it’s not set to none

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Quick Setup

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Step 1: Get Your MCP Server URL

  1. Log in to Portkey Dashboard
  2. Navigate to MCP Hub → Your Servers
  3. Copy your server URL: 
    https://mcp.portkey.ai/:workspace-id/:server-id/mcp

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Step 2: Configure VS Code

  1. Create a .vscode/mcp.json file in your workspace root
  2. Add your Portkey MCP server configuration:
{
  "servers": {
    "portkey-mcp": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.portkey.ai/:workspace-id/:server-id/mcp"
    }
  }
}

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Option B: Using Command Palette

  1. Open Command Palette (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + P)
  2. Run MCP: Add Server
  3. Choose HTTP as the server type
  4. Enter your Portkey MCP server URL
  5. Select Workspace Settings to save configuration

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Step 3: Trust and Start Server

When you first use the MCP server, VS Code will prompt you to confirm trust. Click Trust to enable the server.

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Step 4: Authentication

Portkey handles all authentication flows automatically:
  1. First Connection: When VS Code first connects to an authenticated MCP server, Portkey will:
    • Open your browser for OAuth authorization (if required)
    • Store credentials securely
    • Maintain session state
  2. Subsequent Connections: Authentication tokens are refreshed automatically
  3. Team Access: Workspace members share the same authentication scope based on your Portkey settings

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Configuration Examples

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Single Server Setup

{
  "servers": {
    "linear-integration": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.portkey.ai/ws-abc123/linear-def456/mcp"
    }
  }
}

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Multiple Servers Setup

{
  "servers": {
    "linear": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.portkey.ai/ws-abc123/linear-def456/mcp"
    },
    "github": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.portkey.ai/ws-abc123/github-ghi789/mcp"
    },
    "slack": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.portkey.ai/ws-abc123/slack-jkl012/mcp"
    }
  }
}

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Support

Need help? We’re here for you: