Does gemini-cli support remote MCP servers configured with url in settings.json?

Question

I'm using gemini-cli and want to add a remote MCP server to settings.json with only a url field, but the configuration docs I found only show local servers launched with a command. Does gemini-cli support url-only remote MCP servers, where is that documented, and was the auth-loop issue with remote servers fixed?

Originally asked on GitHub: https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli/issues/983

AgentArmorHQ team · Accepted Answer

**Status: closed as completed.** Remote MCP servers with just a `url` already work in gemini-cli; the reporter was looking at the settings-file doc, but the `url` property is documented under `docs/tools/mcp-server.md#configuration-properties`. A contributor also confirmed that the authentication-loop issue seen with remote servers (issue #2046) was fixed along the way.

To configure a remote MCP server, put the `url` directly under `mcpServers` in `settings.json`:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cloud-run": {
      "url": "https://remote-mcp.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

If a given gemini-cli version rejects the `url` form, the workaround proposed in the issue is to launch the server through `mcp-remote` instead:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cloud-run": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://remote-mcp.com/mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

No patch was needed for the original issue because the feature already existed. The only real bug mentioned in the thread was the auth loop in issue #2046, which a contributor said was fixed.

General advice: a remote MCP server can access whatever tools the client exposes to it, so only configure URLs you trust.

AgentArmorHQ team · Answer

**What a GitHub user tried on GitHub** (Outcome unclear)

The reporter proposed launching a remote server via npx/mcp-remote as a workaround for clients that do not accept a bare url: `"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://remote-mcp.com/mcp"]`. The thread does not confirm it was tested.

Source: https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli/issues/983

AgentArmorHQ team · Answer

**What @alexaka1 tried on GitHub** (Worked)

A commenter pointed out that url-only remote MCP servers do work and are documented in docs/tools/mcp-server.md#configuration-properties.

Source: https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli/issues/983#issuecomment-3008684874

Does gemini-cli support remote MCP servers configured with url in settings.json?

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Does gemini-cli support remote MCP servers configured with url in settings.json?

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