Install or Connect
You have two options. Most users want option 1.
| Hosted | Local stdio | |
|---|---|---|
| What | Point your client at mcp.colabhive.com/mcp | Install colabhive-mcp locally |
| Setup time | 30 seconds | 2 minutes |
| Python needed | No | Yes (3.10+) |
| API key location | Sent in each request header | Stays on your machine |
| Use when | Default | Privacy-sensitive / air-gapped / scripting |
Option 1 — Hosted endpoint (recommended)
There is nothing to install. You just need:
- A ColabHive API key — get one at console.colabhive.com → Settings → API Keys.
- An MCP-capable client (Claude Desktop ≥ 0.7, Cursor ≥ 0.42, Claude Code, n8n ≥ 1.46, or a custom one).
Then jump straight to your client's setup page:
Verify the endpoint is reachable from your machine
curl -sS https://mcp.colabhive.com/health
# {"status":"ok","version":"0.1.0","tenants_resident":N,"transport":"http+sse"}
# tools/list with your key
curl -sS -X POST https://mcp.colabhive.com/mcp \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-H "X-API-Key: hive_xxx" \
-d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/list"}' \
| jq '.result.tools | length'
If both work, you're done — skip the rest of this page.
Option 2 — Local colabhive-mcp package
For users who don't want their API key to leave their machine. Same protocol, same tools, key stays in your local env.
Requirements
- Python 3.10+ (3.11 recommended)
- A ColabHive API key
- Outbound HTTPS to
api.colabhive.com
Install with uvx (recommended)
uv is the fastest — clients launch the server on demand:
# One-shot
uvx colabhive-mcp@latest
# Pin the current production version
uvx colabhive-mcp@0.3.0
Install uv once:
# macOS / Linux
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
# Windows (PowerShell)
powershell -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"
colabhive-mcp==0.3.0 is available on PyPI as both a wheel and an sdist.
Install with pipx
pipx install colabhive-mcp
colabhive-mcp --version
Verify your install
export COLABHIVE_API_KEY=hive_xxx
colabhive-mcp test
Expected:
✓ Loaded config (api_url=https://api.colabhive.com)
✓ Manifest fetched (N tools visible to your account) in ~140 ms
✓ All checks passed.
Run it manually (HTTP/SSE mode locally)
colabhive-mcp serve --port 8765 --host 127.0.0.1
# Point your client at http://127.0.0.1:8765/mcp
In this mode the local server runs in multi-tenant form too: every incoming request must bring its own X-API-Key. Useful for testing the hosted protocol locally without exposing your key.
Updating
| Install method | Update |
|---|---|
| Hosted | Nothing — we deploy upgrades transparently. |
uvx | uvx colabhive-mcp@latest --version (always uses latest unless pinned) |
pipx | pipx upgrade colabhive-mcp |
The server prints its version on startup. SemVer applies; breaking changes only in major releases.
Uninstall
# Hosted: just remove the entry from your client config.
# Local:
pipx uninstall colabhive-mcp