MCP for small business: connect your AI to your plan

Connect your Dapols plan to Codex, Claude Code, or Cursor through MCP and a personal token using Dapols’ guide. It can read your plan and make limited edits, but it cannot send, publish, post, or spend through this connection.

What MCP means in plain words

MCP is short for Model Context Protocol. Think of it as a shared plug. It lets AI apps connect to tools and information through one common format. Anthropic describes MCP as an open protocol for connecting AI applications with data sources and tools.

Without a connection, you might copy parts of your business plan into a chat whenever you need help. An MCP connection lets a supported assistant request information from the plan when it needs context. You choose which assistant to connect. It only sees the tools that the server makes available.

MCP does not make the assistant your business owner. It gives the assistant a defined way to look up information and request specific actions. OpenAI explains that an MCP server publishes tools and handles tool calls.

What your assistant can access

The connection lets your coding assistant read your business profile, plan, tasks, tool stack, and documents. It can also add notes, tick tasks, and save drafts. See the Dapols connection guide for the current connection details and available tools.

Those abilities help with practical questions. You could ask which task to handle next. You could also request a draft reply using your service details. Your assistant can refer to your plan instead of relying only on what you remember to paste into chat.

Keep the distinction clear: a saved draft is not a sent message. A task tick is a plan update, not proof that a real-world job happened. Review the result and decide what to do next. Dapols does not send messages, post content, publish pages, or spend money through this connection. The Dapols guide lists the connection’s available actions.

Read-only access and limited edits

Read-only access means the assistant can look at information but cannot change it through that tool. For example, reading your tool stack does not buy a tool or change your account. The Dapols connection also offers a short list of edits: notes, task checkmarks, and drafts.

These edits can still matter. A note can shape later decisions. A task checkmark changes how you see progress. A draft may hold words you plan to use. Review them as real changes, even when they do not reach a customer or vendor.

The assistant may prepare material inside your plan. You remain responsible for customer-facing or financial actions. It cannot use this connection to send, publish, post, or spend. Dapols describes its product as software that drafts work for a person to review; the owner approves each action. Read Dapols’ explanation of its review process.

Before connecting, decide which assistant and device you trust with business context. Read the tool descriptions shown by your client. Start by asking for information, then inspect any note, task, or draft before accepting it. Anthropic advises checking that you trust an MCP server before connecting.

What a personal access token does

A personal access token is a secret string that identifies your connection to a service. You can think of it like a key for one integration. The token lets the MCP server recognize requests from your assistant as yours.

Because it is secret, treat it like a password. Do not put it in a public document, share it in a chat, or commit it to a project repository. Use the Dapols connection instructions to place it in the authentication field your client expects. If you think someone else has seen it, stop using that connection and follow Dapols’ current token instructions. MCP authorization protects access to sensitive data and operations.

The token does not give the assistant every ability your account has. What it can do depends on the tools exposed by the server. In this case, those tools cover plan reading and a few specific edits. Still, a secret token can let someone else act through your connection, so store it carefully. The MCP authorization guide explains how authorization protects access to sensitive data and operations.

Connect Codex CLI

The current Dapols connection uses a personal token with the MCP server address shown in your account instructions. Keep both values private. Dapols’ connection guide provides the current details. Open a terminal in the environment where you use Codex. Follow this pattern, replacing the example name and address with Dapols’ current values.

codex mcp add dapols --url YOUR_DAPOLS_MCP_ADDRESS

Codex supports registering an MCP server from its command line, and the configuration is stored in its user config file. Check the current Dapols instructions for the exact token option and environment variable name before connecting. Do not guess either value. OpenAI’s Codex CLI reference documents codex mcp add, server URLs, and bearer-token configuration.

After setup, list configured servers using codex mcp list. If Dapols requires a token variable, set it locally as instructed. Avoid pasting the secret into a shared file. Ask Codex to read your business profile first. Then confirm that the returned information matches your plan.

Connect Claude Code

Claude Code adds remote HTTP servers with the claude mcp add command. Use the Dapols address from your connection instructions. Add the token only in the documented authentication field. Use the Dapols setup page for the current token name and format.

claude mcp add --transport http dapols YOUR_DAPOLS_MCP_ADDRESS

Check the connection with claude mcp list or the /mcp command inside Claude Code. Claude Code supports remote HTTP MCP servers and can start OAuth sign-in for servers that support it. Dapols’ current coding-client setup uses a personal token. See Anthropic’s Claude Code MCP reference.

For a cautious first request, ask Claude Code to list the business details it can read. Then ask for a draft, not a customer action. Open the saved draft in Dapols and make your own decision before using it.

Connect Cursor

Cursor reads MCP server settings from an mcp.json file. Its documentation gives a global location for servers available across projects and a project location for one workspace. Choose the scope that fits how you work. Use Dapols’ current instructions for the exact server address and token fields.

Cursor’s settings use an mcpServers section for named servers. The server entry holds connection details, including the address and authentication information specified by Dapols. The format is JSON, so commas, quotation marks, and nesting need to match the example in Cursor’s docs. Cursor documents its MCP configuration file and authentication options.

When you have saved the configuration, restart or refresh Cursor if needed, then check its available MCP tools. Start with a read request about your profile or plan. Do not assume that a green connection indicator proves every tool behaves as expected; inspect the result.

ChatGPT and Claude on the web

You may want to connect ChatGPT to your business from its website or Claude from claude.ai. Those web connectors need a sign-in flow that Dapols has not switched on yet. The live path today uses a personal token through Codex, Claude Code, or Cursor. Dapols’ connection page has the current availability details.

Setting up MCP in a coding client does not also connect the web version of that assistant. The clients have different setup screens and authentication paths. Choose a supported coding client if you want your assistant to read your Dapols plan.

A safe first session

Use a small first request. Ask your assistant to read your plan and summarize one section, such as your next task or current tool stack. Check the answer against Dapols. Then ask it to save a short draft or note, and review that change in your plan.

Avoid asking for broad changes before you know how the connection appears in your client. Keep one request focused, read the assistant’s explanation, and check the resulting change yourself. If something looks wrong, stop using that connection and review its token and server settings.

Also remember that a language model can misunderstand instructions or make a poor suggestion. The connection restricts available actions, but it cannot guarantee that every written answer is correct. Treat notes and drafts as proposed work, and make the final business decision yourself.

MCP is useful when it saves you from repeatedly copying your plan into a chat. It is not necessary for every task. A simple reminder, a manual checklist, or a plain tool may suit the job better. The useful choice is the one that gives you enough context and leaves the important decisions with you.

Setup details and supported clients can change. Check the official client docs and your Dapols connection page before changing settings. This information was checked 21 October 2026.

What to do next

Open Connect your AI for the current token and server details. If you are still deciding whether AI fits a task, read Should AI do it?. To find a business plan before connecting an assistant, try the free AI plan finder.