How to Use the Ably MCP in Claude

Q: Can Claude Desktop monitor active Ably connections?

Yes, the agent uses listchannels to find active streams and getpresence to show who is currently online. You get a live snapshot of your WebSocket traffic directly in your chat.

Q: Can I retrieve historical messages?

Yes. The agent calls getmessages or getmessage with a specific serial to fetch past payloads. It displays the raw data so you can debug what your clients received.

Publish live payloads and track user presence directly from Claude Desktop without writing test scripts.

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Connect Ably MCP to Claude Desktop

Create your Vinkius account to connect Ably to Claude Desktop and route execution through our secure gateway. The platform manages server hosting, runtime updates, and security layers. Configuration requires no manual server provisioning.

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Setup Ably with Claude Desktop

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Debug Ably channels in Claude Desktop

This MCP Server connects Claude Desktop directly to your live messaging channels to inspect payloads and active connections. Your agent uses `list_channels` to find hot endpoints and `get_channel_metadata` to check current subscriber volumes. No more jumping to the Ably dashboard to see if your dev environment is actually broadcasting. When you need to verify history, the agent runs `get_messages` to pull the exact payload queue into your chat window. You can see the actual JSON structure and timestamps without writing custom debug scripts.

Simulate presence and test client states

Using this MCP Server, Claude Desktop can join, track, and modify active user sessions across your WebSocket connections using `get_presence` and `batch_presence`. You tell your agent to verify who is online, and it returns a clean list of active client IDs. If you need to audit past connections, the agent triggers `get_presence_history` to map out user join and leave events. This lets you spot ghost connections or heartbeat issues right inside your workspace.

Broadcast live payloads and push notifications

Send messages to single or multiple topics using `publish_message` and `batch_publish` directly from your chat prompt. You describe the payload in plain English, and your agent translates it into the exact JSON format your subscribers expect. For mobile testing, the agent calls `push_publish` or `batch_push_publish` to fire native push notifications. This removes the need to use curl or postman when testing background device states.

Setup guide

Set up Ably MCP in Claude Web or Desktop

1

Open Claude Settings

Go to claude.ai, click your profile icon, then navigate to Customize → Connectors.
2

Add Custom Connector

Click the "+" button and select Add custom connector. Paste your Vinkius endpoint URL: https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp Replace [YOUR_TOKEN_HERE] with your token from cloud.vinkius.com. For OAuth-protected servers, expand Advanced settings to add credentials.
3

Start a conversation

Open a new chat. The Ably MCP tools are available immediately — no restart needed.

Endpoint URL

https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp

No configuration file needed — paste the URL directly in the Claude web interface.

Available on Free (1 connector), Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise plans.

Prerequisites

Claude Desktop installed (macOS or Windows)
Active Vinkius subscription with a valid endpoint token

1

Open Claude Desktop Settings

Click the menu icon at the top-left corner, go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config. This opens claude_desktop_config.json in your default text editor.
2

Paste the Ably MCP configuration

Copy the JSON snippet on the right into the mcpServers object. Replace [YOUR_TOKEN_HERE] with your endpoint token from cloud.vinkius.com.
3

Restart Claude Desktop

Close and reopen the application. Claude needs a full restart to load new MCPs — refreshing a conversation is not enough.
4

Verify the connection

Open a new conversation. Click the 🔌 icon at the bottom of the message input. You should see tools listed under ably-mcp.

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ably-mcp": {
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Get your connection token →

Independent Platform Disclaimer: Vinkius is an independent platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, verified by, or otherwise authorized by Ably. All third-party trademarks, logos, and brand names are the property of their respective owners. Their use on this website is strictly for informational purposes to identify service compatibility and interoperability.

Why Choose Vinkius

Vinkius connects your tools to AI with real-time monitoring and automatic cost savings — all from one dashboard.

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Connect your favorite tools to your AI and see exactly what's happening — every request, every response, in real time.

Built-in savings

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Vinkius compresses data between your apps and your AI automatically. Lower bills every month — no configuration required.

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Common questions about Ably MCP in Claude Desktop

Ask your agent to send a payload to a specific channel. The agent formats your text and runs `publish_message` behind the scenes to deliver the message instantly to your subscribers.

Yes, the agent uses `list_channels` to find active streams and `get_presence` to show who is currently online. You get a live snapshot of your WebSocket traffic directly in your chat.

If your API key has revocable tokens enabled, your agent calls `revoke_tokens` to invalidate them. This lets you kick unauthorized clients or clean up expired sessions on the fly.

Yes. The agent calls `get_messages` or `get_message` with a specific serial to fetch past payloads. It displays the raw data so you can debug what your clients received.

Vinkius runs this MCP Server in an isolated container where your API key is never exposed to the LLM. Your raw message payloads and channel metadata pass directly through secure transport channels and are never stored on our servers.

Use it with your favorite AI tools

Connect this server to Cursor, Claude, VS Code, and more.

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