Where do I find my Radar API key?

Log into your Radar dashboard. Under 'Project Settings' or the dedicated API keys section, look for your 'Publishable Key'. This is the standard read-only key used for client integrations and MCP operations.

Should I use the Publishable Key or the Secret Key?

Always use the **Publishable Key** for this MCP server instance if possible, as the operations (geocoding, routing, lookup) are typically safe read-only spatial actions.

Can it calculate multi-stop routes like a delivery app?

Yes, but indirectly through distance comparisons. The basic routing API fetches times from Point A to Point B. The AI can chain these requests together to establish an estimated schedule contextually in your chat.

Radar MCP Server for Claude Desktop 10 tools — connect in under 2 minutes

modelcontextprotocol.io/quickstart/user

Built by Vinkius GDPR 10 Tools IDE

Claude Desktop is Anthropic's native application for interacting with Claude AI models on macOS and Windows. It was the first consumer application to ship with built-in MCP support, making it the reference implementation for the Model Context Protocol standard.

Get MCP Server for AI Agents

ASK AI ABOUT THIS MCP SERVER

Open in ChatGPT Open in Claude Open in Perplexity

Vinkius supports streamable HTTP and SSE.

RecommendedModern Approach — Zero Configuration

Vinkius Desktop App

The modern way to manage MCP Servers — no config files, no terminal commands. Install Radar and 2,500+ MCP Servers from a single visual interface.

Download Free Open SourceNo signup required

Classic Setup·json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "radar": {
      // Your Vinkius token. get it at cloud.vinkius.com
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Fully ManagedVinkius Servers

60%Token savings

High SecurityEnterprise-grade

IAMAccess control

EU AI ActCompliant

DLPData protection

V8 IsolateSandboxed

Ed25519Audit chain

<40msKill switch

Stream every event to Splunk, Datadog, or your own webhook in real-time

* Every MCP server runs on Vinkius-managed infrastructure inside AWS - a purpose-built runtime with per-request V8 isolates, Ed25519 signed audit chains, and sub-40ms cold starts optimized for native MCP execution. See our infrastructure

About Radar MCP Server

Integrate Radar with an AI agent to bring enterprise-level location intelligence directly to your workflow. This server allows the AI to perform complex spatial lookups and geographical computations on your behalf.

Claude Desktop is the definitive way to connect Radar to your AI workflow. Add Vinkius Edge URL to your config, restart the app, and Claude immediately exposes all 10 tools in the chat interface. ask a question, Claude calls the right tool, and you see the answer. Zero code, zero context switching.

What you can do

Geocoding & Reverse Geocoding — Convert readable addresses into exact coordinates (latitude/longitude), or vice versa.
Route Calculation — Determine distance and driving times between multiple locations, predicting transit metrics efficiently.
Geofencing & Context — Check whether specific coordinates fall within defined geographical boundaries (e.g., regions, stores, administrative borders).
IP Geolocation — Locate a user or device strictly based on an IP address.

The Radar MCP Server exposes 10 tools through the Vinkius. Connect it to Claude Desktop in under two minutes — no API keys to rotate, no infrastructure to provision, no vendor lock-in. Your configuration, your data, your control.

How to Connect Radar to Claude Desktop via MCP

Follow these steps to integrate the Radar MCP Server with Claude Desktop.

Open Claude Desktop Settings

Go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config to open claude_desktop_config.json

Add the MCP Server

Paste the configuration above into the mcpServers section

Restart Claude Desktop

Close and reopen Claude Desktop to load the new server

Start using Radar

Look for the 🔌 icon in the chat. your 10 tools are now available

Why Use Claude Desktop with the Radar MCP Server

Claude Desktop by Anthropic provides unique advantages when paired with Radar through the Model Context Protocol.

Claude Desktop is the reference MCP client. it was designed alongside the protocol itself, ensuring the most complete and stable MCP implementation available

Zero-code configuration: add a server URL to a JSON file and Claude instantly discovers and exposes all available tools in the chat interface

Claude's extended thinking capability lets it reason through multi-step tool usage, chaining multiple API calls to answer complex questions

Enterprise-grade security with local config storage. your tokens never leave your machine, and connections go directly to Vinkius Edge network

Radar + Claude Desktop Use Cases

Practical scenarios where Claude Desktop combined with the Radar MCP Server delivers measurable value.

Interactive data exploration: ask Claude to query DNS records, look up WHOIS data, and cross-reference results in a single conversation

Ad-hoc security audits: type a domain name and let Claude enumerate subdomains, check DNS history, and flag configuration anomalies. all through natural language

Executive briefings: generate comprehensive domain intelligence reports by asking Claude to compile findings into a formatted summary

Learning and training: new team members can explore API capabilities conversationally without needing to read documentation

Radar MCP Tools for Claude Desktop (10)

These 10 tools become available when you connect Radar to Claude Desktop via MCP:

autocomplete

Provides address or place suggestions as a user types

calculate_route_distance

Calculates travel distance and duration between two points

calculate_routing_matrix

Calculates travel times and distances between multiple origins and destinations

forward_geocode

Converts a human-readable address into geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude)

get_location_context

Retrieves contextual information for a location, such as geofences and weather

ip_geocode

Retrieves geographic location information based on an IP address

reverse_geocode

Converts geographic coordinates into a human-readable address

search_geofences

Searches for active geofences near a specific location

search_places

Searches for nearby places (POIs) based on coordinates

validate_address

Validates and cleans up a structured address

Example Prompts for Radar in Claude Desktop

Ready-to-use prompts you can give your Claude Desktop agent to start working with Radar immediately.

"Geocode '1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA'."

"Find the driving distance between my office in San Francisco (lat, lng) and the San Jose airport."

"Locate the country based on the IP address 8.8.8.8."

Troubleshooting Radar MCP Server with Claude Desktop

Common issues when connecting Radar to Claude Desktop through the Vinkius, and how to resolve them.

Server not appearing after restart

Ensure the JSON is valid (no trailing commas). Check the file path: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\\Claude\\ (Windows).

Authentication error

Verify your Vinkius token is correct. Go to cloud.vinkius.com to regenerate it if needed.

Tools not showing in chat

Click the 🔌 icon at the bottom of the chat input. If it shows 0 tools, the server may still be connecting. wait a few seconds.

Radar + Claude Desktop FAQ

Common questions about integrating Radar MCP Server with Claude Desktop.

How does Claude Desktop discover MCP tools?

When Claude Desktop starts, it reads the claude_desktop_config.json file and connects to each configured MCP server. It calls the tools/list endpoint to fetch the schema for every available tool, then surfaces them as clickable options in the chat interface via the 🔌 icon.

What happens if the MCP server is temporarily unavailable?

Claude Desktop handles disconnections gracefully. if the server is unreachable at startup, the tools simply won't appear. Once the server becomes available again, restarting Claude Desktop will re-establish the connection. There is no timeout penalty or error loop.

Can I connect multiple MCP servers simultaneously?

Yes. You can add as many servers as you need in the mcpServers section of the config file. Each server appears as a separate tool provider, and Claude can use tools from multiple servers in a single conversation turn.

Is there a limit on the number of tools per server?

Claude Desktop can handle hundreds of tools per server. However, for optimal LLM performance, Vinkius servers are designed to expose focused, well-documented tool sets rather than overwhelming the model with too many options.

Does Claude Desktop support Streamable HTTP transport?

Yes. Claude Desktop supports both SSE (Server-Sent Events) and the newer Streamable HTTP transport that Vinkius uses. Simply provide the server URL. Claude auto-negotiates the transport protocol.