Bring Time Tracking
to Cursor
Learn how to connect Buddy Punch to Cursor and start using 6 AI agent tools in minutes. Fully managed, enterprise secure, and ready to use without writing a single line of code.
What is the Buddy Punch MCP Server?
Connect your Buddy Punch (Enterprise) account to any AI agent and take full control of your workforce time tracking and automated payroll workflows through natural conversation.
What you can do
- Punch Orchestration — Programmatically perform high-fidelity punch-in and punch-out actions for employees, including adding descriptive metadata and shift notes in real-time
- Workforce Visibility — List and manage employee profiles and administrative settings programmatically to maintain a perfectly coordinated organizational structure
- Time Entry Intelligence — Retrieve detailed high-fidelity time cards and entry history by pay period to coordinate payroll data collection directly through your agent
- Schedule Monitoring — Access and monitor work schedules and published shift updates to oversee team distribution and labor capacity efficiently
- Pay Cycle Management — Retrieve complete directories of defined pay periods and historical cycles to maintain high-fidelity financial records
How it works
1. Subscribe to this server
2. Retrieve your Subscription Key from the Buddy Punch Developer Hub (Enterprise plan required)
3. Start managing your team's attendance and schedules from Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client
No more manual chasing of missing time cards or digging through complex shift tables. Your AI acts as your dedicated workforce administrator and payroll coordinator.
Who is this for?
- HR Managers — instantly retrieve employee time summaries and log manual punches using natural language commands
- Operations Leads — monitor team shift distribution and verify clock-in accuracy without leaving your workspace
- Payroll Specialists — automate the collection of structured time entry data for internal reporting through simple AI queries
Built-in capabilities (6)
Create a new employee
List all employees
List pay periods
List time entries
List work schedules
Perform a punch action
Why Cursor?
Cursor's Agent mode turns Buddy Punch into an in-editor superpower. Ask Cursor to generate code using live data from Buddy Punch and it fetches, processes, and writes. all in a single agentic loop. 6 tools appear alongside file editing and terminal access, creating a unified development environment grounded in real-time information.
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Agent mode turns Cursor into an autonomous coding assistant that can read files, run commands, and call MCP tools without switching context
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Cursor's Composer feature can generate entire files using real-time data fetched through MCP. no copy-pasting from external dashboards
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MCP tools appear alongside built-in tools like file reading and terminal access, creating a unified agentic environment
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VS Code extension compatibility means your existing workflow, keybindings, and extensions all work alongside MCP tools
Buddy Punch in Cursor
Buddy Punch and 3,400+ other MCP servers. One platform. One governance layer.
Teams that connect Buddy Punch to Cursor through Vinkius don't need to source, host, or maintain individual MCP servers. Every tool call runs inside a hardened runtime with credential isolation, DLP, and a signed audit chain.
Raw MCP | Vinkius | |
|---|---|---|
| Server catalog | Find and host yourself | 3,400+ managed |
| Infrastructure | Self-hosted | Sandboxed V8 isolates |
| Credential handling | Plaintext in config | Vault + runtime injection |
| Data loss prevention | None | Configurable DLP policies |
| Kill switch | None | Global instant shutdown |
| Financial circuit breakers | None | Per-server limits + alerts |
| Audit trail | None | Ed25519 signed logs |
| SIEM log streaming | None | Splunk, Datadog, Webhook |
| Honeytokens | None | Canary alerts on leak |
| Custom domains | Not applicable | DNS challenge verified |
| GDPR compliance | Manual effort | Automated purge + export |
Why teams choose Vinkius for Buddy Punch in Cursor
The Buddy Punch 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. All 6 tools execute in hardened sandboxes optimized for native MCP execution.
Your AI agents in Cursor only access the data you authorize, with DLP that blocks sensitive information from ever reaching the model, kill switch for instant shutdown, and up to 60% token savings. Enterprise-grade infrastructure, zero maintenance.
* 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
How Vinkius secures
Buddy Punch for Cursor
Every tool call from Cursor to the Buddy Punch MCP Server is protected by DLP redaction, cryptographic audit chains, V8 sandbox isolation, kill switch, and financial circuit breakers.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find my Buddy Punch Subscription Key?
Log in to the Buddy Punch Developer Hub, navigate to your profile, and copy your Subscription Key (requires an active Enterprise plan).
Can I punch in an employee via AI?
Yes! The punch_in_out tool allows your agent to record a punch action by providing the employee ID and punch type (In/Out) programmatically.
How do I retrieve time entries for payroll?
Use the list_time_entries tool to retrieve detailed historical records of all work duration and breaks for the current pay period.
What is Agent mode and why does it matter for MCP?
Agent mode is Cursor's autonomous execution mode where the AI can perform multi-step tasks: reading files, editing code, running terminal commands, and calling MCP tools. Without Agent mode, Cursor operates in a simpler ask-and-answer mode that doesn't support tool calling. Always ensure you're in Agent mode when working with MCP servers.
Where does Cursor store MCP configuration?
Cursor looks for MCP server configurations in a mcp.json file. You can configure servers at the project level (.cursor/mcp.json in your project root) or globally (~/.cursor/mcp.json). Project-level configs take precedence.
Can Cursor use MCP tools in inline edits?
No. MCP tools are only available in Agent mode through the chat panel. Inline completions and Tab suggestions do not trigger MCP tool calls. This is by design. tool calls require user visibility and approval.
How do I verify MCP tools are loaded?
Open Settings → Features → MCP and look for your server name. A green indicator means the server is connected. You can also check Agent mode's available tools by clicking the tools dropdown in the chat panel.
Tools not appearing in Cursor
Ensure you are in Agent mode (not Ask mode). MCP tools only work in Agent mode.
Server shows as disconnected
Check Settings → Features → MCP and verify the server status. Try clicking the refresh button.