Get started with the Azure MCP Server in Cline

The Azure MCP Server uses the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to standardize integrations between AI apps and external tools and data sources, allowing for AI systems to perform operations that are context-aware of your Azure resources.

In this article, you learn how to complete the following tasks:

• Install and authenticate to the Azure MCP Server
• Connect to Azure MCP Server using Cline's AI-powered assistant
• Run prompts to test Azure MCP Server operations and interact with Azure resources

Prerequisites

• An Azure account with an active subscription
• Cline installed
• Node.js LTS installed

Install the Azure MCP Server

To install and configure the Azure MCP Server in Cline:

1. Open the Cline panel in your editor.

2. Select Manage MCP Servers to open the MCP Servers flyout, and then select the Settings icon.

   

3. On the MCP Servers section of the panel, select Configure MCP Servers to open the cline_mcp_settings.json file for editing.

4. Add the following configuration to the mcpServers JSON object:

   "Azure MCP Server": {
     "command": "npx",
     "args": [
       "-y",
       "@azure/mcp@latest",
       "server",
       "start"
     ]
   }
   

   

5. Select Done to close the configuration panel and return to the chat interface.

Authenticate to Azure

Azure MCP Server provides a seamless authentication experience using Azure accounts and Microsoft Entra ID. To use Azure MCP Server, you must first authenticate to Azure using local development tools such as the Azure CLI, Azure Developer CLI, Visual Studio, or Visual Studio Code. Azure MCP Server automatically discovers your credentials from these tools and uses them to authenticate to Azure services.

1. For example, to sign in using the Azure CLI:

   az login
   

2. Verify your authentication status by running the following command to see which account and subscription you're currently signed in with:

   az account show
   

3. Ensure your user account has the appropriate role assignments for the Azure services you want to interact with. The Azure resources you intend to access with Azure MCP Server must already exist within your Azure subscription. For example, common role assignments include:

   • Blob Storage Data Contributor - Read and write blob data in storage accounts.
   • Storage Account Contributor - Manage storage account configurations.
   • Contributor - General resource management across your subscription.
   • Reader - Read-only access to Azure resources.

   For more information about role assignments and local development authentication, see Authenticate .NET apps to Azure services during local development.

Use prompts to test the Azure MCP Server

1. On the Cline chat panel, enter a prompt that utilizes Azure MCP Server capabilities, such as:

   List my Azure storage accounts
   

2. If you're prompted to authenticate to Azure, run the suggested auth tool to sign-in through the browser.

   Note

   Cline doesn't prompt you to sign in to Azure if you're already authenticated via other local tooling such as the Azure CLI.

3. Cline prompts you to run a tool to retrieve the storage accounts, such as storage account list. Select Run tool to continue.

   The output should resemble the following text:

   The following resource groups are available for your subscription:
   
   1. **DefaultResourceGroup-EUS** (Location: `eastus`)
   2. **rg-testing** (Location: `centralus`)
   3. **rg-azd** (Location: `eastus2`)
   4. **msdocs-sample** (Location: `southcentralus`)
   5. **ai-testing** (Location: `eastus2`)
   
   Let me know if you need further details or actions related to any of these resource groups!
   

4. Explore more Azure MCP operations using other relevant prompts, such as:

   List all of the storage accounts in my subscription
   Get the available tables in my storage accounts
   Show me the configuration of my App Service instances
   

Next steps