robotmcp--ros-mcp-server/docs/install/http-transport.md

HTTP Transport

By default, AI clients launch the MCP server automatically using the stdio transport. This is the simplest setup and works for most users.

As an alternative, you can run the MCP server as a standalone HTTP service using the streamable-http transport. This is useful when the MCP server needs to be accessed by multiple clients, run on a different machine from the AI client (for example run on the robot), or when installing the MCP server from source.

When to Use HTTP Transport

	STDIO (Default)	HTTP/Streamable-HTTP
Best for	Local development, single-user setups	Remote access, multiple clients, production deployments
Pros	Simple setup, no network configuration needed	Network accessible, multiple clients can connect
Cons	MCP server and AI client must be on the same machine	Requires network configuration, server must be started manually
Use case	Running MCP server directly with your AI client	Remote robots, team environments, web-based clients, development

Start the MCP Server in HTTP Mode

uvx ros-mcp --transport streamable-http --host 127.0.0.1 --port 9000

The server will start listening at http://127.0.0.1:9000/mcp.

To make it accessible from other machines on the network, use --host 0.0.0.0.

Configure Your AI Client

Point your AI client to the MCP server's HTTP endpoint. The configuration varies by client, but the URL is the same:

http://<server-ip>:9000/mcp

Example JSON configuration (used by Claude Desktop, Cursor, and others):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ros-mcp-server-http": {
      "name": "ROS-MCP Server (http)",
      "transport": "http",
      "url": "http://127.0.0.1:9000/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Environment Variables (Legacy)

The server can also be configured using environment variables instead of command-line arguments:

export MCP_TRANSPORT=streamable-http
export MCP_HOST=127.0.0.1
export MCP_PORT=9000
uvx ros-mcp

Command-line arguments take precedence over environment variables.

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For the default stdio setup, see the client setup guides.