Overview
This guide walks you through connecting a DataGalaxy MCP (Model Context Protocol) server to Claude Desktop. Once connected, Claude can access your DataGalaxy data catalog directly from the chat interface.
Claude Desktop does not natively support remote HTTP MCP servers in its config file, so we use a proxy tool called mcp-remote to bridge the connection.
Prerequisites
Requirement | Details |
Claude Desktop | Installed and running (macOS or Windows) |
Node.js LTS | Download from nodejs.org — required for npx and mcp-remote |
DataGalaxy Bearer token | A valid API token from your DataGalaxy workspace |
Setup Steps
1 | Install Node.js Go to nodejs.org, download the LTS version, and run the installer. This provides both node and npx on your machine. |
2 | Find the full path to npx Claude Desktop needs the absolute path to npx. Open a terminal and run the appropriate command for your OS. |
MacOS:
Open Terminal (Cmd + Space, type Terminal, press Enter):
which npx # Example output: /usr/local/bin/npx |
Windows:
Open Command Prompt (Win + R, type cmd, press Enter):
where npx # Example output: C:\Program Files\nodejs\npx.cmd |
Copy the full path returned - you will need it in Step 4.
3 | Open the Claude Desktop config file In Claude Desktop, go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config. This opens claude_desktop_config.json in your text editor. |
If you prefer to open it manually, the file is located at:
MacOS:
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json |
Windows:
%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json |
4 | Add the DataGalaxy MCP server configuration Add your configuration (see the JSON below) to the contents of the config file . Substitute the two placeholders with your values from Steps 2 and your DataGalaxy token. |
{ "mcpServers": { "datagalaxy-server": { "command": "<FULL_PATH_TO_NPX>", "args": [ "-y", "mcp-remote@latest", "https://<your instance>.api.datagalaxy.com/mcp/", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_TOKEN>", "--header", "X-API-Base-URL: https://<your instance>.api.datagalaxy.com/", "--header", "X-Source-Request: claude-client", "--header", "Accept: application/json, text/event-stream" ] } } } |
Placeholder | Replace with |
<FULL_PATH_TO_NPX> | Full path from Step 2 (e.g. /usr/local/bin/npx or C:\Program Files\nodejs\npx.cmd) |
| <YOUR_INSTANCE> | your instance name |
<YOUR_TOKEN> | Your DataGalaxy Bearer token |
⚠️ Note: Never share your config file or commit it to version control — it contains your API token. |
5 | Restart Claude Desktop Fully quit Claude Desktop and reopen it. Claude must restart to pick up config changes. |
MacOS:
Press Cmd + Q to quit, then reopen Claude Desktop from Applications. |
Windows:
Right-click the Claude icon in the taskbar and select Quit, then reopen from the Start menu. |
6 | Verify the connection Open a new chat in Claude Desktop. If the server connected successfully, Claude will have access to DataGalaxy tools. You can ask Claude to list available DataGalaxy tools to confirm. |
Troubleshooting
"Not valid MCP server configurations" — entries skipped
This happens when using type: streamable_http directly in the config. Claude Desktop does not support this format. Always use the npx mcp-remote approach described in Step 4.
"Could not attach to MCP server"
Check the Claude Desktop log file for details:
MacOS:
~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp-server-datagalaxy-server.log |
Windows:
%APPDATA%\Claude\logs\mcp-server-datagalaxy-server.log |
Common causes:
- npx path is wrong - use the full absolute path from Step 2
- Node.js is not installed - install from nodejs.org and retry
- Bearer token has expired - generate a new token in DataGalaxy
- Network issue - verify the DataGalaxy URL is reachable from your machine
"Failed to spawn process: No such file or directory"
Claude Desktop cannot find npx. Make sure you are using the full absolute path in the command field, not just npx.
Testing the endpoint manually
Run this in Terminal (macOS) or Command Prompt (Windows) to verify your token and URL work independently of Claude:
curl -X POST https://<your instance>.api.datagalaxy.com/mcp/ \ -H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_TOKEN>" \ -H "X-API-Base-URL: https://<your instance>.api.datagalaxy.com/" \ -H "X-Source-Request: cursor-client" \ -H "Accept: application/json, text/event-stream" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{}},"id":1}' |
curl -X POST https://<your instance>.api.datagalaxy.com/mcp/ ^ -H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_TOKEN>" ^ -H "X-API-Base-URL: https://<your instance>.api.datagalaxy.com/" ^ -H "X-Source-Request: cursor-client" ^ -H "Accept: application/json, text/event-stream" ^ -H "Content-Type: application/json" ^ -d "{\"jsonrpc\":\"2.0\",\"method\":\"initialize\",\"params\":{\"protocolVersion\":\"2024-11-05\",\"capabilities\":{}},\"id\":1}" |
A successful response returns a JSON object with protocolVersion. An error indicates a token or URL problem.
For Claude Code CLI, use ~/.claude/settings.json (macOS) or %USERPROFILE%\.claude\settings.json (Windows) with type: "http" instead of the npx mcp-remote approach.