--- title: "What is the Tarkle MCP server?" description: "Learn what the Tarkle MCP server lets an AI assistant do with your files, which assistants connect, and where to start." canonical: "https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/what-is-the-tarkle-mcp-server-2" last-updated: 2026-11-04 --- # What is the Tarkle MCP server? The Tarkle MCP server lets an AI assistant work with your Tarkle files, in the workspaces you can open. The Tarkle MCP server lets an AI assistant work with your Tarkle files. You ask the assistant in plain words, and it carries out the task in your Tarkle account, for example uploading a file to a workspace and creating a share link for it. This article explains what MCP is, what the assistant can and cannot see, which assistants connect, and where to start. ## What MCP means MCP stands for Model Context Protocol. It is the standard the Tarkle MCP server uses to talk to an AI assistant. The server runs at https://mcp.tarkle.com/mcp and is on for every Tarkle account. An assistant that connects works as the person who connected it, so it reaches only the workspaces that person can open. ## What you can ask an assistant to do - **Files and folders:** list your workspaces, list files and folders, and create a folder. - **Uploads:** upload a file from your computer, save text the assistant holds (up to 3 MB), or have Tarkle fetch a file from a public https address (up to 50 MB). - **Share links and file requests:** create a public share link for files, audio or video, create a file request with a public link where people send you files, and list the files submitted to a file request. - **Contacts and team:** list and add contacts, turn client portal access on or off, and list, invite, change or remove members. - **Brand pages:** list, read, create and edit brand pages. For more detail on each area, read [What an AI assistant can do in Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/what-an-ai-assistant-can-do-in-tarkle). The assistant works through a fixed list of tools. That list has no tool for deleting files, changing your plan or buying anything. Creating a share link, inviting a member, changing a member's role and removing a member wait for your approval, because the assistant describes the action first and runs it only after you confirm. Tarkle sends no email when a share link or a file request is created, so you send the link yourself. ## What the assistant can and cannot see The assistant sees the workspaces of the person who connected it, and the files and file requests in them. When it lists workspaces, each one shows that person's role and whether files can be uploaded and shared there. Uploads, share links and file requests work only in the workspaces where that is allowed. A workspace the person cannot open stays closed to the assistant. ## Which assistants connect ChatGPT, Claude and Grok connect in the browser, and they need no key. Add Tarkle as a custom connector with the server address above, sign in to Tarkle, and approve access when asked. The steps are in [How to connect ChatGPT to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/how-to-connect-chatgpt-to-tarkle), [How to connect Claude to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/how-to-connect-claude-to-tarkle) and [How to connect Grok to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/how-to-connect-grok-to-tarkle). Coding assistants connect with an API key: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, VS Code with GitHub Copilot and Windsurf. Each one sends the key in an Authorization header, written as `Bearer `. Other assistants can connect too when they support remote MCP servers with custom headers. ## Get an API key for a coding assistant Only the owners and admins of your organization can create and see API keys. Open [Settings, API](https://tarkle.com/dashboard/settings/api) and stay on the **API keys** tab. A member who needs a key asks an owner or admin to make it. 1. Click **Create**, and type a **Name** for the key. 2. Under **Access**, choose **All workspaces**, or choose **Only selected workspaces** and tick the workspaces the key may reach. 3. Click **Create** in the dialog. The key appears there, and clicking it copies it. Keep it somewhere safe. To copy a key again later, open its row menu and choose **Copy token**. **Rename** and **Delete** are in the same menu. Delete stops the key at once. A key does what the MCP server can do in the workspaces it reaches, acting as the person who made it. A key limited to selected workspaces cannot reach the others, and it cannot create a workspace. A key cannot make purchases. A key marked **Legacy** has fewer permissions than a new key and cannot be copied, and the MCP server does not accept it either, so create a new key for the full set. ## How big a file an assistant can upload The size limit depends on where the assistant runs. An assistant on your own computer, such as Claude Code or Cursor, uploads files up to your plan's per-file limit. Free supports files up to 1 GB, and Pro and Agency support files up to 200 GB, as listed on [plans and pricing](https://tarkle.com/pricing). A chat assistant in a browser or app sends files up to 5 GB. For a larger file, it gives you a browser upload page where you pick the file yourself, and your plan's limit still applies. The full rules are in [How big a file an AI assistant can upload to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/how-big-a-file-an-ai-assistant-can-upload-to-tarkle). ## Where to start 1. Choose your assistant in the sections above. The steps are in [Connect an AI assistant to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/connect-an-ai-assistant-to-tarkle-browser-sign-in-or-a-token). 2. Ask the assistant: "List my Tarkle workspaces." A list of your workspaces means the connection works. If you build your own tools, the [MCP server developer documentation](https://tarkle.com/docs/mcp) describes the server in detail. ## Related articles - [Connect an AI assistant to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/connect-an-ai-assistant-to-tarkle-browser-sign-in-or-a-token) - [What an AI assistant can do in Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/what-an-ai-assistant-can-do-in-tarkle) - [How big a file an AI assistant can upload to Tarkle](https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/how-big-a-file-an-ai-assistant-can-upload-to-tarkle) Source: https://tarkle.com/help/ai-and-automation/what-is-the-tarkle-mcp-server-2