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MCP Server / Claude Desktop

Claude Desktop

Claude Desktop is Anthropic's Mac / Windows desktop app. This guide walks through adding Norn's MCP server to it. If you haven't yet, read the MCP overview first.

NOTE

Claude Desktop's built-in "Connectors" panel lists Anthropic-approved MCP servers from the Software Directory. Norn is applying for that directory — once approved, connection will be one click. Until then, connect Norn as a custom connector.

Option A — Connectors UI (recommended)

Requires a recent Claude Desktop version.

  1. Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Connectors.
  2. Click "Add Custom Connector" (button wording varies between releases — look for "Custom", "Add server", or a
    code
    +
    icon in the Connectors area).
  3. Enter:
    • Name:
      code
      Norn
    • URL:
      code
      https://norn-data.com/mcp
    • Transport:
      code
      HTTP (streamable)
  4. Claude Desktop opens a browser window to Norn's login page. Sign in with your Norn credentials and approve the
    code
    mcp:read
    and
    code
    mcp:write
    scopes.
  5. Once the browser redirects back, Norn appears in the Connectors panel as Connected.
  6. Start a new Claude conversation and ask: "List my Norn organizations."

Option B — Config file with
code
mcp-remote
(older Claude Desktop)

Older Claude Desktop builds don't have the Connectors UI and speak MCP over stdio only. To connect to Norn's remote HTTP server from those versions, use the

code
mcp-remote
proxy — a small
code
npx
-run process that bridges stdio to Norn's HTTP endpoint and handles the OAuth handshake.

  1. Install Node.js (v18 or newer) if you don't already have it.

    code
    mcp-remote
    runs via
    code
    npx
    .

  2. Edit Claude Desktop's config file.

    • macOS:
      code
      ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
    • Windows:
      code
      %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

    Add the

    code
    norn
    entry inside
    code
    mcpServers
    :

    json
    {
  "mcpServers": {
    "norn": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://norn-data.com/mcp"]
    }
  }
}

    If you already have other MCP servers configured, add the

    code
    norn
    key alongside them — don't overwrite the file.

  3. Fully quit and reopen Claude Desktop so it picks up the config.

  4. The first time Claude Desktop uses the server,

    code
    mcp-remote
    opens a browser window to Norn's login page. Sign in with your Norn credentials and approve the requested scopes. Subsequent starts reuse the stored session.

  5. In a new Claude conversation, ask: "List my Norn organizations."

TIP

Which option should you use? If your Claude Desktop has a "Connectors" tab in Settings, use Option A — it's simpler and doesn't require Node.js. Only fall back to Option B if the Connectors UI is missing or your version can't add custom connectors.

Next steps

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MCP overview
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Claude Code