HAL MCP Server

Hal mcp server lets Claude, Cursor and other MCP clients work with HAL directly. HAL (HTTP API Layer) - An MCP server that provides HTTP API capabilities to Large Language Models with OpenAPI/Swagger integration.

What HAL does

HAL is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides HTTP API capabilities to Large Language Models. It allows LLMs to make HTTP requests and interact with web APIs through a secure, controlled interface. HAL can also automatically generate tools from OpenAPI/Swagger specifications for seamless API integration.

Key capabilities

• HTTP GET/POST/PUT/PATCH/DELETE/OPTIONS/HEAD Requests — Fetch and send data to any HTTP endpoint
• Secure Secret Management — Environment-based secrets with {secrets.key} substitution and automatic redaction
• Swagger/OpenAPI Integration — Automatically generate tools from API specifications
• Built-in Documentation — Self-documenting API reference
• Secure — Runs in isolated environment with controlled access
• Fast — Built with TypeScript and optimized for performance

Tools it exposes

Once connected, the assistant can call these 6 tools directly:

• url — https://api.example.com/v1
• name — id
• Examples — The Examples tool exposed by this server
• Prerequisites — The Prerequisites tool exposed by this server
• Setup — The Setup tool exposed by this server
• Scripts — The Scripts tool exposed by this server

Installing the hal mcp server

The server is distributed via npm as will, so most clients can run it without a manual build step. Add it to your MCP client's configuration and restart the client to pick it up — the copy-paste configs for Claude Desktop, Claude Code and Cursor are on this page.

Configuration

Before the server will start you need to supply 8 environment variables: HAL_SWAGGER_FILE, HAL_API_BASE_URL, HAL_SECRET_API_KEY, HAL_SECRET_USERNAME, HAL_SECRET_PASSWORD, HAL_SECRET_TOKEN, HAL_SECRET_MICROSOFT_API_KEY, STORAGE_ACCESS_KEY. Keep credentials in your client's env block or a secrets manager rather than committing them.

Requirements

• Node.js 18 or later - npm or yarn

Where it fits

Knowledge and memory servers address the most frustrating trait of language models — walking into every conversation with no recollection of the last one. HAL sits in that group, and the shape of its toolset — url, name, Examples among others — tells you what it is really for. Worth comparing against the other knowledge memory servers in this directory before you commit to one, since several overlap in scope but differ sharply in setup cost and permissions.

Practical notes

• This server runs locally, so it operates with whatever access your machine and its credentials already have. Scope that deliberately rather than by default.
• It will not start until its required credentials are present, so set those before wondering why the tools never appear.
• Maintained by DeanWard, written in TypeScript.
• MCP clients ask for confirmation before each tool call by default. Keep that on while you learn what the hal mcp server actually does with your data.
• Every entry in this directory is reviewed by hand before it goes live, and details are checked against the project's own documentation.