No tools discovered
Check that the downstream server supports initialize and tools/list, starts without interactive prompts, and does not write logs to stdout.
Documentation navigation
MCP Boundary docs
Troubleshooting
Common reasons a local MCP server does not show the expected tool surface.
Server starts in one client only
Some MCP servers assume a specific client environment. Wrap a plain command-based server first, then add client-specific behavior later.
Policy appears saved but inactive
Saved policy files are inactive until Runtime Mode starts again with that policy file. Check the Activity and Policy tabs after restart.