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MCP GatewayConnect Claude Desktop

Connect Claude Desktop

Connect Anthropic’s Claude Desktop app to Scrapewise via MCP. ~2 minutes.

Prerequisites

  • Claude Desktop  installed (macOS / Windows / Linux)
  • A Scrapewise API key with scope LLM_READ (read-only — recommended for first-time) or LLM_FULL (read + write). See Scopes.

Step 1 — Mint an MCP-capable key

In portal.scrapewise.ai : Settings → API Keys → Create new key.

Pick a name like claude-desktop and pick scope = LLM_READ for the first time. Copy the resulting sw_live_abc1234.<secret> string.

Step 2 — Open Claude Desktop’s config

In Claude Desktop:

  1. Click your avatar (top-right) → Settings
  2. Go to the Developer tab
  3. Click Edit Config

This opens claude_desktop_config.json in your default editor. Locations:

OSPath
macOS~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
Linux~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Step 3 — Add the Scrapewise config

If the file is empty (first MCP server), make it:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scrapewise": {
      "url": "https://mcp.scrapewise.ai",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer sw_live_abc1234.your-secret-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

If the file already has other MCP servers, add the scrapewise entry inside the existing mcpServers block:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "existing-server": { ... },
    "scrapewise": {
      "url": "https://mcp.scrapewise.ai",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer sw_live_abc1234.your-secret-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace sw_live_abc1234.your-secret-here with the key you copied in Step 1.

Step 4 — Restart Claude Desktop

Fully quit Claude Desktop (not just close the window — Cmd-Q on macOS, full close on Windows/Linux). Re-launch.

Step 5 — Verify

In a new conversation, type / in the input box. You should see Scrapewise tools listed (scrapewise_list_scrapers, scrapewise_preview_scraper_from_url, etc.).

Try this prompt:

List my scrapewise scrapers

Claude should call scrapewise_list_scrapers and show you the result.

Troubleshooting

Tools don’t appear

  • Did you fully quit Claude Desktop and re-open? Just closing the window isn’t enough.
  • Check the config JSON is valid — paste it into a JSON validator if unsure.
  • Look at Claude Desktop’s MCP logs:
    • macOS: ~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp*.log
    • Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\Logs\mcp*.log

The log will tell you if it can’t reach mcp.scrapewise.ai or if auth fails.

401 Unauthorized on every call

The bearer string is wrong. Re-check:

  • The Authorization value is exactly Bearer (with a single trailing space) followed by the full key
  • The key string is sw_live_<prefix>.<secret> — both halves separated by a .
  • The key hasn’t been revoked (check Settings → API Keys in the portal)

403 scope_rejected

Your key’s scope can’t call this tool. Common: you minted a USER-scope key. The MCP gateway requires LLM_READ or higher.

Mint a new key with LLM_READ, update the config, re-restart Claude Desktop.

Tools appear but calls fail with 429

You’re being rate-limited. Wait the Retry-After seconds shown in the response.

Latency feels slow

First tool call after a restart has to establish the MCP session — typically under 2 seconds. Subsequent calls are fast. If a single call is slow, check Settings → Usage for the cost counter (heavy run_scraper calls can be queued).

What’s next

OverviewConnect Claude Code