Skip to main content

Connect Cursor to Willow

Get Cursor connected and running your first tool call.

Prerequisites​

  • Cursor (current version)
  • Your organization's Willow URL

Step 1: Get Your Connection URL​

In Willow, click Connect MCP at the bottom of the sidebar. Select Cursor from the client grid.

You'll see your connection URL and two options:

  • Add to Cursor (recommended): one-click setup. Cursor opens and configures automatically.
  • Copy URL: paste it manually if you prefer (see Manual Configuration below).
Willow Connect MCP modal with Cursor selected, showing the Add to Cursor and Add to VS Code buttons

Step 2: Configure Cursor​

If you used the one-click button, Cursor will open and configure automatically. Skip to Step 3.

Manual Configuration​

  1. Press Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P to open Command Palette
  2. Search for "Cursor Settings" and open it
  3. Go to Tools & MCP
  4. Click Add Custom MCP Server
  5. Cursor opens ~/.cursor/mcp.json
  6. Add this entry inside mcpServers:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "willow": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://yourorg.mcp-s.com/mcp?mcp=github"
    }
  }
}

Replace yourorg with your organization name and github with the server name.

mcp.json open in Cursor showing the Willow entry with type http and the connection URL
  1. Save the file
  2. Restart Cursor

Step 3: Authenticate​

After Cursor restarts, go to Cursor Settings → Tools & MCP. You'll see a Willow entry showing "Needs authentication."

Cursor Tools and MCP settings showing Willow entry with Needs authentication status and Connect button

Click Connect. Your browser opens. Log in to Willow if prompted. Willow will show "Authentication Successful" and attempt to redirect back to Cursor. When the "Open Cursor - URL Handler?" dialog appears, click Open Cursor - URL Handler.

Browser showing Willow Authentication Successful page and Open Cursor URL Handler dialog

Step 4: Verify It Works​

Back in Cursor Settings → Tools & MCP, Willow should show a green dot and "X tools enabled."

Cursor Tools and MCP showing Willow connected with green dot and 16 tools enabled

In Cursor chat, ask:

"List what tools you have access to in Willow MCP"

You should see the tools from your Willow MCP servers listed.

Cursor chat showing a list of available Willow MCP tools across connected servers

The tools you see will depend on which MCP servers your organization admin has installed, which tools on those servers they have enabled, and what tools each MCP server exposes. Your list may look different from the one shown here.

Troubleshooting​

Nothing happens when I ask for tools

  • Go to Cursor Settings → Tools & MCP and confirm the Willow entry shows as authenticated
  • Restart Cursor completely
  • Check that "type": "http" is in your config

Error: Connection refused

On this page