Quickstart: VS Code

VS Code 1.99 and later support MCP servers natively (no extension required for connecting; Cline or Continue handle the agent UX).

Install

Open VS Code’s user settings.json (Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+P → “Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON)”) and add:

{
  "chat.mcp.servers": {
    "pipeworx": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Or use the deeplink badge from any pack page:

vscode:mcp/install?<encoded-config>

VS Code Insiders uses vscode-insiders: instead of vscode:. Both URI schemes are emitted by the pack page install row.

Verify

Open the chat sidebar (Cmd/Ctrl+Alt+I) and click the 🔧 tools indicator. Pipeworx should be listed with ~20 tools (or 1,007 if you used ?task= or vertical scoping).

Ask in the chat:

Use Pipeworx to fetch the current 30-year mortgage rate.

VS Code’s chat extension picks ask_pipeworx (or fred_get_series directly), routes through the gateway, and renders the result inline.

Workspace-level vs user-level config

The example above uses settings.json at the user level (applies to every workspace). For project-specific MCP setups, put the same JSON in .vscode/settings.json at the workspace root. This is useful when:

  • Different projects need different scope (e.g., one workspace uses ?vertical=housing, another uses ?vertical=fintech)
  • You want to commit the MCP config so teammates inherit it
  • You’re testing a new pack and don’t want it polluting your default chat tools

Scope by domain

{
  "chat.mcp.servers": {
    "pipeworx-housing": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp?vertical=housing"
    }
  }
}

Or scope by ad-hoc task:

{
  "chat.mcp.servers": {
    "pipeworx-task": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp?task=academic+papers"
    }
  }
}

See context tax for why scoping matters in VS Code specifically — VS Code Chat sends tool definitions on every turn, so unscoped Pipeworx burns context fast.

BYO API keys

For paid data sources (FRED, ATTOM, Altos), pass the key per call as _apiKey in tool args. There’s no VS Code-side configuration for this — the tool’s input schema declares the parameter and your agent fills it in. See BYO keys.

Troubleshooting

MCP setting not recognized. Check VS Code version: code --version. Need 1.99 or newer. On older versions, install Cline which provides MCP support back to VS Code 1.85.

Tools list empty. The chat.mcp.servers namespace requires the chat experience to be enabled. Check Settings → Chat is enabled and you’re signed into a chat backend (GitHub Copilot, Claude, etc.).

Connection error. Test the gateway directly:

curl -X POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/list"}'

If this works but VS Code shows “connection failed,” the issue is in VS Code’s URL parsing — make sure the JSON has no trailing comma or smart quotes.

Rate-limited. Anonymous tier is 50 calls/day. Sign up for 2,000/day, or pass Authorization: Bearer <token> via headers field in the server config.

Want richer agent UX. Install Cline on top — it uses the same MCP config but adds a fuller agent surface (tool browser, auto-approve, multi-turn planning).

Last reviewed May 8, 2026