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Use Mel from other apps

Claude, Cursor, Windsurf and VS Code hand tasks to Mel through MCP.

Other apps on your computer, such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf and VS Code, can hand a task to Mel's coding agent and read back what it found or did. Mel runs as a local MCP server (mel mcp serve), which the other app starts itself.

Recording needed: Claude Desktop starting a Mel task in a folder, and Settings ▸ Agent mode ▸ Other apps with a granted folder

What you need

  1. Mel installed on the same computer. The MCP server is the mel program itself.
  2. A Mel API key, from your account page. See Mel API keys.
  3. The Mel API plan on your account. See pricing.
  4. Your own model key in Mel's Settings ▸ AI. Tasks run on your provider key.

The full setup, with the exact snippet for each app and the path to Mel on each system, is in Mel as an MCP server.

What the other app can do

The other app gets four tools: start a task in a folder, check a task (and wait for its result), cancel a task, and list tasks. A task runs until it's done, is cancelled, hits its time limit (one hour by default), or waits too long on a question to you.

Read-only unless you grant a folder

An app that calls Mel gets Mel's read and search tools only. To let it change things:

  • Grant a folder in Mel's Settings ▸ Agent mode ▸ Other apps (MCP server): add the folder, then turn on Edit files, Run commands, or both. A grant covers the folder and everything under it.
  • Or answer each time. If the calling app can pass Mel's questions on to you, each change Mel has no grant for comes to you as a question, one at a time.
  • Otherwise the change is refused, the task says so, and it carries on read-only.

These grants never affect your own conversations in Mel, and your Agent mode settings never apply to another app's tasks. Mel's browser, desktop control, connectors and memory are never offered to another app.

Where tasks are kept

Each task's transcript stays on your computer, in Mel's data folder under mcp-tasks/. It isn't in your conversation list and is never synced. Deleting all your data in Mel removes it.

Limitations

  • The other app must run on the same computer as Mel.
  • Needs the Mel API plan; see Mel API keys.

FAQ

Is this the same as the VS Code extension? No. The VS Code extension is Mel's own chat inside VS Code, on your normal Mel plan. This page is for other apps' own agents handing work to Mel.

Can I add MCP servers to Mel itself? Yes, that's the other direction. See MCP servers.