The MCP (Model Context Protocol) ecosystem just got a major usability upgrade: Claude Desktop Extensions (.mcpb).
Instead of asking users to hand-edit claude_desktop_config.json, extensions allow one-click install with secure credential storage.
Our use case: AgentShare — a price API for AI agents.
Challenge: Our MCP server is remote (Streamable HTTP), not local stdio. Standard extension examples assume local Node/Python servers.
Our solution: Pack mcp-remote inside the bundle. The server/index.js becomes a thin wrapper that spawns mcp-remote with the remote URL and user's API key (passed via user_config).
Key manifest.json snippet:
"server": {
"type": "node",
"mcp_config": {
"command": "node",
"args": [
"${__dirname}/server/index.js",
"https://agentshare.dev/mcp",
"--header",
"X-API-Key:${user_config.api_key}"
]
}
}
Result: Claude users can install AgentShare in seconds. The API key stays in Claude's secure storage, never exposed in config files.
We've submitted the extension to Anthropic's directory. No guarantee of acceptance, but it's a milestone for making MCP accessible to non-developers.
Try it: The .mcpb file is on GitHub. Manual install works today.
#mcp #claude #aiagents #api