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MCP Troubleshooting

Most Kortex MCP problems have a short fix. Check that Chrome is open, the Kortex extension is signed in, and your key is still active. MCP is a standard way to let AI apps like Claude or ChatGPT use Kortex's tools. Find your problem below.

MCP Connection shows whether Kortex is connected, and lists your keys

Kortex says I need Pro​

MCP comes with Kortex Pro. On the free plan, Kortex refuses every request. See pricing.

My app says the server is unauthorised​

  • The header must read exactly Authorization: Bearer kx_mcp_…. That is the word Bearer, one space, then the key.
  • Check for an extra space or a new line that crept in when you pasted.
  • Open MCP Connection in the side panel's three-dots (⋯) menu. Check the key is still under Active keys.

Tools are listed, but every request fails or times out​

This usually means the extension cannot be reached. The server answers the list of tools by itself, so that always works. Real requests need your browser.

  • Is Chrome open? Minimised is fine. Quit is not.
  • Is the Kortex extension turned on and signed in to the same account?
  • Ask your assistant to run get_status. It reports whether Kortex is connected.
  • Open the Kortex side panel once. That wakes the extension right away.

The first request takes forever, then everything is fast​

This is normal. Chrome puts idle extensions to sleep, and Kortex can take up to 30 seconds to wake. Only the first request of a session pays for it. If your app gives up quickly, raise its tool time-out to at least 60 seconds.

My assistant says a tool does not exist​

Your key's profile is hiding it. A Read-only key does not see tools that change things. That is by design. Make a Standard key if the assistant needs to make changes. Also check that you did not disable that tool by name, and that a Just my chats key was not chosen if you need notebook tools.

It is working on the wrong Google account​

Ask your assistant to run list_accounts. Then tell it to pass the email you want as the account argument. Your assistant's requests never change the account chosen in your dashboard, so the two can differ.

"Rate limit exceeded"​

The limit is 60 calls a minute for one key, and 120 a minute across all your keys. The message says how long to wait. If an assistant is stuck in a loop, stop it. The limit is protecting you. See Security and Limits.

Claude Desktop shows no Kortex tools​

  • Node.js must be installed, because the config runs npx mcp-remote.
  • The JSON must be valid. A single extra comma at the end of a line switches off the whole file without a word.
  • Quit Claude Desktop fully and open it again. Closing the window is not enough.
  • Look in Claude Desktop's MCP log for the start-up lines from the kortex server.

Answers come back without sources​

Pass the session_id from your first ask_question back on follow-up questions. Without it, each question starts a fresh chat, and Gemini Notebook has less to work from. If a source is still being read, is_source_ready will say so.

Still stuck​

When you contact support, include the tool name, the exact error text, and what get_status says. Those three things settle most reports on the first reply.