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now on npm · v0.2.1

Monitor websites
from Claude.

The hosted Visual Sentinel MCP server adds 106 monitoring tools to any AI client that speaks Model Context Protocol. Ask Claude what is down, triage an incident, change a monitor's settings, or create a new visual-regression monitor without leaving the conversation.

MIT · ESM · Node 18+ · 5 tools work without an API key

hosted server · nothing to install

Connect from Claude, ChatGPT and other assistants

Add Visual Sentinel as a remote MCP server (streamable HTTP). Your assistant asks you to sign in once, then calls all 106 tools. The local server below runs the 17 core ones. Setup for each assistant is in the next section.

If Claude itself stops answering, see Claude status for our latest check of claude.ai and the Claude API.

Server URL
https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp
Sign-in
OAuth. You sign in to Visual Sentinel, pick a workspace if you have more than one, and approve what the assistant asks to do. There is no key to copy.
Read access
See your monitors, incidents, alerts, alert channels, maintenance, status pages, servers and workspace settings
Write access
Create, change and delete monitors, alert channels and rules, incidents, maintenance, status pages, servers and workspace settings
Plan
The 101 account tools work on every paid plan, like API keys. On other plans the assistant can still connect and use the 5 public tools.
Without an account
https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp/public serves the 5 public tools with no sign-in.
Limits
Without an account the free tools allow 300 calls a day and about 10 a minute per IP address (not per domain checked). A connected account gets 120 calls a minute per connection, and the free check tools stay at about 10 a minute within that.
Disconnect
Remove an assistant at any time in Workspace settings, under Developer. It loses access on its next request.

connect your AI agent

Setup for each assistant

Signed in to Visual Sentinel? Open Connect your AI agent at the top of any workspace page for the same steps with copy buttons. Or hand your assistant visualsentinel.com/agents/setup.md, instructions it can follow from start to finish.

Claude Code

Sign in with OAuth

Adds Visual Sentinel to Claude Code. You sign in once in your browser.

  1. Run the command below in your terminal.
  2. Start Claude Code, type /mcp and choose visualsentinel. Or run: claude mcp login visualsentinel
  3. Sign in to Visual Sentinel in the browser window that opens, choose the workspace and what the agent may do, then go back to Claude Code.
claude mcp add --transport http visualsentinel --scope user https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp

With an API key instead (Command with an API key):

claude mcp add --transport http visualsentinel --scope user https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp --header "Authorization: Bearer $VS_API_KEY"

Claude Code documentation (opens in a new tab)

Cursor

Sign in with OAuth

Opens Cursor and adds Visual Sentinel. Cursor asks you to sign in when it first connects.

  1. Click Install. A Cursor page opens and your browser asks to open Cursor.
  2. In Cursor, confirm that you want to add the visualsentinel server.
  3. When Cursor shows that visualsentinel needs a sign-in, start it and sign in to Visual Sentinel in your browser.
  4. Or add the entry below to ~/.cursor/mcp.json yourself.
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "url": "https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp"
    }
  }
}

With an API key instead (~/.cursor/mcp.json with an API key):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "url": "https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:VS_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor documentation (opens in a new tab)

Codex

API key in VS_API_KEY

Adds Visual Sentinel to the Codex CLI, using an API key kept in an environment variable.

  1. Create an API key in Visual Sentinel: Workspace settings, then Developer access. Pick read only, or read and write if the agent should make changes.
  2. Add the lines below to ~/.codex/config.toml.
  3. Set VS_API_KEY to the key in the environment the app starts from. Keep the key out of chats and out of files you share.
  4. Start Codex.
[mcp_servers.visualsentinel]
url = "https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp"
bearer_token_env_var = "VS_API_KEY"

Create the key in Workspace settings, under Developer access. Codex documentation (opens in a new tab)

VS Code

Sign in with OAuth

Opens VS Code and adds Visual Sentinel for agent mode. You sign in once in your browser.

  1. Click Install. Your browser asks to open VS Code.
  2. In VS Code, confirm the install.
  3. The first time the server starts, VS Code opens your browser. Sign in to Visual Sentinel there.
  4. Or run the command below in a terminal.
code --add-mcp '{"name":"visualsentinel","type":"http","url":"https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp"}'

With an API key instead (mcp.json with an API key):

{
  "inputs": [
    {
      "type": "promptString",
      "id": "vs-api-key",
      "description": "Visual Sentinel API key",
      "password": true
    }
  ],
  "servers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${input:vs-api-key}"
      }
    }
  }
}

VS Code documentation (opens in a new tab)

Claude (web and desktop)

Sign in with OAuth

Adds Visual Sentinel as a custom connector in your Claude account. You sign in once.

  1. In Claude, open Customize, then Connectors. On a Team or Enterprise plan an owner adds it in Organization settings, then Connectors.
  2. Click +, then Add custom connector.
  3. Name it Visual Sentinel and paste the server address: https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp
  4. Keep the suggested sign-in settings and click Add.
  5. Click Connect and sign in to Visual Sentinel.

Claude (web and desktop) documentation (opens in a new tab)

ChatGPT

Sign in with OAuth

Adds Visual Sentinel to ChatGPT on the web as a custom MCP server. What it may do depends on your ChatGPT plan.

  1. Open ChatGPT on the web. In a Business or Enterprise workspace, an admin may first need to allow custom MCP connectors (developer mode).
  2. Go to Plugins, click +, then Add custom MCP server.
  3. Name it Visual Sentinel and paste the server address: https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp
  4. Choose OAuth for authentication, review the warning and click Create as a plugin.
  5. Install the plugin, then sign in to Visual Sentinel when asked.

ChatGPT documentation (opens in a new tab)

Antigravity

Sign in with OAuth

Adds Visual Sentinel to Antigravity. It signs you in through your browser when it first connects.

  1. Open the MCP servers manager in Antigravity and choose to view the raw config, or open ~/.gemini/config/mcp_config.json.
  2. Add the entry below and save.
  3. Refresh the list of MCP servers, then sign in to Visual Sentinel in your browser.
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "serverUrl": "https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Antigravity documentation (opens in a new tab)

Gemini CLI

API key in VS_API_KEY

Adds Visual Sentinel to Gemini CLI with an API key.

  1. Create an API key in Visual Sentinel: Workspace settings, then Developer access. Pick read only, or read and write if the agent should make changes.
  2. Set VS_API_KEY to the key in your terminal, then run the command below. The key is saved in ~/.gemini/settings.json.
  3. Start Gemini CLI and type /mcp to check that visualsentinel is connected.
gemini mcp add --transport http --scope user --header "Authorization: Bearer $VS_API_KEY" visualsentinel https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp

Create the key in Workspace settings, under Developer access. Gemini CLI documentation (opens in a new tab)

Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

API key in VS_API_KEY

Adds Visual Sentinel to Cascade in Windsurf, now Devin Desktop, with an API key.

  1. Create an API key in Visual Sentinel: Workspace settings, then Developer access. Pick read only, or read and write if the agent should make changes.
  2. In the Cascade panel, open the ... menu at the top right and click Open MCP config file in the MCPs section. On macOS and Linux it is ~/.config/devin/mcp_config.json, on Windows %APPDATA%\devin\mcp_config.json.
  3. Add the entry below and save.
  4. Set VS_API_KEY to the key in the environment the app starts from. Keep the key out of chats and out of files you share.
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "serverUrl": "https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:VS_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Create the key in Workspace settings, under Developer access. Windsurf (Devin Desktop) documentation (opens in a new tab)

or run it on your own machine

One command,
or one JSON snippet.

Replace the placeholder with your API key from /settings/api-keys. Restart your client; tools become available immediately.

Claude Desktop

json

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows). Restart Claude Desktop afterwards.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@visualsentinel/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "VS_API_KEY": "vs_live_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code (CLI)

bash

Install the marketplace plugin (recommended, includes 3 skills and 3 slash commands) or just register the MCP server directly.

# Recommended: full plugin (MCP server + skills + commands)
claude plugin marketplace add github.com/VisualSentinel/claude-plugins
claude plugin install visual-sentinel@visualsentinel
export VS_API_KEY=vs_live_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

# Or: MCP server only
claude mcp add visualsentinel -- npx -y @visualsentinel/mcp-server

Cline (VS Code extension)

json

Open Cline’s settings panel, MCP servers tab, and add the JSON below.

{
  "visualsentinel": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y", "@visualsentinel/mcp-server"],
    "env": { "VS_API_KEY": "vs_live_..." }
  }
}

Cursor

json

Cursor reads MCP servers from ~/.cursor/mcp.json. Create or edit that file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "visualsentinel": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@visualsentinel/mcp-server"],
      "env": { "VS_API_KEY": "vs_live_..." }
    }
  }
}

Continue

json

Edit ~/.continue/config.json. Add to the mcpServers array:

{
  "mcpServers": [
    {
      "name": "visualsentinel",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@visualsentinel/mcp-server"],
      "env": { "VS_API_KEY": "vs_live_..." }
    }
  ]
}

106 tools, one server

5 public tools.
101 authenticated.

5 public tools work on any URL or domain without authentication. 101 authenticated tools manage the website monitors, their settings, alert channels and rules, incidents, maintenance, status pages, workspace settings and servers in your organization. The lists below are the 17 core tools, which the npm package runs too.

Public · no API key
  • vs_health

    Check whether Visual Sentinel itself is up

  • vs_dns_check

    Resolve A, AAAA, MX, NS, TXT, CNAME, or SOA records for a domain

  • vs_ssl_check

    Inspect a TLS certificate (issuer, expiry, SAN list, chain)

  • vs_speed_test

    Lighthouse lab test: performance score, LCP, FCP, CLS, TTFB, Total Blocking Time and Speed Index

  • vs_website_check

    Quick HTTP health check on any URL

Authenticated · VS_API_KEY
  • vs_monitors_list

    List monitors filtered by status or type

  • vs_monitors_get

    Fetch one monitor with current status and last check

  • vs_monitors_create

    Create a new HTTP, HTTPS, KEYWORD, PING, PORT, DNS, SSL, VISUAL, CONTENT, API, GRAPHQL, or WEBSOCKET monitor

  • vs_monitors_check_now

    Trigger an immediate check outside the scheduled cadence

  • vs_monitors_uptime

    Uptime percentage and outage breakdown over 24h, 7d, 30d, 90d, 365d

  • vs_monitors_metrics_bulk

    Uptime or response-time metrics for up to 100 monitors in one request, over a preset window, a custom date range or the full history

  • vs_incidents_list

    List incidents filtered by status or monitor

  • vs_incidents_get

    Fetch one incident with full check history and root-cause hints

  • vs_alerts_list

    List alerts by status

  • vs_alerts_acknowledge

    Acknowledge an alert with an optional note

  • vs_status_pages_list

    List your public status pages

  • vs_servers_list

    List registered origin servers

what you can ask

Talk to your monitors,
get real answers.

Status check at a glance

"What Visual Sentinel monitors are down right now?" Claude calls vs_monitors_list filtered by status, then summarises with the affected monitors and their last successful check.

Triage an incident without leaving the terminal

"Triage incident clm_xyz." Claude pulls the incident, scans the check history, and proposes a probable cause and a next action. Acknowledge directly with a follow-up message.

Onboard a new monitor by description

"Watch https://shop.example.com/checkout for visual changes." Claude checks the plan capability, proposes a valid visual cadence, confirms the monitor name with you, and creates it with vs_monitors_create.

Free SSL or DNS check on any domain

"What is the SSL situation on example.com?" Claude calls vs_ssl_check (no API key required) and surfaces issuer, expiry, SAN list, and chain. Same for DNS records, page speed, or a quick HTTP probe.

where your data goes

Local server. Local key.
Direct HTTPS to us.

  • The MCP server runs locally on your machine via npx. Your VS_API_KEY never leaves your computer except in the direct HTTPS request to visualsentinel.com.
  • The AI client (Claude, Cline, Cursor, Continue) sees the JSON results of each tool call, just like it would any other tool output. Treat tool output the same way you treat any text in your conversation.
  • Public tools (DNS, SSL, speed, website check, health) use no key at all. Their results are still visible in your conversation.
  • Revoke a leaked API key instantly at /settings/api-keys. Revocation takes effect within seconds.
What is the Visual Sentinel MCP server?

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Visual Sentinel. It is hosted at https://visualsentinel.com/api/mcp, so there is nothing to install, and has 106 tools over the Visual Sentinel REST API: an AI assistant like Claude can list your monitors, create new ones, change their settings, set up alert channels, status pages and maintenance, fetch incident history, run free DNS or SSL or speed checks, and acknowledge alerts on your behalf. The npm package is a small Node.js program that runs the 17 core tools on your own machine.

Which AI clients does it work with?

Any client that can add a remote MCP server over streamable HTTP. Claude Code, Claude (web and desktop), ChatGPT, Cursor, Codex, VS Code, Antigravity, Gemini CLI and Windsurf have setup steps on this page. Most sign in with OAuth: your assistant opens Visual Sentinel in the browser and you choose the workspace and its access. Codex, Gemini CLI and Windsurf use an API key sent as a bearer token. The npm package still runs locally over stdio for clients that only support local servers.

Do I need a Visual Sentinel account?

For the public tools (DNS lookup, SSL inspection, speed test, website check, service health), no. Those work without authentication. For monitor management, incident triage, and alert acknowledgement you need a Visual Sentinel account and an API key generated at https://visualsentinel.com/settings/api-keys. New workspaces get a free first check of their site, then a 7-day trial of a paid plan (card required) or a subscription; API keys come with every paid plan.

How do I install it?

Pick your assistant in the Connect section of this page: Cursor and VS Code install from a link, Claude Code, Codex and Gemini CLI take one command or a few lines of settings, and Claude and ChatGPT take a few steps in their settings. Signed-in users can also open Connect your AI agent at the top of any workspace page. Or hand your assistant https://visualsentinel.com/agents/setup.md, which it can follow from start to finish.

Where does my API key go? Is it sent anywhere I do not control?

Store VS_API_KEY in your local MCP client configuration. The local server reads it from the environment and sends it only to visualsentinel.com over HTTPS for authenticated requests; it does not return the key in tool results. Anyone with access to your machine or configuration may be able to read it, so revoke a leaked key at https://visualsentinel.com/settings/api-keys.

Is there a Claude Code plugin too?

Yes. The visualsentinel marketplace bundles the MCP server with three task-focused skills (monitor status, incident triage, monitor onboarding) and three slash commands (/vs-status, /vs-incidents, /vs-add-monitor). Install with: claude plugin marketplace add github.com/VisualSentinel/claude-plugins, then claude plugin install visual-sentinel@visualsentinel.

What is Model Context Protocol?

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to tools and data sources. An MCP client (like Claude Desktop) speaks JSON-RPC to MCP servers (like this one) over stdio or HTTP. Each server advertises a set of tools the client can call. MCP is supported by Claude, Cline, Cursor, Continue, and a growing list of other AI products.

trusted by operators

What customers say

Real reviews from teams already running Visual Sentinel monitoring against their production sites.

G2 verified review

Instant alerts that make website monitoring stress-free

I used to manually check every client website to make sure it was still online. If a plugin update, SSL issue, or hosting problem caused downtime, I usually found out only after a client complained. Visual Sentinel fixed that for me. It monitors all my sites and sends instant alerts when something goes wrong, whether it is downtime, performance degradation, certificate issues, DNS changes, or visual breakage. The support for multiple alert channels, including WhatsApp, makes it even more useful. It has saved me a lot of time and made my website management far less stressful.

Shahid K., Verified G2 reviewer
Read on G2
Customer message

Visual Sentinel picked up and detected a rogue XMR crypto miner that injected itself via Magento. Alerted me of the issues, made it obvious what the problem was, and I could get repairs done immediately. Took us 18 minutes from start to finish to completely scrape out this garbage after diagnosis finished, and around an hour of downtime total. Wouldn’t have had any idea without your tools.

Ryan, Falls Tech

six layers · in your AI client

5 tools need no account.
Add monitors when you are ready.

The public tools work without an account. Monitor management uses an API key, included with every paid plan. Start a 7-day trial (card required) or subscribe now.