# Manage Your Hosting from Kiro with xCloud

> Connect Kiro to xCloud with one url entry in mcp.json, then deploy, update, back up and fix servers and sites by asking the Kiro agent in your editor.

Kiro is Amazon Web Services' agentic IDE, where an AI agent plans and edits your project from a chat panel. Connected to xCloud through one line of MCP configuration, it deploys repositories, updates WordPress, checks SSL and diagnoses failures without you leaving the editor.

- One url entry in mcp.json
- Workspace or user-level config
- Free with every xCloud account

## How do I connect Kiro to xCloud?

### 1. Add xCloud to your Kiro MCP config

Open the Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P on Mac, Ctrl+Shift+P on Windows and Linux), search for MCP and choose Kiro: Open workspace MCP config (JSON) for .kiro/settings/mcp.json, or Kiro: Open user MCP config (JSON) for ~/.kiro/settings/mcp.json. Paste this, save, and Kiro reconnects on its own. The first connection opens the xCloud approval screen in your browser, where you tick the teams and choose Read-only or Full access.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "xcloud": {
      "url": "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

### 2. Choose which xCloud tools Kiro may run

Optional. autoApprove lists tools Kiro runs without asking, and disabledTools hides tools from the agent altogether. The two names here are real xCloud tools; swap in your own. Avoid the "*" wildcard in autoApprove, so Kiro's own prompt stays as a second check beside xCloud's confirmation.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "xcloud": {
      "url": "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp",
      "autoApprove": ["xcloud_docs_search", "xcloud_agent_search"],
      "disabledTools": ["sites_destroy"]
    }
  }
}
```

### 3. No browser sign-in? Use an API key

Create a token with the mcp:invoke scope plus the read abilities for the areas it will use (read:servers and read:sites, with read:billing and read:addons for billing and add-on tools) and the matching write: abilities if it should change things in Settings, Developers, API Tokens, export it as XCLOUD_API_TOKEN, and pass it in headers. Kiro only expands environment variables you have approved, so add XCLOUD_API_TOKEN under the Mcp Approved Env Vars setting. Never paste the token into the file or into chat.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "xcloud": {
      "url": "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${XCLOUD_API_TOKEN}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

**Authentication:** Kiro opens the browser sign-in for an OAuth-protected server and uses Dynamic Client Registration, which xCloud supports, so the url line is all the configuration it needs. A machine without a browser passes an API key that carries the mcp:invoke scope and the read or write abilities it needs in headers.

Verify with: "Who am I on xCloud?"

### Example session

**You:** Which sites on my Acme team have pending WordPress plugin updates?
→ `sites_wordpress_updates` (read-only)
**Agent:** Two: blog.example.com has 3 plugin updates and shop.example.com has 1. Update both?
**You:** Yes, update the blog first and check the homepage afterwards.
→ `sites_wordpress_update` (needs approval)
**Agent:** Blog updated, 3 plugins, https://blog.example.com answers 200. Shall I continue with the shop?

## Which way should I connect Kiro to xCloud?

|  | xCloud MCP server | xCloud Agent Skills | Public API |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal needed | No | Yes for the plugin or ClawHub install | Yes |
| Authentication | OAuth sign-in, or an API key with mcp:invoke plus read or write abilities | The MCP connection, or a read-scoped API token | API token with scoped abilities |
| What it adds | One tool per customer-facing xCloud operation (188 today) | Workflow know-how: routing, dry run, confirm, poll, diagnose | Raw REST for your own code |
| Changes to your infrastructure | Yes, after confirmation | Only through a connected MCP tool, after confirmation | Yes, with write scopes |
| Best for | Most people; every MCP client | Agents that run shell commands and read skills | CI jobs, dashboards and long-running loops |

## What is Kiro?

Kiro is an agentic IDE from Amazon Web Services. You describe what you want in a chat panel, and its agent reads your project, plans the work and edits files, asking before it runs tools you have not allowed. Kiro also ships a command-line interface, and its MCP documentation covers the IDE, the CLI and the web surface.

Kiro speaks the Model Context Protocol. A remote server goes into a JSON file as a url, with optional headers, an oauth block, autoApprove and disabledTools. Two files exist: .kiro/settings/mcp.json for one workspace and ~/.kiro/settings/mcp.json for every workspace. When both define a server, the workspace entry wins.

That makes xCloud a one-entry connection. The MCP server gives Kiro one tool per customer-facing xCloud operation, and the portable xCloud Agent Plugins package, which xCloud lists Kiro as a compatible client for, adds the workflow know-how as skills. Deploys, WordPress updates and diagnoses then happen from the same panel you write code in.

## Why Kiro with xCloud?

- **A remote server, nothing to run locally.** xCloud is a hosted MCP endpoint, so the config is a url and nothing else. There is no package to install, no process for Kiro to start and no token in the file when you sign in with OAuth.
- **Per-tool control in the same file.** autoApprove lets Kiro run read tools without a prompt, and disabledTools removes tools you never want the agent to see. xCloud still stops at its own confirmation for anything that creates, deploys, updates, reboots, deletes or buys.
- **Project scope or personal scope.** Put the entry in .kiro/settings/mcp.json to give one project its own xCloud connection, or in ~/.kiro/settings/mcp.json to have it everywhere. With OAuth the file holds only the URL, so a workspace file carries no secret.

## Good to know

- MCP support has to be switched on in Kiro first: open Settings, search for MCP and enable the MCP support setting.
- If the same server name appears in several places, an agent config's mcpServers field beats the workspace file, and the workspace file beats the user file.
- Kiro expands only approved environment variables. If a ${XCLOUD_API_TOKEN} header does not work, add the variable under the Mcp Approved Env Vars setting.
- Kiro's documentation says to review tool permissions before adding tools to autoApprove, and that advice applies here: approve reads, not changes.

## What can you ask Kiro to do on xCloud?

- Use xCloud to list my servers and tell me which ones are above 80 percent disk usage.
- Deploy https://github.com/acme/shop to my Frankfurt server and show me the dry run before you create anything.
- Update all plugins on example.com, then check that the homepage still loads.
- Why is staging.example.com returning a 502? Check the latest deployment events and the web server logs.
- Check the SSL certificate on shop.example.com and renew it if it expires within two weeks.

## Kiro guides by job

- [Deploy from Git with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/deploy-from-git/): Turn a GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket repository into a live site on a server you already have.
- [Run Docker apps with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/docker-apps/): Run a Dockerfile or Docker Compose app on a Docker server, keep it backed up and recover it when a deploy fails.
- [Install one-click apps with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/one-click-apps/): Pick an app from the xCloud catalogue, check it fits your server, install it and get the login details.
- [Manage WordPress with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/wordpress/): Keep WordPress sites updated, scanned and healthy, and create new ones, by asking in plain words.
- [Back up and stage sites with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/backups-and-staging/): Check that your sites are backed up, take a backup before a risky change, and open a staging copy to test it on.
- [Manage SSL and domains with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/ssl-and-domains/): Check a site's certificate and DNS, install or renew HTTPS, and see which domains point at it.
- [Manage servers with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/server-management/): See how your servers are doing, change services and runtimes, tighten security and reboot with proof it worked.
- [Troubleshoot a broken site with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/troubleshooting/): Find out why a site returns a 500, 502 or 503, shows a critical error or has stopped answering.
- [Speed up a slow site with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/performance/): Find out why a site is slow, from real numbers, and learn which fix is a dashboard switch.
- [Secure sites and servers with Kiro](https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/security/): Find vulnerable sites, manage server firewall rules and banned IPs, and see which protections are on.

## Frequently asked questions

### How do I connect Kiro to xCloud?

Open the Command Palette, run Kiro: Open workspace MCP config (JSON) or Kiro: Open user MCP config (JSON), and add an xcloud entry under mcpServers with url set to https://app.xcloud.host/mcp. Save the file, approve the access level in the browser tab that opens, and ask who am I on xCloud to confirm.

### Where does Kiro keep its MCP configuration?

In two places: .kiro/settings/mcp.json inside a workspace, and ~/.kiro/settings/mcp.json for every workspace. If both define the same server, the workspace entry takes precedence. Either file takes effect when you save it.

### Does Kiro need an xCloud API key?

Not when you sign in with OAuth. Kiro opens the browser, you choose the teams and the access level, and the connection is live. An API key is only for a machine without a browser. Create one with the mcp:invoke scope plus the read abilities for the areas it will use (read:servers and read:sites, with read:billing and read:addons for billing and add-on tools) and the matching write: abilities if it should change things and pass it in headers as Authorization: Bearer followed by the token.

### Do I have to restart Kiro after editing mcp.json?

No. Kiro watches its MCP files and reconnects when you save, restarting only the servers whose entries changed. If the xCloud tools do not appear, check that the MCP support setting is enabled and that the JSON is valid.

### How do I stop Kiro from running certain xCloud tools?

Add the tool names to disabledTools on the xcloud entry and Kiro leaves them out when it calls the agent. To skip Kiro's approval prompt for safe tools, list them in autoApprove instead. Keep changes out of autoApprove, so you still approve them in Kiro as well as in xCloud.

### Can Kiro change my servers without asking?

Not for the operations xCloud gates. Kiro asks you to approve each MCP tool call unless the tool is listed in autoApprove, so with the configuration above only the two search tools skip Kiro's prompt; add the read tools you trust to autoApprove if you want them to run without it. xCloud adds its own gate: reads and routine actions such as cache purges, backups, PageSpeed and vulnerability scans need no xCloud confirmation, while creating a site or server, deploying, updating plugins, rebooting, deleting or buying is refused unless the call carries an explicit confirmation, and the tool tells Kiro to ask you first.

### Does the xCloud Agent Plugins package work with Kiro?

xCloud lists Kiro among the clients for its portable Agent Plugins package, which holds plugin.json, mcp.json and the skills. Import support and the OAuth behavior depend on the client, so follow the install guide in the xcloud-agent-skills repository. The MCP entry above works on its own either way.

### Is it free to use Kiro with xCloud?

The xCloud side is free: the MCP server, the skills and the Public API are included with every xCloud account, including the free plan. Kiro itself is provided and billed by AWS under its own plans.

## Also works with

- [Claude Code](https://xcloud.host/agents/claude-code/): Anthropic's terminal coding agent. One claude mcp add command, plus the xCloud skills plugin with nine skills on top.
- [Claude](https://xcloud.host/agents/claude/): Anthropic's chat assistant on the web and desktop. Add xCloud as a custom connector, no terminal needed.
- [Claude Cowork](https://xcloud.host/agents/claude-cowork/): Anthropic's desktop agent for delegated work. Add the xCloud connector, then hand off hosting jobs.
- [Cursor](https://xcloud.host/agents/cursor/): The AI code editor. One mcp.json entry with the compact URL, because Cursor stops at 40 tools.
- [Codex](https://xcloud.host/agents/codex/): OpenAI's coding agent for the terminal. A codex mcp add command or a config.toml entry, then codex mcp login.
- [OpenCode](https://xcloud.host/agents/opencode/): The open-source terminal coding agent. One remote MCP entry, then opencode mcp auth xcloud.
- [Hermes Agent](https://xcloud.host/agents/hermes-agent/): Nous Research's agent with memory and a built-in scheduler. An mcp_servers entry in config.yaml and one login.
- [OpenClaw](https://xcloud.host/agents/openclaw/): The open-source agent runtime with chat apps and automations. ClawHub skill plus the MCP client.
- [Windsurf](https://xcloud.host/agents/windsurf/): The Cognition editor, now Devin Desktop. devin mcp add for the Devin Local agent, a serverUrl entry for legacy Cascade.
- [GitHub Copilot](https://xcloud.host/agents/github-copilot/): Copilot agent mode in VS Code. One .vscode/mcp.json entry, or the Agent Plugins package.
- [Gemini CLI](https://xcloud.host/agents/gemini-cli/): Google's terminal agent. One gemini mcp add command, OAuth found automatically.
- [ChatGPT](https://xcloud.host/agents/chatgpt/): OpenAI's chat assistant. A developer-mode app with the xCloud MCP URL and OAuth.
- [ChatGPT dots](https://xcloud.host/agents/chatgpt-dots/): OpenAI's always-on agent in ChatGPT. Uses the xCloud MCP plugin you add in ChatGPT, with custom rules and scheduled tasks.
- [Grok](https://xcloud.host/agents/grok/): xAI's terminal agent, Grok Build. One grok mcp add command or a config.toml entry.
- [Grok Bot](https://xcloud.host/agents/grok-bot/): xAI's always-on Bots on a cloud computer. One Remote HTTPS MCP plugin, OAuth sign-in, routines on a schedule.
- [Antigravity](https://xcloud.host/agents/antigravity/): Google's agentic IDE. One serverUrl entry in mcp_config.json and a browser sign-in.
- [Zed](https://xcloud.host/agents/zed/): The Zed editor's Agent Panel. One context_servers entry in settings.json and a browser sign-in.

## Related

- [How to connect Kiro to xCloud MCP](https://xcloud.host/docs/how-to-connect-kiro-to-xcloud-mcp/)
- [How to install and use xCloud AI Agent Skills](https://xcloud.host/docs/install-and-use-xcloud-ai-agent-skills/)
- [Multi-team access with one connection](https://xcloud.host/docs/multi-team-api-tokens-and-mcp-access/)
- [Deploy Git projects with the xCloud API and MCP](https://xcloud.host/docs/deploy-git-projects-with-xcloud-public-api-and-mcp/)

Setup checked against:
- [Kiro MCP configuration](https://kiro.dev/docs/mcp/configuration/)
- [xcloud-agent-skills README](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/xCloudDev/xcloud-agent-skills/main/README.md)

Canonical: https://xcloud.host/agents/kiro/
Last updated: October 2026. Keep a human in the loop: xCloud stops and asks before anything that creates, deploys, updates, reboots, deletes or buys.
Every agent guide: https://xcloud.host/agents/ · xCloud MCP: https://xcloud.host/mcp/ · Agent Skills: https://xcloud.host/ai-agent-skills/ · Setup script for agents: https://xcloud.host/agent-setup/prompt.md