# Deployment Guide (Render, Railway, Docker)
This server uses **Login-on-Demand**. You deploy it *without* authentication, and the first user to query it will be asked to log in via a secure link.
## 1. Prerequisites
* **GitHub Repo**: Push this code to a private GitHub repository.
* **Credentials**: You need your `credentials.json` (Google OAuth Client Secrets).
## 2. Deploy to Render (Recommended)
Render is effectively free for simple Docker apps and very easy to set up.
1. **Dashboard**: Go to [dashboard.render.com](https://dashboard.render.com/).
2. **New Web Service**: Click **New +** -> **Web Service**.
3. **Source**: Connect your GitHub repository.
4. **Configuration**:
* **Runtime**: `Docker`
* **Region**: Any (e.g., Oregon)
* **Free Instance Type**: Yes
5. **Environment Variables**:
* (Optional) `GMAIL_CREDENTIALS_PATH`: `/etc/secrets/credentials.json`
6. **Secret Files**:
* Click **Advanced** -> **Secret Files**.
* Filename: `credentials.json` (or whatever path you set above)
* Content: Paste the contents of your local `credentials.json`.
7. **Deploy**: Click **Create Web Service**.
## 3. How to Use
Once deployed, Render gives you a URL (e.g., `https://gmail-mcp.onrender.com`).
1. **Configure Client**:
Add to your `mcp.json` (or Cursor/Claude config):
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"gmail-remote": {
"url": "https://gmail-mcp.onrender.com/sse",
"transport": "sse"
}
}
}
```
2. **First Run**:
* Ask: "Check my email"
* Response: "Authentication Required! Visit..."
* Click link -> Get Code -> Paste Code.
* Done! The server is now authenticated for this session.
## 4. Deploying via Docker (Generic)
If you use another provider (Railway, AWS, VPS):
1. **Build**: `docker build -t gmail-mcp .`
2. **Run**: You must mount your credentials file.
```bash
docker run -p 8000:8000 -v $(pwd)/credentials.json:/app/credentials.json gmail-mcp
```
