Teradata MCP Server

## Using with Microsoft Copilot Developing a Copilot Agent leveraging the Teradata MCP server uses [Microsoft Copilot Studio](https://copilotstudio.microsoft.com/). --- ### Step 1 – Create a New Agent You can have Copilot help build the agent, or click **Skip to configure** to do it manually (recommended): - **Name:** TD_MCP_Agent - **Description:** _(optional)_ - **Instructions:** _(this is effectively the system prompt for the agent)_ Based on current testing, instructions do **not** reliably reach the LLM. We recommend placing important guidance inside **tool descriptions**, especially if the agent orchestrates multiple tools or knowledge sources. Use this section to describe how the agent should decide what tool to invoke, not detailed usage instructions. - Click **Create** --- ### Step 2 – Configure the Agent After the agent is created: - In the **Agent overview** panel: - Keep **Orchestration** enabled - Select the response model (e.g., GPT-4o or GPT-4.1 mini) - In the **Knowledge** section: - **Turn off Web Search** (recommended for RAG setups) - Optionally, **toggle "Use general knowledge"** – we recommend keeping it ON - Proceed to add the MCP server as a tool in the next step --- ### Step 3 – Connect MCP Server and Add Tool - Go to the **Tools** tab - Click **Add Tool** - Select **Model Context Protocol** - If the MCP server is already registered and available: - Select it - Turn the connection **ON** - Click **Add and configure** - Verify that tools appear in the Tools section **Notes:** - Microsoft currently enforces a **15-tool limit per agent** - Use `configure_tools.yaml` to enable/disable specific tools for your use case - Microsoft has announced plans to increase this limit to 60 If you need to create your own MCP connector, see the next section on **Creating a Custom MCP Connector**, then return to this step to add it. --- ### Step 4 – Test the Agent - Ask: “What databases do I have?” - First time only: - Click **Open Connection Manager** (a new tab opens) - Click **Connect** for your server - Click **Submit** - Return to the Agent tab and retry the query --- ## Creating a Custom MCP Connector ### Step 1 – Set Up the Connector in Power Apps - Go to **New Tool** - Select **Custom Connector** (opens Power Apps) - Click **New Custom Connector** > **Import an OpenAPI File** - Name the connector and upload `copilot_swagger.yaml` from the repo - Ensure the **host** field in the Swagger file contains a **public IP accessible by Copilot** (see next section) Click **Continue** and review the configuration: - **Schema:** `http` (or `https` if your MCP is served over TLS) - **Host:** Public IP (e.g., from Azure VM) - **Base URL:** `/` (Copilot appends `/mcp` automatically) - **Security:** Add OAuth config if required - Under **Definition**, open the Swagger Editor to confirm or modify the `host` field Click **Create Connector** After creating, go back to **Step 3 – Connect MCP Server and Add Tool** and add this connector to the agent. --- ### Step 5 – Publish Your Agent or Connector You can publish your agent or MCP connector for others to use. Refer to Microsoft Copilot Studio's official documentation for publishing details. --- ## Exposing MCP Server Using Azure Port Forwarding The `copilot_swagger.yaml` file is pre-configured, but you must manually update the `host` field with a public IP accessible by Copilot. The working setup involves: - Running the MCP server on a local machine (e.g., inside a VPN) - Exposing it using a **reverse SSH tunnel** to a lightweight Ubuntu VM hosted on Azure - This makes the MCP server reachable via the Azure VM’s **public IP** --- ### Preparing the Azure VM and SSH Key To expose your MCP server, first deploy a lightweight Ubuntu VM and obtain a `.pem` key for SSH access. #### Step 0 – Create a Lightweight Ubuntu VM on Azure 1. Go to [Azure Portal](https://portal.azure.com/) 2. Click **Create a resource** > **Compute** > **Ubuntu Server** 3. Use the following settings: - **Region:** Closest to your location or Copilot region - **Image:** Ubuntu Server 20.04 LTS (or later) - **Size:** B1s (sufficient for tunneling) 4. Under **Administrator account**: - **Authentication type:** SSH public key - **Username:** `tddemos` (or another preferred username) - **SSH public key source:** Generate new key pair - Azure will prompt you to download the `.pem` file **Save it as `ais_key.pem`** 5. Click **Review + Create**, then **Create** After deployment, note the **public IP address** from the VM Overview page. --- ### Step A – One-Time Setup on Local Machine #### 1. Set `.pem` permissions ```bash chmod 400 ais_key.pem ``` #### 2. Enable reverse tunnel support on the Azure VM ```bash ssh -i ais_key.pem tddemos@<vm_public_ip> ``` Then edit the SSH config: ```bash sudo vi /etc/ssh/sshd_config ``` Uncomment or add these lines: ``` AllowTcpForwarding yes GatewayPorts yes ``` Apply changes: ```bash sudo systemctl restart ssh exit ``` --- ### Step B – Run MCP on the Local Machine Ensure your MCP service is running and bound to your VPN-assigned IP (visible in GlobalProtect). #### To confirm the MCP port binding: ##### For Windows users (PowerShell): ```powershell netstat -ano | findstr :8001 ``` Expected output: ``` TCP <your_vpn_ip>:8001 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING ``` ##### For macOS/Linux users (Terminal): ```bash lsof -i :8001 ``` or ```bash netstat -an | grep 8001 ``` If MCP is bound to `127.0.0.1`, update your `.env`: ``` MCP_HOST=<your_vpn_ip> MCP_PORT=8001 ``` Then restart the MCP server so it binds to the correct interface. --- ### Step C – Start the Reverse Tunnel (every session) From your local machine: ```bash ssh -i ais_key.pem -R 8001:<your_vpn_ip>:8001 tddemos@<vm_public_ip> ``` - Replace `<your_vpn_ip>` with your machine's VPN-assigned IP - Replace `<vm_public_ip>` with the Azure VM’s public IP - Keep this terminal session **open** to maintain the tunnel --- ### Step D – Update the Swagger File In your `copilot_swagger.yaml`: - Set the `host` field to the Azure VM’s public IP (e.g., `20.33.77.25`) ```yaml host: <vm_public_ip> ``` Save the file and re-import it when creating the custom connector. --- Once the tunnel is active and the Swagger file is updated, your MCP server will be accessible to Copilot via: ``` http://<vm_public_ip>:8001 ``` This completes the setup for exposing MCP to Copilot using reverse SSH and Azure. ---