SQL Server MCP Server

No. Microsoft publishes SQL MCP Server as part of Data API builder. InsightfulPipe is an independent, hosted server and is not affiliated with Microsoft.

Microsoft's SQL MCP Server is open source and self-hosted or run locally with the Data API builder CLI. It exposes the tables, views and stored procedures you configure through create, read, update, delete and aggregate tools, with role-based permissions, and intentionally does not support free-form SQL or DDL. InsightfulPipe is hosted and lets your assistant write T-SQL against the whole database the login can reach, with each request classified as read or write, team roles and per-database action controls.

Any AI client that supports remote MCP servers. The setup guide on this page covers Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, Gemini CLI and Codex. You can also work with the same connected accounts from the terminal with the InsightfulPipe CLI.

Yes. In Claude, add https://mssql.insightfulmcp.com/ as a custom connector and authorize your InsightfulPipe account. You can also add InsightfulPipe from the Claude Directory, which connects all of your linked accounts at once.

Yes. Add the server URL as a custom connector in ChatGPT Developer mode, or add InsightfulPipe from the ChatGPT app directory to connect all of your linked accounts. Developer mode availability depends on your ChatGPT plan.

Any statement the SQL login is allowed to run. A single SELECT runs as a read, while INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, MERGE, DDL, SELECT INTO and multiple statements are treated as writes. Writes run only through the write tool and only for owners, admins and operators.

Connect with a SQL login that only has read permissions, so SQL Server rejects any write. InsightfulPipe has no separate Read-only mode for database connections, but owners, admins and operators can turn off the run query and explain query actions. Requesting actual execution statistics runs the statement.

The server needs a public hostname or IP address, because private and loopback addresses are rejected. Encryption is required and the trust server certificate option is not supported, so the server needs a publicly trusted certificate or a CA certificate you provide. If it is firewalled, allow InsightfulPipe's outbound IP addresses, for example in Azure SQL firewall rules or by opening port 1433 to them.

Yes. Each connection is one database on one server, with its own name, and you can connect several. Each connected database counts as one connection on your plan.

You connect with SQL authentication: a login name and password. InsightfulPipe tests the connection before saving it and stores the password encrypted. Your AI client signs in to the MCP server with your InsightfulPipe account and never sees the database credentials.

Results are capped at 10,000 rows and query text at 256 KB. Connections use a SQL login and password, and databases on private networks without a public address are not supported. The timeout setting is applied as a lock timeout, and the top queries and health actions need permission to read the related system views.

The SQL Server MCP server is included in every InsightfulPipe plan, together with all other MCP servers and the CLI. Plans start at $29.99/month and include a trial. See insightfulpipe.com/pricing for current plans.