Feature Request: disabled option for MCP servers in .mcp.json

Resolved 💬 6 comments Opened Jan 13, 2026 by YoungjaeDev Closed Mar 6, 2026

Problem

All configured MCP servers load their tool schemas into context at session start, consuming tokens even when unused.

Users must choose between:

  • Keep servers configured → waste context on unused tools
  • Remove servers → lose access when needed

Proposed Solution

Add disabled option to MCP server config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "serena": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/oraios/serena", "serena-mcp-server"],
      "disabled": true
    },
    "deepwiki": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.deepwiki.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Expected Behavior

  • disabled: true → Server not connected, tools not loaded into context
  • disabled: false or omitted → Current behavior (connected at session start)
  • Optional enhancement: Enable at runtime via /mcp enable serena

Benefits

  • Keep configurations without context overhead
  • Easy toggle without claude mcp remove/add
  • Similar pattern to VS Code extension disable

Use Case

Power users with 5+ MCP servers configured only need 1-2 per session. Currently forced to remove unused servers or accept ~3000+ tokens of tool schemas loaded every session.

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