Add a per-server "don't ask again" option to the MCP tool permission prompt
Open 💬 2 comments Opened Jun 23, 2026 by kardagan
What
When Claude Code asks to approve an MCP tool call, the prompt currently offers:
1. Yes
2. Yes, and don't ask again for "ServerName - toolName" commands in <dir>
3. No
Option 2 only whitelists the single specific tool. For MCP servers that expose many tools (e.g. an observability or internal-search server with 20+ tools), you end up approving each tool one by one across a session, even though you trust the whole server.
Proposal
Add an extra option to the prompt to whitelist the entire server in one keystroke:
1. Yes
2. Yes, and don't ask again for "ServerName - toolName" commands in <dir>
3. Yes, and don't ask again for "ServerName" commands in <dir> <- new
4. No
Choosing option 3 would write mcp__ServerName to the permissions.allow array of the relevant settings.json (same mechanism as option 2, just at server granularity — which the rule syntax already supports).
Why
- The server-level allow rule (
mcp__ServerName) already exists in settings; the prompt just doesn't expose it. This is purely a UI affordance over an existing capability. - Today the only way to get server-wide approval is to hand-edit
settings.json, which breaks the interactive flow and is not discoverable. - Per-tool approval is a sensible default, but for trusted servers it produces a lot of repetitive prompts.
Notes / safety
- Keep per-tool (option 2) as the default-highlighted choice so server-wide is a deliberate pick, not an accidental one.
- Could be gated/hidden behind a setting for orgs that want to forbid server-wide self-approval (complements the existing managed MCP policies).
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