> This page is for Agent Handler.

> For clean Markdown of any page, append .md to the page URL.
> For a complete documentation index, see https://docs.merge.dev/llms.txt.
> For AI client integration (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), connect to the MCP server at https://docs.merge.dev/_mcp/server.

# Dovetail

> Dovetail generic MCP server on Agent Handler. Search and read research insights, notes, and projects in Dovetail.

> **Generic MCP server**
>
> Dovetail builds and hosts this MCP server. Agent Handler proxies your agent's calls to it, so you get the same auth, [tool access controls](/merge-agent-handler/administer/managing-tool-access), and [audit trail](/merge-agent-handler/observe/audit-trail) you get on a Merge Connector. The tool surface itself comes from Dovetail.

Search and read research insights, notes, and projects in Dovetail.

|                    |                                                                     |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Type**           | Generic MCP server, hosted by Dovetail                              |
| **Server URL**     | `https://dovetail.com/api/mcp`                                      |
| **Authentication** | API key                                                             |
| **Tool surface**   | Defined by Dovetail                                                 |
| **Vendor docs**    | [developers.dovetail.com](https://developers.dovetail.com/docs/mcp) |

## Authentication

Dovetail authenticates with an API key. Your end user supplies the key during [Magic Link](/merge-agent-handler/build/authentication/magic-link), and Agent Handler stores it encrypted.

## Available tools

Tools on a generic MCP server are defined by Dovetail, not by Merge, so the list changes when Dovetail changes it. Agent Handler discovers the current tools when the connection is made and re-discovers them on each resync, which means your agent always sees what the server actually exposes today.

To see the tools available right now, connect Dovetail in the dashboard and open its Connector page, or read [Dovetail's own MCP documentation](https://developers.dovetail.com/docs/mcp).

## How this differs from a Merge Connector

Merge Connectors are written and tested by Merge against the vendor's REST API. Merge owns the tool names, the input schemas, the error messages, and the regression tests, so the surface stays stable and the tool descriptions are tuned for agents.

A generic MCP server is the vendor's own. You get whatever the vendor ships, on the vendor's release schedule. Agent Handler still handles credential storage, OAuth, tool policy, and audit logging identically, so the governance story is the same either way.

See [Connectors overview](/merge-agent-handler/connectors/overview) for the full comparison.

Next: [Connect a Connector](/merge-agent-handler/build/authentication/magic-link)