Establishing a Connection
The CData MCP Server for Marketo defines each connection to Marketo as a named configuration that Claude can use when sending natural language queries.
You create and manage these configurations using the MCP Configuration Tool. The tool automatically handles formatting, storage, and registration with Claude Desktop.
Understanding Connection Configurations
Each connection configuration is stored in a .mcp file. This file includes the details needed to initialize the connector when Claude starts a session.
- On Windows, configuration files are stored in "~/AppData/Roaming/CData/Marketo Data Provider/".
- On macOS, configuration files are stored in "~/Library/Application Support/CData/Marketo Data Provider/".
The .mcp file is a text file that contains a list of connection properties and a timestamp. For example:
#Tue May 20 15:48:40 EDT 2025 AuthScheme=Basic User=myUser Password=myPassword Security Token=myToken
The configuration tool handles these settings automatically. Each saved configuration enables Claude to launch a dedicated MCP Server instance with the correct connector and options. Manual file editing is not required.
Connecting to Marketo
The following connection options are required when connecting to Marketo.- URL: The URL of the REST API Service. You can locate this in Admin -> Integration -> Web Services -> REST API. Example values: https://123-abc-456.mktorest.com/ or https://123-abc-456.mktorest.com/rest.
- OAuthClientId: The OAuth Client ID associated with your custom service.
- OAuthClientSecret: The OAuth Client Secret associated with your custom service.
Obtaining OAuth Credentials
Before obtaining OAuth credentials you need to create a custom service if you do not already have one. To do so follow the instructions provided in Creating a Custom Service.
To obtain OAuth credentials for a custom service:
- Go to the Admin tab.
- Click on the LaunchPoint option.
- Select the service and click on View Details.
- Marketo displays a window that shows the authentication credentials. Use "Client Id" as the value for OAuthClientId and "Client Secret" for OAuthClientSecret.