resolving-mcp-region-configs

---
name: resolving-mcp-region-configs
description: >-
  Mandatory Step 0 pre-flight check for regional Google Cloud MCP servers (e.g. Dataproc) before using MCP tools or falling back to gcloud/bq CLI.
  Use whenever interacting with Dataproc clusters, Spark batches, jobs, sessions, or regional GCP resources.
  Fixes regional MCP servers whose endpoint URL still has an unreplaced $GCP_REGION / ${REGION} placeholder across Claude Code, Codex, and Antigravity.
  Trigger: an expected mcp__*_{service}_* tool is missing entirely (not just failing), or a call to one fails/hangs on a malformed host. Check via ToolSearch/deferred-tools listing before falling back to gcloud/bq CLI. Asks the user for a region, patches the live MCP config file(s), and tells the user how to restart without losing session context.
license: Apache-2.0
metadata:
  version: v4
  publisher: google
---

# Regional MCP Server Configuration

## Mandatory Step 0 Pre-Flight Check

> [!IMPORTANT] **Pre-Flight Check Before Using Dataproc / Regional Services or
> Falling Back to CLI**: Whenever a task involves a regional Google Cloud
> service (e.g. Dataproc clusters, Spark batches, jobs, or sessions): 1. **Check
> for MCP tools first**: Before executing any `gcloud dataproc` or CLI commands,
> check whether the expected `mcp__*__<service>__*` tools (e.g.
> `mcp__*__dataproc__*`) are registered in the current environment (`ToolSearch`
> or deferred tools). 2. **If tools are missing or calls fail/hang on a
> malformed host**: Do **NOT** immediately fall back to `gcloud`/`bq` CLI.
> Inspect the live MCP configuration files (below) for unreplaced `$GCP_REGION`
> or `${REGION}` placeholders. 3. **If the region
> placeholder is already replaced with a valid region (e.g. `us-central1`)**:
> This skill does not apply — proceed normally with the task.

Some Google Cloud MCP servers are region-scoped (e.g. Dataproc:
`https://dataproc-$GCP_REGION.googleapis.com/mcp`). If the region placeholder
was never filled in, the server fails to connect **silently** — it registers
zero tools, with no error and no placeholder string visible anywhere to notice.
Treat a missing `mcp__*__<service>__*` tool as the trigger, not just a failed
call — that's the most common way this skill gets skipped in favor of a
`gcloud`/`bq` fallback.

## When to use

-   User asks to use a regional service (e.g. "list dataproc clusters"), and the
    matching `mcp__*` tools aren't present — check `ToolSearch` or the
    deferred-tools listing first — or a call to one fails/hangs on a malformed
    host.
-   Then inspect the live config (below) for `$GCP_REGION` or
    `${REGION}`. If found, run the procedure. If the region is
    already set, this skill doesn't apply — investigate normally instead.

### Supported services

-   **Dataproc**: `https://dataproc-$GCP_REGION.googleapis.com/mcp`

## Locating the live config

The file actually loaded at runtime is under the plugin's install/cache path,
not just any workspace copy — edit that one (and the source copy, best-effort,
so the fix survives a reinstall):

-   **Claude Code**:
    `~/.claude/plugins/cache/<marketplace>/dak/<version>/.claude-plugin/mcp.json`
    (get `<marketplace>`/`<version>` from
    `~/.claude/plugins/installed_plugins.json`). Also check
    `./.claude-plugin/mcp.json` and `claude_desktop_config.json`.
-   **Codex**: `~/.codex/plugins/cache/<marketplace>/dak/<version>/mcp.json`.
-   **Antigravity**: `./mcp_config.json` or
    `~/.gemini/antigravity/mcp_config.json`.

## Procedure

1.  You MUST NOT call the regional tools yet — there likely aren't any to call.
2.  You MUST ask the user for their GCP region (e.g. `us-central1`). You MUST
    NOT guess.
3.  You MUST edit the placeholder to that region in the config file(s) above.
4.  You MUST tell the user to restart — MCP connections load once at startup and
    won't hot-reload mid-session. Restarting does **not** lose the conversation:

    -   **Claude Code**: `claude --resume` (or `--continue`)
    -   **Codex**: `codex resume --last` (or `codex resume` for a picker)
    -   **Antigravity**: use its resume/history picker if available