Codex MCP integration

Index's Model Context Protocol (MCP) integration allows OpenAI Codex to access your Index data, providing AI assistance with full context of your product information, documentation, and team knowledge.

What is Model Context Protocol (MCP)?

MCP is a standardized protocol that allows AI assistants like Codex to securely access structured data from various applications. When you integrate Index with Codex via MCP, you enable Codex to:

  1. Access product context: Codex can reference your Index work items, customer feedback and other related content.
  2. Answer questions with context: Codex can provide answers grounded in your specific product data
  3. Assist with product planning: Codex can help draft, refine, and organize product strategies with access to your existing work

Setting Up Codex Integration

Setting up the Codex integration with Index is straightforward:

1. Generate an MCP API Key in Index

  1. Navigate to your workspace settings in Index
  2. Select "MCP" from the sidebar
  3. Click "Create New Key"
  4. Provide a name (e.g., "Codex Integration") and optional description
  5. Click "Create Key"
  6. Copy the generated API key (note: it will only be shown once)

2. Export your API key as an environment variable

Codex reads the API key from an environment variable rather than embedding it directly in the config file. Add the following line to your shell profile (~/.zshrc, ~/.bashrc, or equivalent):

export INDEX_MCP_API_KEY="<YOUR API KEY HERE>"

Replace <YOUR API KEY HERE> with the key you generated in step 1, then reload your shell (e.g. source ~/.zshrc) or open a new terminal so the variable is picked up.

3. Configure Codex

Codex reads its MCP server configuration from ~/.codex/config.toml. Open that file in your editor (create it if it doesn't exist) and add the following entry:

[mcp_servers.index]
bearer_token_env_var = "INDEX_MCP_API_KEY"
enabled = true
url = "https://mcp.index.inc/mcp"

Save the config and then restart any running Codex sessions. Once connected, Codex will have secure access to your Index workspace data.

Using Codex with Index Integration

With the integration set up, you can now use Codex to interact with your Index data:

Ask Questions About Your Product

You can ask Codex questions like:

  • "What's the status of our Q3 roadmap items?"
  • "Summarize the requirements for the new authentication feature"
  • "What feedback did we get on the beta release?"

Benefits of Integration

Enhanced Context Awareness

Codex's responses will be informed by your product data, making them more relevant and accurate for your specific needs.

Time Savings

No need to manually reference or copy-paste information from Index into Codex - the integration means Codex already has access to this context.

Better Decision Support

Codex can provide more valuable insights and recommendations when it has access to your full product context.