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Most MCP issues come down to the configuration, the token, or the connected portal. Here’s how to handle the ones that come up most.

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The Howly tools don’t appear

If your client doesn’t show the Howly tools after setup, the configuration wasn’t loaded.
1

Check the config was saved

Reopen your client’s MCP settings and confirm the Howly configuration is actually there and saved, not just pasted into an unsaved field.
2

Restart the client

Most clients load MCP servers at startup. Fully quit and reopen the client so it picks up the new server.
3

Recreate the connection

If it still doesn’t appear, create a fresh connection in Howly under AI Assistant Access and paste the new configuration. The old token may have been revoked.

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Authentication or permission errors

The token is wrong, expired, or revoked. Create a new connection in Howly, copy the fresh configuration, and replace the old one in your client. Remember the raw token is shown only once, so a token you didn’t save can’t be recovered, only replaced.

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The tools connect but return nothing

The MCP reads from the HubSpot portal connected to your Howly account. If answers come back empty:
  • Make sure a HubSpot portal is connected in Howly.
  • If you manage several portals, confirm the right one is active. The MCP reads the connected portal, not whichever you had open last.
  • Reconnect HubSpot in Howly if the connection was revoked on the HubSpot side.

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Claude says it can’t change anything

That’s expected. The Howly MCP is read-only by design. It can read your portal health, issues, and workflow details and recommend what to fix, but every change happens in HubSpot, made by you. This isn’t an error.

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Still stuck?

Email support@howly.io with the client you’re using (Claude Desktop, Cursor, and so on) and what happens when you try. That’s usually enough to pin down the cause.