Smithery Is Shutting Down Its MCP Proxy: What to Do Now

Smithery is shutting down its connection management services on October 31, 2026. Server URLs on run.tools and server.smithery.ai stop working that day, and the Smithery API, Connect, Toolbox, accounts, API keys, CLI and SDKs go with them. The smithery.ai directory stays online as a public registry. If your AI connects to MCP servers through Smithery, move each one before October 31.

What exactly is Smithery shutting down?

Smithery published the details on its own page, smithery.ai/future. The central sentence reads: "On October 31, 2026, we're shutting down Smithery's connection management services."

The same page lists what stops working on that date:

• Server URLs on run.tools and server.smithery.ai
• The Smithery API, Connect, and Toolbox
• Smithery accounts and API keys
• The Smithery CLI and SDKs, whose current versions will be marked deprecated

In plain terms, Smithery acted as a middle layer. Your AI app called a Smithery URL, and Smithery passed the request on to the real MCP server. From October 31 that middle layer is gone. The page puts it directly: "Smithery URLs stop working on October 31, and connecting through Smithery won't be possible after that."

What stays online after October 31?

The directory stays. Smithery says it "will remain as a public (non-proxied) MCP registry." The site continues as a public directory of MCP servers, now powered by Arcade.dev. Verified servers get registry pages that show their direct MCP URLs, for example mcp.linear.app/mcp.

So you can still use smithery.ai to look up where a server lives. You can no longer use it to connect through. A registry tells you an address; a proxy sat between you and that address. Only the proxy is ending.

Who is affected by the Smithery shutdown?

Based on what Smithery lists, you are affected if any of these are true:

• A Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or other MCP client config contains a URL on run.tools or server.smithery.ai.
• A script, agent or app calls the Smithery API, Connect or Toolbox.
• You authenticate with a Smithery account or API key.
• You install or run servers through the Smithery CLI, or use the Smithery SDKs in code.

Smithery splits its guidance by situation. People who just use a server should switch to the vendor's official MCP URL, which is listed on each server's page at smithery.ai. People who want prebuilt integrations such as Gmail or Slack are pointed to Arcade at arcade.dev. Teams that manage MCP connections on behalf of their own users need a replacement before October 31; Smithery's page invites them to get in touch and says the contact will help find the right one, "even if it isn't Arcade."

If you pay for a Smithery plan, the page says every charge since August 5 will be refunded and the subscription cancelled with no further charges. Refunds "usually show up within 5–10 business days." Check the page itself for the current wording, since it is the authority here.

What should you do first? A migration checklist

Work through this in order. Each step is small, and the first one takes ten minutes.

1. Inventory your connections. Open every place an MCP URL can live: Claude connectors, ChatGPT connectors, mcp.json in Cursor, Claude Code settings, n8n or LangChain workflows. Search each for run.tools and server.smithery.ai. Write down the server name, the client and what you use it for.
2. Check what you still need. Drop servers you no longer use. A shutdown is a good time to remove access you forgot about.
3. Look for the vendor's official remote URL. Many vendors run their own MCP endpoint. Smithery says verified servers show the direct URL on their registry page. If one exists, point your client at it and re-authenticate.
4. If there is no official URL, choose where the server will run. You can self-host it, which means installing, updating and securing it yourself, or use a hosted gateway that runs it for you. Build vs buy MCP hosting covers that trade-off.
5. Replace your Smithery keys. Anything that used a Smithery API key needs a new credential from wherever you move. Revoke nothing yet; Smithery accounts stop on their own on October 31.
6. Test each client. Ask the AI to call one read-only tool and confirm the answer is real data.

If you want a list of replacement options, that is a different question and the Smithery alternatives comparison answers it. For a feature-by-feature view of MCPifex against Smithery, see MCPifex vs Smithery. This article stays on the migration itself.

Which replacement path fits which situation?

Your situationPathTrade-off

The vendor runs an official MCP URL

Switch the URL, sign in again

Free of extra layers; you manage one config per client

A server exists only as a package

Self-host it

You install, patch and secure it

You want several servers behind one URL

Hosted gateway

One more vendor, but one endpoint for every client

You run connections for your own end users

Talk to Smithery and compare options now

Needs a replacement before October 31

These are not exclusive. Many people use the vendor URL where it exists and a gateway for the rest. For the self-hosted-versus-hosted question in depth, read hosted vs self-hosted MCP.

How do you move one server to MCPifex, step by step?

MCPifex is a hosted gateway: it runs the server for you, and you give your AI a single URL. It currently hosts five servers: PostgreSQL, Google Trends, Google Search Console, App Store Connect and WhatsApp. If a server you used through Smithery is on that list, the move takes a few minutes. The example below uses PostgreSQL; Google Search Console follows the same flow, with Google sign-in in place of a connection string.

1. Create a free account. Sign up at portal.mcpifex.com. The Free plan includes 3 MCP instances and needs no card.
2. Pick the server. Open the marketplace and choose PostgreSQL. The portal wizard has four steps: name the instance, connection settings, choose what is allowed, get connected.
3. Name the instance. Use something you will recognise in a list, such as "Production database (read-only)".
4. Enter your connection settings. Paste your own database credentials. Use a database user with read-only permissions if you can. MCPifex masks credentials in the UI and encrypts them in transit.
5. Choose what is allowed. Turn on the query and inspect tools. The write tool, execute, is off by default; leave it off unless you need it.
6. Get connected. The wizard gives you an API key and the gateway URL, https://mcp.mcpifex.com/mcp.

For Google Search Console the connection step is a Google sign-in, and the server exposes 19 tools covering performance data, URL inspection, indexing and sitemaps. The Search Console server page lists them.

One limit: you add each server in MCPifex yourself; there is no automatic import. MCPifex also does not host every server that Smithery listed. If your server is not one of the five, use the vendor's official URL or self-host it.

How do you update Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor configs?

The change is the same in every client: remove the old Smithery URL, add the new one, authenticate, and test. Remove the old entry rather than editing it in place, so nothing still points at run.tools after October 31.

Claude

Claude.ai supports remote servers as custom connectors. Delete the Smithery connector, then add a new one with your new URL. Anthropic documents the flow in its guide to custom connectors using remote MCP. Step-by-step MCPifex instructions are on Connect Claude. For Claude Code, remove the old server with the CLI and add the new URL; see adding an MCP server to Claude Code.

ChatGPT

In ChatGPT, delete the Smithery entry, then add the replacement: open Plugins, select the plus button, choose Add custom MCP server, enter a name and description, and paste the new URL as the Connection. For MCPifex that is https://mcp.mcpifex.com/mcp/<YOUR_KEY>, with authentication set to none because the key is in the URL. Accept the risk warning and select Create. You may need developer mode on first (Settings, then Security and login), and menu names change; older accounts may show Settings, Connectors, Advanced, Add connector. Web connectors often cannot send custom headers, which is why MCPifex accepts the key in the URL path. See Connect ChatGPT.

Cursor and other editors

In Cursor, open the MCP settings or edit mcp.json, delete the Smithery entry and add the new URL with its key. A minimal entry looks like this; use the exact header and URL shown in your portal:

{
"mcpServers": {
"postgres": {
"url": "https://mcp.mcpifex.com/mcp",
"headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_MCPIFEX_KEY" }
}
}
}

Cursor-specific steps are on Connect Cursor. The transport behind these URLs is described in the MCP specification, and the remote MCP server glossary entry explains what the term means.

How do you check that the move worked?

Run the same small test in each client. Ask the AI to list the tables in your database, or to show last week's top queries from Search Console. If it returns real data, the new path works. If it says the tool is unavailable, the connector is probably still attached to the old URL.

Then look at the instance in the portal. MCPifex keeps a call log per instance, so you can confirm that the request arrived and see which tool ran. That is also a useful habit after any migration: confirm the old path is dead and the new one is the only one in use.

Finally, set a reminder for November 1. Search your configs once more for run.tools and server.smithery.ai. Anything left will fail, and it is easier to find it on purpose than from an error message in the middle of a task.

What should teams and builders plan for?

If you build on the Smithery API, Connect or Toolbox, a URL swap will not be enough, because those services end as well. Smithery says teams managing MCP connections for their own users need a replacement before October 31. Start with the questions that decide the choice: who authenticates, where credentials are stored, how many servers you need, and who is allowed to call which tool.

For a team that wants one shared endpoint with tool-level control, MCPifex's Team plan is $49 a month for 30 instances and up to 5 members.

Whatever you pick, use the shutdown to tighten access. Give each AI only the tools it needs, keep write tools off until required, and keep one list of every server your AI can reach.

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