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The MCP Gateway and Registry Guide

An MCP gateway is the single control point between your AI clients and your MCP servers. It authenticates each user, controls which servers they can reach, and exposes the telemetry you need to audit usage.

Written forPlatform leadsSecurity approversArchitects
Schedule a Demo →Explore MCP Gateway →
Pick your path

Start with the track for your role

Five posts per track, in reading order. Each one tells you what it will help you decide.

01 — Platform lead

Platform lead track

Pick, host and run a gateway for your teams.

  1. 1Start hereWhat Is an MCP Gateway? Enterprise Evaluation CriteriaThe questions to put to any MCP gateway before you shortlist it.
  2. 2MCP Gateway vs LLM Gateway: Which Layer Controls WhatWhat each gateway type governs, and when you need one, both or neither.
  3. 3Open source comparedComing soonHow the open-source options differ, and where each one stops being enough.
  4. 4Which MCP Gateways Can You Run in Your Own Cloud?The customer-hosted options, including Jarvis, Obot and ContextForge, and the operating decisions each involves.
  5. 5Docker MCP Gateway Alternatives: Five Enterprise Migration PathsFive migration paths if you started on Docker's MCP gateway and need more.
OutcomeYou will be able to shortlist a gateway and defend where it runs.
02 — Security approver

Security approver track

Approve access, controls and audit evidence.

  1. 1Start hereMCP Governance: An Enterprise Checklist for Approving, Controlling and Auditing MCP ServersA checklist for approving, controlling and auditing MCP servers before they reach production.
  2. 2MCP Gateway Buyer's Guide: Access Control, SOC 2 and TenancyBuying criteria, from access control and audit scope to SOC 2 and tenant isolation, with six options compared.
  3. 3How to Control MCP Tool Access with Microsoft Entra IDTest design for separating sign-in, gateway access and downstream permissions, so each user reaches only the servers they should.
  4. 4MCP Tool Poisoning: Review Changes Before Reapproving a ToolA review record and safe tests for deciding whether a changed tool definition should reach users.
  5. 5MCP Audit Logging: Evidence to Collect and Tests to RunAn evidence worksheet and tests for reconstructing MCP tool calls without storing secrets.
OutcomeYou will have the criteria and evidence list to approve or reject.
03 — Architect

Architect track

Design the registry and gateway layers.

  1. 1Start hereEnterprise MCP Registry Architecture: Identity, Policy & AuditHow identity, policy and audit fit around an enterprise MCP registry.
  2. 2Agent Gateway vs API Gateway: Keep, Extend, or Add?Whether your existing API gateway can cover agent traffic, or you need to extend it or add a gateway.
  3. 3MCP vs RESTComing soonWhen an MCP server is worth building over another REST endpoint, and what you give up.
  4. 4Can We Run a Private Agent Skill Registry in Our Own Cloud?Self-hosting a private skill registry: package permissions, client delivery and who operates it.
  5. 5AI Agent Registry vs Skill Registry: What Each One GovernsAgent catalogs, skill registries and MCP metadata: what each governs, and how to test lifecycle controls.
OutcomeYou will have a reference layout for the registry and gateway.
Architecture

Follow one request through the gateway

Every hop is a question teams ask. Pick the one you are stuck on and read the post that answers it.

01ClientClaude, an IDE or an agentThe questionWhat is an MCP gateway, and what does it sit in front of?Read the post →02GatewayRoutes calls and enforces policyThe questionHow is it different from an LLM gateway?Read the post →03IdentityKnows who is callingThe questionHow does each user reach only the servers they should?Read the post →04ServerMCP tools and resourcesThe questionHow do identity, policy and audit fit around the registry?Read the post →05AuditTelemetry and audit evidenceThe questionWhat can you show an auditor afterwards?Read the post →
Rollout sequence

Discover, register, scope, pilot, monitor

Take the steps in order. Each step links to the cluster below that covers it.

Step 01

Discover

Find the MCP servers your teams already use.

Read cluster D →Step 02

Register

Bring them into one registry with an owner for each.

Read cluster D →Step 03

Scope

Decide who can call which tools before anyone does.

Read cluster C →Step 04

Pilot

Start with one team and a short list of servers.

Read cluster B →Step 05

Monitor

Track usage and keep your audit evidence current.

Read cluster E →
Six clusters

Go deeper by topic

Each cluster lists its posts, then bridges to the matching section of the product page.

6 posts

Fundamentals

Start here if MCP gateways are new to you. The basics, without the vendor pitch.

  1. MCP Gateway vs LLM Gateway: Which Layer Controls WhatWhat each gateway type governs, and when you need one, both or neither.
  2. MCP vs RAG: Why Enterprise AI Needs BothWhy enterprise AI needs both, and what each one is for.
  3. ChatGPT Connectors vs MCP: An Enterprise Governance GuideHow connectors and MCP compare when governance is the question.
  4. Enterprise AI Governance Framework: 9 Platform RequirementsNine platform requirements to check before you scale AI across the company.
  5. Shadow AI Discovery: Find Unapproved Tools Before You MigrateReconcile identity, endpoint, network and billing evidence to find tools nobody approved.
  6. SKILL.md Explained: Frontmatter, Folders and Client SupportFrontmatter fields, folder layout and where each client looks for skills.
Product bridgeExplore where the gateway fits in Jarvis Registry →
4 posts

Choosing

Compare options and decide where the gateway runs before you commit.

  1. What Is an MCP Gateway? Enterprise Evaluation CriteriaEvaluation criteria for any MCP gateway.
  2. MCP Gateway Buyer's Guide: Access Control, SOC 2 and TenancyAccess control, audit scope, SOC 2 and tenant isolation, with six options compared.
  3. Which MCP Gateways Can You Run in Your Own Cloud?Customer-hosted options, including Jarvis, Obot and ContextForge.
  4. Docker MCP Gateway Alternatives: Five Enterprise Migration PathsFive migration paths off Docker's MCP gateway.
Product bridgeExplore customer-hosted AWS and Azure →
3 posts

Identity and access

Decide who may call which tools, and how credentials reach downstream servers.

  1. How to Control MCP Tool Access with Microsoft Entra IDSeparate sign-in, gateway access and downstream permissions.
  2. MCP OAuth with Entra ID or Okta: An Enterprise Setup GuideClient registration differences between Entra ID and Okta, plus acceptance tests.
  3. AI Identity Governance for Agents: Owners, Access and OffboardingSix checks that tie agents to owners, bounded access and offboarding.
Product bridgeExplore RBAC and ACL →Explore OAuth credentials →
3 posts

Registry and discovery

Know which MCP servers exist, who owns them, and how teams find them.

  1. Enterprise MCP Registry Architecture: Identity, Policy & AuditHow identity, policy and audit fit around an enterprise MCP registry.
  2. MCP Server Discovery: How to Find Unapproved ServersHow to find the MCP servers nobody approved.
  3. Can We Run a Private Agent Skill Registry in Our Own Cloud?Self-hosting a private skill registry: permissions, delivery and operations.
Product bridgeExplore auto-discovery →Explore AWS and Azure registries →
3 posts

Security, audit, governance

What to monitor, what to log and what to show an approver.

  1. MCP Governance: An Enterprise Checklist for Approving, Controlling and Auditing MCP ServersApprove, control and audit MCP servers.
  2. MCP Tool Poisoning: Review Changes Before Reapproving a ToolReview a changed tool definition before users get it.
  3. MCP Audit Logging: Evidence to Collect and Tests to RunEvidence to collect, and tests that prove you can reconstruct a call.
Product bridgeExplore OpenTelemetry and Prometheus →Explore governance →
3 posts

Adjacent products

The neighbouring control points in Jarvis AI, and when each one applies.

  1. AI Agent Registry vs Skill Registry: What Each One GovernsWhat each governs, and how to test lifecycle controls.
  2. AI Skills vs. MCP Tools: What Should Your Team Govern?What your team should govern, skills or tools.
  3. Is It Safe to Use Public Agent Skills? What the Research ShowsWhat research shows about malicious public skills, and a review checklist.
Product bridgeExplore Skill Gateway →Explore Agent Gateway →Explore Agent Registry →
FAQ

Questions teams ask first

Short answers, taken from the Jarvis Registry documentation. Each links to its source page.

In Jarvis Registry, the MCP Gateway is a single authenticated entry point for MCP-compatible clients to discover and invoke registered MCP servers. It sits between your AI clients and your MCP servers.

Source: MCP Server Gateway & Registry

They are separate but connected. The registry catalogs MCP servers and their metadata, and the gateway derives every invocation decision from it. The production deployment guide deploys both together; the docs do not describe running one without the other.

Source: Why use Registry

Yes. Jarvis Registry can be deployed in a customer's environment, including private and on-premises deployments. The production guide covers an existing EKS or AKS cluster, with a single Helm release, AWS Secrets Manager or Azure Key Vault for secrets, and a TLS certificate. Docker Compose is the local path. A private deployment does not itself grant SOC 2 or another certification.

Source: Production Deployment

Users sign in through your identity provider; the auth server documents Entra ID and Keycloak. Two checks must both pass: role scopes authorize Registry operations, and resource ACLs decide access to each server at VIEW, EDIT or OWNER level. Tool enablement is a per-server disabled-tool list, not a per-user tool ACL. For downstream services, the registry stores encrypted OAuth credentials, refreshes tokens, and can hold per-user credentials where a user has their own identity for a backend.

Source: MCP Server Gateway & Registry

The gateway exposes request rates, latency, error rates and token usage as metrics per server. OpenTelemetry collects traces, metrics and logs and can forward them to tools such as Datadog, and Prometheus and Grafana are optional in the production guide. Set exporter access and retention to meet your required audit scope.

Source: Why use Registry

Explore MCP Gateway

See the gateway in your environment

Walk through registration, scoping and audit with the team that builds Jarvis Registry.

Schedule a Demo →Explore MCP Gateway →
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