Gitlab MCP

[fierce stream]

Hello again @wide sun, I would like to integrate Gitlab (if possible using MCP with my claw. Is the oauth2 route viable, and if not, could I use a project access token with MCP scope ?

More broadly, what are my options for interacting with gitlab (especially MRs) skill-wise ?

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[wide sun]

I'll check the docs and source so I can give you a real answer instead of guessing.

I found the relevant OpenClaw MCP docs. I’m checking GitLab’s side now, especially whether project tokens actually support the MCP flow or whether you need user OAuth/PAT.

Short version:

• GitLab’s official MCP server does support OAuth 2.0 DCR, and that is the path GitLab documents for MCP clients. It’s also Beta and Premium/Ultimate only: https://docs.gitlab.com/user/gitlab_duo/model_context_protocol/mcp_server/
• For OpenClaw specifically, I couldn’t find a documented generic MCP OAuth login flow. OpenClaw’s MCP docs describe remote MCP as url + optional headers, or stdio command/args/env, not a browser-based OAuth handshake: https://docs.openclaw.ai/cli/mcp
• I also don’t see an mcp scope on GitLab project access tokens. So “project access token with MCP scope” looks like no from the GitLab docs. Project tokens are project-scoped and usually a bit awkward for MR-heavy workflows anyway: https://docs.gitlab.com/user/project/settings/project_access_tokens/

So my practical recommendation would be:

1. If you want the official GitLab MCP server, use it with a client that already supports GitLab’s OAuth MCP flow well.
2. If you want this inside OpenClaw today, I’d lean toward:
   • a token-based third-party GitLab MCP server, or
   • a custom skill/plugin that talks to GitLab REST/GraphQL or glab.

For MR workflows, the official GitLab MCP toolset is actually pretty nice. GitLab documents tools for:

• create/get MR
• MR diffs
• MR commits

• MR pipelines/jobs
• notes/comments on work items
• search / semantic code search

Tools list: https://docs.gitlab.com/user/gitlab_duo/model_context_protocol/mcp_server_tools/

A few OpenClaw-specific notes:

• OpenClaw-managed MCP defs live under mcp.servers: https://docs.openclaw.ai/cli/mcp
• If you’re using ACP harnesses (Codex/Claude/etc) through OpenClaw, per-session mcpServers are not supported. Configure MCP on the gateway/agent instead: https://docs.openclaw.ai/tools/acp-agents

So, broad options today are:

• Official GitLab MCP if your MCP client can do GitLab OAuth well
• Third-party GitLab MCP if you want PAT-style auth
• Custom GitLab skill/plugin if you want tight control over MR workflows in OpenClaw

If you want, I can sketch the cleanest setup for either of these:

• official GitLab MCP + OpenClaw ACP agent
• custom/token-based GitLab MR skill for OpenClaw

[fierce stream]

Is this approach viable https://github.com/zereight/gitlab-mcp/blob/HEAD/docs/json-mcp-clients-setup.md ?

What about clawhub ?

[wide sun]

Let me check that repo doc and whether there’s already a ClawHub-shaped path here.

Yes, that zereight approach looks viable for OpenClaw.

Why I’m comfortable saying that:

• OpenClaw’s MCP config supports exactly the shape that guide is using for a stdio server: command, args, env under mcp.servers: https://docs.openclaw.ai/cli/mcp
• So the reusable block from that guide maps pretty naturally to OpenClaw, for example:

{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "gitlab": {
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["-y", "@zereight/mcp-gitlab"],
        "env": {
          "GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "glpat-...",

          "GITLAB_API_URL": "https://gitlab.com/api/v4"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

A couple caveats:

• that repo doc is best-effort, not OpenClaw-official
• if you are using an ACP harness through OpenClaw, configure MCP on the gateway/agent, not per session. OpenClaw explicitly says per-session mcpServers are unsupported in bridge mode: https://docs.openclaw.ai/cli/acp

PAT vs OAuth here

For OpenClaw today, I’d actually lean PAT first with that third-party server.

Reason:

• OpenClaw docs clearly cover token/env-based MCP config
• I still don’t see an OpenClaw-documented generic MCP OAuth browser handshake flow
• GitLab’s official MCP server is built around OAuth 2.0 DCR, but that’s a different path from this third-party stdio server

Also, on the GitLab side:

• project access tokens do not appear to have an mcp scope
• but they do support normal API scopes like api / read_api

So:

• official GitLab MCP + mcp scope on a project token: probably no
• third-party GitLab MCP or REST/CLI workflow using project token + API scopes: yes, potentially

The main tradeoff is scope:

• project token: good if you only want one project
• user PAT: better if you want “my MRs”, cross-project review queues, broader search, etc.

What about ClawHub?

That’s a different but probably better route if your real goal is “make my claw good at GitLab/MRs”.

ClawHub is the registry for OpenClaw skills/plugins: https://docs.openclaw.ai/tools/clawhub
Skills install via: https://docs.openclaw.ai/cli/skills

I found a couple promising GitLab-related entries:

• GitLab API skill, REST-oriented, repo/file/project operations
  https://clawhub.ai/d1gl3/gitlab-api
• glab skill, built around the official GitLab CLI, and this one looks especially good for MR workflows
  https://clawhub.ai/bezkom/glab

For MR-heavy work, I’d probably rank the options like this:

1. ClawHub glab skill for practical day-to-day MR work