Installation

Choose your preferred installation method and IDE below.

Get Your Datadog Keys

Before configuring any IDE, you need both a Datadog API key and an Application key:

Go to Organization Settings > API Keys
Create or copy an API key
Go to Organization Settings > Application Keys
Create or copy an Application key with read-only scopes

caution

Never commit your Datadog keys to version control. Always use environment variables or IDE-specific secret management.

Environment Variables

Variable	Required	Description
`DD_API_KEY`	Yes	Datadog API key
`DD_APP_KEY`	Yes	Datadog Application key
`DD_SITE`	No	Datadog site/region (default: `datadoghq.com`)

Supported Datadog Sites

Site	`DD_SITE` Value	Region
US1 (default)	`datadoghq.com`	United States
US3	`us3.datadoghq.com`	United States
US5	`us5.datadoghq.com`	United States
EU	`datadoghq.eu`	Europe
AP1	`ap1.datadoghq.com`	Asia Pacific
US1-FED (Gov)	`ddog-gov.com`	US Government

info

If your Datadog organization is not in the default US1 region, you must set DD_SITE to match where your keys were created. Using keys from one region against a different site will result in authentication errors.

Option A: Via npx (Recommended)

No installation needed. Your IDE will run the server on demand:

npx -y @vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp

This is the simplest method — just reference it in your IDE config below.

Option B: Global Install

npm install -g @vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp

Then use datadog-mcp as the command in your IDE config (instead of npx).

Option C: From Source

git clone https://github.com/vineethkrishnan/mcp-pool.git
cd mcp-pool
npm install
npm run build

Then use node /absolute/path/to/mcp-pool/packages/datadog/build/index.js as the command.

IDE Configuration

Claude Desktop

Config file location:

OS	Path
macOS	`~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`
Windows	`%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json`
Linux	`~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`

Quick access: Settings > Developer > Edit Config

Using npx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Using global install:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "datadog-mcp",
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

From source:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/mcp-pool/packages/datadog/build/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

tip

Restart Claude Desktop completely after editing the config. Changes are not picked up automatically.

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

Config file location:

Scope	Path
Workspace	`.vscode/mcp.json` (in your project root)
User (macOS)	`~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/mcp.json`
User (Windows)	`%APPDATA%\Code\User\mcp.json`
User (Linux)	`~/.config/Code/User/mcp.json`

Quick access: Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P) > MCP: Open User Configuration

warning

VS Code uses "servers" as the root key, not "mcpServers".

Workspace config (.vscode/mcp.json):

{
  "servers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "${input:dd-api-key}",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "${input:dd-app-key}",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  },
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "dd-api-key",
      "description": "Datadog API Key",
      "type": "password"
    },
    {
      "id": "dd-app-key",
      "description": "Datadog Application Key",
      "type": "password"
    }
  ]
}

The inputs feature prompts you for the keys securely — they never get stored in the file.

User config (without inputs):

{
  "servers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Config file location:

Scope	Path
Global	`~/.cursor/mcp.json`
Project	`.cursor/mcp.json` (in your project root)

Quick access: Settings > Cursor Settings > MCP

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Project-level config (.cursor/mcp.json) takes precedence over global config.

Windsurf (Codeium)

Config file location:

OS	Path
macOS / Linux	`~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json`
Windows	`%USERPROFILE%\.codeium\windsurf\mcp_config.json`

Quick access: Settings > Advanced Settings > Cascade section

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

tip

Make sure MCP is enabled in Windsurf: Settings > Advanced > Cascade > Enable MCP.

JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ, WebStorm, PyCharm, etc.)

JetBrains IDEs (2025.2+) support MCP servers through the settings UI.

Setup:

Open Settings/Preferences > Tools > AI Assistant > MCP Servers
Click + Add to add a new server
Configure:
- Name: datadog
- Command: npx
- Arguments: -y @vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp
- Environment Variables: DD_API_KEY=your-api-key DD_APP_KEY=your-app-key DD_SITE=datadoghq.com
Click OK and restart the AI Assistant

Alternative — manual config file:

Create or edit ~/.config/JetBrains/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code (CLI)

Option 1 — CLI command (recommended):

claude mcp add datadog \
  --scope user \
  -e DD_API_KEY=your-api-key \
  -e DD_APP_KEY=your-app-key \
  -e DD_SITE=datadoghq.com \
  -- npx -y @vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp

Scope options:

--scope user — available in all your projects
--scope local — current project only (default)
--scope project — shared with team via .mcp.json

Option 2 — manual config:

Edit ~/.claude.json (user scope) or .mcp.json (project scope):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datadog": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "DD_API_KEY": "your-api-key",
        "DD_APP_KEY": "your-app-key",
        "DD_SITE": "datadoghq.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Verify it's working:

claude mcp list

Uninstallation

Claude Code (CLI)

claude mcp remove datadog

To check which servers are configured:

claude mcp list

Claude Desktop / Cursor / Windsurf / JetBrains

Remove the "datadog" entry from the "mcpServers" block in the relevant config file, then restart the IDE.

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

Remove the "datadog" entry from the "servers" block in .vscode/mcp.json or user-level mcp.json, then reload the window.

Global npm install

If you installed globally, also run:

npm uninstall -g @vineethnkrishnan/datadog-mcp

Verify Installation

After configuring your IDE, test the connection by asking your AI assistant:

"List my Datadog monitors."

If the server is working, you'll get a response with your monitors. If not, check:

Both keys are valid — API key and Application key are both required
Site matches your region — if you're not on US1, set DD_SITE to your region
Node.js >= 20 — run node --version
Config file syntax — validate your JSON (no trailing commas)
Restart your IDE — most IDEs require a full restart after config changes

Security Recommendations

Create a dedicated Application key for AI tooling with minimal read-only scopes
Use a scoped API key if your Datadog plan supports it
Never share config files containing API keys
Add config files with secrets to .gitignore
Rotate keys periodically via Datadog Organization Settings

Get Your Datadog Keys​

Environment Variables​

Supported Datadog Sites​

Option A: Via npx (Recommended)​

Option B: Global Install​

Option C: From Source​

IDE Configuration​

Claude Desktop​

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)​

Cursor​

Windsurf (Codeium)​

JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ, WebStorm, PyCharm, etc.)​

Claude Code (CLI)​

Uninstallation​

Claude Code (CLI)​

Claude Desktop / Cursor / Windsurf / JetBrains​

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)​

Global npm install​

Verify Installation​

Security Recommendations​

Get Your Datadog Keys

Environment Variables

Supported Datadog Sites

Option A: Via npx (Recommended)

Option B: Global Install

Option C: From Source

IDE Configuration

Claude Desktop

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

Cursor

Windsurf (Codeium)

JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ, WebStorm, PyCharm, etc.)

Claude Code (CLI)

Uninstallation

Claude Code (CLI)

Claude Desktop / Cursor / Windsurf / JetBrains

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

Global npm install

Verify Installation

Security Recommendations