Integrate Live SQL Server Data in the Windsurf IDE via CData Connect AI

Windsurf is an AI-native IDE built around Cascade, an autonomous coding agent that understands project context and executes multi-step tasks directly inside the editor. Cascade supports the Model Context Protocol (MCP), allowing the agent to discover and call external tools and data sources without leaving the development environment.

By integrating Windsurf with CData Connect AI through the built-in MCP server, the Cascade agent gains governed, real-time access to live SQL Server data. This enables developers to list catalogs, inspect schemas, and query records from SQL Server data within the IDE using natural language prompts.

This article explains how to configure SQL Server connectivity in Connect AI, generate the required personal access token, configure the Connect AI MCP Server in Windsurf, and verify the integration by querying live SQL Server data from the Cascade chat.

Step 1: Configure SQL Server connectivity for Windsurf

Connectivity to SQL Server from Windsurf is made possible through Connect AI's Remote MCP Server. To interact with SQL Server data from Windsurf, start by creating and configuring a SQL Server connection in Connect AI.

1. Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection

2. Select SQL Server from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to SQL Server.

   Connecting to Microsoft SQL Server

   Connect to Microsoft SQL Server using the following properties:

   • Server: The name of the server running SQL Server.
   • User: The username provided for authentication with SQL Server.
   • Password: The password associated with the authenticating user.
   • Database: The name of the SQL Server database.

   Connecting to Azure SQL Server and Azure Data Warehouse

   You can authenticate to Azure SQL Server or Azure Data Warehouse by setting the following connection properties:

   • Server: The server running Azure. You can find this by logging into the Azure portal and navigating to "SQL databases" (or "SQL data warehouses") -> "Select your database" -> "Overview" -> "Server name."
   • User: The name of the user authenticating to Azure.
   • Password: The password associated with the authenticating user.
   • Database: The name of the database, as seen in the Azure portal on the SQL databases (or SQL warehouses) page.

   SSH Connectivity for SQL Server

   You can use SSH (Secure Shell) to authenticate with SQL Server, whether the instance is hosted on-premises or in supported cloud environments. SSH authentication ensures that access is encrypted (as compared to direct network connections).

   SSH Connections to SQL Server in Password Auth Mode

   To connect to SQL Server via SSH in Password Auth mode, set the following connection properties:

   • User: SQL Server User name
   • Password: SQL Server Password
   • Database: SQL Server database name
   • Server: SQL Server Server name
   • Port: SQL Server port number like 3306
   • UserSSH: "true"
   • SSHAuthMode: "Password"
   • SSHPort: SSH Port number
   • SSHServer: SSH Server name
   • SSHUser: SSH User name
   • SSHPassword: SSH Password

   SSH Connections to SQL Server in Public Key Auth Mode

   To connect to SQL Server via SSH in Password Auth mode, set the following connection properties:

   • User: SQL Server User name
   • Password: SQL Server Password
   • Database: SQL Server database name
   • Server: SQL Server Server name
   • Port: SQL Server port number like 3306
   • UserSSH: "true"
   • SSHAuthMode: "Public_Key"
   • SSHPort: SSH Port number
   • SSHServer: SSH Server name
   • SSHUser: SSH User name
   • SSHClientCret: the path for the public key certificate file
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab and update user-based permissions

Add a Personal Access Token

A Personal Access Token (PAT) is used to authenticate the connection to Connect AI from Windsurf. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each integration to maintain granular access control.

1. Click the gear icon () at the top right of the Connect AI app to open Settings
2. On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT
3. Give the PAT a descriptive name and click Create

4. Copy the token when displayed and store it securely. It will not be shown again

With the SQL Server connection configured and a PAT generated, Windsurf can now connect to SQL Server data.

Step 2: Configure Connect AI MCP in Windsurf

Next, configure the Connect AI Remote MCP Server in Windsurf so that the Cascade agent can discover and call live data tools through Connect AI.

1. Download and install the Windsurf IDE
2. Open Windsurf, click your profile icon in the top right, and select Windsurf Settings
3. Under the Cascade section, locate MCP Servers and click Open MCP Registry
4. In the MCP Marketplace, click Add custom MCP in the top right
5. This opens the mcp_config.json file. Paste the following JSON:

   {
       "mcpServers": {
           "cdata-mcp": {
               "serverUrl": "https://mcp.cloud.cdata.com/mcp",
               "headers": {
                   "Authorization": "Basic your_base64_encoded_email_PAT",
                   "Content-Type": "application/json"
               }
           }
       }
   }
   		

   Note: Windsurf will use Basic authentication with Connect AI. Combine your Connect AI user email and the PAT you created earlier in the format email:PAT, base64 encode the combined string, and prefix it with Basic. For example, given [email protected]:ABC123...XYZ789, the Authorization header value becomes something like: Basic dXNlckBkb21haW4uY29tOkFCQzEyMy4uLlhZWjc4OQ==

   
6. Save the mcp_config.json file and return to the MCP Registry
7. Under Installed, confirm that cdata-mcp is listed and marked as Enabled

With the MCP server registered and enabled, Windsurf is ready to query live SQL Server data through Connect AI.

Step 3: Query live SQL Server data from Windsurf

With the integration complete, use the Cascade chat panel in Windsurf to interact with live SQL Server data through natural language prompts.

1. On the top bar of Windsurf, switch from Editor to Agent to open a new Cascade chat
2. At the bottom of the chat panel, confirm that the cdata-mcp server is listed and the toggle is enabled
3. Start interacting with the agent by entering prompts like:
   • List all catalogs in my cdata-mcp connection
   • Show the available schemas and tables for SQL Server
   • Query the top 5 records from a table in SQL Server data
4. The Cascade agent calls the Connect AI MCP Server and returns live results from SQL Server data

At this point, your Windsurf IDE communicates with the Connect AI MCP Server and retrieves live SQL Server data through remote MCP directly from the editor.

Get CData Connect AI

To access hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources directly from your cloud applications, try CData Connect AI today! Download a free 14-day trial of CData Connect AI today, and as always, our Support Team is available to assist you with any questions you may have.