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evoMCP FAQ and troubleshooting

General questions

Does evoMCP include an AI model?

No. evoMCP is the server your chosen assistant connects to. It runs authorised calls and returns the result. The assistant's provider receives the data the tools return; the OAuth consent screen says so.

Which clients can I connect?

Any MCP client that supports HTTP transport. The Connect tab in the panel covers Claude (web and desktop), ChatGPT, Claude Code and token clients such as Cursor. Step-by-step instructions are in First steps.

Can the assistant do more than my user can?

No. Each connection runs with the identity and ACL of a Joomla user, and the effective permission is the lower of the connection's matrix and what that user can do in the administrator.

What does an assistant see by default?

A new connection starts with read access to content. Users, orders and leads stay off until you grant them. The assistant can also call evomcp_capabilities to learn what it can do and which components exist without being granted.

Is everything held for approval?

In the recommended mode, yes: every write tool. There are two other modes, and some actions always ask for approval. The table is in Settings and the per-tool list is in the reference.

Can I see what an assistant has done?

Yes. The audit log records every call with the connection, user, tool, result and latency. It stores the names and sizes of the arguments, not their text. The panel warns you if the hash chain stops verifying.

What happens to content an assistant creates?

It arrives as a draft, with its provenance recorded: connection, date and who reviewed it. When a person saves an agent-created article in the panel, it is recorded as reviewed.

What happens when the licence expires?

The extension keeps working. Only updates stop arriving. Prices, tiers and the download key are in Licences and updates and on the pricing page.

Does it work with Joomla 6?

[PENDIENTE: the installer requires Joomla 5.0 or later and the repository holds no test against Joomla 6]

Problems

I get a 401 even though the token is right

Apache without Joomla's .htaccess does not pass the Authorization header to PHP. Turn on Joomla's rewrite rules or add SetEnvIf Authorization "(.*)" HTTP_AUTHORIZATION=$1. Also check that the connection is not revoked or expired, and that the request comes from one of the allowed IPs if you set any. If you regenerated the token, the old one no longer works.

/mcp answers 404

There are two causes. One: the endpoint is disabled in the options ("Endpoint enabled"). Two: the request does not reach Joomla's index.php because the web server's rewrite rules are missing.

It answers 403 "Origin not allowed"

The request carries an Origin header that is neither the site itself nor listed under "Allowed origins (optional)". Add the client's origin, for example https://claude.ai, one per line. Server requests without an Origin header are not affected.

I get a 429

There are three limits: 600 requests a minute per IP (fixed), the "Requests per minute per connection" setting, and the connection's "Monthly call quota". With the first two, wait a minute. The quota resets next month, or you can raise it on the connection.

Claude or ChatGPT cannot connect

Look at the "Before connecting" block on the Connect tab: the site must use HTTPS and a public address. A localhost, an internal network or a test domain cannot be reached from a cloud assistant. If your hosting runs a web application firewall, it may block requests, especially when many arrive in a row.

The sign-in screen says I have no connection available

OAuth does not create connections. An administrator has to create a connection assigned to your user first; you will then see it on the consent screen. See First steps.

The assistant does not see a tool it should have

  • A tool the connection cannot use is not listed. Ask the assistant to run evomcp_capabilities.
  • If you granted the permission recently and the connection uses OAuth, reconnect the connector so the client refreshes its list.
  • The YOOtheme tools only exist if the YOOtheme template is installed.
  • The advanced layer tools need their three locks: plugin enabled, switch on and full permission.
  • The administration areas (users, extensions, configuration, system, the advanced layer and generic entities) can only be granted by a Super User when creating the connection. The system tools also need a user with administration permission in Joomla.

A write returns pending_approval

That is expected. The action waits under Components → evoMCP → Approvals. The assistant can check the outcome with evomcp_approval_status. If nobody decides within 24 hours it moves to "Expired" and has to be requested again.

It says there are too many pending actions

Each connection allows up to 50 pending approvals. Resolve some under Approvals or wait for them to expire.

I approved the action but it failed

The action runs as the connection's Joomla user, not as the person who approved it. If that user lacks permission in Joomla, or the data is no longer valid, it fails and the panel shows the reason ("The action was approved but could not run").

A YOOtheme tool rejects the change

The tools that change a page builder page require the connection user's group to have Joomla's text filter set to "No Filtering" (Content → Options → Text Filters). Without it, the tool refuses, to avoid breaking the builder's JSON.

The response is too large

The limit is 1 MB per response. Use pagination or stricter filters.

The audit chain does not verify

The panel shows "WARNING: the audit chain does not verify; entries were modified or deleted". It means rows in the audit table were touched outside evoMCP. Privacy requests that pseudonymise a user recalculate the chain and do not break it.

The maintenance task does not run

It is a Joomla scheduler task: System → Scheduled Tasks, "evomcp: mantenimiento". Check that it is enabled and that Joomla's scheduler fires, either on page visits or through cron.