e2a — email for AI agents

@e2a/mcp-server

Model Context Protocol server for e2a — gives any MCP-aware AI agent its own email inbox to send, receive, reply, and (optionally) review held outbound mail before it ships.

Works with Google ADK, LangChain, OpenAI Agents SDK, Claude Desktop, Cursor, Cline, and any other MCP host.

Connect

e2a's MCP server is hosted. Point your MCP host at the Streamable HTTP endpoint:

https://api.e2a.dev/mcp

Two ways to authenticate:

• OAuth 2.1 (recommended for interactive hosts) — add e2a as a connector and authorize in the browser. No key is pasted into config.
• Bearer API key (programmatic / self-host) — send your e2a dashboard API key in the Authorization: Bearer <e2a API key> header.

An agent-scoped credential resolves its agent server-side. Account-scoped callers pass the agent email per tool call.

Quick start

Google ADK (Python)

import os

from google.adk.agents import Agent
from google.adk.tools.mcp_tool.mcp_toolset import McpToolset
from google.adk.tools.mcp_tool.mcp_session_manager import StreamableHTTPConnectionParams

root_agent = Agent(
    model="gemini-flash-latest",
    name="e2a_agent",
    instruction="Help the user manage their email. Reply to threads with `reply_to_message` to preserve threading headers.",
    tools=[
        McpToolset(
            connection_params=StreamableHTTPConnectionParams(
                url="https://api.e2a.dev/mcp",
                headers={
                    "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['E2A_API_KEY']}",
                },
                timeout=30,
            ),
        ),
    ],
)

LangChain (Python)

Using langchain-mcp-adapters:

import os

from langchain.agents import create_agent
from langchain_mcp_adapters.client import MultiServerMCPClient

client = MultiServerMCPClient({
    "e2a": {
        "transport": "http",
        "url": os.getenv("E2A_MCP_URL", "https://api.e2a.dev/mcp"),
        "headers": {
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['E2A_API_KEY']}",
        },
    },
})

tools = await client.get_tools()
agent = create_agent(
    "anthropic:claude-sonnet-4-6",
    tools=tools,
    system_prompt="Reply with reply_to_message; pending_review is accepted, so do not retry it.",
)

OpenAI Agents SDK (Python)

import os

from agents import Agent, Runner
from agents.mcp import MCPServerStreamableHttp

async with MCPServerStreamableHttp(
    name="e2a",
    params={
        "url": os.getenv("E2A_MCP_URL", "https://api.e2a.dev/mcp"),
        "headers": {
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['E2A_API_KEY']}",
        },
        "timeout": 30,
    },
    cache_tools_list=True,
    max_retry_attempts=3,
) as e2a:
    agent = Agent(name="e2a_agent", mcp_servers=[e2a])
    result = await Runner.run(agent, "Reply to the latest unread email politely.")

Claude Desktop / Cline / Cursor

Add e2a as a remote MCP server in the host's config (claude_desktop_config.json, cline_mcp_settings.json, etc.):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "e2a": {
      "url": "https://api.e2a.dev/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_E2A_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Hosts that support OAuth connectors can instead add https://api.e2a.dev/mcp as a connector and authorize in the browser — no key pasted.

Tools

The server exposes up to 80 tools spanning agents, messages, human-in-the-loop approval, attachments, domains, events, webhooks, API keys, contacts/outreach, email templates (beta), suppressions, and external sending access requests (beta). The visible set depends on your credential's scope: an agent-scoped credential sees the 21 runtime/inbox tools (read, send, reply, restore messages, per-agent outreach); an account-scoped credential also sees the 59 admin/setup tools (agent/domain/webhook/event/template/API-key/contact/ suppression/sending-access management — and HITL review discovery plus approve/reject, which is an account-owner action, never agent self-approval) — all 80. Every tool carries MCP annotations (readOnlyHint/destructiveHint/ idempotentHint) so hosts can auto-approve reads and flag destructive actions. The tables below highlight the most commonly used ones — your MCP host's tool list shows the set your scope allows, with per-tool descriptions.

Identity

Tool	Description
whoami	Get the authenticated account's identity — user, scope, plan/limits; for an agent-scoped credential, also the bound agent address. On a deployment that reports it, also includes the additive beta sending_access object (see External sending access below).
list_agents	List agent inboxes; pass deleted:true to list the 30-day trash. (Admin/account-scoped.)
get_agent	Get one agent inbox by its full email address.
create_agent	Register a new agent by its full email address — on a verified domain you own, or the deployment's shared domain. No delivery "mode": inbound is always available via list_messages (poll) or a create_webhook subscription. (Admin/account-scoped.)
restore_agent	Restore a soft-deleted agent and its configuration. (Admin/account-scoped.)

Webhook deliveries are signed — verify them. Push delivery is a top-level resource (create_webhook), not a per-agent mode. e2a HMAC-signs every webhook delivery against the webhook's signing secret (returned once from create_webhook / rotate_webhook_secret). Your handler must verify the signature on every request — the e2a SDK exposes constructEvent(rawBody, signatureHeader, secret) which verifies and returns a typed event in one call (throws on a bad signature). Or skip webhooks entirely and poll via list_messages.

Messages

Scheduled sending via send_at / scheduled_at is beta and may change before it is declared stable.

External sending access (beta). On a deployment that restricts it, an account may be limited to sending through the shared identity only to its verified account email and to agent inboxes in the same account. A send_message / reply_to_message / forward_message (or the deprecated send_email) call with any other To/Cc/Bcc recipient refuses the WHOLE send with external_sending_not_enabled (403) — nothing is queued, and the identical call will not succeed on retry. whoami's sending_access object reports the current state (enforcement_applies, shared_external_approved, paid_external_sending_entitled, owner_recipient_verified) and available_unlocks — what can lift the restriction on this deployment: operator_approval always; verified_domain (send from your own verified domain) and paid_entitlement (a paid plan) only where listed. The hosted service lists only operator_approval. To ask for approval, call request_sending_access once (account scope; also available in the dashboard at the error's recovery_url): resubmitting while a request is pending returns the same request, and rate_limited (3 requests per 30 days) must not be retried. An operator decides and the decision is emailed to the account owner; get_sending_access_request shows the current state. No MCP tool can grant approval.

Tool	Description
request_sending_access	Beta. File one request for an operator to review external sending access (use_case, recipients, expected_daily_volume). Mutating: refused with account_read_only on a frozen account. (Admin/account-scoped.)
get_sending_access_request	Beta. The account's latest request and its state (pending / approved / declined). Read-only. (Admin/account-scoped.)

Tool	Description
send_message	Send a new email. Immediate queueing returns status: accepted; future send_at returns status: scheduled plus scheduled_at; a review hold returns status: pending_review. All three are durable success outcomes — do not re-send.
reply_to_message	Reply to a message — one the agent received (replies to its sender) or one it sent (continues the thread to the original recipients). Preserves In-Reply-To / References for thread continuity and accepts the same optional send_at as send_message.
forward_message	Forward a message into a new thread, carrying its existing attachments by default. Accepts the same optional send_at as send_message.
list_messages	List mail; pass deleted:true to list trash. Filter by read_status (unread / read / all) and sender with reserved-word-safe from_; cursor-paginated (cursor + limit in, next_cursor out).
delete_message	Move a message to the trash (restorable for ~30 days). Requires confirm: true. Per-message permanent deletion is deliberately not exposed over MCP — use the REST API/SDK. (Purging a whole inbox is available to account scope via delete_agent's permanent: true.)
restore_message	Restore a soft-deleted message and resume its retention clock.
get_message	Fetch full body, headers, and attachment metadata for one message.
get_attachment	Get one attachment's metadata + a short-lived download_url (fetch the bytes out of band); inline: true returns base64 data for small files (≤256 KB).
update_message_labels	Add or remove labels on a message.

MCP message output intentionally omits the REST message-read beta thread_id field and adds no thread filter or endpoint. list_conversations / get_conversation remain caller-owned conversation_id application views, not RFC email-thread enumeration. Use reply_to_message with the original message ID to preserve wire topology.

Human-in-the-loop approval

list_reviews/get_review surface every account-scoped hold: outbound drafts awaiting send approval and inbound messages held by a screening gate. The email.review_requested webhook is an additional push notification for either direction and carries the same message_id. The approve_review/reject_review tools branch on direction: approving an inbound hold releases it to the agent's inbox (no send, no draft, override fields ignored); rejecting one drops it so it never reaches the agent.

Tool	Description
list_reviews	List inbound and outbound messages awaiting human review across the account, soonest-expiring first.
get_review	Get the full held message (body, recipients, and screening context where applicable).
approve_review	Outbound: send a held message, optionally with reviewer edits (subject / body / recipients). Inbound: release the screening hold to the agent's inbox (overrides ignored). Account-scoped — never agent self-approval.
reject_review	Outbound: discard a held message. Inbound: drop the screening hold so it never reaches the agent. The optional reason is stored for audit. Account-scoped.

Domains

Tool	Description
register_domain	Register a custom sending domain; returns the MX + TXT DNS records to publish. (Admin/account-scoped.)

API keys

All admin/account-scoped. create_api_key mints agent-scoped keys only — the key is bound to one inbox and can act only as that agent. Account-scoped (workspace-admin) keys cannot be created over MCP; mint those from the dashboard or the raw API, where a human is in the loop.

Tool	Description
list_api_keys	List the account's API keys — metadata only (secrets are shown once, at creation).
create_api_key	Mint a new agent-scoped key bound to an inbox; returns the plaintext key ONCE — store it immediately.
delete_api_key	Revoke a key permanently (requires confirm: true).

Contacts (beta)

The people an account corresponds with (list_contacts / get_contact / create_contact / update_contact / delete_contact, admin/account-scoped) and one agent's per-contact outreach state — stage, next action, reply/ suppression facts (list_outreach_contacts / get_outreach_contact / set_outreach_contact / delete_outreach_contact, available to account scope or an agent-scoped credential for its bound inbox). Import is inert — it records identity and enrolls outreach without sending anything.

Tool	Description
list_contacts / get_contact	List account contacts (filter by provenance/import batch/creation window) or fetch one by address.
create_contact / update_contact / delete_contact	Create, partially update (etag-guarded via if_match), or delete a contact's identity and all of its per-agent outreach rows. Deleting a contact does not remove suppressions.
import_contacts	Bulk-import contacts from rows, optionally enrolling them into an agent's outreach.
delete_contact_import	Reverse an import batch, removing untouched contacts and the enrolments it created.
list_outreach_contacts / get_outreach_contact	List or fetch the contacts an agent is working, with server-derived reply/delivery facts.
set_outreach_contact	Enroll a contact in an agent's outreach, or update the agent-owned fields (stage, next action).
delete_outreach_contact	Un-enroll a contact from an agent's outreach; the contact and its suppressions survive.

Suppressions

Recipient block lists at two scopes, all admin/account-scoped (the server rejects agent-scoped credentials on every one — an agent must not read or edit blocklists). The account list is auto-populated by hard bounces and complaints and applies to sends from every agent; the agent list (beta) holds unsubscribe/manual blocks for one exact sending agent.

Tool	Description
list_suppressions	List the account-wide suppression list (address, source bounce/complaint/manual, reason, source message id).
delete_suppression	Un-suppress a recipient account-wide. Requires confirm: true; only use it for addresses known to be deliverable — removing a genuine bouncer hurts sender reputation.
list_agent_suppressions	List one agent's blocked recipients (unsubscribe/manual).
create_agent_suppression	Idempotently add a manual block for one agent; other agents can still mail the address.
delete_agent_suppression	Remove only the exact agent-scoped block. Requires confirm: true because the block may represent an unsubscribe.

Templates (beta)

Reusable email templates with {{variable}} interpolation (a flat Mustache subset — no loops/sections; missing variables render as empty strings), plus a read-only catalog of pre-built starters (welcome, verify-code, password-reset, receipt, agent-status, daily-digest, approval-request). Send with a template via send_message's template_id / template_alias + template_data (mutually exclusive with literal subject/body). All template management tools are admin/account-scoped. Beta — shapes may change before templates are declared stable.

Tool	Description
list_templates / get_template	List the account's stored templates (summary rows); get_template returns the full body sources.
create_template	Create a template from literal source — or copy a starter verbatim with from_starter.
update_template / delete_template	Edit (re-parses changed parts) or delete a template.
validate_template	Dry-run source: parse errors, a rendered preview against test_data, and suggestedData placeholders.
list_starter_templates / get_starter_template	Browse the starter catalog; the detail view includes full body sources and per-variable metadata.

Errors

Every failed tool call returns an MCP result with isError: true and two representations of the error:

• structuredContent — the machine-branchable form. Branch on this, not the text:

  {
    "code": "domain_not_verified",
    "retryable": false,
    "status": 403,
    "request_id": "req_abc123",
    "retry_after_seconds": 30,
    "details": { "field": "…" }
  }
  

  Field	Presence	Meaning
  code	always	Stable snake_case token from the API error envelope (e.g. domain_not_verified, rate_limited, message_not_pending). Errors raised by the MCP layer itself (bad/missing arguments, confirm:true guards) carry invalid_request.
  retryable	always	true when a retry could plausibly succeed (rate limit, 5xx, connection failure).
  status	API errors only	HTTP status of the API response (0 = connection-level failure). Absent when no request was made (MCP-layer validation).
  request_id	when available	Server request id — quote it in support requests.
  retry_after_seconds	when available	Back-off hint for retryable errors.
  details	when available	Structured field-level detail from the envelope (omitted if oversized).

• content (text) — the human-readable form, unchanged and stable: e2a error [<code>] (retryable)?: <message> for API errors, e2a error: <message> for MCP-layer errors. Existing agents that parse this text keep working, but new integrations should read structuredContent instead.

Successful results are unaffected (JSON in a text block; list tools return a domain-named array plus next_cursor while more pages remain).

Operating the HTTP server

Self-hosters run the HTTP transport via mcp/Dockerfile or the mcp service in the repo's docker-compose.yaml. Day-2 operations (SLOs, failure classes, correlation) are covered by docs/runbooks/mcp-server.md; this section is the reference for configuration and surface.

Environment variables

Variable	Default	Description
PORT	3000	Listen port.
E2A_API_URL	required	Base URL of the e2a API server this transport forwards bearers to (and probes for readiness). Canonical name; E2A_URL and E2A_BASE_URL are legacy aliases, still accepted with a deprecation warning. No default — the process refuses to start (ConfigError, exit 2) if none of the three are set, rather than silently forwarding your users' bearer tokens to the operator's api.e2a.dev.
MCP_ALLOWED_HOSTS	derived from MCP_PUBLIC_URL, else required	Comma-separated Host allowlist (DNS-rebinding guard). Requests to /mcp and the discovery document with a Host outside the list get 421. Ports are stripped before comparison. No literal default; if unset it falls back to the host of MCP_PUBLIC_URL, and refuses to start if neither is set.
MCP_PUBLIC_URL	unset	Externally reachable URL of this MCP server, used verbatim in the RFC 9728 protected-resource metadata and the 401 WWW-Authenticate challenge, and (when set) as the default for MCP_ALLOWED_HOSTS. Set when the fronting proxy's view of the URL differs from the inbound Host (local dev: http://localhost:8765).
MCP_AUTHORIZATION_SERVER_URL	$E2A_API_URL	Authorization-server URL advertised in protected-resource metadata. Override when the bearer-forwarding URL is container-internal but OAuth clients must reach the AS from the host.
E2A_TRUST_PROXY	loopback	Express trust proxy setting — which hops' X-Forwarded-* headers are honored for discovery URLs. true/false, a hop count, or a preset/subnet list.
MCP_RESOLVE_TIMEOUT_MS	5000	Positive-int bound (ms) on the whoami probe that resolves a bearer to its principal, with at most 1 retry. On timeout/backend 5xx the request is served fail-closed at least-privilege agent scope, uncached, and logged as auth_resolution result=fallback.
MCP_SESSION_IDLE_MS	300000	Legacy name — sizes the resolve cache, not sessions. TTL (ms) of a cached bearer→principal resolution. The transport is stateless; there are no sessions to time out.
MCP_MAX_SESSIONS	500	Legacy name — sizes the resolve cache, not sessions. Max cached bearer→principal entries; oldest evicted past the cap. A miss costs one whoami, never a disconnect.

Health endpoints

All three are unauthenticated:

• GET /healthz — process liveness only, never touches the backend: { "ok": true }. Wire to your liveness probe.

• GET /readyz — readiness: probes {E2A_API_URL}/api/health (2s timeout, result cached 10s so a scraping fleet can't cause a probe storm). 200 { "ok": true, "checks": { "api": "ok" } } when reachable; 503 { "ok": false, "checks": { "api": "unreachable" }, "request_id": "…" }

  • Retry-After: 10 (the failure-cache TTL) when not. Wire to your readiness probe.

• GET /metrics — Prometheus text exposition. Example lines:

  mcp_http_requests_total{route="mcp",status_class="2xx"} 1523
  mcp_http_request_duration_seconds_bucket{route="mcp",le="0.5"} 1480
  mcp_auth_resolutions_total{result="cache_hit"} 1490
  mcp_tool_executions_total{tool="list_messages",outcome="ok"} 412
  mcp_readyz_checks_total{result="ok"} 60
  mcp_resolve_cache_entries 7
  

  Route labels are bounded: mcp | healthz | readyz | metrics | discovery | other.

Structured logs

Single-line JSON on stderr (GCE-shaped severity / event / message plus fields). Request-scoped events carry request_id (the response's X-Request-Id): auth_resolution (result, duration_ms, scope?; invalid/fallback at WARNING), http_request (route, method, status, duration_ms; successful probe/scrape traffic on healthz/readyz/metrics is metered but not logged), tool_execution (tool, outcome, duration_ms, error_code?), terminal_error. Bearer tokens are never logged; the resolve cache is keyed by SHA-256 fingerprints. An inbound X-Request-Id matching ^[A-Za-z0-9_-]{1,64}$ is honored; otherwise the server mints mcpreq_<12hex>. The id is echoed on every response but is not forwarded to the backend API.

Client retry policy

Failed tool calls return structuredContent (see Errors): branch on code / retryable / retry_after_seconds. Retry only retryable: true errors with exponential backoff + jitter, ~3 attempts max. Never retry 4xx (401 → re-authenticate; 421 → fix the URL). accepted, scheduled, and pending_review on send tools are success outcomes — do not retry them. A future send_at to the sending agent's own address returns 400 invalid_request when direct loopback applies; review holds take precedence and drop the schedule. The transport is stateless, so "reconnect" after an interruption is simply re-POSTing; MCP clients do this automatically.

Links

• e2a docs
• Source
• Issues
• Model Context Protocol

License

Apache-2.0