AWS MCP connector: connected + enabledInChat true, but live session reports needs-auth (zero tools ever register)

### MCP server URL or name

AWS MCP (Anthropic-managed connector)

### How are you connecting to this server?

Anthropic-managed connector, connected via Settings > Connectors (not a custom URL I entered)

### Where does the issue occur?

During a conversation (after initial auth)

### When did you last reproduce this?

2026-08-28, ~23:29 CDT (multiple times across the day, 5+ separate sessions)

### Browser and OS

Cowork (claude.ai), Chrome on Windows

### Describe the issue

The AWS MCP connector shows fully connected and authorized at the account level (Settings > Connectors > AWS MCP: "Connected", tool permissions configured, no error banner), and enabledInChat: true for the current conversation (confirmed via the connector-listing tool in-session) - but every session's live MCP connection reports needs-auth, and zero AWS MCP tools are ever registered.

Reproduced identically across 5+ separate sessions in one day (2026-08-28), including brand-new sessions with no prior history, and after 15+ manual disconnect/reconnect attempts on the connector itself.

Ruled out:
- Per-conversation enablement toggle being off: confirmed enabledInChat: true in the affected session via the connector-listing tool.
- - Stale/old session: reproduced identically in sessions that had never made a prior AWS MCP call.
- - - Account-level auth/UI issue: connector settings UI shows a fully authorized, error-free state throughout.
Currently working around it entirely by using AWS CloudShell directly under a separate IAM identity, bypassing the connector altogether, which defeats the purpose of having it connected.

### Error details

```shell
No visible pop-up error in the Claude.ai UI. The failure surfaces via a connector-refresh tool call inside the session, which returns:

{ "server": "AWS_MCP", "status": "not_connected", "error": "server connection state is \"needs-auth\" - this tool only re-reads tool lists over live connections and never dials" }

No mcp__AWS_MCP__* tool ever appears in the session's available tool list. A separate connector-listing check in the same session returns installState: "connected", connected: true, enabledInChat: true, isAuthless: true - i.e. account-level status looks fully healthy while the live connection layer disagrees.
```

### Expected behavior

Either the connector's tools load in the session (matching the account-level connected: true / enabledInChat: true state), or the mismatch surfaces as an actionable error to the user (e.g. "re-authorization required" with a working fix), instead of a silent needs-auth that 15+ disconnect/reconnect cycles cannot resolve.

### Additional context

Steps tried, all unsuccessful:
1. Disconnect/reconnect the connector from Settings > Connectors (15+ times over ~2 hours)
2. 2. Starting entirely new/fresh conversations (multiple times) - identical needs-auth result on first-ever check in a session that had never touched AWS MCP before
3. 3. Confirmed via a connector-listing tool call that enabledInChat is true for the specific affected conversation, ruling out the known separate "per-conversation toggle off" gotcha
4. 4. Confirmed via screenshots that the Settings > Connectors > AWS MCP detail page shows no error/warning banner anywhere, full tool-permission configuration, and a working "Disconnect" button (i.e. account thinks it's connected)
Current workaround: bypassing the connector entirely and using AWS CloudShell directly (signed in as a separate AWS IAM identity in the browser) for anything that needs live AWS access. This works but defeats the point of having the MCP connector.

Happy to provide additional session timestamps or repeat the connector-listing/refresh tool output on request.