github / github/copilot-cli

Automatic MCP Server Token Refresh

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#2,779 2 comments 7 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub
area:authentication area:mcp
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Description

### Describe the bug

# Automatic MCP Server Token Refresh

## Problem

When using long-running autopilot workflows (e.g., multi-PR feature development via custom agents), MCP server OAuth tokens expire mid-workflow. This causes:

1. **Silent tool failures** — MCP tool calls return `AADSTS9010010` auth errors
2. **Workflow interruption** — the agent must stop and ask the user to manually run `/mcp reload`
3. **Lost autopilot momentum** — what should be a hands-off workflow becomes a babysitting exercise

### Real-world impact

During a unit test coverage feature delivered via a custom agent plugin (4 PRs, 258 tests), MCP auth expired multiple times. Each time:

- The agent retried 3× with 10s delays (workaround we built into the plugin)
- After 3 failures, it had to pause and ask the user to run `/mcp reload`
- The user had to switch context, reload, then tell the agent to continue
- Total disruption: ~2-5 minutes per occurrence, multiple occurrences per session

This completely undermines the value proposition of autopilot mode.

## Proposed Solution

**Proactive token refresh**: The CLI should detect when an MCP server's OAuth token is approaching expiry and refresh it automatically in the background, similar to how `az login` maintains a token cache with automatic refresh.

### Implementation suggestions

- Use the OAuth refresh token (if available) to obtain a new access token before expiry
- If using device code flow, detect the approaching expiry window (e.g., 5 minutes before) and initiate re-auth proactively
- Surface a non-blocking notification: "🔄 Refreshed MCP auth for [server-name]"
- If silent refresh is impossible (no refresh token), fall back to prompting — but only once, not on every tool call

## Environment

- Copilot CLI on Windows (PowerShell)
- MCP servers using Entra ID (Azure AD) OAuth
- Token lifetime: typically 1 hour
- Workflows: 2-6+ hours in autopilot mode

## Current Workaround

We built an "MCP Auth Recovery Gate" pattern into our plugin, but this requires manual intervention.

```text
Retry 3× with 10s delay → if all fail with AADSTS error → ask user to run /mcp reload
```

This works but defeats autopilot's purpose.

### Affected version

_No response_

### Steps to reproduce the behavior

_No response_

### Expected behavior

_No response_

### Additional context

_No response_

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start by tracing the MCP authentication lifecycle and the `/mcp reload` path, focusing on how OAuth access and refresh tokens are handled for Entra ID servers. Define the expiry window and background refresh behavior, then verify that silent refresh is non-blocking and that servers without refresh tokens prompt only once.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
azure, powershell
Domain
authentication, cli
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
42/100

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