managing-arcade-apps

name

managing-arcade-apps

description

List, disconnect, reconnect, and fix the apps Arcade is connected to for the user — Google, GitHub, Slack, Notion, and more — including switching accounts, expired sign-ins, and missing permissions, plus the one-time sign-in when a task needs an app that isn't connected yet. Use when the user asks which apps are connected, wants to disconnect, reconnect, or switch the account for an app, or a tool returns a sign-in link. Not for performing tasks inside apps.

Managing connected apps

Arcade_Apps lives on the arcade MCP server. The apps shown belong to the user's active gateway — switching gateways can change which apps appear (see working-with-arcade-gateways).

Quick start

Arcade_Apps(action: "list")                      # all apps + connected state + account
Arcade_Apps(action: "disconnect", app_id: "...") # remove one app (confirm first)

Use apps language: app, connected, not connected, permissions, sign in, disconnect. Avoid authorization, OAuth, scopes, provider, token.

List

Call Arcade_Apps(action: "list") and show each app, whether it's connected, and the account it's connected as. Connected apps first. Don't show internal ids or raw permission strings.

Example

Arcade_Apps(action: "list")
  → {apps: [{app_id: "google", name: "Google", connected: true, account: "[e-mail]"},
            {app_id: "slack", name: "Slack", connected: false}, ...]}
Reply:
  Connected: Google ([e-mail]), GitHub (spartee)
  Not connected: Slack, Notion, Dropbox, …

Disconnect

Call Arcade_Apps(action: "disconnect", app_id: "<id from list>"). Confirm with the user first — disconnecting removes Arcade's access to that app. Report the outcome plainly.

Signing in to an app

The first time a task needs an app the user hasn't connected, a tool returns a one-time sign-in link. The response may say success: true — an authorization_url in the output still means sign-in required, not a completed task.

1. Present the link: "Sign in to connect your here, then tell me to continue."
2. Stop and wait for the user — never poll or retry in a loop.
3. After they confirm, retry the original request once.

Fixing an app connection

For wrong account, expired sign-in, missing permissions, or an explicit "reconnect" request, use Arcade_ManageToolAuthorization (same arcade MCP server) with a tool_name from the affected app:

Arcade_ManageToolAuthorization(action: "status", tool_name: "...")          # check the connection
Arcade_ManageToolAuthorization(action: "switch_account", tool_name: "...",
                               provider_id: "<from status>")                # sign in as a different account
Arcade_ManageToolAuthorization(action: "reauthorize", tool_name: "...",
                               provider_id: "<from status>")                # expired / missing permissions

Each returns a fresh sign-in link — present it, stop, and wait, exactly like a first-time sign-in. Keep apps language: say "switch the account" or "sign in again", not reauthorize/OAuth/scopes. If the user was signed in with the wrong account, remind them the sign-in screen may reuse their browser session — they may need to switch accounts on the app's own page.

When not to use

• Performing tasks inside an app (sending, fetching, scheduling) — that's the using-arcade-tools skill.
• Don't call list speculatively before every task; tools surface sign-in links on their own when an app is missing.