Power Platform Pipeline Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that exposes Power Platform Pipeline operations as tools for Copilot Studio agents and any MCP-compatible client.

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Features

Category	Tools
Pipeline Discovery	list_pipelines, get_pipeline_stages
Deployments	deploy_solution, get_deployment_status, get_deployment_history
Approvals	list_pending_approvals, approve_deployment, reject_deployment
Configuration	list_environment_variables, set_environment_variable, list_connection_references, update_connection_reference

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Architecture

Copilot Studio / MCP Client
        │  HTTP (Streamable HTTP transport)
        ▼
  Express HTTP Server  (POST /mcp, GET /mcp SSE, DELETE /mcp)
        │
  McpServer (@modelcontextprotocol/sdk)
        │
  ┌─────┴────────────────────────┐
  │                              │
  Dataverse Web API          PAC CLI
  (Axios + MSAL OAuth2)     (child_process)

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Prerequisites

1. Node.js 20+
2. PAC CLI installed and on PATH — required for deploy_solution. Install via:

   dotnet tool install --global Microsoft.PowerApps.CLI.Tool
   

3. Entra ID App Registration with:
   • Client credentials (client ID + secret)
   • API permissions: Dynamics CRM → user_impersonation (delegated) or assigned a system administrator role in the target environment as an application user
   • The same service principal is used for all Dataverse calls AND the UpdateApprovalStatus approval action — this is a Microsoft requirement

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Setup

1. Clone and install

git clone https://github.com/MattCollins-Jones/power-platform-pipeline-mcp.git
cd power-platform-pipeline-mcp
npm install

2. Configure environment variables

cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your values

Variable	Description
AZURE_CLIENT_ID	App registration client ID
AZURE_CLIENT_SECRET	App registration client secret
AZURE_TENANT_ID	Entra ID tenant ID
DATAVERSE_URL	Environment root URL, e.g. https://yourorg.crm.dynamics.com
PORT	Port to listen on (default: 3000)

3. Authenticate PAC CLI (development)

For local development, authenticate the PAC CLI manually before starting the server:

pac auth create \
  --kind ServicePrincipal \
  --applicationId $AZURE_CLIENT_ID \
  --clientSecret $AZURE_CLIENT_SECRET \
  --tenant $AZURE_TENANT_ID \
  --environment $DATAVERSE_URL

4. Build and start

npm run build
npm start

Or for development with hot-reload:

npm run dev

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Docker

Build and run with Docker (PAC CLI auth is handled by docker-entrypoint.sh):

docker build -t pp-pipeline-mcp .

docker run -p 3000:3000 \
  -e AZURE_CLIENT_ID=... \
  -e AZURE_CLIENT_SECRET=... \
  -e AZURE_TENANT_ID=... \
  -e DATAVERSE_URL=https://yourorg.crm.dynamics.com \
  pp-pipeline-mcp

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Azure App Service / Container Apps Deployment

1. Build the Docker image and push to Azure Container Registry (ACR):

   az acr build --registry <your-acr> --image pp-pipeline-mcp:latest .
   

2. Create a Container App or App Service instance pointing to the image.
3. Set the four required environment variables as application settings.
4. The docker-entrypoint.sh will authenticate PAC CLI on each container start.

Tip: Use Managed Identity with a federated credential to avoid storing the client secret.

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Connecting from Copilot Studio

1. Deploy the server to a publicly accessible HTTPS endpoint (e.g. https://your-app.azurewebsites.net).
2. In Copilot Studio, go to Settings → AI Capabilities → Model Context Protocol.
3. Add a new MCP server with the URL: https://your-app.azurewebsites.net/mcp
4. All 12 tools will be discovered automatically and made available to your agent.

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Tool Reference

list_pipelines

Lists all deployment pipelines in the environment. No parameters required.

get_pipeline_stages

Parameter	Type	Description
pipelineId	string	GUID of the pipeline from list_pipelines

deploy_solution

Triggers a PAC CLI deployment. PAC CLI must be authenticated on the server.

Parameter	Type	Description
solutionName	string	Unique name of the solution
stageId	string	Target stage GUID from get_pipeline_stages
currentVersion	string	Current version, e.g. 1.0.0.0
newVersion	string	Version after deploy, e.g. 1.0.0.1
environment	string	Source environment URL

get_deployment_status

Parameter	Type	Description
deploymentStageRunId	string	GUID of the stage run

get_deployment_history

Parameter	Type	Description
stageId	string	Stage GUID to query
solutionName	string?	Optional solution filter
top	number?	Max records (1–50, default 20)

list_pending_approvals

Parameter	Type	Description
pipelineStageId	string?	Optional stage filter

approve_deployment

Parameter	Type	Description
deploymentStageRunId	string	Stage run to approve
approvalComments	string?	Optional comments

reject_deployment

Parameter	Type	Description
deploymentStageRunId	string	Stage run to reject
approvalComments	string	Reason for rejection

list_environment_variables

Parameter	Type	Description
solutionUniqueName	string	Solution unique name

set_environment_variable

Parameter	Type	Description
environmentVariableDefinitionId	string	Definition GUID
newValue	string	New value
environmentVariableValueId	string?	Existing value GUID (omit to create)

list_connection_references

Parameter	Type	Description
solutionUniqueName	string	Solution unique name

update_connection_reference

Parameter	Type	Description
connectionReferenceId	string	Connection reference GUID
connectionId	string	Target connection ID

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Security Notes

• Store AZURE_CLIENT_SECRET in Azure Key Vault and reference it as an App Service secret — never commit it to source control.
• The service principal must be added as an Application User in the Power Platform Admin Centre with the appropriate security role for each environment it operates in.
• The UpdateApprovalStatus Dataverse action requires the caller to be the service principal that owns the pipeline connection — this server satisfies that requirement automatically.

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Project Structure

src/
  index.ts              — MCP server entry point, Express HTTP transport
  auth/
    msalClient.ts       — MSAL token acquisition (client credentials)
  clients/
    dataverseClient.ts  — Axios Dataverse Web API client with auth interceptor
    pacCliClient.ts     — child_process wrapper for PAC CLI
  tools/
    pipelines.ts        — list_pipelines, get_pipeline_stages
    deployments.ts      — deploy_solution, get_deployment_status, get_deployment_history
    approvals.ts        — approve_deployment, reject_deployment, list_pending_approvals
    configuration.ts    — env vars, connection references
  types/
    index.ts            — Shared TypeScript interfaces