Does MCP Need Gateways?

If the registry provides location + tool info, it's basically an MCP gateway.

Short answer: Yes, but no.

No. The MCP Registry can act as a Connect Authority, enabling secure, scalable connections without proxying traffic.

Let's clarify terms first

• A Registry is control-plane

  → what exists, where it lives, who owns it

• A Gateway is data-plane

  → traffic, auth, rate limits, observability

Different jobs. Different risks.

So the real question isn't:

Can the MCP Registry be a gateway?

It's this

Can we get gateway-level control without proxying traffic?

That's exactly where the HAPI MCP Registry comes in.

Not as a proxy.
Not as a policy engine.
But as something more precise.

We treat the Registry as a Connect Authority
(an extension of the MCP Registry model — not an official spec).

What does that mean?

It governs connections, not traffic.

Instead of routing MCP calls, the HAPI MCP Registry issues a
short-lived Connect Descriptor.

Think:

boarding pass, not passport

The flow looks like this:

1. Client discovers a server
2. Client asks the HAPI MCP Registry: "Can I connect?"
3. Registry issues a Connect Descriptor (or says no)
4. Client connects directly to the MCP server
5. Server enforces auth, policy, rate limits

No proxy involved.

Why this matters

• No data-plane bottleneck
• No central point of failure
• No secrets concentrated in a gateway
• Moderation becomes runtime-effective

Stop issuing descriptors = stop new connections.

This only works because enforcement is distributed.

HAPI MCP Servers already handle:
auth termination
RBAC / policy
rate limits
observability

The Registry doesn't need to duplicate that.

This is why I keep repeating this line:

Discovery is centralized.
Enforcement is distributed.
Connections are governed.

Important nuance:

MCP "Connect Authority" is our term.

It's a deliberate extension of the MCP Registry model to show:
you can add governance without turning the Registry into a gateway.

If you're building MCP clients, servers, or platforms:

ask yourself this before adding a gateway

"Am I centralizing traffic…
or just permission to connect?"

I wrote a full deep-dive on this with diagrams, flows, and comparisons.

If MCP scalability, security, or governance matters to you —
this one's for you.

Find it here
Beyond MCP Gateways: How to leverage the MCP Registry As a Connect Authority

Thank you!

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Documentation at docs.mcp.com.ai