MCP or the REST API?
Both reach the same registrar. They differ in who is driving.
| Use the MCP server when | Use the REST API when |
|---|---|
| A person is in the loop and reads the answers | Nothing is watching, and nothing may stop to ask |
| The work is exploratory — "what is expiring", "which of these are locked" | The work is defined in advance and repeats |
| The shape of the task changes as you learn | The shape is fixed and encoded in your code |
| You want one-off portfolio changes with an explicit approval | You are building a pipeline, a cron job, or an event handler |
| You are asking in words | You are calling in code |
The approval gate on the MCP server cannot be turned off. That is a feature for interactive work and a blocker for unattended automation — a nightly job that hits an approval prompt simply stops. Automate against the API.
What is the same
-
The same operations. Every OpusDNS API endpoint is reachable through
call_operation; the bulk tools submit the same Jobs batches you wouldPOST /v1/jobsyourself. - The same permissions. Authorization is decided by your account's roles. Connecting over MCP grants nothing your account did not already have.
- The same limits. Jobs caps a command at 1,000 instances either way.
-
The same request IDs.
x-server-request-ididentifies a request for support regardless of how it arrived.
What is different
| MCP server | REST API | |
|---|---|---|
| Credential | OAuth in a browser, no key to store | An API key you create and store |
| Approval | Server-enforced on every write | None — your code is responsible |
| Discovery | search_operations over the catalog |
API Reference |
| Result size | Capped and projected to fit a model's context | Whatever the endpoint returns |
| Who sees the data | Your AI client and its model provider | Only your systems |
That last row is the one worth thinking about before connecting a production account. Data handling spells out what does and does not leave OpusDNS.
Using both
The common shape is an agent that explores and a script that executes: ask over
MCP to work out which domains and what change, then encode the result as a
Jobs batch in your own code once the answer stops changing. The selector you
converged on in conversation is the same filter set GET /v1/domains takes.
Next
- Quickstart — the MCP path, end to end
- API Quickstart — the same operations over HTTP
- Bulk operations with Jobs
