AI Publishing
The Votel Publisher is an MCP (Model Context Protocol) tool that lets AI assistants manage your websites through natural conversation. Instead of clicking through the dashboard, you can ask your AI to "create a website," "purge the cache," or "add a custom domain" — and it handles everything.
What Is MCP?
The Model Context Protocol is an open standard that lets AI assistants connect to external tools. When you add the Votel Publisher to your AI client, the assistant gains the ability to:
- List your websites and see their status
- Create new websites with a chosen storage region
- Add and remove custom domains with DNS instructions
- Purge CDN cache (entire site or specific URLs)
- View traffic analytics (requests, bandwidth, cache ratio)
- Get storage credentials for direct file uploads
- Delete websites and clean up resources
The AI handles all the API calls behind the scenes — you just describe what you want in plain English.
Prerequisites
Before setting up AI publishing, you need:
- A Votel account with access to Settings > Websites
- A Votel API key — go to Settings > API Keys, click Create API Key, and copy the
sk_...key. This is the only credential the MCP tool needs.
The full API key is only shown once when you create it. Copy it immediately and store it somewhere safe.
How It Works
You (natural language)
↓
AI Assistant (Claude, Cursor, etc.)
↓ MCP protocol (stdio)
Votel Publisher (runs locally on your machine)
↓ HTTPS + API key
Votel Backend API
↓
Votel CDN
The Votel Publisher runs as a local process on your machine. It never sees your Votel password — it only uses the API key you provide. All communication with the Votel API is over HTTPS.
Choosing an AI Client
The Votel Publisher works with any MCP-compatible AI client. Here are the most popular options:
| Client | Best For | MCP Support |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Developers working in the terminal | Native — just run one command |
| Claude Desktop | Non-technical users who prefer a chat interface | Native via config file |
| Cursor | Developers who want AI in their code editor | Native via project config |
| Windsurf | Developers using the Windsurf editor | Native via settings |
| ChatGPT | Users who prefer OpenAI's assistant | Via plugin/action system |
Our Recommendation
Claude Code is the fastest to set up (one terminal command) and provides the best experience for managing websites. It can create full websites, upload files, and manage your CDN all in one conversation.
Quick Start
The fastest way to get started:
# 1. Install (one-time command)
claude mcp add votel-mcp \
-e VOTEL_API_KEY=sk_your_api_key_here \
-- npx -y votel-mcp@latest
# 2. Start a conversation and ask:
# "What websites do I have?"
# "Spin up a new site for my business"
For detailed setup instructions for each AI client, see the MCP Setup Guide.
Available Tools
Once connected, the AI assistant has access to these tools:
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
list_websites | List all websites for your account |
create_website | Create a new website (provisions CDN + storage) |
get_website | Get website details |
delete_website | Delete a website and all resources |
add_domain | Add a custom domain with DNS instructions |
remove_domain | Remove a custom domain |
verify_domain | Check DNS/SSL verification status |
purge_cache | Purge CDN cache (full or specific URLs) |
get_analytics | Get traffic stats, bandwidth, cache ratio |
get_storage_credentials | Get storage credentials for direct file uploads |
You don't need to call these directly — just talk naturally. The AI figures out which tools to use.
Example Prompts
Managing Sites
- "What websites do I have?"
- "Create a website called Anderson Legal Group"
- "Add the domain example.com to Anderson Legal Group and show me the DNS records I need to set up"
- "Purge the cache for Anderson Legal Group"
- "How much traffic has Anderson Legal Group gotten this month?"
- "Delete the website called Old Test Site"
Design & Publish (One-Shot)
These prompts create an entire website from scratch, publish it, and attach a domain — all in one go:
- "Design a professional website for a law firm called Harper & Associates and publish it to example.com"
- "Build a sleek dark-themed landing page for a SaaS product called Launchpad and put it live on example.com"
- "Create a clean website for a dentist office called Bright Smile Dental and publish it to example.com"
- "Make a modern site for a real estate agent named Sarah Chen and deploy it to example.com"
- "Design a restaurant website for an Italian place called Nonna's Kitchen with their menu and hours, then publish it to example.com"
The AI handles everything — creating the site, writing the HTML/CSS, uploading it to CDN, attaching your domain, and giving you the DNS records. You just describe what you want.
Security
- API keys are scoped — each key has a role (viewer, admin, etc.) that limits what it can do
- Keys can be revoked — disable or delete any key from Settings > API Keys
- Keys expire — set an expiration when creating the key
- No passwords stored — the MCP tool only uses the API key, never your login credentials
- Local execution — the Votel Publisher runs on your machine, not in the cloud
- HTTPS only — all API communication is encrypted
Troubleshooting
"VOTEL_API_KEY environment variable is required"
You haven't set the API key. Make sure your MCP config includes the VOTEL_API_KEY environment variable with your sk_... key.
"API error: HTTP 401"
Your API key is invalid, expired, or has been revoked. Create a new one at Settings > API Keys.
"API error: HTTP 403"
Your API key doesn't have sufficient permissions. Make sure it has at least "Admin" role for website management.
Tool not showing up in AI client
- Claude Code: Run
claude mcp listto verify the server is registered - Claude Desktop: Restart the app after editing the config file
- Cursor: Make sure
.cursor/mcp.jsonis in your project root
Next Steps
- MCP Setup Guide — detailed configuration for each AI client
- Websites Overview — managing websites from the dashboard