{"version":"2.1.290","anchor":"startup-mcp-and-interactive-ordering-changes","canonical_anchor":"startup-mcp-and-interactive-ordering-changes","heading":"Interactive startup now waits for held-back MCP servers","tier":"notice","area":"MCP","scope":"individual","heads_up":false,"url":"https:\/\/changelogs.core-directive.com\/v\/2.1.290\/e\/startup-mcp-and-interactive-ordering-changes","release_url":"https:\/\/changelogs.core-directive.com\/v\/2.1.290","markdown":"### Interactive startup now waits for held-back MCP servers\n\nInteractive startup waits for MCP servers that were held back, and a non-headless startup path merges in extra MCP settings and allowed tools\n\n**Unclear.** What triggers the extra MCP configuration and allowed-tools merge is not clear.\n\n**What**\n\nThe order of steps when Claude Code starts has changed:\n\n- When Claude Code is not running headless (headless means without its interactive screen, for example from a script), one startup path now merges in an extra MCP configuration and list of allowed tools. MCP servers are add-ons that give Claude Code extra tools.\n\n- Interactive startup now waits for MCP servers that had been held back before carrying on.\n\n- After onboarding, Claude Code records how long its remote feature-setting system took to start.\n\n**Why**\n\nStartup behaves differently, so the moment MCP tools become available in an interactive session may shift.\n\n- Flag `tengu_mcp_startup_policy_seed`: Not enough to say (read for one account on one subscription tier against v2.1.290; this account: no value returned, anonymous baseline: no value returned, compiled default: on) These values were read against a different version of Claude Code, so treat them as the nearest reading available instead of one taken on this release.\n- Flag `tengu_cicada_nap_ms`: Not enough to say (read for one account on one subscription tier against v2.1.290; this account: no value returned, anonymous baseline: no value returned, compiled default: not a boolean we can read) These values were read against a different version of Claude Code, so treat them as the nearest reading available instead of one taken on this release.\n- Area: MCP\n- Tier: You'll notice\n- Useful: 2\/5\n- Signal: 3\/5\n- Scope: individual\n- Heads-up: no"}