If an AI assistant fails to connect, or a tool call errors, work through the checks below. Most problems come from one of four causes: the connection is switched off, the wrong URL was used, a security layer is blocking the REST API, or another plugin is answering the sign-in address.
Connecting fails, or the AI reports a 403
Press Test my link in Enable & Configure first — it calls your link from outside and names what blocked it.
Security plugin or firewall blocking the REST API
The connection needs your REST API reachable from outside your server. A quick check: open https://your-store.com/wp-json/ in a private browser window — it should return JSON, not a challenge page or an error.
Many security plugins ship “bad bot” rules that refuse callers whose names look like HTTP libraries, and the services behind AI assistants use exactly those libraries. When the test proves that is the cause, press Fix this for me: it adds a few lines to .htaccess so TrackShip’s addresses skip those rules. A copy of the file is kept first, and nothing else on your site changes. All In One WP Security’s 6G “Block user-agents” rule is a common culprit.
The link returns “not found”
Either the connection is switched off — turn on Enable the TrackShip connection — or permalinks are set to Plain. Set Settings → Permalinks to anything else and try again.
Sign-in opens a different plugin’s page
If the login page that opens is not at /wp-json/trackship/v1/authorize, another MCP or OAuth plugin on the site is answering TrackShip’s sign-in address, and the AI signs in to the wrong service. Its token is then refused here, and the app keeps retrying.
Deactivate that plugin, or update TrackShip — current versions answer their own sign-in addresses before other plugins get the chance.
The assistant connects but a tool says “Authentication required”
The request reached your store but no account was attached to it. Remove the connector in your AI app and add your link again so it completes sign-in and approval, then try once more.
The app will not ask to sign in again
Press Sign everyone out under Who is connected, then open the app again. Removing the connector inside the app is not enough — the app keeps its own copy of the token until it is revoked here.
A tool is missing from the AI’s list
The write tools are hidden whenever Allow the AI to make changes is off. Switch it on, then reconnect or refresh the connector so the app fetches the tool list again. AI apps cache that list, so a restart is often needed. See What the AI Can Do (Tools) for which tools are read and which are write.
WooCommerce MCP — key rejected, or tools missing
- Check the Consumer Key is in the ck_ field and the Consumer Secret in the cs_ field, not swapped, and that the key still exists in WooCommerce with Read/Write access.
spawn npx ENOENTin Claude Desktop means Node.js is not installed on that computer. Install it from nodejs.org, then quit Claude Desktop completely — including from the system tray — and open it again.- If the tools do not appear after a restart, confirm the config block was pasted inside the
mcpServersobject, not outside it. - The WooCommerce MCP feature needs WordPress 6.9 or newer, switched on under WooCommerce → Settings → Advanced → MCP.
Full setup steps for that route are in WooCommerce MCP.
Moving from staging to live
Your link contains your domain, so it changes when the site moves. Copy the new link from the AI Assistant screen and update the connector in your AI app. Connections made on the old domain do not carry over.
Still stuck?
Open the Audit Log to see whether requests are arriving and what error they return. If you need more help, contact TrackShip support and include the error message and the tool name shown in the log.