Use toolsets to control what an AI app can do in Plane

Plane's connector, also called an MCP server, provides read-only tools by default. When you connect your AI app, such as Claude, it can read across your workers, payroll, expenses and time off and answer questions from live data, but it has no tools that change anything. That default is deliberate because it is a safe starting point.

A toolset controls which tools a connected AI app can use. You set a permission on each part of Plane, Read or Read and write, and the tools follow: read workers, write expense reports, and so on. Plane administrators can configure one or more toolsets for a workspace, each with its own set of permissions.

For example, a toolset could keep read access to everything and add the ability to approve expense reports. Or it could be tighter on both sides: read expense reports and time off requests only, and act on just those.

Each toolset has two parts:

A toolset scoped to expense approvals and one scoped to payroll can exist side by side. Connect to whichever suits the work.

A tool the toolset doesn't include is never offered to the assistant, and a request for it is rejected. No instruction can talk the assistant into an action its toolset doesn't allow.
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Whoever connects to the toolset signs in as themselves, so what they can actually do is the overlap between the toolset's list and their own Plane permissions. A toolset never grants anyone access they don't already have.

A toolset can be changed at any time, and a change applies to connections that are already open. If a tool is removed, the next attempt to use it is refused. Reconnect the assistant afterwards so its list matches.

Connecting to a toolset works exactly like connecting to Plane normally: add it as a custom connector and sign in with your Plane account. The only difference is the address — use the toolset address Plane sent you instead of the standard one.

Set up Plane MCP has step-by-step instructions for Claude and ChatGPT, along with troubleshooting.

Once connected, you can use the toolset to review and approve payroll, approve expenses, decline a time off request, and anything else on its list. A good habit is to look before you act: ask the assistant to show you the records first, then tell it which ones to act on.

Toolsets are new, and the set of available actions is growing. If your assistant can't do something you expected, or a result comes back confusing or wrong, tell your Plane contact. That feedback directly shapes what gets built next.