> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://explore.airia.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Deployments vs. Gateways

> Choose between a Deployment and a Gateway to connect an app to Airia.

Deployments and Gateways are the two ways to connect an app to Airia. Both are built from the same three ingredients: the app you want to use, the credentials that connect to it, and the specific tools you want exposed.

What changes between them is scope and where they're used. A Deployment feeds one app to an agent built inside Airia. A Gateway bundles one or more apps behind a single endpoint that people connect to from an MCP client. Pick based on where the AI that calls the tools actually runs.

## The two models

|                         | Deployment                                                          | Gateway                                                   |
| ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| **What it bundles**     | A single app                                                        | One or more apps behind one endpoint                      |
| **Scope**               | A specific project, or all projects in your tenant                  | A visibility level: `Personal` or `Tenant`                |
| **Where it's used**     | Inside an Airia agent                                               | An MCP client like Cursor, Claude Code, or Claude Desktop |
| **Connection endpoint** | None of its own; it attaches to agents as a tool source             | One unique endpoint per Gateway                           |
| **Reuse**               | Deploy the same app more than once, each with its own enabled tools | Add multiple apps to one Gateway                          |

## When to use a Deployment

Use a Deployment when:

* You're building an agent inside Airia and want to give it one app's tools.
* You want to scope the connection to a single project, or make it available to every project in your tenant.
* You want the same app connected more than once, for example once per project, each with a different set of enabled tools.

## When to use a Gateway

Use a Gateway when:

* The AI that calls the tools runs in an external MCP client like Cursor, Claude Code, or Claude Desktop.
* You want to expose one or more apps through a single, unique endpoint.
* You want to control who sees the connection with a `Personal` or `Tenant` visibility level rather than a project.

<Note>
  Any user can create a `Personal` Gateway. Creating a `Tenant` Gateway requires the **Platform Admin** or **Security Admin** role. See [Tenant vs. Personal Level Gateway Configs](/mcps/admin-controls/tenant-vs-personal-gateway-configs) for how the visibility setting works.
</Note>

## What's the same either way

Whichever you pick, you connect the same apps with the same credentials and choose the same per-app tools. The build flow is shared: you connect credentials one app at a time, then select which tools to expose. See [Gateway/Deployment Creation](/mcps/admin-controls/gateway-deployment-creation) for the step-by-step flow.

Only apps an admin has approved in [Server Management](/mcps/admin-controls/server-management) are available to either one.

## Related Resources

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Gateway/Deployment Creation" icon="plug" href="/mcps/admin-controls/gateway-deployment-creation">
    Build a Gateway or Deployment step by step
  </Card>

  <Card title="Tenant vs. Personal Gateway Configs" icon="eye" href="/mcps/admin-controls/tenant-vs-personal-gateway-configs">
    Pick the right visibility level for a Gateway
  </Card>

  <Card title="Server Management" icon="server" href="/mcps/admin-controls/server-management">
    Approve which apps your organization can use
  </Card>

  <Card title="Editing a Gateway" icon="pen-to-square" href="/mcps/admin-controls/editing-a-gateway">
    Change apps, credentials, and tools after you create one
  </Card>
</CardGroup>