How to send SMS through SMPP from Cherry Studio
This guide explains how to connect Cherry Studio to Ozeki SMS Gateway's built in SMS MCP server, enabling the AI assistant to send and receive SMS messages through your own on-premises SMS gateway. You will learn how to install Ozeki SMS Gateway, create an MCP user account, generate an API key, register the MCP endpoint in Cherry Studio, and verify the setup by sending a test message.
Solution: How to send SMS from Cherry Studio
Cherry Studio connects to the SMPP SMS MCP Server through the MCP protocol, where Cherry Studio acts as the MCP client and Ozeki SMS Gateway acts as the MCP server. Ozeki SMS Gateway is installed on your local machine or server and connects to the SMS service provider over the internet using an SMPP client connection. When an SMS is sent, it first travels from Cherry Studio to the Ozeki SMS Gateway as an MCP tool call, and the gateway forwards it to the SMS service provider over SMPP, which delivers it to the recipient's mobile phone.
What is Cherry Studio?
Cherry Studio is an open-source, cross-platform desktop AI client that supports multiple AI providers including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and locally hosted models. It features a clean chat interface, document management, and MCP server support, enabling it to be extended with external tools such as SMS messaging, database access, and more.
What is an SMPP SMS MCP Server?
An SMPP SMS MCP Server is a standardized software bridge that uses the Model Context Protocol to connect AI assistants (like Claude) to an SMS gateway system such as Ozeki SMS Gateway, which in turn delivers messages to the mobile network over an SMPP client connection. It exposes tools like "send_message" or "list_incomings" that an AI can autonomously call to perform real-world texting tasks without custom coding. This allows users to simply ask an AI to "send John a reminder text" and have the AI securely execute the action through the server. The SMS MCP Server built into Ozeki SMS Gateway also makes receiving SMS messages possible.
Download Ozeki SMS Gateway
To use this solution you need to install the SMS Gateway on your system.
Download the software: SMS Gateway
https://ozeki-sms-gateway.com/p_727-download-sms-gateway.html
Steps to follow
You will need Cherry Studio installed on your system. If you have not set it up yet, follow our Cherry Studio installation guide.
- Install Ozeki SMS Gateway
- Setup the SMPP SMS connection
- Create an MCP user account
- Cherry Studio SMS MCP Server Config
- Add the SMS MCP Server config to Cherry Studio
- Send a test SMS
- Check the SMS in the SMS Gateway logs
Install Ozeki SMS Gateway
For a full tutorial on installing Ozeki SMS Gateway, check out our How to install Ozeki SMS Gateway on Windows guide.
Before you can use the SMS MCP Server, you need to install Ozeki SMS Gateway on your Windows machine or server. Download the installer zip file from the website, extract it, and run the executable to complete the installation. Once installed, the gateway will start automatically and its web-based management interface will be accessible from your browser.
Setup the SMPP SMS connection
For a full tutorial on setting up an SMPP Client connection, check out our SMPP Client Connection guide.
Before creating the MCP user, you need to connect Ozeki SMS Gateway to the mobile network by setting up an SMPP client. In the Connections panel, select Add new connection, and install a new SMPP client connection. Enter the host, port, and credentials provided by your SMS service provider, then save and activate the connection to bring the gateway online.
Create an MCP user account
For a full tutorial on creating an MCP User, check out our Create an MCP User guide.
Click Add new user/application, and select the MCP user type from the list. Enter a username and password for the account, then open the Advanced tab to generate an API key. Copy this key and store it in a safe location, as you will need it in the next steps.
Cherry Studio MCP server configuration
# Navigate to the following location in Cherry Studio to add the MCP server:
# Settings -> MCP Servers -> Add Server -> Quick Create
# Enter the following details in the server form:
Name: Ozeki SMS MCP
Type: Streamable HTTP
URL: http://{address}:9529/mcp
Headers: Authorization=Bearer your-bearer-token
Example prompt
Send an SMS to +36301234567, the message should be "Hello from Cherry Studio".
Add the SMS MCP Server config to Cherry Studio
The following video shows how to add the Ozeki SMPP SMS MCP Server to Cherry Studio step-by-step.
Open Cherry Studio and navigate to Settings. Select the MCP Servers section from the left-hand menu, where all external MCP tool servers can be registered (Figure 1).
Click the Add button and select Quick Create from the dropdown menu. This opens a streamlined form for registering a new MCP server without requiring a full JSON configuration (Figure 2).
In the server form, enter Ozeki SMS MCP as the server name, set the
Type to Streamable HTTP, and enter the URL of your Ozeki SMS Gateway
in the URL field. In the Headers field, enter
Authorization=Bearer your-bearer-token, replacing
your-bearer-token with the API key you generated for your MCP user
account. Click Save then press the connection toggle (Figure 3).
Navigate to the Tools tab in the server entry to view the tools exposed by the MCP server (Figure 4).
Send a test SMS
The following video shows how to send an SMS message from Cherry Studio using the Ozeki SMPP SMS MCP server step-by-step.
Start a new conversation in Cherry Studio. Before sending your prompt, enable the Ozeki SMS MCP server for the current chat in the interface. This gives the AI model access to the SMS tools for the duration of the conversation (Figure 5).
In the chat input, type your SMS request in plain language and press the Send button. The AI model will interpret the request and invoke the appropriate MCP tool to deliver the message through the gateway (Figure 6).
Send an SMS to +36301234567, the message should be "Hello from Cherry Studio".
Once the tool has been executed, the result will appear in the chat. A successful response confirms that the message was submitted to the gateway and handed off for delivery (Figure 7).
Check the SMS in the SMS Gateway logs
The following video shows how to check the SMS in the logs in Ozeki SMS Gateway step-by-step.
Open Ozeki SMS Gateway in your browser and navigate to the MCP user details page by clicking on the MCP user entry in the Users and applications panel (Figure 8).
In the MCP user event log, you should see an entry for the outgoing message, including the recipient number and message text, confirming that it was successfully processed by the gateway (Figure 9).
Summary
In this guide, you have learned how to connect Cherry Studio to Ozeki SMS Gateway's built-in SMS MCP Server and use it to send SMS messages directly from the chat interface. By installing the gateway, setting up an SMPP connection to the mobile network, creating an MCP user account, and registering the MCP endpoint in Cherry Studio, you now have a fully functional on-premises SMS integration that your locally hosted AI model can use to communicate with any mobile phone.