MCP Server: Automate Invoices, Estimates and Reports with AI
AI assistants like Claude can access GrandTotal directly via the Model Context Protocol (MCP) – analyze revenue, review outstanding invoices, generate complex estimates from customer inquiries or create invoices. Personal customer data can be pseudonymized.
What is MCP?
The Model Context Protocol is an open standard that lets AI assistants access local data sources. Instead of manually copying data into a chat, GrandTotal provides the AI with structured tools: revenue queries, document search, client lists.
The MCP server can also be used without AI – for example, for custom scripts that query data from GrandTotal or create documents automatically.
Access Control
Activate the MCP server under Settings › MCP Server. The connection is secured via a token that GrandTotal generates automatically. You can regenerate the token at any time – existing connections will be invalidated. There you also decide for each open document individually:
- No access: The AI cannot see the document
- Read only: Queries and reports, no changes
- Full access: Create clients and invoices as well
Privacy
With the Redact info option, GrandTotal replaces all personal data with placeholders before data leaves GrandTotal. "Jane Doe" becomes "J*e D*e". Financial data – amounts, taxes, currencies – remains unchanged. As the user, reports remain readable because you know the real names behind the abbreviations.
With active pseudonymization, GrandTotal also rejects queries that filter by client names, addresses or other personal fields. PDF export is blocked as well – invoice PDFs contain all client data in plain text.
The AI can also only edit records it created itself during the current session. Existing data remains protected from changes.
If you use a local model, you can disable pseudonymization.
Creating Invoices
If the AI doesn't know the client's name – how does it create an invoice? You create the client manually and give the AI the client number. That's all it needs.
The AI creates the invoice and links it to the right client via the client number – without ever having seen their name or address.
Typical Use Cases
- Revenue analysis: "How did revenue develop compared to last year?"
- Outstanding invoices: "Which invoices are overdue by more than 30 days?"
- Data migration: Import clients and items from another system
- Reports: Custom evaluations beyond the built-in reports
- Integrations: Build custom tool connections – see AI Plugins
Beta Program
Available on request for XL customers
Privacy
Pseudonymization
Names, addresses and contact data redacted
Query Validation
Searches on protected fields blocked
PDF Block
No PDF access with pseudonymization
Token Authentication
Access only with valid token
Per-Document Rights
No access, read only or full access
Session Isolation
AI can only modify its own records