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Tool Registry

Reviewed 19 July 2026 Canonical definition Part of: Runtime Control & Guardrail Terms →

A tool registry is a centralised catalogue of the tools, APIs, and MCP servers that AI agents are approved to use within an organisation. It records each tool's name, description, owner, risk classification, and access policy, and acts as the authoritative source for which tools agents are permitted to call. A governed tool registry prevents agents from connecting to unapproved or shadow integrations.

§01 / QUESTIONSterm: Tool Registry
Questions

Common questions.

What is Tool Registry?

A tool registry is a centralised catalogue of the tools, APIs, and MCP servers that AI agents are approved to use within an organisation.

How does Tool Registry work?

It records each tool's name, description, owner, risk classification, and access policy, and acts as the authoritative source for which tools agents are permitted to call. A governed tool registry prevents agents from connecting to unapproved or shadow integrations.

Which terms are related to Tool Registry?

Closely related concepts include Audit Trail, Agent Scope, AI Change Management, AI Policy Library. Each is defined in the Prefactor glossary.

§02 / RELATEDnext: where this fits
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Where this fits.

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