MCP guides
Short, sourced guides for people building or connecting MCP servers. Each one is written against spec 2026-07-28 and links to the primary source.
Start here#
What is the Model Context Protocol (MCP)?#
Hosts, clients, servers, tools and transports in plain English.
MCP vs function calling vs APIs#
They aren't rivals. Where each one fits, and when MCP is worth a server.
MCP server examples#
Official reference servers, a minimal server, and real tool definitions.
Build#
MCP tool schema reference#
Every field of a tool definition and a tool result, with the rules.
MCP tool annotations explained#
readOnlyHint, destructiveHint, idempotentHint and openWorldHint.
How to add an MCP server to Claude Desktop and Cursor#
Config file locations and copy-paste JSON.
How to test an MCP server#
MCP Inspector, scripted CLI checks and a CI smoke test.
Spec 2026-07-28#
What changed in MCP spec 2026-07-28#
Stateless core, server/discover, MRTR and what was deprecated.
How to migrate an MCP server to spec 2026-07-28#
A step-by-step upgrade path for server authors.
Security#
MCP security best practices#
The attacks the spec names, and who must do what about them.
MCP server security checklist#
A tick-box list to run before every release.