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---
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title: Introduction
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description: 'Get started with the Model Context Protocol (MCP)'
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---
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Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open protocol that enables seamless integration between LLM applications and external data sources and tools.
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## Why MCP
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MCP is a great choice for anyone building agents or complex integrations on top of LLMs. LLMs frequently need to integrate with data and tools, and MCP provides:
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- A growing list of pre-built integrations that your LLM can directly plug into.
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- The flexibility to switch between LLM providers and vendors
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- Best practices for securing your data within your infrastructure
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### General architecture
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At its core, MCP follows a client-server architecture where a client application can connect to multiple servers:
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```mermaid
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flowchart LR
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subgraph "Your Computer"
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Client["MCP Client\n(Claude, IDEs, Tools)"]
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S1["MCP Server A"]
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S2["MCP Server B"]
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S3["MCP Server C"]
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Client <-->|"MCP Protocol"| S1
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Client <-->|"MCP Protocol"| S2
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Client <-->|"MCP Protocol"| S3
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S1 <--> R1[("Local\nResource A")]
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S2 <--> R2[("Local\nResource B")]
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end
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subgraph "Internet"
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S3 <-->|"Web APIs"| R3[("Remote\nResource C")]
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end
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```
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- **MCP Client**: Programs like Claude Desktop, IDEs, or AI tools that want to access resources through MCP
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- **MCP Servers**: Lightweight programs that each expose specific capabilities through the standardized Model Context Protocol
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- **Local Resources**: Your computer's resources (databases, files, services) that MCP servers can securely access
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- **Remote Resources**: Resources available over the internet (e.g., through APIs) that MCP servers can connect to
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## Get started with MCP
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Choose the path that best fits your needs:
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<CardGroup cols={1}>
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<Card
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title="Quickstart"
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icon="bolt"
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href="/quickstart"
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>
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Build your first MCP client and server in less than 5 minutes
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="Take MCP servers for a test run in Claude Desktop"
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icon="desktop"
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href="/tutorials/claude-desktop"
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>
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Give Claude Desktop the ability to query SQLite data using MCP
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="MCP clients"
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icon="plug"
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href="/clients"
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>
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See a detailed list of MCP clients
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="MCP servers"
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icon="outlet"
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href="/servers"
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>
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See a detailed list of MCP servers
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</Card>
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</CardGroup>
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## Explore MCP
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Dive deeper into MCP's core concepts and capabilities:
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<CardGroup cols={2}>
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<Card
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title="Core Architecture"
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icon="sitemap"
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href="/docs/concepts/architecture"
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>
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Understand how MCP connects clients, servers, and LLMs
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="Resources"
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icon="database"
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href="/docs/concepts/resources"
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>
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Expose data and content from your servers to LLMs
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="Prompts"
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icon="message"
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href="/docs/concepts/prompts"
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>
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Create reusable prompt templates and workflows
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="Tools"
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icon="wrench"
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href="/docs/concepts/tools"
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>
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Enable LLMs to perform actions through your server
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="Sampling"
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icon="robot"
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href="/docs/concepts/sampling"
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>
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Let your servers request completions from LLMs
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="Transports"
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icon="network-wired"
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href="/docs/concepts/transports"
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>
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Learn about MCP's communication mechanism
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</Card>
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</CardGroup>
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## Development tools
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Essential tools for building and debugging MCP servers:
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<CardGroup cols={2}>
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<Card
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title="Debugging Guide"
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icon="bug"
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href="/docs/tools/debugging">
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Learn how to effectively debug MCP servers and integrations
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</Card>
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<Card
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title="MCP Inspector"
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icon="magnifying-glass"
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href="/docs/tools/inspector"
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>
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Test and inspect your MCP servers with our interactive debugging tool
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</Card>
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</CardGroup>
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## Contributing
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Want to contribute? Check out [@modelcontextprotocol](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol) on GitHub to join our growing community of developers building with MCP. |