ruby-sdk/README.md
Koichi ITO da5f9225ac Support sampling/createMessage per MCP specification
## Motivation and Context

The MCP specification defines `sampling/createMessage` to request LLM completions from the client.
The Ruby SDK did not yet support server-to-client requests,
so the server had no way to ask the client to sample an LLM.
This caused the `tools-call-sampling` conformance test to fail.

This adds `Server#create_sampling_message` to send a `sampling/createMessage` request
to the client via the transport layer. The method validates that the client declared
the `sampling` capability during initialization, and optionally checks the
`sampling.tools` capability when tools or tool_choice parameters are provided.

On the transport side, `Transport#send_request` is introduced as an abstract method,
with implementations in both `StdioTransport` and `StreamableHTTPTransport`.
Each transport assigns a unique request ID, sends the JSON-RPC request to the client,
and blocks until the client responds.

Client capabilities are stored per session via `ServerSession`, so validation is scoped
to the originating client. `ServerSession#create_sampling_message` uses
`build_sampling_params` for capability validation and sends the request directly through
the transport with the session ID, following the same pattern as `notify_progress`.

`Server#create_sampling_message` is the public API for single-client transports
(e.g., StdioTransport).

For multi-client transports (e.g., StreamableHTTPTransport),
`ServerSession#create_sampling_message` must be used to route requests to the correct client.
Tools using `server_context.create_sampling_message` automatically route to the correct session
regardless of transport.

`StreamableHTTPTransport#send_request` requires `session_id` to prevent broadcasting sampling requests
to all connected clients. Missing or invalid session IDs raise explicit errors instead of silently failing.

The `include_context` parameter is soft-deprecated in the MCP specification but is included
for compatibility with existing clients that declare the `sampling.context` capability.
Python and TypeScript SDKs also retain this parameter.

Ref: https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/utilities/sampling

## How Has This Been Tested?

Added comprehensive tests in `test/mcp/server_sampling_test.rb` covering required and optional parameters,
capability validation, error handling, nil-param omission, per-session capability isolation,
and HTTP init capability scoping.

Added transport tests in `test/mcp/server/transports/stdio_transport_test.rb` and
`test/mcp/server/transports/streamable_http_transport_test.rb` for `send_request` round-trip behavior,
error responses, stateless mode rejection, missing session_id, invalid session_id, and no-active-stream error.

Conformance: `tools-call-sampling` is removed from expected failures. The conformance server's `TestSampling`
tool now calls `server_context.create_sampling_message` instead of returning a stub error.

This aligns the Ruby SDK with the MCP specification and other SDK implementations.

## Breaking Changes

None for end users.
`Transport#send_request` is a new abstract method. `ServerSession#create_sampling_message` is a new method.
2026-04-04 05:55:27 +09:00

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# MCP Ruby SDK [![Gem Version](https://img.shields.io/gem/v/mcp)](https://rubygems.org/gems/mcp) [![Apache 2.0 licensed](https://img.shields.io/badge/license-Apache%202.0-blue)](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/ruby-sdk/blob/main/LICENSE) [![CI](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/ruby-sdk/actions/workflows/ci.yml/badge.svg)](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/ruby-sdk/actions/workflows/ci.yml)
The official Ruby SDK for Model Context Protocol servers and clients.
## Installation
Add this line to your application's Gemfile:
```ruby
gem 'mcp'
```
And then execute:
```console
$ bundle install
```
Or install it yourself as:
```console
$ gem install mcp
```
You may need to add additional dependencies depending on which features you wish to access.
## Building an MCP Server
The `MCP::Server` class is the core component that handles JSON-RPC requests and responses.
It implements the Model Context Protocol specification, handling model context requests and responses.
### Key Features
- Implements JSON-RPC 2.0 message handling
- Supports protocol initialization and capability negotiation
- Manages tool registration and invocation
- Supports prompt registration and execution
- Supports resource registration and retrieval
- Supports stdio & Streamable HTTP (including SSE) transports
- Supports notifications for list changes (tools, prompts, resources)
- Supports sampling (server-to-client LLM completion requests)
### Supported Methods
- `initialize` - Initializes the protocol and returns server capabilities
- `ping` - Simple health check
- `tools/list` - Lists all registered tools and their schemas
- `tools/call` - Invokes a specific tool with provided arguments
- `prompts/list` - Lists all registered prompts and their schemas
- `prompts/get` - Retrieves a specific prompt by name
- `resources/list` - Lists all registered resources and their schemas
- `resources/read` - Retrieves a specific resource by name
- `resources/templates/list` - Lists all registered resource templates and their schemas
- `completion/complete` - Returns autocompletion suggestions for prompt arguments and resource URIs
- `sampling/createMessage` - Requests LLM completion from the client (server-to-client)
### Custom Methods
The server allows you to define custom JSON-RPC methods beyond the standard MCP protocol methods using the `define_custom_method` method:
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(name: "my_server")
# Define a custom method that returns a result
server.define_custom_method(method_name: "add") do |params|
params[:a] + params[:b]
end
# Define a custom notification method (returns nil)
server.define_custom_method(method_name: "notify") do |params|
# Process notification
nil
end
```
**Key Features:**
- Accepts any method name as a string
- Block receives the request parameters as a hash
- Can handle both regular methods (with responses) and notifications
- Prevents overriding existing MCP protocol methods
- Supports instrumentation callbacks for monitoring
**Usage Example:**
```ruby
# Client request
{
"jsonrpc": "2.0",
"id": 1,
"method": "add",
"params": { "a": 5, "b": 3 }
}
# Server response
{
"jsonrpc": "2.0",
"id": 1,
"result": 8
}
```
**Error Handling:**
- Raises `MCP::Server::MethodAlreadyDefinedError` if trying to override an existing method
- Supports the same exception reporting and instrumentation as standard methods
### Sampling
The Model Context Protocol allows servers to request LLM completions from clients through the `sampling/createMessage` method.
This enables servers to leverage the client's LLM capabilities without needing direct access to AI models.
**Key Concepts:**
- **Server-to-Client Request**: Unlike typical MCP methods (client→server), sampling is initiated by the server
- **Client Capability**: Clients must declare `sampling` capability during initialization
- **Tool Support**: When using tools in sampling requests, clients must declare `sampling.tools` capability
- **Human-in-the-Loop**: Clients can implement user approval before forwarding requests to LLMs
**Usage Example (Stdio transport):**
`Server#create_sampling_message` is for single-client transports (e.g., `StdioTransport`).
For multi-client transports (e.g., `StreamableHTTPTransport`), use `server_context.create_sampling_message` inside tools instead,
which routes the request to the correct client session.
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(name: "my_server")
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StdioTransport.new(server)
server.transport = transport
```
Client must declare sampling capability during initialization.
This happens automatically when the client connects.
```ruby
result = server.create_sampling_message(
messages: [
{ role: "user", content: { type: "text", text: "What is the capital of France?" } }
],
max_tokens: 100,
system_prompt: "You are a helpful assistant.",
temperature: 0.7
)
```
Result contains the LLM response:
```ruby
{
role: "assistant",
content: { type: "text", text: "The capital of France is Paris." },
model: "claude-3-sonnet-20240307",
stopReason: "endTurn"
}
```
**Parameters:**
Required:
- `messages:` (Array) - Array of message objects with `role` and `content`
- `max_tokens:` (Integer) - Maximum tokens in the response
Optional:
- `system_prompt:` (String) - System prompt for the LLM
- `model_preferences:` (Hash) - Model selection preferences (e.g., `{ intelligencePriority: 0.8 }`)
- `include_context:` (String) - Context inclusion: `"none"`, `"thisServer"`, or `"allServers"` (soft-deprecated)
- `temperature:` (Float) - Sampling temperature
- `stop_sequences:` (Array) - Sequences that stop generation
- `metadata:` (Hash) - Additional metadata
- `tools:` (Array) - Tools available to the LLM (requires `sampling.tools` capability)
- `tool_choice:` (Hash) - Tool selection mode (e.g., `{ mode: "auto" }`)
**Using Sampling in Tools (works with both Stdio and HTTP transports):**
Tools that accept a `server_context:` parameter can call `create_sampling_message` on it.
The request is automatically routed to the correct client session.
Set `server.server_context = server` so that `server_context.create_sampling_message` delegates to the server:
```ruby
class SummarizeTool < MCP::Tool
description "Summarize text using LLM"
input_schema(
properties: {
text: { type: "string" }
},
required: ["text"]
)
def self.call(text:, server_context:)
result = server_context.create_sampling_message(
messages: [
{ role: "user", content: { type: "text", text: "Please summarize: #{text}" } }
],
max_tokens: 500
)
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{
type: "text",
text: result[:content][:text]
}])
end
end
server = MCP::Server.new(name: "my_server", tools: [SummarizeTool])
server.server_context = server
```
**Tool Use in Sampling:**
When tools are provided in a sampling request, the LLM can call them during generation.
The server must handle tool calls and continue the conversation with tool results:
```ruby
result = server.create_sampling_message(
messages: [
{ role: "user", content: { type: "text", text: "What's the weather in Paris?" } }
],
max_tokens: 1000,
tools: [
{
name: "get_weather",
description: "Get weather for a city",
inputSchema: {
type: "object",
properties: { city: { type: "string" } },
required: ["city"]
}
}
],
tool_choice: { mode: "auto" }
)
if result[:stopReason] == "toolUse"
tool_results = result[:content].map do |tool_use|
weather_data = get_weather(tool_use[:input][:city])
{
type: "tool_result",
toolUseId: tool_use[:id],
content: [{ type: "text", text: weather_data.to_json }]
}
end
final_result = server.create_sampling_message(
messages: [
{ role: "user", content: { type: "text", text: "What's the weather in Paris?" } },
{ role: "assistant", content: result[:content] },
{ role: "user", content: tool_results }
],
max_tokens: 1000,
tools: [...]
)
end
```
**Error Handling:**
- Raises `RuntimeError` if transport is not set
- Raises `RuntimeError` if client does not support `sampling` capability
- Raises `RuntimeError` if `tools` are used but client lacks `sampling.tools` capability
- Raises `StandardError` if client returns an error response
### Notifications
The server supports sending notifications to clients when lists of tools, prompts, or resources change. This enables real-time updates without polling.
#### Notification Methods
The server provides the following notification methods:
- `notify_tools_list_changed` - Send a notification when the tools list changes
- `notify_prompts_list_changed` - Send a notification when the prompts list changes
- `notify_resources_list_changed` - Send a notification when the resources list changes
- `notify_log_message` - Send a structured logging notification message
#### Session Scoping
When using Streamable HTTP transport with multiple clients, each client connection gets its own session. Notifications are scoped as follows:
- **`report_progress`** and **`notify_log_message`** called via `server_context` inside a tool handler are automatically sent only to the requesting client.
No extra configuration is needed.
- **`notify_tools_list_changed`**, **`notify_prompts_list_changed`**, and **`notify_resources_list_changed`** are always broadcast to all connected clients,
as they represent server-wide state changes. These should be called on the `server` instance directly.
#### Notification Format
Notifications follow the JSON-RPC 2.0 specification and use these method names:
- `notifications/tools/list_changed`
- `notifications/prompts/list_changed`
- `notifications/resources/list_changed`
- `notifications/progress`
- `notifications/message`
### Progress
The MCP Ruby SDK supports progress tracking for long-running tool operations,
following the [MCP Progress specification](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/utilities/progress).
#### How Progress Works
1. **Client Request**: The client sends a `progressToken` in the `_meta` field when calling a tool
2. **Server Notification**: The server sends `notifications/progress` messages back to the client during tool execution
3. **Tool Integration**: Tools call `server_context.report_progress` to report incremental progress
#### Server-Side: Tool with Progress
Tools that accept a `server_context:` parameter can call `report_progress` on it.
The server automatically wraps the context in an `MCP::ServerContext` instance that provides this method:
```ruby
class LongRunningTool < MCP::Tool
description "A tool that reports progress during execution"
input_schema(
properties: {
count: { type: "integer" },
},
required: ["count"]
)
def self.call(count:, server_context:)
count.times do |i|
# Do work here.
server_context.report_progress(i + 1, total: count, message: "Processing item #{i + 1}")
end
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{ type: "text", text: "Done" }])
end
end
```
The `server_context.report_progress` method accepts:
- `progress` (required) — current progress value (numeric)
- `total:` (optional) — total expected value, so clients can display a percentage
- `message:` (optional) — human-readable status message
**Key Features:**
- Tools report progress via `server_context.report_progress`
- `report_progress` is a no-op when no `progressToken` was provided by the client
- Supports both numeric and string progress tokens
### Completions
MCP spec includes [Completions](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/utilities/completion),
which enable servers to provide autocompletion suggestions for prompt arguments and resource URIs.
To enable completions, declare the `completions` capability and register a handler:
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "my_server",
prompts: [CodeReviewPrompt],
resource_templates: [FileTemplate],
capabilities: { completions: {} },
)
server.completion_handler do |params|
ref = params[:ref]
argument = params[:argument]
value = argument[:value]
case ref[:type]
when "ref/prompt"
values = case argument[:name]
when "language"
["python", "pytorch", "pyside"].select { |v| v.start_with?(value) }
else
[]
end
{ completion: { values: values, hasMore: false } }
when "ref/resource"
{ completion: { values: [], hasMore: false } }
end
end
```
The handler receives a `params` hash with:
- `ref` - The reference (`{ type: "ref/prompt", name: "..." }` or `{ type: "ref/resource", uri: "..." }`)
- `argument` - The argument being completed (`{ name: "...", value: "..." }`)
- `context` (optional) - Previously resolved arguments (`{ arguments: { ... } }`)
The handler must return a hash with a `completion` key containing `values` (array of strings), and optionally `total` and `hasMore`.
The SDK automatically enforces the 100-item limit per the MCP specification.
The server validates that the referenced prompt, resource, or resource template is registered before calling the handler.
Requests for unknown references return an error.
### Logging
The MCP Ruby SDK supports structured logging through the `notify_log_message` method, following the [MCP Logging specification](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/utilities/logging).
The `notifications/message` notification is used for structured logging between client and server.
#### Log Levels
The SDK supports 8 log levels with increasing severity:
- `debug` - Detailed debugging information
- `info` - General informational messages
- `notice` - Normal but significant events
- `warning` - Warning conditions
- `error` - Error conditions
- `critical` - Critical conditions
- `alert` - Action must be taken immediately
- `emergency` - System is unusable
#### How Logging Works
1. **Client Configuration**: The client sends a `logging/setLevel` request to configure the minimum log level
2. **Server Filtering**: The server only sends log messages at the configured level or higher severity
3. **Notification Delivery**: Log messages are sent as `notifications/message` to the client
For example, if the client sets the level to `"error"` (severity 4), the server will send messages with levels: `error`, `critical`, `alert`, and `emergency`.
For more details, see the [MCP Logging specification](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/utilities/logging).
**Usage Example:**
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(name: "my_server")
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StdioTransport.new(server)
server.transport = transport
# The client first configures the logging level (on the client side):
transport.send_request(
request: {
jsonrpc: "2.0",
method: "logging/setLevel",
params: { level: "info" },
id: session_id # Unique request ID within the session
}
)
# Send log messages at different severity levels
server.notify_log_message(
data: { message: "Application started successfully" },
level: "info"
)
server.notify_log_message(
data: { message: "Configuration file not found, using defaults" },
level: "warning"
)
server.notify_log_message(
data: {
error: "Database connection failed",
details: { host: "localhost", port: 5432 }
},
level: "error",
logger: "DatabaseLogger" # Optional logger name
)
```
**Key Features:**
- Supports 8 log levels (debug, info, notice, warning, error, critical, alert, emergency) based on https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/2025-06-18/server/utilities/logging#log-levels
- Server has capability `logging` to send log messages
- Messages are only sent if a transport is configured
- Messages are filtered based on the client's configured log level
- If the log level hasn't been set by the client, no messages will be sent
#### Transport Support
- **stdio**: Notifications are sent as JSON-RPC 2.0 messages to stdout
- **Streamable HTTP**: Notifications are sent as JSON-RPC 2.0 messages over HTTP with streaming (chunked transfer or SSE)
#### Usage Example
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(name: "my_server")
# Default Streamable HTTP - session oriented
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StreamableHTTPTransport.new(server)
server.transport = transport
# When tools change, notify clients
server.define_tool(name: "new_tool") { |**args| { result: "ok" } }
server.notify_tools_list_changed
```
You can use Stateless Streamable HTTP, where notifications are not supported and all calls are request/response interactions.
This mode allows for easy multi-node deployment.
Set `stateless: true` in `MCP::Server::Transports::StreamableHTTPTransport.new` (`stateless` defaults to `false`):
```ruby
# Stateless Streamable HTTP - session-less
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StreamableHTTPTransport.new(server, stateless: true)
```
By default, sessions do not expire. To mitigate session hijacking risks, you can set a `session_idle_timeout` (in seconds).
When configured, sessions that receive no HTTP requests for this duration are automatically expired and cleaned up:
```ruby
# Session timeout of 30 minutes
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StreamableHTTPTransport.new(server, session_idle_timeout: 1800)
```
### Unsupported Features (to be implemented in future versions)
- Resource subscriptions
- Elicitation
### Usage
> [!IMPORTANT]
> `MCP::Server::Transports::StreamableHTTPTransport` stores session and SSE stream state in memory,
> so it must run in a single process. Use a single-process server (e.g., Puma with `workers 0`).
> Multi-process configurations (Unicorn, or Puma with `workers > 0`) fork separate processes that
> do not share memory, which breaks session management and SSE connections.
> Stateless mode (`stateless: true`) does not use sessions and works with any server configuration.
#### Rails Controller
When added to a Rails controller on a route that handles POST requests, your server will be compliant with non-streaming
[Streamable HTTP](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/basic/transports#streamable-http) transport
requests.
You can use `StreamableHTTPTransport#handle_request` to handle requests with proper HTTP
status codes (e.g., 202 Accepted for notifications).
```ruby
class McpController < ActionController::Base
def create
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "my_server",
title: "Example Server Display Name",
version: "1.0.0",
instructions: "Use the tools of this server as a last resort",
tools: [SomeTool, AnotherTool],
prompts: [MyPrompt],
server_context: { user_id: current_user.id },
)
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StreamableHTTPTransport.new(server)
server.transport = transport
status, headers, body = transport.handle_request(request)
render(json: body.first, status: status, headers: headers)
end
end
```
#### Stdio Transport
If you want to build a local command-line application, you can use the stdio transport:
```ruby
require "mcp"
# Create a simple tool
class ExampleTool < MCP::Tool
description "A simple example tool that echoes back its arguments"
input_schema(
properties: {
message: { type: "string" },
},
required: ["message"]
)
class << self
def call(message:, server_context:)
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{
type: "text",
text: "Hello from example tool! Message: #{message}",
}])
end
end
end
# Set up the server
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "example_server",
tools: [ExampleTool],
)
# Create and start the transport
transport = MCP::Server::Transports::StdioTransport.new(server)
transport.open
```
You can run this script and then type in requests to the server at the command line.
```console
$ ruby examples/stdio_server.rb
{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":"1","method":"ping"}
{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":"2","method":"tools/list"}
{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":"3","method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"example_tool","arguments":{"message":"Hello"}}}
```
### Configuration
The gem can be configured using the `MCP.configure` block:
```ruby
MCP.configure do |config|
config.exception_reporter = ->(exception, server_context) {
# Your exception reporting logic here
# For example with Bugsnag:
Bugsnag.notify(exception) do |report|
report.add_metadata(:model_context_protocol, server_context)
end
}
config.instrumentation_callback = ->(data) {
puts "Got instrumentation data #{data.inspect}"
}
end
```
or by creating an explicit configuration and passing it into the server.
This is useful for systems where an application hosts more than one MCP server but
they might require different instrumentation callbacks.
```ruby
configuration = MCP::Configuration.new
configuration.exception_reporter = ->(exception, server_context) {
# Your exception reporting logic here
# For example with Bugsnag:
Bugsnag.notify(exception) do |report|
report.add_metadata(:model_context_protocol, server_context)
end
}
configuration.instrumentation_callback = ->(data) {
puts "Got instrumentation data #{data.inspect}"
}
server = MCP::Server.new(
# ... all other options
configuration:,
)
```
### Server Context and Configuration Block Data
#### `server_context`
The `server_context` is a user-defined hash that is passed into the server instance and made available to tools, prompts, and exception/instrumentation callbacks. It can be used to provide contextual information such as authentication state, user IDs, or request-specific data.
**Type:**
```ruby
server_context: { [String, Symbol] => Any }
```
**Example:**
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "my_server",
server_context: { user_id: current_user.id, request_id: request.uuid }
)
```
This hash is then passed as the `server_context` argument to tool and prompt calls, and is included in exception and instrumentation callbacks.
#### Request-specific `_meta` Parameter
The MCP protocol supports a special [`_meta` parameter](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/2025-06-18/basic#general-fields) in requests that allows clients to pass request-specific metadata. The server automatically extracts this parameter and makes it available to tools and prompts as a nested field within the `server_context`.
**Access Pattern:**
When a client includes `_meta` in the request params, it becomes available as `server_context[:_meta]`:
```ruby
class MyTool < MCP::Tool
def self.call(message:, server_context:)
# Access provider-specific metadata
session_id = server_context.dig(:_meta, :session_id)
request_id = server_context.dig(:_meta, :request_id)
# Access server's original context
user_id = server_context.dig(:user_id)
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{
type: "text",
text: "Processing for user #{user_id} in session #{session_id}"
}])
end
end
```
**Client Request Example:**
```json
{
"jsonrpc": "2.0",
"id": 1,
"method": "tools/call",
"params": {
"name": "my_tool",
"arguments": { "message": "Hello" },
"_meta": {
"session_id": "abc123",
"request_id": "req_456"
}
}
}
```
#### Configuration Block Data
##### Exception Reporter
The exception reporter receives:
- `exception`: The Ruby exception object that was raised
- `server_context`: The context hash provided to the server
**Signature:**
```ruby
exception_reporter = ->(exception, server_context) { ... }
```
##### Instrumentation Callback
The instrumentation callback receives a hash with the following possible keys:
- `method`: (String) The protocol method called (e.g., "ping", "tools/list")
- `tool_name`: (String, optional) The name of the tool called
- `tool_arguments`: (Hash, optional) The arguments passed to the tool
- `prompt_name`: (String, optional) The name of the prompt called
- `resource_uri`: (String, optional) The URI of the resource called
- `error`: (String, optional) Error code if a lookup failed
- `duration`: (Float) Duration of the call in seconds
- `client`: (Hash, optional) Client information with `name` and `version` keys, from the initialize request
> [!NOTE]
> `tool_name`, `prompt_name` and `resource_uri` are only populated if a matching handler is registered.
> This is to avoid potential issues with metric cardinality.
**Type:**
```ruby
instrumentation_callback = ->(data) { ... }
# where data is a Hash with keys as described above
```
**Example:**
```ruby
MCP.configure do |config|
config.instrumentation_callback = ->(data) {
puts "Instrumentation: #{data.inspect}"
}
end
```
### Server Protocol Version
The server's protocol version can be overridden using the `protocol_version` keyword argument:
```ruby
configuration = MCP::Configuration.new(protocol_version: "2024-11-05")
MCP::Server.new(name: "test_server", configuration: configuration)
```
If no protocol version is specified, the latest stable version will be applied by default.
The latest stable version includes new features from the [draft version](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/draft).
This will make all new server instances use the specified protocol version instead of the default version. The protocol version can be reset to the default by setting it to `nil`:
```ruby
MCP::Configuration.new(protocol_version: nil)
```
If an invalid `protocol_version` value is set, an `ArgumentError` is raised.
Be sure to check the [MCP spec](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/versioning) for the protocol version to understand the supported features for the version being set.
### Exception Reporting
The exception reporter receives two arguments:
- `exception`: The Ruby exception object that was raised
- `server_context`: A hash containing contextual information about where the error occurred
The server_context hash includes:
- For tool calls: `{ tool_name: "name", arguments: { ... } }`
- For general request handling: `{ request: { ... } }`
When an exception occurs:
1. The exception is reported via the configured reporter
2. For tool calls, a generic error response is returned to the client: `{ error: "Internal error occurred", isError: true }`
3. For other requests, the exception is re-raised after reporting
If no exception reporter is configured, a default no-op reporter is used that silently ignores exceptions.
### Tools
MCP spec includes [Tools](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/tools) which provide functionality to LLM apps.
This gem provides a `MCP::Tool` class that can be used to create tools in three ways:
1. As a class definition:
```ruby
class MyTool < MCP::Tool
title "My Tool"
description "This tool performs specific functionality..."
input_schema(
properties: {
message: { type: "string" },
},
required: ["message"]
)
output_schema(
properties: {
result: { type: "string" },
success: { type: "boolean" },
timestamp: { type: "string", format: "date-time" }
},
required: ["result", "success", "timestamp"]
)
annotations(
read_only_hint: true,
destructive_hint: false,
idempotent_hint: true,
open_world_hint: false,
title: "My Tool"
)
def self.call(message:, server_context:)
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{ type: "text", text: "OK" }])
end
end
tool = MyTool
```
2. By using the `MCP::Tool.define` method with a block:
```ruby
tool = MCP::Tool.define(
name: "my_tool",
title: "My Tool",
description: "This tool performs specific functionality...",
annotations: {
read_only_hint: true,
title: "My Tool"
}
) do |args, server_context:|
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{ type: "text", text: "OK" }])
end
```
3. By using the `MCP::Server#define_tool` method with a block:
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new
server.define_tool(
name: "my_tool",
description: "This tool performs specific functionality...",
annotations: {
title: "My Tool",
read_only_hint: true
}
) do |args, server_context:|
Tool::Response.new([{ type: "text", text: "OK" }])
end
```
The server_context parameter is the server_context passed into the server and can be used to pass per request information,
e.g. around authentication state.
### Tool Annotations
Tools can include annotations that provide additional metadata about their behavior. The following annotations are supported:
- `destructive_hint`: Indicates if the tool performs destructive operations. Defaults to true
- `idempotent_hint`: Indicates if the tool's operations are idempotent. Defaults to false
- `open_world_hint`: Indicates if the tool operates in an open world context. Defaults to true
- `read_only_hint`: Indicates if the tool only reads data (doesn't modify state). Defaults to false
- `title`: A human-readable title for the tool
Annotations can be set either through the class definition using the `annotations` class method or when defining a tool using the `define` method.
> [!NOTE]
> This **Tool Annotations** feature is supported starting from `protocol_version: '2025-03-26'`.
### Tool Output Schemas
Tools can optionally define an `output_schema` to specify the expected structure of their results. This works similarly to how `input_schema` is defined and can be used in three ways:
1. **Class definition with output_schema:**
```ruby
class WeatherTool < MCP::Tool
tool_name "get_weather"
description "Get current weather for a location"
input_schema(
properties: {
location: { type: "string" },
units: { type: "string", enum: ["celsius", "fahrenheit"] }
},
required: ["location"]
)
output_schema(
properties: {
temperature: { type: "number" },
condition: { type: "string" },
humidity: { type: "integer" }
},
required: ["temperature", "condition", "humidity"]
)
def self.call(location:, units: "celsius", server_context:)
# Call weather API and structure the response
api_response = WeatherAPI.fetch(location, units)
weather_data = {
temperature: api_response.temp,
condition: api_response.description,
humidity: api_response.humidity_percent
}
output_schema.validate_result(weather_data)
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{
type: "text",
text: weather_data.to_json
}])
end
end
```
2. **Using Tool.define with output_schema:**
```ruby
tool = MCP::Tool.define(
name: "calculate_stats",
description: "Calculate statistics for a dataset",
input_schema: {
properties: {
numbers: { type: "array", items: { type: "number" } }
},
required: ["numbers"]
},
output_schema: {
properties: {
mean: { type: "number" },
median: { type: "number" },
count: { type: "integer" }
},
required: ["mean", "median", "count"]
}
) do |args, server_context:|
# Calculate statistics and validate against schema
MCP::Tool::Response.new([{ type: "text", text: "Statistics calculated" }])
end
```
3. **Using OutputSchema objects:**
```ruby
class DataTool < MCP::Tool
output_schema MCP::Tool::OutputSchema.new(
properties: {
success: { type: "boolean" },
data: { type: "object" }
},
required: ["success"]
)
end
```
Output schema may also describe an array of objects:
```ruby
class WeatherTool < MCP::Tool
output_schema(
type: "array",
items: {
properties: {
temperature: { type: "number" },
condition: { type: "string" },
humidity: { type: "integer" }
},
required: ["temperature", "condition", "humidity"]
}
)
end
```
Please note: in this case, you must provide `type: "array"`. The default type
for output schemas is `object`.
MCP spec for the [Output Schema](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/tools#output-schema) specifies that:
- **Server Validation**: Servers MUST provide structured results that conform to the output schema
- **Client Validation**: Clients SHOULD validate structured results against the output schema
- **Better Integration**: Enables strict schema validation, type information, and improved developer experience
- **Backward Compatibility**: Tools returning structured content SHOULD also include serialized JSON in a TextContent block
The output schema follows standard JSON Schema format and helps ensure consistent data exchange between MCP servers and clients.
### Tool Responses with Structured Content
Tools can return structured data alongside text content using the `structured_content` parameter.
The structured content will be included in the JSON-RPC response as the `structuredContent` field.
```ruby
class WeatherTool < MCP::Tool
description "Get current weather and return structured data"
def self.call(location:, units: "celsius", server_context:)
# Call weather API and structure the response
api_response = WeatherAPI.fetch(location, units)
weather_data = {
temperature: api_response.temp,
condition: api_response.description,
humidity: api_response.humidity_percent
}
output_schema.validate_result(weather_data)
MCP::Tool::Response.new(
[{
type: "text",
text: weather_data.to_json
}],
structured_content: weather_data
)
end
end
```
### Tool Responses with Errors
Tools can return error information alongside text content using the `error` parameter.
The error will be included in the JSON-RPC response as the `isError` field.
```ruby
class WeatherTool < MCP::Tool
description "Get current weather and return structured data"
def self.call(server_context:)
# Do something here
content = {}
MCP::Tool::Response.new(
[{
type: "text",
text: content.to_json
}],
structured_content: content,
error: true
)
end
end
```
### Prompts
MCP spec includes [Prompts](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/prompts), which enable servers to define reusable prompt templates and workflows that clients can easily surface to users and LLMs.
The `MCP::Prompt` class provides three ways to create prompts:
1. As a class definition with metadata:
```ruby
class MyPrompt < MCP::Prompt
prompt_name "my_prompt" # Optional - defaults to underscored class name
title "My Prompt"
description "This prompt performs specific functionality..."
arguments [
MCP::Prompt::Argument.new(
name: "message",
title: "Message Title",
description: "Input message",
required: true
)
]
meta({ version: "1.0", category: "example" })
class << self
def template(args, server_context:)
MCP::Prompt::Result.new(
description: "Response description",
messages: [
MCP::Prompt::Message.new(
role: "user",
content: MCP::Content::Text.new("User message")
),
MCP::Prompt::Message.new(
role: "assistant",
content: MCP::Content::Text.new(args["message"])
)
]
)
end
end
end
prompt = MyPrompt
```
2. Using the `MCP::Prompt.define` method:
```ruby
prompt = MCP::Prompt.define(
name: "my_prompt",
title: "My Prompt",
description: "This prompt performs specific functionality...",
arguments: [
MCP::Prompt::Argument.new(
name: "message",
title: "Message Title",
description: "Input message",
required: true
)
],
meta: { version: "1.0", category: "example" }
) do |args, server_context:|
MCP::Prompt::Result.new(
description: "Response description",
messages: [
MCP::Prompt::Message.new(
role: "user",
content: MCP::Content::Text.new("User message")
),
MCP::Prompt::Message.new(
role: "assistant",
content: MCP::Content::Text.new(args["message"])
)
]
)
end
```
3. Using the `MCP::Server#define_prompt` method:
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new
server.define_prompt(
name: "my_prompt",
description: "This prompt performs specific functionality...",
arguments: [
Prompt::Argument.new(
name: "message",
title: "Message Title",
description: "Input message",
required: true
)
],
meta: { version: "1.0", category: "example" }
) do |args, server_context:|
Prompt::Result.new(
description: "Response description",
messages: [
Prompt::Message.new(
role: "user",
content: Content::Text.new("User message")
),
Prompt::Message.new(
role: "assistant",
content: Content::Text.new(args["message"])
)
]
)
end
```
The server_context parameter is the server_context passed into the server and can be used to pass per request information,
e.g. around authentication state or user preferences.
### Key Components
- `MCP::Prompt::Argument` - Defines input parameters for the prompt template with name, title, description, and required flag
- `MCP::Prompt::Message` - Represents a message in the conversation with a role and content
- `MCP::Prompt::Result` - The output of a prompt template containing description and messages
- `MCP::Content::Text` - Text content for messages
### Usage
Register prompts with the MCP server:
```ruby
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "my_server",
prompts: [MyPrompt],
server_context: { user_id: current_user.id },
)
```
The server will handle prompt listing and execution through the MCP protocol methods:
- `prompts/list` - Lists all registered prompts and their schemas
- `prompts/get` - Retrieves and executes a specific prompt with arguments
### Resources
MCP spec includes [Resources](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/latest/server/resources).
### Reading Resources
The `MCP::Resource` class provides a way to register resources with the server.
```ruby
resource = MCP::Resource.new(
uri: "https://example.com/my_resource",
name: "my-resource",
title: "My Resource",
description: "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet",
mime_type: "text/html",
)
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "my_server",
resources: [resource],
)
```
The server must register a handler for the `resources/read` method to retrieve a resource dynamically.
```ruby
server.resources_read_handler do |params|
[{
uri: params[:uri],
mimeType: "text/plain",
text: "Hello from example resource! URI: #{params[:uri]}"
}]
end
```
otherwise `resources/read` requests will be a no-op.
### Resource Templates
The `MCP::ResourceTemplate` class provides a way to register resource templates with the server.
```ruby
resource_template = MCP::ResourceTemplate.new(
uri_template: "https://example.com/my_resource_template",
name: "my-resource-template",
title: "My Resource Template",
description: "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet",
mime_type: "text/html",
)
server = MCP::Server.new(
name: "my_server",
resource_templates: [resource_template],
)
```
## Building an MCP Client
The `MCP::Client` class provides an interface for interacting with MCP servers.
This class supports:
- Tool listing via the `tools/list` method (`MCP::Client#tools`)
- Tool invocation via the `tools/call` method (`MCP::Client#call_tools`)
- Resource listing via the `resources/list` method (`MCP::Client#resources`)
- Resource template listing via the `resources/templates/list` method (`MCP::Client#resource_templates`)
- Resource reading via the `resources/read` method (`MCP::Client#read_resources`)
- Prompt listing via the `prompts/list` method (`MCP::Client#prompts`)
- Prompt retrieval via the `prompts/get` method (`MCP::Client#get_prompt`)
- Completion requests via the `completion/complete` method (`MCP::Client#complete`)
- Automatic JSON-RPC 2.0 message formatting
- UUID request ID generation
Clients are initialized with a transport layer instance that handles the low-level communication mechanics.
Authorization is handled by the transport layer.
## Transport Layer Interface
If the transport layer you need is not included in the gem, you can build and pass your own instances so long as they conform to the following interface:
```ruby
class CustomTransport
# Sends a JSON-RPC request to the server and returns the raw response.
#
# @param request [Hash] A complete JSON-RPC request object.
# https://www.jsonrpc.org/specification#request_object
# @return [Hash] A hash modeling a JSON-RPC response object.
# https://www.jsonrpc.org/specification#response_object
def send_request(request:)
# Your transport-specific logic here
# - HTTP: POST to endpoint with JSON body
# - WebSocket: Send message over WebSocket
# - stdio: Write to stdout, read from stdin
# - etc.
end
end
```
### Stdio Transport Layer
Use the `MCP::Client::Stdio` transport to interact with MCP servers running as subprocesses over standard input/output.
`MCP::Client::Stdio.new` accepts the following keyword arguments:
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| `command:` | Yes | The command to spawn the server process (e.g., `"ruby"`, `"bundle"`, `"npx"`). |
| `args:` | No | An array of arguments passed to the command. Defaults to `[]`. |
| `env:` | No | A hash of environment variables to set for the server process. Defaults to `nil`. |
| `read_timeout:` | No | Timeout in seconds for waiting for a server response. Defaults to `nil` (no timeout). |
Example usage:
```ruby
stdio_transport = MCP::Client::Stdio.new(
command: "bundle",
args: ["exec", "ruby", "path/to/server.rb"],
env: { "API_KEY" => "my_secret_key" },
read_timeout: 30
)
client = MCP::Client.new(transport: stdio_transport)
# List available tools.
tools = client.tools
tools.each do |tool|
puts "Tool: #{tool.name} - #{tool.description}"
end
# Call a specific tool.
response = client.call_tool(
tool: tools.first,
arguments: { message: "Hello, world!" }
)
# Close the transport when done.
stdio_transport.close
```
The stdio transport automatically handles:
- Spawning the server process with `Open3.popen3`
- MCP protocol initialization handshake (`initialize` request + `notifications/initialized`)
- JSON-RPC 2.0 message framing over newline-delimited JSON
### HTTP Transport Layer
Use the `MCP::Client::HTTP` transport to interact with MCP servers using simple HTTP requests.
You'll need to add `faraday` as a dependency in order to use the HTTP transport layer:
```ruby
gem 'mcp'
gem 'faraday', '>= 2.0'
```
Example usage:
```ruby
http_transport = MCP::Client::HTTP.new(url: "https://api.example.com/mcp")
client = MCP::Client.new(transport: http_transport)
# List available tools
tools = client.tools
tools.each do |tool|
puts <<~TOOL_INFORMATION
Tool: #{tool.name}
Description: #{tool.description}
Input Schema: #{tool.input_schema}
TOOL_INFORMATION
end
# Call a specific tool
response = client.call_tool(
tool: tools.first,
arguments: { message: "Hello, world!" }
)
# Call a tool with progress tracking.
response = client.call_tool(
tool: tools.first,
arguments: { count: 10 },
progress_token: "my-progress-token"
)
```
The server will send `notifications/progress` back to the client during execution.
#### HTTP Authorization
By default, the HTTP transport layer provides no authentication to the server, but you can provide custom headers if you need authentication. For example, to use Bearer token authentication:
```ruby
http_transport = MCP::Client::HTTP.new(
url: "https://api.example.com/mcp",
headers: {
"Authorization" => "Bearer my_token"
}
)
client = MCP::Client.new(transport: http_transport)
client.tools # will make the call using Bearer auth
```
You can add any custom headers needed for your authentication scheme, or for any other purpose. The client will include these headers on every request.
### Tool Objects
The client provides a wrapper class for tools returned by the server:
- `MCP::Client::Tool` - Represents a single tool with its metadata
This class provides easy access to tool properties like name, description, input schema, and output schema.
## Conformance Testing
The `conformance/` directory contains a test server and runner that validate the SDK against the MCP specification using [`@modelcontextprotocol/conformance`](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/conformance).
See [conformance/README.md](conformance/README.md) for usage instructions.
## Documentation
- [SDK API documentation](https://rubydoc.info/gems/mcp)
- [Model Context Protocol documentation](https://modelcontextprotocol.io)