Building MCP Servers

intermediate ~6 hours mcp-servers tool-use transport authentication
Prerequisites:

Learn to build production-quality MCP servers. This path takes you from a basic server implementation through transport selection, security, and publishing to the registry.

Prerequisites: Complete the MCP Fundamentals path first to understand the protocol architecture.

Steps

  1. Build an MCP server mcp intermediate

    Get started building your own server to use in Claude for Desktop and other clients.

    Start here with a working server in your language of choice. The TypeScript and Python quickstarts both produce a fully functional stdio server — focus on the tool registration pattern since you will reuse it constantly.

  2. SDKs mcp intermediate

    Official SDKs for building with Model Context Protocol

    The official TypeScript and Python SDKs are the safest choices for production use. Pay attention to which SDK features are stable versus experimental, as the protocol is still evolving rapidly.

  3. Server

    Servers declare their capabilities during initialization, and clients react accordingly. Understanding capability negotiation helps you design servers that degrade gracefully when connected to clients with limited support.

  4. Tools mcp intermediate

    Tools are where most server development effort goes. Focus on designing clear JSON Schema inputs — the schema is what the AI model sees, so vague parameter names or missing descriptions lead to unreliable tool calls.

  5. Resources mcp intermediate

    Resources provide context without side effects, making them inherently safer than tools. Use them for exposing configuration, documentation, or data that the model needs to read but should not modify.

  6. Transports mcp intermediate

    Stdio works for local development but Streamable HTTP is required for remote deployment. If your server will be used by multiple clients simultaneously, you must use HTTP — stdio is single-connection only.

  7. Connect to local MCP servers mcp intermediate

    Learn how to extend Claude Desktop with local MCP servers to enable file system access and other powerful integrations

    Local connection via stdio is the simplest deployment model but runs the server with your user's permissions. Understand the security implications — a compromised server has full access to the local filesystem.

  8. Connect to remote MCP Servers mcp intermediate

    Learn how to connect Claude to remote MCP servers and extend its capabilities with internet-hosted tools and data sources

    Remote servers unlock shared deployment and multi-tenant scenarios. The key difference from local is the authentication requirement — you must implement OAuth or another auth mechanism before exposing a server remotely.

  9. Understanding Authorization in MCP mcp advanced

    Learn how to implement secure authorization for MCP servers using OAuth 2.1 to protect sensitive resources and operations

    OAuth integration is mandatory for any remote-facing MCP server. This tutorial walks through the full flow — pay attention to scope definitions, as they control what each client is authorized to access on your server.

  10. Security Best Practices mcp advanced

    Security considerations, attack vectors, and best practices for MCP implementations

    Security mistakes in MCP servers have outsized impact because the AI model can autonomously invoke tools. Review the input validation guidance carefully — prompt injection through tool parameters is a real attack vector.

  11. Quickstart: Publish an MCP Server to the MCP Registry mcp beginner

    The MCP Registry is how users discover and install servers. Publishing requires a valid package manifest — get this right early because it also serves as documentation for what your server does and what permissions it needs.