A practical guide to building your first MCP (Model Context Protocol) server, covering the full workflow from transport selection (stdio vs HTTP) to tool design principles, auth, testing, and integration with Claude Code. Includes a minimal working TypeScript example and six hard-won lessons: write tool descriptions before implementations, log every call, cap response sizes, version from day one, and treat the server like a product. Key design rules: match tools to user intentions not implementation details, return only what the model needs to decide next, make errors educational, and favor idempotency.
Table of contents
Why You Should Build One Even If You Are Not At AnthropicWhat You Are Actually BuildingPick Your Transport: stdio Versus HTTPThe Minimum Viable MCP ServerDesigning Tools The Model Will Actually UseResources, Prompts, And The Other PrimitivesAuthentication And SecretsTesting Without A Model In The LoopWiring It Into Claude CodeWhat I Wish I Knew Before Shipping The First VersionWhere To Take It NextThe Honest Read On MCP Servers In 2026549 Impressions1 Comment