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MCP Quick Start Guide

examples/MCP_QUICK_START.md

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MCP Quick Start Guide

šŸ”— Connect your models to external tools and services using the Model Context Protocol (MCP).

What is MCP? The Model Context Protocol allows your AI models to access external tools like web search, file systems, databases, and APIs automatically during conversations.

Key Benefits:

  • šŸš€ Zero setup - Tools work automatically once configured
  • šŸ”§ Multi-tool support - Connect to multiple services simultaneously
  • šŸŒ Universal protocol - Works with any MCP-compatible server
  • šŸ”’ Secure - Built-in authentication and timeout controls

šŸ“š Full Documentation | āš™ļø Configuration Reference

Quick Start

1. Create Configuration File

Create mcp-config.json with a working example using the filesystem server:

json
{
  "servers": [
    {
      "name": "Filesystem Tools",
      "source": {
        "type": "Process",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
      }
    }
  ],
  "auto_register_tools": true
}

Note: To install the filesystem server, run: npx @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem . -y

Alternative Transport Examples (commented out by default):

<details> <summary>HTTP Example - Hugging Face MCP Server</summary>
json
{
  "servers": [
    {
      "name": "Hugging Face MCP",
      "source": {
        "type": "Http",
        "url": "https://hf.co/mcp",
        "timeout_secs": 30
      },
      "bearer_token": "hf_xxx",
      "tool_prefix": "hf",
      "enabled": false
    },
    {
      "name": "Filesystem Tools",
      "source": {
        "type": "Process",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
      }
    }
  ],
  "auto_register_tools": true
}
</details> <details> <summary>WebSocket Example</summary>
json
{
  "servers": [
    {
      "name": "WebSocket Example",
      "source": {
        "type": "WebSocket",
        "url": "wss://api.example.com/mcp",
        "timeout_secs": 30
      },
      "enabled": false
    },
    {
      "name": "Filesystem Tools",
      "source": {
        "type": "Process",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
      }
    }
  ],
  "auto_register_tools": true
}
</details>

2. Start Server with MCP Tools

bash
# Start with MCP configuration
mistralrs serve --mcp-config mcp-config.json -p 1234 -m Qwen/Qwen3-4B

# Alternative: Use environment variable
export MCP_CONFIG_PATH=mcp-config.json
mistralrs serve -p 1234 -m Qwen/Qwen3-4B

āœ… Server starts with tools automatically loaded!

3. Use Tools Automatically

That's it! Tools work automatically in conversations:

bash
# File operations example
curl -X POST http://localhost:1234/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "Qwen/Qwen3-4B",
    "messages": [
      {"role": "user", "content": "List the files in the current directory and create a hello.txt file"}
    ]
  }'

šŸŽ‰ The model automatically uses tools when needed - no extra steps required!

āœ… Verify Tools are Working

bash
curl http://localhost:1234/v1/models

Look for MCP status in the response:

json
{
  "object": "list",
  "data": [{
    "id": "Qwen/Qwen3-4B",
    "object": "model", 
    "tools_available": true,
    "mcp_tools_count": 3,
    "mcp_servers_connected": 1
  }]
}

āœ… tools_available: true means MCP tools are working!

šŸ”§ Quick Verification

Test filesystem server is working:

bash
# This should return "3" or more (filesystem tools available)
curl http://localhost:1234/v1/models | jq '.data[0].mcp_tools_count'

# Check if filesystem server process is running
ps aux | grep server-filesystem

šŸš€ Popular MCP Servers

ServerDescriptionInstallationUse Case
FilesystemFile operationsnpm i -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystemRead/write files
Hugging FaceHF API accessWeb service at https://hf.co/mcpModels, datasets, spaces
PostgresDatabasenpm i -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgresSQL queries

Links to more servers:

Transport Types

TransportWhen to UseExamples
ProcessLocal tools, npm packagesMost MCP servers
HTTPREST APIs, cloud servicesCustom web services
WebSocketReal-time streamingLive data feeds

šŸ“‹ Ready-to-Use Configurations

Process Example (Default - Filesystem Server)

json
{
  "servers": [{
    "name": "File Operations",
    "source": {
      "type": "Process",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
    }
  }],
  "auto_register_tools": true
}

HTTP Example (Hugging Face MCP Server)

json
{
  "servers": [
    {
      "name": "Hugging Face MCP",
      "source": {
        "type": "Http",
        "url": "https://hf.co/mcp",
        "timeout_secs": 30
      },
      "bearer_token": "hf_xxx",
      "tool_prefix": "hf",
      "enabled": false
    },
    {
      "name": "File Operations",
      "source": {
        "type": "Process",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
      }
    }
  ],
  "auto_register_tools": true
}

WebSocket Example

json
{
  "servers": [
    {
      "name": "WebSocket Example",
      "source": {
        "type": "WebSocket",
        "url": "wss://api.example.com/mcp",
        "timeout_secs": 30
      },
      "enabled": false
    },
    {
      "name": "File Operations",
      "source": {
        "type": "Process",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
      }
    }
  ],
  "auto_register_tools": true
}

Error Handling

The system gracefully handles failures:

  • Startup: Invalid configurations are caught and reported with helpful messages
  • Runtime: Failed MCP connections are logged as warnings, server continues without MCP
  • Tools: Individual tool failures don't crash the server

šŸ“š Next Steps

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