Research policy
- Use the published MCP specification for normative protocol behavior.
- Use official MCP documentation and maintainer posts for implementation guidance and announced transitions.
- Use each vendor’s own documentation for product names, availability, and host-specific behavior.
- Label release candidates, drafts, previews, and inferred behavior rather than presenting them as universal support.
- Avoid adoption numbers, promised time savings, or security guarantees without strong evidence.
- Prefer evergreen conceptual copy; date compatibility tables and fast-moving product claims.
Core protocol references
MCP introduction
Plain-English scope and examples.
MCP architecture
Host, client, server, data layer, and transport layer.
Published specification
Normative stable protocol revision used for baseline claims.
Server concepts
Tools, resources, and prompts.
Client best practices
Progressive discovery and programmatic tool calling.
Security best practices
Threats and mitigations for MCP implementations.
Authorization guide
OAuth-based authorization roles and flow.
MCP Inspector
Official testing and debugging tool.
Product and implementation references
| Publisher | Reference | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | MCP and Connectors | Remote MCP behavior, connector distinction, approvals, and risk notes. |
| OpenAI | Define tools | User-intent tool design, schemas, outputs, read/write separation. |
| OpenAI | Tool Search | Deferred functions, namespaces, MCP servers, caching, and model support. |
| Anthropic | Claude Code MCP | Current MCP Tool Search behavior and configuration. |
| Anthropic | Claude Tool Search | Deferred loading and search mechanisms in the API. |
| GitHub / VS Code | Token-efficient tool loading | Dynamic tool selection approach in GitHub Copilot for VS Code. |
| Cursor | Cursor 2.4 changelog | On-demand MCP discovery and loading claim. |
| Microsoft | Build MCP server-based plugins | Microsoft 365 Copilot terminology, remote server requirements, and plugin model. |
| Microsoft | Dynamic tool discovery | Runtime MCP tool discovery in declarative agents. |
| Gemini CLI MCP servers | Local and remote server configuration, trust, and tool discovery. | |
| Google Cloud | Gemini Enterprise custom MCP servers | Enterprise connector availability and remote MCP requirements. |
July 2026 protocol transition
The official documentation is moving between the November 2025 published revision and July 2026 protocol work. The July release candidate describes a stateless core, first-class extensions, updated discovery, and broader schema support. Implementations will not all update at once.
We therefore keep the public explanation version-neutral, cite the published revision for stable claims, and present July 2026 changes as a compatibility transition rather than silently assuming universal deployment.
References: MCP versioning and the July 28 release-candidate announcement.
Last reviewed
July 28, 2026
Product availability and terminology can change sooner than protocol concepts. Follow the linked vendor documentation before making a purchasing or implementation decision.