Resource (MCP)
A resource in the Model Context Protocol is a piece of data or content -- a file, a database record, an API response -- that an MCP server exposes to a client by URI, for the client to read and feed into a model's context, as distinct from a tool, which performs an action rather than returning data for reference. A client typically lists a server's available resources, then reads a specific one by its URI when it's relevant to the current request, and a server can also notify a subscribed client when a resource's contents change. Because resources often carry the same files, records or internal API responses a tool call would also expose, a server's resource list deserves the same deliberate scoping before deployment as its tool list does, not an assumption that only tools need reviewing.
By AdminKit team, Netbase JSC · Updated