Adding Resources & Prompts — Build Your First Server

Completing Your Server's Capabilities

A well-rounded MCP server doesn't just have tools - it also exposes Resources (data the AI can read) and Prompts (templates users can trigger).

Adding Resources

import { McpServer, ResourceTemplate } from "@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/server/mcp.js";

// Static Resource: Server documentation
server.registerResource(
  "server-readme",
  "file:///docs/README.md",
  { title: "Server README", description: "Server documentation and usage guide", mimeType: "text/markdown" },
  async (uri) => ({
    contents: [{
      uri: uri.href,
      text: "# Notes Server\n\nThis MCP server manages your markdown notes..."
    }]
  })
);

// Dynamic Resource Template: Individual notes
server.registerResource(
  "note",
  new ResourceTemplate("notes://note/{filename}", { list: undefined }),
  { title: "Note File", description: "Read a specific note by filename" },
  async (uri, { filename }) => {
    const content = await readFile(
      join(process.env.NOTES_DIR || "./notes", String(filename)),
      "utf-8"
    );
    return {
      contents: [{ uri: uri.href, text: content }]
    };
  }
);

Adding Prompts

// Prompt: Summarize all notes on a topic
server.registerPrompt(
  "summarize_topic",
  {
    title: "Summarize Topic",
    description: "Summarize all notes related to a topic",
    argsSchema: { topic: z.string().describe("The topic to summarize across all notes") }
  },
  ({ topic }) => ({
    messages: [
      {
        role: "user",
        content: {
          type: "text",
          text: `Search my notes for everything related to "${topic}" and create a complete summary. Include key facts, dates, and action items. Organize by theme.`
        }
      }
    ]
  })
);

// Prompt: Daily review
server.registerPrompt(
  "daily_review",
  { title: "Daily Review", description: "Review notes from the past 7 days" },
  () => ({
    messages: [
      {
        role: "user",
        content: {
          type: "text",
          text: "Review all my recent notes from the last 7 days. Summarize key decisions, flag overdue action items, and suggest priorities for today."
        }
      }
    ]
  })
);

When to Use Each Capability