About mcp-golang
mcp-golang is an unofficial Go implementation of the Model Context Protocol for writing MCP servers and clients with little code. Tool arguments can be defined as native Go structs, and the library handles schema generation, deserialization and error handling.
Key features
- 01Native Go structs as tool arguments
- 02Automatic schema generation and deserialization
- 03Built-in stdio and HTTP transports
- 04Custom transport support
- 05Tools, prompts and resources support
- 06Client calls for tools, prompts and resources
Use cases
- 01Writing MCP tool servers in Go
- 02Building Go clients that call MCP servers
- 03Running a local Go MCP server with Claude Desktop
MCP support
The project implements MCP in Go. As a server it exposes tools, prompts and resources to MCP clients; as a client it calls and lists features of MCP servers.
Configuration
Local server config is the same for every client. Copy it into your client’s MCP config file.
We haven’t collected a package or remote endpoint for this server. Follow the instructions in the project README.
Tools
Local servers expose tools only once running on your machine, and the maintainer has not provided a tool list.
Details
From the project README
mcp-golang
mcp-golang is an unofficial implementation of the Model Context Protocol in Go.
Write MCP servers and clients in golang with a few lines of code.
Docs at https://mcpgolang.com
Highlights
- 🛡️Type safety - Define your tool arguments as native go structs, have mcp-golang handle the rest. Automatic schema generation, deserialization, error handling etc.
- 🚛 Custom transports - Use the built-in transports (stdio for full feature support, HTTP for stateless communication) or write your own.
- ⚡ Low boilerplate - mcp-golang generates all the MCP endpoints for you apart from your tools, prompts and resources.
- 🧩 Modular - The library is split into three components: transport, protocol and server/client. Use them all or take what you need.
- 🔄 Bi-directional - Full support for both server and client implementations through stdio transport.
Example Usage
Install with go get github.com/metoro-io/mcp-golang
Server Example
package main
import (
"fmt"
"github.com/metoro-io/mcp-golang"
"github.com/metoro-io/mcp-golang/transport/stdio"
)
// Tool arguments are just structs, annotated with jsonschema tags
// More at https://mcpgolang.com/tools#schema-generation
type Content struct {
Title string `json:"title" jsonschema:"required,description=The title to submit"`
Description *string `json:"description" jsonschema:"description=The description to submit"`
}
type MyFunctionsArguments struct {
Submitter string `json:"submitter" jsonschema:"required,description=The name of the thing calling this tool (openai, google, claude, etc)"`
Content Content `json:"content" jsonschema:"required,description=The content of the message"`
}
func main() {
done := make(chan struct{})
server := mcp_golang.NewServer(stdio.NewStdioServerTransport())
err := server.RegisterTool("hello", "Say hello to a person", func(arguments MyFunctionsArguments) (*mcp_golang.ToolResponse, error) {
return mcp_golang.NewToolResponse(mcp_golang.NewTextContent(fmt.Sprintf("Hello, %server!", arguments.Submitter))), nil
})
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
err = server.RegisterPrompt("promt_test", "This is a test prompt", func(arguments Content) (*mcp_golang.PromptResponse, error) {
return mcp_golang.NewPromptResponse("description", mcp_golang.NewPromptMessage(mcp_golang.NewTextContent(fmt.Sprintf("Hello, %server!", arguments.Title)), mcp_golang.RoleUser)), nil
})
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
err = server.RegisterResource("test://resource", "resource_test", "This is a test resource", "application/json", func() (*mcp_golang.ResourceResponse, error) {
return mcp_golang.NewResourceResponse(mcp_golang.NewTextEmbeddedResource("test://resource", "This is a test resource", "application/json")), nil
})
err = server.Serve()
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
<-done
}
HTTP Server Example
You can also create an HTTP-based server using either the standard HTTP transport or Gin framework:
// Standard HTTP
transport := http.NewHTTPTransport("/mcp")
transport.WithAddr(":8080")
server := mcp_golang.NewServer(transport)
// Or with Gin framework
transport := http.NewGinTransport()
router := gin.Default()
router.POST("/mcp", transport.Handler())
server := mcp_golang.NewServer(transport)
Note: HTTP transports are stateless and don't support bidirectional features like notifications. Use stdio transport if you need those features.
Client Example
Checkout the examples/client directory for a more complete example.
package main
import (
"context"
"log"
mcp "github.com/metoro-io/mcp-golang"
"github.com/metoro-io/mcp-golang/transport/stdio"
)
// Define type-safe arguments
type CalculateArgs struct {
Operation string `json:"operation"`
A int `json:"a"`
B int `json:"b"`
}
func main() {
cmd := exec.Command("go", "run", "./server/main.go")
stdin, err := cmd.StdinPipe()
if err != nil {
log.Fatalf("Failed to get stdin pipe: %v", err)
}
stdout, err := cmd.StdoutPipe()
if err != nil {
log.Fatalf("Failed to get stdout pipe: %v", err)
}
if err := cmd.Start(); err != nil {
log.Fatalf("Failed to start server: %v", err)
}
defer cmd.Process.Kill()
// Create and initialize client
transport := stdio.NewStdioServerTransportWithIO(stdout, stdin)
client := mcp.NewClient(transport)
if _, err := client.Initialize(context.Background()); err != nil {
log.Fatalf("Failed to initialize: %v", err)
}
// Call a tool with typed arguments
args := CalculateArgs{
Operation: "add",
A: 10,
B: 5,
}
response, err := client.CallTool(context.Background(), "calculate", args)
if err != nil {
log.Fatalf("Failed to call tool: %v", err)
}
if response != nil && len(response.Content) > 0 {
log.Printf("Result: %s", response.Content[0].TextContent.Text)
}
}
Using with Claude Desktop
Create a file in ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json with the following contents:
{
"mcpServers": {
"golang-mcp-server": {
"command": "<your path to golang MCP server go executable>",
"args": [],
"env": {}
}
}
}
Contributions
Contributions are more than welcome! Please check out our contribution guidelines.
Discord
Got any suggestions, have a question on the api or usage? Ask on the discord server. A maintainer will be happy to help you out.
Examples
Some more extensive examples using the library found here:
Metoro - Query and interact with kubernetes environments monitored by Metoro
Open a PR to add your own projects!
Server Feature Implementation
Tools
- Tool Calls
- Native go structs as arguments
- Programatically generated tool list endpoint
- Change notifications
- Pagination
Prompts
- Prompt Calls
- Programatically generated prompt list endpoint
- Change notifications
- Pagination
Resources
- Resource Calls
- Programatically generated resource list endpoint
- Change notifications
- Pagination
Transports
- Stdio - Full support for all features including bidirectional communication
- HTTP - Stateless transport for simple request-response scenarios (no notifications support)
- Gin - HTTP transport with Gin framework integration (stateless, no notifications support)
- SSE
- Custom transport support
- HTTPS with custom auth support - in progress. Not currently part of the spec but we'll be adding experimental support for it.
Client
- Call tools
- Call prompts
- Call resources
- List tools
- List prompts
- List resources
Comments
New to MCP?
From what the protocol is to installing your first server, these answers cover most first questions.
An open protocol that defines how AI applications connect to external tools and data in a uniform way. Clients talk to the model; MCP servers provide tools, resources and prompt templates. They exchange standard messages, so one server can be reused by many clients.