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microsoft/mcp-for-beginners

A free, open-source beginner curriculum teaching the Model Context Protocol (MCP) with hands-on examples in C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, Rust and TypeScript.

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What is it?

This is a multi-module course that introduces the Model Context Protocol, a standard for connecting AI applications to tools and services. It starts with core concepts and security, then moves into building a first MCP server and client, connecting to LLMs, and using VS Code and other MCP hosts.

The later modules cover practical implementation, pagination, OAuth2 and Entra ID authentication, scaling, custom transports, and a 13-lab path that builds an MCP server with PostgreSQL and pgvector-based semantic search. Code samples are provided in several languages, and the course is published under the MIT license.

The material is aimed at developers who already know a programming language and basic client-server and REST concepts, and it includes translations into more than 50 languages.

Key features

  • 01Hands-on MCP examples in C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, Rust and TypeScript
  • 02Covers building MCP servers and clients, stdio and HTTP streaming transports
  • 03Includes security topics such as OAuth2 and Microsoft Entra ID authentication
  • 04A 13-lab module on PostgreSQL integration with semantic search
  • 05Guides for connecting servers to VS Code, Claude Desktop and other MCP hosts
  • 06Translated into more than 50 languages

Use cases

  • Learning MCP from scratch before building AI tool integrations
  • Choosing a language-specific sample to start a first MCP server
  • Teaching a team how MCP servers, clients and hosts fit together
  • Following a database-backed MCP server lab with PostgreSQL

Quick start

  1. 1

    Fork the repository on GitHub

  2. 2

    Clone the repository

    git clone https://github.com/microsoft/mcp-for-beginners.git
  3. 3

    Join the Microsoft Foundry Discord community

Things to know

  • Some hands-on examples are still pinned to the older 2025-11-25 MCP specification while SDK support catches up.

Topics

#mcp#model-context-protocol#ai-agents#llm#tutorial#typescript#python#csharp#java#javascript

FAQ

What is mcp-for-beginners?
A free, open-source beginner curriculum teaching the Model Context Protocol (MCP) with hands-on examples in C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, Rust and TypeScript. This is a multi-module course that introduces the Model Context Protocol, a standard for connecting AI applications to tools and services. It starts with core concepts and security, then moves into building a first MCP server and client, connecting to LLMs, and using VS Code and other MCP hosts.
Is mcp-for-beginners free to use? What license does it have?
mcp-for-beginners is open source under the MIT license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is mcp-for-beginners still maintained?
Actively maintained. The last commit to mcp-for-beginners was on Oct 21, 2026.
What can I use mcp-for-beginners for?
Learning MCP from scratch before building AI tool integrations Choosing a language-specific sample to start a first MCP server Teaching a team how MCP servers, clients and hosts fit together Following a database-backed MCP server lab with PostgreSQL
How do I install mcp-for-beginners?
Fork the repository on GitHub Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/microsoft/mcp-for-beginners.git Join the Microsoft Foundry Discord community
Where can I get mcp-for-beginners?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/microsoft/mcp-for-beginners

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