🔌 Model Context Protocol (MCP) Interview Questions

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open protocol created by Anthropic that standardizes how AI applications provide context to Large Language Models (LLMs).

Key Problems MCP Solves:

• Fragmentation: Each AI application builds custom integrations for every data source
• Context Access: LLMs need access to external data, tools, and resources
• Standardization: No standard way to connect AI models to data sources
• Scalability: N×M integration problem (N apps × M data sources)

MCP Architecture:

• MCP Hosts: AI applications (Claude Desktop, IDEs) that want to access context
• MCP Clients: Protocol clients within hosts that connect to servers
• MCP Servers: Lightweight programs that expose data/tools to clients
• Local Data Sources: Databases, files, APIs that servers connect to

MCP servers expose tools (functions) and resources (data) that AI models can use. Servers communicate with clients using JSON-RPC over stdio or HTTP.

MCP servers are configured in Claude Desktop's configuration file, allowing Claude to access external tools and data sources.

After configuration:

1. Restart Claude Desktop
2. Look for the 🔌 icon in the chat interface
3. Click to see available MCP servers and their tools
4. Claude can now use these tools automatically during conversations

Custom MCP servers can integrate any external API, making their functionality available to AI applications. Here's an example that integrates with a REST API.