TypeScript MCP Starter Kit 🚀

A fully functional starter template for building Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers with TypeScript, supporting both HTTP/SSE and stdio transports for seamless integration with AI applications.

✨ Features

• TypeScript Ready: Full TypeScript support with strict type checking
• SSE Transport: Real-time bidirectional communication using Server-Sent Events
• Zod Validation: Runtime type validation and schema parsing
• RESTful Integration: Example implementation with REST Countries API
• Session Management: Built-in session handling for multiple concurrent connections
• CORS Support: Cross-origin resource sharing configured
• Hot Reload: Development server with tsx for instant feedback

🏗️ Architecture

src/
├── index.ts          # HTTP server & SSE transport setup
├── server.ts         # MCP server configuration & tool registration
├── types.ts          # TypeScript type definitions
├── api/              # External API integrations
│   └── fetchRestCountries.ts
├── parser/           # Zod schema validators
│   └── index.ts
└── resources/        # MCP resources configurations
│   └── index.ts
└── tools/            # MCP tool configurations
    └── index.ts

🚀 Quick Start

1. Clone and install dependencies:

   pnpm install

2. Start the development server:

   pnpm start

3. Server endpoints:

   • SSE Stream: GET http://localhost:8000/mcp
   • Message Endpoint: POST http://localhost:8000/mcp/messages?sessionId={id}

🔧 Configuration

Environment Variables

Create a .env file:

PORT=8000  # Optional, defaults to 8000

Adding New Tools

1. Define the tool configuration in src/tools/index.ts:

export const myNewToolConfig = (): TRegisterTool => ({
  title: "My New Tool",
  description: "Description of what it does",
  inputSchema: {
    param1: z.string().describe("Parameter description")
  },
  outputSchema: {
    result: z.any()
  }
});

2. Register the tool in src/server.ts:

server.registerTool(
  "my_new_tool",
  myNewToolConfig(),
  async ({ param1 }) => {
    // Tool implementation
    return {
      content: [{ type: "text", text: "Result" }],
      structuredContent: { result: "data" }
    };
  }
);

🛠️ Built-in Example: Country Data Tool

The starter includes a complete example that fetches country information:

• Tool Name: get_country_data
• Input: countryName (string)
• API: REST Countries API
• Validation: Zod schema in src/parser/index.ts

Usage:

// The tool accepts a country name and returns detailed country data
{ "countryName": "Germany" }

🔍 Key Components

McpServer

Core MCP server setup with tool registration and capability configuration.

SSEServerTransport

Handles Server-Sent Events transport layer for real-time communication between client and server.

StdioTransport

Handle the client AI application that can't use SSEServerTransport

SessionRecord

Type-safe session management for handling multiple concurrent connections.

fetchRestCountries

Example API integration with error handling and response formatting.

📊 Transport Layer

This implementation uses SSE (Server-Sent Events) instead of stdio transport:

• ✅ Real-time: Instant bidirectional communication
• ✅ Web-compatible: Works seamlessly with web clients
• ✅ Session-based: Multiple concurrent connections support
• ✅ Error handling: Robust connection management

🧪 Development

Type Safety

All schemas are validated using Zod with TypeScript integration:

import z from "zod";

export const mySchema = z.object({
  field: z.string().describe("Field description")
});

Adding External APIs

Follow the pattern in src/api/fetchRestCountries.ts:

const fetchMyAPI = async (param: string) => {
  try {
    const res = await fetch(`https://api.example.com/${param}`);
    return await res.json();
  } catch (err) {
    console.error(`API Error: ${err}`);
    return "Error message";
  }
};

📦 Dependencies

• @modelcontextprotocol/sdk: Core MCP functionality
• zod: Runtime type validation
• tsx: TypeScript execution engine
• dotenv: Environment variable management

🌐 Usage with AI Clients

This MCP server supports two transport methods:

Option 1: HTTP/SSE Transport (for ChatGPT via ngrok)

1. Start the HTTP server:

   pnpm start

2. Expose your server with ngrok:

   ngrok http 8000

3. Configure ChatGPT:

   • Copy the ngrok HTTPS URL (e.g., https://abc123.ngrok.io)
   • In ChatGPT, add your MCP server using the SSE endpoint:
     • SSE Stream: https://abc123.ngrok.io/mcp
     • Message Endpoint: https://abc123.ngrok.io/mcp/messages

Option 2: Stdio Transport (for Claude Desktop & Local AI Apps)

1. Configure Claude Desktop (or other local AI application):

   Edit your claude_desktop_config.json file:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "ts_mcp_starter": {
         "command": "C:\\Users\\YOUR_USERNAME\\Development\\mcp\\YOUR_MCP_FOLDER\\node_modules\\.bin\\tsx.cmd",
         "args": ["C:\\Users\\YOUR_USERNAME\\Development\\mcp\\YOUR_MCP_FOLDER\\src\\stdio.ts"],
         "cwd": "C:\\Users\\YOUR_USERNAME\\Development\\mcp\\YOUR_MCP_FOLDER"
       }
     }
   }

   Important: Replace YOUR_USERNAME with your actual username and adjust paths as needed.

   For macOS/Linux:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "ts_mcp_starter": {
         "command": "node",
         "args": ["/absolute/path/to/YOUR_MCP_FOLDER/node_modules/.bin/tsx", "src/stdio.ts"],
         "cwd": "/absolute/path/to/YOUR_MCP_FOLDER"
       }
     }
   }

2. Restart Claude Desktop to load the MCP server

3. Verify connection:

   • Check Claude Desktop logs for successful connection
   • The server will output to stderr: "MCP Server running on stdio"

Which Transport Should I Use?

Transport	Use Case	Pros	Cons
HTTP/SSE	ChatGPT, web clients, remote access	Multiple concurrent connections, web-compatible, easy to debug	Requires ngrok for ChatGPT, port management
Stdio	Claude Desktop, local AI apps	Direct integration, no network setup, secure	Single connection, local only

🚀 Production Deployment

Build and run in production:

# Build the project
npx tsc

# Run the built server
node build/index.js

For containerized deployment, the server runs on the configured port and accepts HTTP connections for MCP communication.

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Ready to build your next MCP server? This starter kit provides everything you need to create robust, type-safe MCP applications with modern TypeScript tooling! 🎉