MCP Client icon

MCP Client

Use MCP client
Join our community

Actions6

Overview

This node acts as a client interface to an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server, allowing users to interact with various MCP resources, tools, and prompts. Specifically, the List Prompts operation retrieves all available prompt templates from the MCP server.

Common scenarios where this node is beneficial include:

  • Fetching a catalog of prompt templates to dynamically select or display in workflows.
  • Integrating with AI or model-driven systems that use predefined prompts for generating responses.
  • Automating workflows that require knowledge of available prompts without manual lookup.

For example, a user might use this node to list all prompt templates and then feed a selected prompt into another node for execution or further processing.

Properties

Name Meaning
Connection Type Choose the transport type to connect to MCP server. Options:
- Command Line (STDIO)
- Server-Sent Events (SSE)

Output

The output JSON contains a single field:

  • prompts: An array of prompt template objects retrieved from the MCP server. Each object represents a prompt available for use.

Example output structure:

{
  "prompts": [
    {
      "name": "examplePrompt1",
      "description": "Description of prompt 1",
      ...
    },
    {
      "name": "examplePrompt2",
      "description": "Description of prompt 2",
      ...
    }
  ]
}

No binary data output is produced by this operation.

Dependencies

  • Requires connection to an MCP server via either:

    • A command line interface using STDIO transport, configured with a command and optional arguments.
    • A Server-Sent Events (SSE) transport, configured with a URL and optional headers.

  • The node expects credentials providing necessary connection details depending on the chosen transport type.

  • Environment variables starting with MCP_ can be used to pass additional environment settings to the command line transport.

Troubleshooting

  • Connection errors: If the node fails to connect to the MCP server, verify that the credentials are correctly set up and that the MCP server is reachable via the specified transport.

  • Transport error: Errors related to the transport layer (e.g., SSE connection issues or command execution failures) will throw descriptive errors. Check network connectivity and command availability.

  • Empty prompt list: If no prompts are returned, ensure that the MCP server actually has prompt templates available and that the user account has permission to access them.

  • Invalid parameters: Although this operation does not take complex parameters beyond connection type, incorrect credential configuration may cause failures.

Links and References

Discussion