Model Context Protocol · L2 · 20 min
Consent and roots
Learn in five minutes
- The person should see which server and which tool are about to run.
- A root is a boundary on which files a server may touch. Confirm the spec's current word for that boundary.
- A server that can read every file is a different product from a server that can read one folder.
- Approval for a draft is still required before a send.
- OWASP's LLM risks include excessive agency. Read the current list.
Grant the notes folder, not the home folder. The trace records the folder. A later reviewer can see the boundary.
Visual
One folder
- Write the allowed path as notes/ only.
- A request for ../secrets fails the check.
- The trace stores the denial.
- No file outside notes/ is read in the story.
Quiz
Ecosystem
- Root
- A boundary on files or data a server may see. Confirm the spec's word.
Sisters: Plugins, Function calling, Language-server ideas.
A notes server can serve chat and a voice host if both speak the same protocol.
Treat the spec revision as something you pin, like a model id.
Config
- Write the goal in one sentence.
- Name the input and the allowed output.
- Save the trace next to the result.
Troubleshooting
- The answer looks fluent and is wrong. Check whether a source passage actually contains the claim.
- The loop never stops. Set a step cap and stop when the tool result repeats.
Sources and go deeper
- Model Context Protocol specification, 2025-06-18 spec last checked 2026-10
- OWASP Top 10 for Large Language Model Applications community last checked 2026-10
- What is the Model Context Protocol (MCP)? spec last checked 2026-10
- Model Context Protocol organization on GitHub community last checked 2026-10
- Model Context Protocol — Wikipedia wikipedia last checked 2026-10