Add MCP Package

Add a New MCP Workspace Package

Step-by-step guide to adding a new ra-mcp-<name>-mcp package to the workspace.

Prerequisites

Decide on your package name. Convention: <name>-mcp directory, ra-mcp-<name>-mcp PyPI name, ra_mcp_<name>_mcp Python import.

Example mapping for a package called viewer:

Step 1 — Create directory structure

packages/mcps/<name>-mcp/
├── pyproject.toml
├── README.md
├── src/ra_mcp_<name>_mcp/
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── py.typed            # empty file, PEP 561 marker
│   ├── tools.py            # FastMCP server + instructions + tool registration
│   ├── server.py           # Standalone entry point for isolated dev/testing
│   └── formatter.py        # LLM output formatting (optional)
└── tests/
    └── test_tools.py

Step 2 — pyproject.toml

[project]
name = "ra-mcp-<name>-mcp"
version = "0.3.0"                         # match current workspace version
description = "<one-line description>"
readme = "README.md"
requires-python = ">=3.13"
dependencies = [
    # Domain package (if one exists):
    # "ra-mcp-<name>",
    "ra-mcp-common",
    "fastmcp==3.4.2",
]
license = "Apache-2.0"

[tool.uv.sources]
# ra-mcp-<name> = { workspace = true }   # uncomment if domain pkg exists
ra-mcp-common = { workspace = true }

[build-system]
requires = ["hatchling"]
build-backend = "hatchling.build"

[tool.hatch.build.targets.wheel]
packages = ["src/ra_mcp_<name>_mcp"]

If the package depends on an existing domain package (e.g. ra-mcp-browse), add it to dependencies and [tool.uv.sources]. If this is a standalone MCP package (like guide-mcp), just depend on ra-mcp-common + fastmcp.

Step 3 — tools.py

This file creates the FastMCP instance and registers all tools/resources.

from fastmcp import FastMCP

<name>_mcp = FastMCP(
    name="ra-<name>-mcp",
    instructions="""
    <Detailed LLM-facing instructions>
    - What this module does
    - List of available tools
    - Usage examples
    - Important caveats
    """,
)


@<name>_mcp.tool()
async def <tool_name>(param1: str) -> str:
    """Tool description for LLM understanding."""
    ...

For larger packages, split tool registration into a separate <name>_tool.py with a register_<name>_tool(mcp) function and call it from tools.py.

Dataset (LanceDB-backed) MCPs — use the spine, don't reinvent

If this is a LanceDB dataset MCP, depend on ra-mcp-dataset-lib and use the shared spine (ra_mcp_dataset_lib) instead of hand-rolling per-package clones:

• get_lancedb(LANCEDB_URI) for the connection (thread-safe, process-cached) — not a local _db/_get_db().
• require_keyword(keyword, "'Example'") for the empty-keyword guard.
• lancedb_fts_search(...) + the predicate builders (equals / at_least / at_most / text_contains / combine) for the query.
• format_results(result, label="<Label>", render_record=_format_<x>_record) for output — only the per-record _format_<x>_record renderer is per-dataset.
• build_fts_index / build_scalar_indexes in the ingest path (never against live published data).

A handler then reduces to: if err := require_keyword(...): return err, build filters, lancedb_fts_search, format_results, except → mark_span_error.

Step 4 — server.py

Standalone entry point for running the package in isolation (dev/testing). The argparse --stdio / --port + transport branch is shared — use run_dev_server from ra_mcp_common.dev_server (OTel handles logging when enabled). Pick a default port not already taken by another package.

"""Standalone server for ra-<name>-mcp.

    python -m ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.server
    python -m ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.server --stdio
"""

from ra_mcp_common.dev_server import run_dev_server

from .tools import <name>_mcp


def main() -> None:
    run_dev_server(<name>_mcp, description="<Name> MCP Server", default_port=30XX)


if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Step 5 — __init__.py

"""MCP tools for <description>."""

from .tools import <name>_mcp

__all__ = ["<name>_mcp"]

Step 6 — py.typed

Create an empty file at src/ra_mcp_<name>_mcp/py.typed.

Step 7 — tests/test_tools.py

"""Tests for ra-mcp-<name>-mcp tools."""

from ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.tools import <name>_mcp


def test_<name>_mcp_has_name() -> None:
    assert <name>_mcp.name == "ra-<name>-mcp"

Step 8 — README.md

# ra-mcp-<name>-mcp

<One-line description>.

## MCP Tools

- **<tool_name>**: What it does

## Standalone usage

    python -m ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.server          # HTTP on port 3001
    python -m ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.server --stdio   # stdio transport

## Part of ra-mcp

Imported by the root server via `FastMCP.add_provider()`.

Step 9 — Wire into root

9a. Root pyproject.toml — add dependency and source

# In [project] dependencies, add:
"ra-mcp-<name>-mcp",

# In [tool.uv.sources], add:
ra-mcp-<name>-mcp = { workspace = true }

# In [tool.ruff.lint.isort] known-first-party, add:
"ra_mcp_<name>_mcp"

9b. src/ra_mcp_server/server.py — register the module

Add import at the top alongside the other module imports:

from ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.tools import <name>_mcp

Add entry to AVAILABLE_MODULES:

"<name>": {
    "server": <name>_mcp,
    "description": "<Short description for --list-modules>",
    "default": True,  # or False if opt-in
},

Step 10 — Sync and verify

# Install the new package into the workspace
uv sync

# Verify the module loads
uv run ra serve --list-modules

# Run package tests
uv run pytest packages/mcps/<name>-mcp/tests/ -v

# Test standalone
uv run python -m ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.server --port 3001

# Test with MCP Inspector
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector uv run python -m ra_mcp_<name>_mcp.server --stdio

Checklist

• packages/mcps/<name>-mcp/ directory with all files
• pyproject.toml has correct name, deps, and hatch wheel config
• tools.py exports a <name>_mcp FastMCP instance with tools registered
• server.py provides standalone --stdio / --port entry point
• __init__.py exports <name>_mcp
• py.typed marker exists
• tests/test_tools.py has at least a smoke test
• Root pyproject.toml: dependency added, source added, isort updated
• server.py in root: import added, AVAILABLE_MODULES entry added
• uv sync succeeds
• uv run ra serve --list-modules shows the new module