MCP Operations

MCP Operations

Setup: See /installation for one-time MCP server binary install and configuration.
Layers: MCP (AI tools) — this skill covers MCP-specific patterns. For domain logic, see the corresponding version-* skill.

When to Use

• Invoking version operations as MCP tools from an AI agent
• Configuring the versions MCP server (stdio vs SSE transport)
• Understanding MCP tool naming conventions and parameter formats
• Composing multiple MCP tool calls to accomplish a multi-step task
• Working with the structured JSON responses from MCP tools

Decision Tree

Need to configure the MCP server?
  → Add to settings.json mcpServers block
Need to run the server over network (not local)?
  → Use --transport sse --port <port>
Need to find the right tool for a task?
  → All tools are prefixed version_ — see Tool Catalog below
Need to batch multiple operations?
  → Make sequential tool calls, passing results between them
Need file access from MCP?
  → Use version_read_file / version_write_file (operates on server's filesystem)

Task Patterns

Configure the MCP server

Goal: Register the versions MCP server in your AI client.

Claude Code — add to ~/.claude/settings.json (user scope) or .claude/settings.json (project scope):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "versions": {
      "command": "versions-mcp",
      "args": ["--transport", "stdio"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor — add to .cursor/mcp.json in your project root:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "versions": {
      "command": "versions-mcp",
      "args": ["--transport", "stdio"]
    }
  }
}

Windsurf — add to .windsurf/mcp.json in your project root:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "versions": {
      "command": "versions-mcp",
      "args": ["--transport", "stdio"]
    }
  }
}

VS Code (Copilot) — add to .vscode/mcp.json in your project root:

{
  "servers": {
    "versions": {
      "command": "versions-mcp",
      "args": ["--transport", "stdio"]
    }
  }
}

For SSE mode (network-accessible server):

versions-mcp --transport sse --port 8080

Parse and inspect a version

Goal: Get all properties of a version in one call.

version_parse(version_string="v1.2.3-beta1")
version_info(version_string="v1.2.3-beta1")
version_validate(version_string="v1.2.3-beta1")

Use version_info when you need all Is* flags at once. Use version_parse when you only need structural components. Use version_validate for a simple valid/invalid check.

Compare and sort versions

Goal: Compare two versions or sort a list.

version_compare(version1="1.2.3", version2="2.0.0")
version_sort(versions=["2.0.0", "1.0.0", "1.5.0"], descending=false)

Filter versions by criteria

Goal: Filter a list to only stable, prerelease, or constraint-matching versions.

version_filter(versions=["1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.0", "2.0.0-beta", "2.0.0"], stable=true)
version_filter(versions=["1.0.0", "1.5.0", "2.0.0"], constraint=">=1.0.0,<2.0.0")

Find min, max, or latest

Goal: Find the extreme version in a list.

version_min(versions=["1.0.0", "2.0.0", "1.5.0"])
version_max(versions=["1.0.0", "2.0.0", "1.5.0"])
version_latest_stable(versions=["1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.0", "2.0.0-beta", "2.0.0"])
version_latest_prerelease(versions=["1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.0", "2.0.0-beta", "2.0.0"])

Group versions

Goal: Cluster versions by their group ID.

version_group(versions=["1.0.0", "1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.1", "2.0.0", "2.0.0-beta"])

Check constraints and ranges

Goal: Test if a version satisfies a constraint expression or falls in a range.

version_constraint_check(expression=">=1.0.0,<2.0.0", version="1.5.0", type="set")
version_range_query(start="1.0.0", end="3.0.0", versions=["1.0.0", "1.5.0", "2.0.0", "3.0.0", "4.0.0"])

Mutate versions

Goal: Bump, build, or strip versions.

version_bump(version_string="1.2.3", bump_type="patch")
version_build(prefix="v", major=1, minor=2, patch=3, suffix="-alpha1")
version_core(version_string="v1.2.3-beta1")

Set operations

Goal: Remove duplicates or compute set difference/intersection/union.

version_unique(versions=["1.0.0", "2.0.0", "1.0.0", "2.0.0"])
version_set_operation(operation="difference", set_a=["1.0.0", "2.0.0"], set_b=["2.0.0", "3.0.0"])

Read and write version files

Goal: Read versions from or write versions to files on the MCP server's filesystem.

version_read_file(filepath="versions.txt", parse=true)
version_write_file(filepath="sorted.txt", versions=["2.0.0", "1.0.0", "1.1.0"])

Visualize versions

Goal: Generate a text tree of version hierarchy.

version_visualize(versions=["1.0.0", "1.0.1", "1.1.0", "2.0.0"], max_items_per_group=5)
version_visualize(versions=["1.0.0", "1.0.1", "2.0.0"], groups_only=true)

Batch multiple operations

Goal: Compose a multi-step workflow across MCP tool calls.

Example workflow — find the latest stable version in a group:

# Step 1: Group versions
version_group(versions=["1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.0", "1.0.1", "2.0.0-beta", "2.0.0"])

# Step 2: From the "1" group, find latest stable
version_latest_stable(versions=["1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.0", "1.0.1"])

API Reference

Server Configuration

Transport modes:

Per-client configuration:

Tool Catalog

All tools use the version_ prefix. The versions parameter is always a JSON array of strings: ["1.0.0", "2.0.0"].

Common Patterns

# Parse a version
version_parse(version_string="v1.2.3-beta1")

# Compare two versions
version_compare(version1="1.2.3", version2="2.0.0")

# Sort versions
version_sort(versions=["2.0.0", "1.0.0", "1.5.0"])

# Filter stable versions
version_filter(versions=["1.0.0-alpha", "1.0.0", "2.0.0"], stable=true)

# Check constraint
version_constraint_check(expression=">=1.0.0,<2.0.0", version="1.5.0")

# Range query
version_range_query(start="1.0.0", end="3.0.0", versions=["1.0.0", "1.5.0", "2.0.0", "3.0.0", "4.0.0"])

# Group versions
version_group(versions=["1.0.0", "1.0.0-alpha", "2.0.0"])

# Bump version
version_bump(version_string="1.2.3", bump_type="patch")

# Set difference
version_set_operation(operation="difference", set_a=["1.0.0", "2.0.0"], set_b=["2.0.0", "3.0.0"])

Cross-References

• [[cli-operations]] — equivalent operations via the CLI binary
• [[version-check]] — version_info returns all Is* flags
• [[version-sorting]] — version_sort and version_latest_*
• [[version-mutation]] — version_bump, version_build, version_core
• [[version-file-operations]] — version_read_file, version_write_file
• [[version-visualization]] — version_visualize
• [[version-grouping]] — version_group
• [[version-constraints]] — version_constraint_check
• [[version-range-query]] — version_range_query
• [[version-comparison]] — version_compare

Important Notes

• All tool names are prefixed with version_ to avoid collision with other MCP servers.
• The versions parameter is always a JSON array of strings: ["1.0.0", "2.0.0"].
• version_constraint_check type parameter: set (default, comma-separated AND) or union (||-separated OR).
• version_set_operation operation parameter: difference, intersection, or union.
• version_bump bump_type parameter: major, minor, or patch.
• version_read_file and version_write_file operate on the server's local filesystem, not the client's.
• All tools return JSON-formatted results with structured data.
• For SSE transport, the server listens on the specified port and accepts HTTP connections.