Skip to content

Getting Started

Using the hosted API

A public instance runs at https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/ — free to use, no registration required.

Query with curl

# Get an RFC
curl https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/api/v1/rfcs/9000

# List recent RFCs
curl 'https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/api/v1/rfcs?limit=3'

# Full-text search
curl 'https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/api/v1/search?q=DNS&security'

# Section-level search
curl 'https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/api/v1/search/sections?q=DHCP&limit=5'

Connect via MCP

Point your MCP client at https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/mcp (Streamable HTTP) or https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/sse (SSE).

Minimal config (works with most clients):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "rfc-mcp": {
      "type": "streamable-http",
      "url": "https://rfc-mcp.connorw600.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}

See Agent Configuration for client-specific setup guides.

Available tools

  • get_rfc — metadata and relations for an RFC number
  • get_rfc_text — full plain-text body
  • get_rfc_sections — list of sections (id, title, level)
  • get_rfc_section — one section's content by id (e.g. "2.1", "A")
  • search_rfcs — full-text across whole documents
  • search_rfc_sections — full-text across individual sections
  • list_relations — obsoletes/updates/see-also for an RFC
  • list_rfcs — filter by status, keyword, author, date range

Available prompts

  • summarize_rfc — generate a structured summary of any RFC
  • compare_rfcs — compare two RFCs side by side
  • check_deprecation — check whether an RFC is obsoleted or updated

Running your own server

Self-hosting with Docker

Prerequisites

  • Docker and Docker Compose

Quick start

git clone git@gitea.connorw600.dev:connorw600/rfc-mcp-server.git
cd rfc-mcp-server
docker compose up -d

The server starts immediately; the index builds in the background. Check progress:

watch curl -s http://localhost:8000/health

When status changes to "ok" you're ready. See Deployment for configuration options and Data Sync for details on the sync process.