Expose data sources and dynamic content generators to your MCP client.
Resources represent data or files that an MCP client can read, and resource templates extend this concept by allowing clients to request dynamically generated resources based on parameters passed in the URI.FastMCP simplifies defining both static and dynamic resources, primarily using the @mcp.resource decorator.
The most common way to define a resource is by decorating a Python function. The decorator requires the resource’s unique URI.
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import jsonfrom fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")# Basic dynamic resource returning a string@mcp.resource("resource://greeting")def get_greeting() -> str: """Provides a simple greeting message.""" return "Hello from FastMCP Resources!"# Resource returning JSON data (dict is auto-serialized)@mcp.resource("data://config")def get_config() -> dict: """Provides application configuration as JSON.""" return { "theme": "dark", "version": "1.2.0", "features": ["tools", "resources"], }
Key Concepts:
URI: The first argument to @resource is the unique URI (e.g., "resource://greeting") clients use to request this data.
Lazy Loading: The decorated function (get_greeting, get_config) is only executed when a client specifically requests that resource URI via resources/read.
Inferred Metadata: By default:
Resource Name: Taken from the function name (get_greeting).
Resource Description: Taken from the function’s docstring.
You can customize the resource’s properties using arguments in the @mcp.resource decorator:
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from fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")# Example specifying metadata@mcp.resource( uri="data://app-status", # Explicit URI (required) name="ApplicationStatus", # Custom name description="Provides the current status of the application.", # Custom description mime_type="application/json", # Explicit MIME type tags={"monitoring", "status"}, # Categorization tags meta={"version": "2.1", "team": "infrastructure"} # Custom metadata)def get_application_status() -> dict: """Internal function description (ignored if description is provided above).""" return {"status": "ok", "uptime": 12345, "version": mcp.settings.version} # Example usage
A set of strings used to categorize the resource. These can be used by the server and, in some cases, by clients to filter or group available resources.
New in version:2.11.0Optional meta information about the resource. This data is passed through to the MCP client as the _meta field of the client-side resource object and can be used for custom metadata, versioning, or other application-specific purposes.
FastMCP automatically converts your function’s return value into the appropriate MCP resource content:
str: Sent as TextResourceContents (with mime_type="text/plain" by default).
dict, list, pydantic.BaseModel: Automatically serialized to a JSON string and sent as TextResourceContents (with mime_type="application/json" by default).
bytes: Base64 encoded and sent as BlobResourceContents. You should specify an appropriate mime_type (e.g., "image/png", "application/octet-stream").
None: Results in an empty resource content list being returned.
New in version:2.8.0You can control the visibility and availability of resources and templates by enabling or disabling them. Disabled resources will not appear in the list of available resources or templates, and attempting to read a disabled resource will result in an “Unknown resource” error.By default, all resources are enabled. You can disable a resource upon creation using the enabled parameter in the decorator:
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@mcp.resource("data://secret", enabled=False)def get_secret_data(): """This resource is currently disabled.""" return "Secret data"
You can also toggle a resource’s state programmatically after it has been created:
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@mcp.resource("data://config")def get_config(): return {"version": 1}# Disable and re-enable the resourceget_config.disable()get_config.enable()
New in version:2.2.5Resources and resource templates can access additional MCP information and features through the Context object. To access it, add a parameter to your resource function with a type annotation of Context:
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from fastmcp import FastMCP, Contextmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")@mcp.resource("resource://system-status")async def get_system_status(ctx: Context) -> dict: """Provides system status information.""" return { "status": "operational", "request_id": ctx.request_id }@mcp.resource("resource://{name}/details")async def get_details(name: str, ctx: Context) -> dict: """Get details for a specific name.""" return { "name": name, "accessed_at": ctx.request_id }
For full documentation on the Context object and all its capabilities, see the Context documentation.
While @mcp.resource is ideal for dynamic content, you can directly register pre-defined resources (like static files or simple text) using mcp.add_resource() and concrete Resource subclasses.
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from pathlib import Pathfrom fastmcp import FastMCPfrom fastmcp.resources import FileResource, TextResource, DirectoryResourcemcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")# 1. Exposing a static file directlyreadme_path = Path("./README.md").resolve()if readme_path.exists(): # Use a file:// URI scheme readme_resource = FileResource( uri=f"file://{readme_path.as_posix()}", path=readme_path, # Path to the actual file name="README File", description="The project's README.", mime_type="text/markdown", tags={"documentation"} ) mcp.add_resource(readme_resource)# 2. Exposing simple, predefined textnotice_resource = TextResource( uri="resource://notice", name="Important Notice", text="System maintenance scheduled for Sunday.", tags={"notification"})mcp.add_resource(notice_resource)# 3. Using a custom key different from the URIspecial_resource = TextResource( uri="resource://common-notice", name="Special Notice", text="This is a special notice with a custom storage key.",)mcp.add_resource(special_resource, key="resource://custom-key")# 4. Exposing a directory listingdata_dir_path = Path("./app_data").resolve()if data_dir_path.is_dir(): data_listing_resource = DirectoryResource( uri="resource://data-files", path=data_dir_path, # Path to the directory name="Data Directory Listing", description="Lists files available in the data directory.", recursive=False # Set to True to list subdirectories ) mcp.add_resource(data_listing_resource) # Returns JSON list of files
Common Resource Classes:
TextResource: For simple string content.
BinaryResource: For raw bytes content.
FileResource: Reads content from a local file path. Handles text/binary modes and lazy reading.
HttpResource: Fetches content from an HTTP(S) URL (requires httpx).
DirectoryResource: Lists files in a local directory (returns JSON).
(FunctionResource: Internal class used by @mcp.resource).
Use these when the content is static or sourced directly from a file/URL, bypassing the need for a dedicated Python function.
New in version:2.2.0When adding resources directly with mcp.add_resource(), you can optionally provide a custom storage key:
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# Creating a resource with standard URI as the keyresource = TextResource(uri="resource://data")mcp.add_resource(resource) # Will be stored and accessed using "resource://data"# Creating a resource with a custom keyspecial_resource = TextResource(uri="resource://special-data")mcp.add_resource(special_resource, key="internal://data-v2") # Will be stored and accessed using "internal://data-v2"
Note that this parameter is only available when using add_resource() directly and not through the @resource decorator, as URIs are provided explicitly when using the decorator.
New in version:2.9.1FastMCP automatically sends notifications/resources/list_changed notifications to connected clients when resources or templates are added, enabled, or disabled. This allows clients to stay up-to-date with the current resource set without manually polling for changes.
Notifications are only sent when these operations occur within an active MCP request context (e.g., when called from within a tool or other MCP operation). Operations performed during server initialization do not trigger notifications.Clients can handle these notifications using a message handler to automatically refresh their resource lists or update their interfaces.
New in version:2.11.0FastMCP allows you to add specialized metadata to your resources through annotations. These annotations communicate how resources behave to client applications without consuming token context in LLM prompts.Annotations serve several purposes in client applications:
Indicating whether resources are read-only or may have side effects
Describing the safety profile of resources (idempotent vs. non-idempotent)
Helping clients optimize caching and access patterns
You can add annotations to a resource using the annotations parameter in the @mcp.resource decorator:
Indicates if the resource only provides data without side effects
idempotentHint
boolean
true
Indicates if repeated reads have the same effect as a single read
Remember that annotations help make better user experiences but should be treated as advisory hints. They help client applications present appropriate UI elements and optimize access patterns, but won’t enforce behavior on their own. Always focus on making your annotations accurately represent what your resource actually does.
Resource Templates allow clients to request resources whose content depends on parameters embedded in the URI. Define a template using the same @mcp.resource decorator, but include {parameter_name} placeholders in the URI string and add corresponding arguments to your function signature.Resource templates share most configuration options with regular resources (name, description, mime_type, tags, annotations), but add the ability to define URI parameters that map to function parameters.Resource templates generate a new resource for each unique set of parameters, which means that resources can be dynamically created on-demand. For example, if the resource template "user://profile/{name}" is registered, MCP clients could request "user://profile/ford" or "user://profile/marvin" to retrieve either of those two user profiles as resources, without having to register each resource individually.
Functions with *args are not supported as resource templates. However, unlike tools and prompts, resource templates do support **kwargs because the URI template defines specific parameter names that will be collected and passed as keyword arguments.
Here is a complete example that shows how to define two resource templates:
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from fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")# Template URI includes {city} placeholder@mcp.resource("weather://{city}/current")def get_weather(city: str) -> dict: """Provides weather information for a specific city.""" # In a real implementation, this would call a weather API # Here we're using simplified logic for example purposes return { "city": city.capitalize(), "temperature": 22, "condition": "Sunny", "unit": "celsius" }# Template with multiple parameters and annotations@mcp.resource( "repos://{owner}/{repo}/info", annotations={ "readOnlyHint": True, "idempotentHint": True })def get_repo_info(owner: str, repo: str) -> dict: """Retrieves information about a GitHub repository.""" # In a real implementation, this would call the GitHub API return { "owner": owner, "name": repo, "full_name": f"{owner}/{repo}", "stars": 120, "forks": 48 }
With these two templates defined, clients can request a variety of resources:
weather://london/current → Returns weather for London
weather://paris/current → Returns weather for Paris
repos://jlowin/fastmcp/info → Returns info about the jlowin/fastmcp repository
repos://prefecthq/prefect/info → Returns info about the prefecthq/prefect repository
Please note: FastMCP’s support for wildcard parameters is an extension of the Model Context Protocol standard, which otherwise follows RFC 6570. Since all template processing happens in the FastMCP server, this should not cause any compatibility issues with other MCP implementations.
Resource templates support wildcard parameters that can match multiple path segments. While standard parameters ({param}) only match a single path segment and don’t cross ”/” boundaries, wildcard parameters ({param*}) can capture multiple segments including slashes. Wildcards capture all subsequent path segments up until the defined part of the URI template (whether literal or another parameter). This allows you to have multiple wildcard parameters in a single URI template.
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from fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")# Standard parameter only matches one segment@mcp.resource("files://{filename}")def get_file(filename: str) -> str: """Retrieves a file by name.""" # Will only match files://<single-segment> return f"File content for: {filename}"# Wildcard parameter can match multiple segments@mcp.resource("path://{filepath*}")def get_path_content(filepath: str) -> str: """Retrieves content at a specific path.""" # Can match path://docs/server/resources.mdx return f"Content at path: {filepath}"# Mixing standard and wildcard parameters@mcp.resource("repo://{owner}/{path*}/template.py")def get_template_file(owner: str, path: str) -> dict: """Retrieves a file from a specific repository and path, but only if the resource ends with `template.py`""" # Can match repo://jlowin/fastmcp/src/resources/template.py return { "owner": owner, "path": path + "/template.py", "content": f"File at {path}/template.py in {owner}'s repository" }
Wildcard parameters are useful when:
Working with file paths or hierarchical data
Creating APIs that need to capture variable-length path segments
Building URL-like patterns similar to REST APIs
Note that like regular parameters, each wildcard parameter must still be a named parameter in your function signature, and all required function parameters must appear in the URI template.
New in version:2.2.0When creating resource templates, FastMCP enforces two rules for the relationship between URI template parameters and function parameters:
Required Function Parameters: All function parameters without default values (required parameters) must appear in the URI template.
URI Parameters: All URI template parameters must exist as function parameters.
However, function parameters with default values don’t need to be included in the URI template. When a client requests a resource, FastMCP will:
Extract parameter values from the URI for parameters included in the template
Use default values for any function parameters not in the URI template
This allows for flexible API designs. For example, a simple search template with optional parameters:
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from fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")@mcp.resource("search://{query}")def search_resources(query: str, max_results: int = 10, include_archived: bool = False) -> dict: """Search for resources matching the query string.""" # Only 'query' is required in the URI, the other parameters use their defaults results = perform_search(query, limit=max_results, archived=include_archived) return { "query": query, "max_results": max_results, "include_archived": include_archived, "results": results }
With this template, clients can request search://python and the function will be called with query="python", max_results=10, include_archived=False. MCP Developers can still call the underlying search_resources function directly with more specific parameters.You can also create multiple resource templates that provide different ways to access the same underlying data by manually applying decorators to a single function:
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from fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")# Define a user lookup function that can be accessed by different identifiersdef lookup_user(name: str | None = None, email: str | None = None) -> dict: """Look up a user by either name or email.""" if email: return find_user_by_email(email) # pseudocode elif name: return find_user_by_name(name) # pseudocode else: return {"error": "No lookup parameters provided"}# Manually apply multiple decorators to the same functionmcp.resource("users://email/{email}")(lookup_user)mcp.resource("users://name/{name}")(lookup_user)
Now an LLM or client can retrieve user information in two different ways:
users://email/alice@example.com → Looks up user by email (with name=None)
users://name/Bob → Looks up user by name (with email=None)
This approach allows a single function to be registered with multiple URI patterns while keeping the implementation clean and straightforward.Templates provide a powerful way to expose parameterized data access points following REST-like principles.
New in version:2.4.1If your resource function encounters an error, you can raise a standard Python exception (ValueError, TypeError, FileNotFoundError, custom exceptions, etc.) or a FastMCP ResourceError.By default, all exceptions (including their details) are logged and converted into an MCP error response to be sent back to the client LLM. This helps the LLM understand failures and react appropriately.If you want to mask internal error details for security reasons, you can:
Use the mask_error_details=True parameter when creating your FastMCP instance:
Or use ResourceError to explicitly control what error information is sent to clients:
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from fastmcp import FastMCPfrom fastmcp.exceptions import ResourceErrormcp = FastMCP(name="DataServer")@mcp.resource("resource://safe-error")def fail_with_details() -> str: """This resource provides detailed error information.""" # ResourceError contents are always sent back to clients, # regardless of mask_error_details setting raise ResourceError("Unable to retrieve data: file not found")@mcp.resource("resource://masked-error")def fail_with_masked_details() -> str: """This resource masks internal error details when mask_error_details=True.""" # This message would be masked if mask_error_details=True raise ValueError("Sensitive internal file path: /etc/secrets.conf")@mcp.resource("data://{id}")def get_data_by_id(id: str) -> dict: """Template resources also support the same error handling pattern.""" if id == "secure": raise ValueError("Cannot access secure data") elif id == "missing": raise ResourceError("Data ID 'missing' not found in database") return {"id": id, "value": "data"}
When mask_error_details=True, only error messages from ResourceError will include details, other exceptions will be converted to a generic message.
New in version:2.1.0You can configure how the FastMCP server handles attempts to register multiple resources or templates with the same URI. Use the on_duplicate_resources setting during FastMCP initialization.
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from fastmcp import FastMCPmcp = FastMCP( name="ResourceServer", on_duplicate_resources="error" # Raise error on duplicates)@mcp.resource("data://config")def get_config_v1(): return {"version": 1}# This registration attempt will raise a ValueError because# "data://config" is already registered and the behavior is "error".# @mcp.resource("data://config")# def get_config_v2(): return {"version": 2}
The duplicate behavior options are:
"warn" (default): Logs a warning, and the new resource/template replaces the old one.
"error": Raises a ValueError, preventing the duplicate registration.
"replace": Silently replaces the existing resource/template with the new one.
"ignore": Keeps the original resource/template and ignores the new registration attempt.