2. Tool design
| Tool | Does | Inputs (constraints) | Returns | Read-only / destructive | Errors the model can fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| `find_customers` | Customers whose name or email contains the text, case-insensitive | `query` string 1–100 (trimmed), `limit` int 1–50 = 20, `cursor` optional | id, name, email; `next_cursor` | read-only, idempotent | no match: try a shorter part of the name or the email domain |
| `list_customer_orders` | One customer's orders, newest first | `customer_id` int ≥ 1, `status` enum optional, `limit`, `cursor` | customer + orders; `next_cursor` | read-only, idempotent | unknown customer: call `find_customers` |
| `get_order` | One order with the customer's name and email | `order_id` int ≥ 1 | order + customer (structured) | read-only, idempotent | not found: check the number or list the customer's orders |
| `refund_order` | Sets a paid order to refunded | `order_id` int ≥ 1, `confirm` int optional, must equal `order_id` | updated order, `previous_status: "paid"` | destructive, idempotent | no `confirm`: preview, ask the user; order pending or already refunded; not found |
Checklist notes: one rule for empty results (an `isError` result with a next step), applied to every tool. All SQL is parameterized. Read tools use a read-only SQLite handle; only `refund_order` opens a writable one, and its `UPDATE ... WHERE id = ? AND status = 'paid'` is a single statement. The guard on the destructive tool is server-side (the preview/confirm step), not just the `destructiveHint` annotation.
3. Scaffold
From `templates/typescript-server.md`. Installed: `@modelcontextprotocol/server` 2.4.0, `@modelcontextprotocol/client` 2.4.0, `zod` 4.6.7; Node 24.6.0.
```
build-an-mcp-server/
data/seed.sql, data/shop.db 3 customers, 5 orders
src/index.ts stdio entry point
src/server.ts createServer(): the four tools
src/shop.ts SQLite client module (the system being wrapped)
test/smoke.ts spawns the server over stdio, calls every tool
```
5. Test (Inspector CLI, eval loop layer 2)
```
$ npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector --cli npx tsx src/index.ts --method tools/call --tool-name get_order --tool-arg order_id=1001
{
"content": [{ "type": "text", "text": "Order #1001 for Ada Lovelace <ada@example.com>: $49.99, paid, created 2026-10-02T09:15:00Z" }],
"structuredContent": { "order": { "id": 1001, "customer_id": 1, "total_cents": 4999, "status": "paid", "created_at": "2026-10-02T09:15:00Z", "customer_name": "Ada Lovelace", "customer_email": "ada@example.com" } }
}
```
Built, tested, not tested
- Built: four tools over `data/shop.db`, server-side preview/confirm guard on `refund_order`, smoke test, configs for Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, README.
- Tested: starter smoke (pass), full smoke test 14 checks (pass), strict typecheck (pass), Inspector CLI call (pass), seed database unchanged after tests.
- Not tested: the Inspector web UI by hand and the model check (running the five real requests through a live Claude Code session and recording which tool it picks).
[The full answer also holds `src/shop.ts`, `src/server.ts`, `test/smoke.ts` and the three client config snippets.]