---
sidebar_position: 3
slug: /mcp_client

---

# RAGFlow MCP client examples

Python and curl MCP client examples.

------

## Example MCP Python client

We provide a *prototype* MCP client example for testing [here](https://github.com/infiniflow/ragflow/blob/main/mcp/client/client.py).

:::info IMPORTANT
If your MCP server is running in host mode, include your acquired API key in your client's `headers` when connecting asynchronously to it:

```python
async with sse_client("http://localhost:9382/sse", headers={"api_key": "YOUR_KEY_HERE"}) as streams:
    # Rest of your code...
```

Alternatively, to comply with [OAuth 2.1 Section 5](https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-ietf-oauth-v2-1-12#section-5), you can run the following code *instead* to connect to your MCP server:

```python
async with sse_client("http://localhost:9382/sse", headers={"Authorization": "YOUR_KEY_HERE"}) as streams:
    # Rest of your code...
```
:::

## Use curl to interact with the RAGFlow MCP server

When interacting with the MCP server via HTTP requests, follow this initialization sequence:

1. **The client sends an `initialize` request** with protocol version and capabilities.
2. **The server replies with an `initialize` response**, including the supported protocol and capabilities.
3. **The client confirms readiness with an `initialized` notification**.  
   _The connection is established between the client and the server, and further operations (such as tool listing) may proceed._

:::tip NOTE
For more information about this initialization process, see [here](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/docs/concepts/architecture#1-initialization). 
:::

In the following sections, we will walk you through a complete tool calling process.

### 1. Obtain a session ID

Each curl request with the MCP server must include a session ID:

```bash
$ curl -N -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" http://127.0.0.1:9382/sse
```

:::tip NOTE
See [here](../acquire_ragflow_api_key.md) for information about acquiring an API key.
:::

#### Transport

The transport will stream messages such as tool results, server responses, and keep-alive pings.

_The server returns the session ID:_

```bash
event: endpoint
data: /messages/?session_id=5c6600ef61b845a788ddf30dceb25c54
```

### 2. Send an `Initialize` request

The client sends an `initialize` request with protocol version and capabilities:

```bash
session_id="5c6600ef61b845a788ddf30dceb25c54" && \

curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "initialize",
    "params": {
      "protocolVersion": "1.0",
      "capabilities": {},
      "clientInfo": {
        "name": "ragflow-mcp-client",
        "version": "0.1"
      }
    }
  }' && \
```

#### Transport

_The server replies with an `initialize` response, including the supported protocol and capabilities:_

```bash
event: message
data: {"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"result":{"protocolVersion":"2025-03-26","capabilities":{"experimental":{"headers":{"host":"127.0.0.1:9382","user-agent":"curl/8.7.1","accept":"*/*","api_key":"ragflow-xxxxxxxxxxxx","accept-encoding":"gzip"}},"tools":{"listChanged":false}},"serverInfo":{"name":"docker-ragflow-cpu-1","version":"1.9.4"}}}
```

### 3. Acknowledge readiness

The client confirms readiness with an `initialized` notification:

```bash
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "method": "notifications/initialized",
    "params": {}
  }' && \
```

 _The connection is established between the client and the server, and further operations (such as tool listing) may proceed._

### 4. Tool listing

```bash
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 3,
    "method": "tools/list",
    "params": {}
  }' && \
```

#### Transport

```bash
event: message
data: {"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":3,"result":{"tools":[{"name":"ragflow_retrieval","description":"Retrieve relevant chunks from the RAGFlow retrieve interface based on the question, using the specified dataset_ids and optionally document_ids. Below is the list of all available datasets, including their descriptions and IDs. If you're unsure which datasets are relevant to the question, simply pass all dataset IDs to the function.","inputSchema":{"type":"object","properties":{"dataset_ids":{"type":"array","items":{"type":"string"}},"document_ids":{"type":"array","items":{"type":"string"}},"question":{"type":"string"}},"required":["dataset_ids","question"]}}]}}

```

### 5. Tool calling

```bash
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 4,
    "method": "tools/call",
    "params": {
      "name": "ragflow_retrieval",
      "arguments": {
        "question": "How to install neovim?",
        "dataset_ids": ["DATASET_ID_HERE"],
        "document_ids": []
      }
    }
  }'
```

#### Transport

```bash
event: message
data: {"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":4,"result":{...}}

```

### A complete curl example

```bash
session_id="YOUR_SESSION_ID" && \

# Step 1: Initialize request
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "initialize",
    "params": {
      "protocolVersion": "1.0",
      "capabilities": {},
      "clientInfo": {
        "name": "ragflow-mcp-client",
        "version": "0.1"
      }
    }
  }' && \

sleep 2 && \

# Step 2: Initialized notification
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "method": "notifications/initialized",
    "params": {}
  }' && \

sleep 2 && \

# Step 3: Tool listing
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 3,
    "method": "tools/list",
    "params": {}
  }' && \

sleep 2 && \

# Step 4: Tool call
curl -X POST "http://127.0.0.1:9382/messages/?session_id=$session_id" \
  -H "api_key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 4,
    "method": "tools/call",
    "params": {
      "name": "ragflow_retrieval",
      "arguments": {
        "question": "How to install neovim?",
        "dataset_ids": ["DATASET_ID_HERE"],
        "document_ids": []
      }
    }
  }'

```