MCP series

Not too long ago, I started building my first Microsoft Copilot Cowork plugin and found that the system I wanted Cowork to connect to needed an MCP server on top of it. This series is what I learned going down that rabbit hole, using one running example: a library with an SQL database of books.

The series

1. MCP, Part 1: What it is and how it works
   What MCP is, why AI apps need MCP servers, how hosts, clients and servers fit together, and when to build your own.
2. MCP, Part 2: How to design your MCP server
   How to shape an MCP server’s tools, resources and prompts, the anti-patterns to avoid, and C# examples for the library.
3. MCP, Part 3: Build and test your MCP server
   Building the library MCP server in C# on Azure SQL, and testing it locally with the MCP Inspector and AI apps in VS Code.
4. MCP, Part 4: Deploy your MCP server to Azure and add sign-in
   Hosting the library server in Azure and replacing the test sign-in with Microsoft Entra ID.
5. MCP, Part 5: Connect your MCP server to Copilot Cowork
   Packaging the library server as a Copilot Cowork plugin with skills, setting up Entra ID sign-in, and testing it in Cowork.
6. MCP, Part 6: Connect your MCP server to Claude (coming soon)
   Connecting the library server to Claude with a plugin.
7. MCP, Part 7: Connect your MCP server to ChatGPT (coming soon)
   Connecting the library server to ChatGPT with a plugin, which also works in Codex.