> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://enact-465fb1fc.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# MCP Inspector

> In-depth guide to using the MCP Inspector for testing and debugging Model Context Protocol servers

The [MCP Inspector](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector) is an interactive developer tool for testing and debugging MCP servers. While the [Debugging Guide](https://enact-465fb1fc.mintlify.site/legacy/tools/debugging) covers the Inspector as part of the overall debugging toolkit, this document provides a detailed exploration of the Inspector's features and capabilities.

## Getting started

### Installation and basic usage

The Inspector runs directly through `npx` without requiring installation:

```bash theme={null}
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector <command>
```

```bash theme={null}
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector <command> <arg1> <arg2>
```

#### Inspecting servers from npm or PyPI

A common way to start server packages from [npm](https://npmjs.com) or [PyPI](https://pypi.org).

**npm package**

```bash theme={null}
npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npx <package-name> <args>
# For example
npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npx @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem /Users/username/Desktop
```

**PyPI package**

```bash theme={null}
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector uvx <package-name> <args>
# For example
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector uvx mcp-server-git --repository ~/code/mcp/servers.git
```

#### Inspecting locally developed servers

To inspect servers locally developed or downloaded as a repository, the most common
way is:

**TypeScript**

```bash theme={null}
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node path/to/server/index.js args...
```

**Python**

```bash theme={null}
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector \
  uv \
  --directory path/to/server \
  run \
  package-name \
  args...
```

Please carefully read any attached README for the most accurate instructions.

## Feature overview

![](https://mintcdn.com/enact-465fb1fc/Vtrl7f06M-nOXz-X/images/mcp-inspector.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=Vtrl7f06M-nOXz-X\&q=85\&s=aa30c7967f3890b055d84b408df0416d)

The MCP Inspector interface

The Inspector provides several features for interacting with your MCP server:

### Server connection pane

* Allows selecting the [transport](https://enact-465fb1fc.mintlify.site/legacy/concepts/transports) for connecting to the server
* For local servers, supports customizing the command-line arguments and environment

### Resources tab

* Lists all available resources
* Shows resource metadata (MIME types, descriptions)
* Allows resource content inspection
* Supports subscription testing

### Prompts tab

* Displays available prompt templates
* Shows prompt arguments and descriptions
* Enables prompt testing with custom arguments
* Previews generated messages

### Tools tab

* Lists available tools
* Shows tool schemas and descriptions
* Enables tool testing with custom inputs
* Displays tool execution results

### Notifications pane

* Presents all logs recorded from the server
* Shows notifications received from the server

## Best practices

### Development workflow

1. Start Development
   * Launch Inspector with your server
   * Verify basic connectivity
   * Check capability negotiation

2. Iterative testing
   * Make server changes
   * Rebuild the server
   * Reconnect the Inspector
   * Test affected features
   * Monitor messages

3. Test edge cases
   * Invalid inputs
   * Missing prompt arguments
   * Concurrent operations
   * Verify error handling and error responses

## Next steps

> **[Inspector Repository](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector)**
>
> Check out the MCP Inspector source code

> **[Debugging Guide](https://enact-465fb1fc.mintlify.site/legacy/tools/debugging)**
>
> Learn about broader debugging strategies


This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.