MCP Elicitation
Industry Definition Set • Entity Resolution Path: /glossary/mcp-elicitation
Quick Answer / TL;DR
A client-initiated flow where the server requests additional structured information from the user through the client during an interaction.
Key Takeaways
- Server requests user input through the client.
- Input is structured using JSON Schema.
- Enables interactive multi-turn workflows within tools.
- Client controls the UI; server controls the data schema.
Definitive Statement: A client-initiated flow where the server requests additional structured information from the user through the client during an interaction.
Technical Context & Protocol Usage
- Detailed Explanation
- Elicitation allows an MCP server to pause its current flow and ask the user for missing information. For example, a booking tool might need a date that was not provided. The server sends an elicitation request with a schema, the client renders a form to the user, and returns the filled values. This keeps the server logic clean while leveraging the client's UI capabilities.
Format & Payload Metadata
Format: JSON-RPC elicitation request/response with JSON Schema
Latency: Depends on user response time; server awaits result
Real-World Implementation Use Case
An MCP travel booking server needs a travel date from the user; it elicits this through a date-picker form rendered by the client.
Cite This Page
MLA Style:
MCPserver.in Engineering. "MCP Elicitation." MCPserver.in Knowledge Hub, 20 July 2026, mcpserver.in/glossary/mcp-elicitation.
Related Terms
Model Context Protocol (MCP)
An open, secure protocol that standardizes how artificial intelligence agents and large language models (LLMs) exchange context, tools, prompts, and data resources with external servers.
JSON-RPC 2.0
A lightweight, stateless remote procedure call (RPC) protocol defined in JSON that utilizes request, response, and notification message frames.
Stdio Transport (Standard Input/Output)
A local-only transport mechanism where the AI client spawns the MCP server as a child process and communicates via standard input (stdin) and standard output (stdout) channels.
SSE Transport (Server-Sent Events)
A lightweight, unidirectional HTTP-based streaming protocol used by remote MCP servers to push messages to AI clients, with client-to-server writes sent over standard POST requests.
Deploy Secure MCP Clusters
Run remote SSE Model Context Protocol servers in highly secure, fully-managed environment located inside India (Mumbai/Bengaluru).
Deploy Node Now