---
title: "Getting started"
description: "Experiment with the MCP Description (mcpdesc) format in the Live Editor, then capture a live MCP server of your own."
source: "https://mcpdesc.org/docs/getting-started/"
---

The quickest way to get a feel for **MCP Description** (`mcpdesc`) is to open it in the Live Editor and experiment — no install required. Once you’re comfortable with the format, capture one of your own MCP servers with the `mcpcontract` CLI.

## Experiment in the Live Editor

Start visually: open the [Live MCP Description Editor](/live-editor) and edit a description right in your browser. Tweak tools, transports, and metadata to see how a description is shaped, with live validation as you type. The editor runs entirely in your browser; nothing you type is uploaded to our servers.

## Run your first dump

When you’re ready to describe a real server, install the `mcpcontract` CLI and extract the capabilities of a live MCP server — no project setup required:

```bash
# Install from npm
npm install -g @cisco_open/mcptoolkit-contract


# Extract capabilities from a live MCP server into an MCP Description
mcpcontract dump \
  --transport streamable-http \
  --url https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp \
  --format yaml \
  --output ms-learn.yaml
```

You now have `ms-learn.yaml` — an MCP Description document describing every tool the server exposes. Open it back in the [Live Editor](/live-editor) to explore it visually, or validate it, generate documentation, and compare it against other versions from the CLI.

For the full five-minute walkthrough — including validation, documentation, and comparing versions to detect breaking changes — follow the canonical [**101 Tutorial**](https://github.com/cisco-open/mcptoolkit-contract/blob/main/docs/101-tutorial.md)in the `mcptoolkit-contract` repository.

## Next steps

* [101 Tutorial](https://github.com/cisco-open/mcptoolkit-contract/blob/main/docs/101-tutorial.md) — dump, validate, document, and compare a real server.
* [What is MCP Description?](/format) — the format every tool reads and writes.