Microsoft Learn MCP Server

What is Microsoft Learn MCP Server?

The Microsoft Learn MCP Server enables AI‑powered tools and IDE extensions to retrieve up‑to‑date Microsoft documentation programmatically. It exposes two core tools – microsoft_docs_search for semantic search and microsoft_docs_fetch for downloading a doc page as markdown – through a remote Model Context Protocol (MCP) endpoint.

How to use Microsoft Learn MCP Server?

1. Configure a compatible client (VS Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, etc.) with the remote MCP endpoint https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp.
2. Invoke the tools in a prompt, e.g., search Microsoft docs or fetch full doc.
3. The client calls the server, which returns the relevant markdown content that the model can embed in its response.

Key Features

• Semantic search across all Microsoft Learn documentation.
• Markdown fetch of full documentation pages.
• Real‑time updates – always reflects the latest published content.
• Streamable HTTP transport – low‑overhead communication for IDEs and AI agents.
• Broad client support (VS Code, Claude Desktop/Code, Visual Studio, Cursor, Roo Code, Cline, Gemini CLI, Qwen Code, GitHub Copilot, etc.).

Use Cases

• AI assistants providing accurate, up‑to‑date code samples and configuration guidance.
• IDE extensions that surface official docs directly in the editor.
• Chat‑based coding helpers (GitHub Copilot, Claude) that can cite official sources.
• Automation scripts that need to fetch documentation for build pipelines or compliance checks.

FAQ

Q: Do I need an API key? A: No, the endpoint is publicly accessible for supported MCP clients.

Q: Can I call the endpoint from a web browser? A: No, it only works via the MCP protocol; browsers will return a 405 Method Not Allowed.

Q: What if a tool definition changes? A: Clients should dynamically refresh tool lists (tools/list) on errors or listChanged notifications.

Q: How do I install the server locally? A: The server is hosted by Microsoft; only client configuration is required.

🌟 Microsoft Learn MCP Server

The Microsoft Learn MCP Server is a remote MCP Server that enables clients like GitHub Copilot and other AI agents to bring trusted and up-to-date information directly from Microsoft's official documentation. It supports streamable http transport, which is lightweight for clients to use.

Please note that this project is in Public Preview and implementation may significantly change prior to our General Availability.

📑 Table of contents

1. 🎯 Overview
2. 🌐 The Microsoft Learn MCP Server Endpoint
3. 🛠️ Currently Supported Tools
4. 🔌 Installation & Getting Started
5. ❓ Troubleshooting
6. 🔮 Future Enhancements
7. 📚 Additional Resources

🎯 Overview

✨ Example Prompts: Your Source of Truth

Your AI assistant should automatically use these tools for Microsoft-related topics. With both search and fetch capabilities, you can get quick answers or comprehensive deep dives. To ensure that it always consults the official documentation, you can add phrases like search Microsoft docs, deep dive, fetch full doc.

Quick Search & Reference

"Give me the Azure CLI commands to create an Azure Container App with a managed identity. search Microsoft docs"

"Is gpt-4.1-mini available in EU regions? fetch full doc"

Code Verification & Best Practices

"Are you sure this is the right way to implement IHttpClientFactory in a .NET 8 minimal API? search Microsoft docs and fetch full doc"

"Show me the complete guide for implementing authentication in ASP.NET Core. fetch full doc"

Comprehensive Learning & Deep Dive

"I need to understand Azure Functions end-to-end. search Microsoft docs and deep dive"

"Get me the full step-by-step tutorial for deploying a .NET application to Azure App Service. search Microsoft docs and deep dive"

📊 Key Capabilities

• High-Quality Content Retrieval: Search and retrieve relevant content from Microsoft's official documentation in markdown format.
• Semantic Understanding: Uses advanced vector search to find the most contextually relevant documentation for any query.
• Real-time Updates: Access the latest Microsoft documentation as it's published.

🌐 The Microsoft Learn MCP Server Endpoint

The Microsoft Learn MCP Server is accessible to any IDE, agent, or tool that supports the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Any compatible client can connect to the following remote MCP endpoint:

https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp

Note: This URL is intended for use within a compliant MCP client via Streamable HTTP, such as the recommended clients listed in our Getting Started section. It does not support direct access from a web browser and may return a 405 Method Not Allowed error if accessed manually. For developers who need to build their own solution, please follow the mandatory guidelines in the Building a Custom Client section to ensure your implementation is resilient and supported.

Example JSON configuration:

{
  "microsoft.docs.mcp": {
    "type": "http",
    "url": "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp"
  }
}

🛠️ Currently Supported Tools

Tool Name	Description	Input Parameters
microsoft_docs_search	Performs semantic search against Microsoft official technical documentation	query (string): The search query for retrieval
microsoft_docs_fetch	Fetch and convert a Microsoft documentation page into markdown format	url (string): URL of the documentation page to read

🔌 Installation & Getting Started

The Microsoft Learn MCP Server supports quick installation across multiple development environments. Choose your preferred client below for streamlined setup:

Client	One-click Installation	MCP Guide
VS Code		VS Code MCP Official Guide
Claude Desktop	View Instructions1. Open Claude Desktop2. Go to Settings → Integrations3. Click Add Integration4. Enter URL: https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp5. Click Connect	Claude Desktop Remote MCP Guide
Claude Code	View Instructions1. Open a CLI2. Type claude mcp add --transport http microsoft_docs_mcp https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp and press enter3. (optional) Type --scope user directly after claude mcp add to make this MCP server available in Claude Code for all of your projects	Claude Code Remote MCP Guide
Visual Studio	Manual configuration requiredUse "type": "http"	Visual Studio MCP Official Guide
Cursor IDE		Cursor MCP Official Guide
Roo Code	Manual configuration requiredUse "type": "streamable-http"	Roo Code MCP Official Guide
Cline	Manual configuration requiredUse "type": "streamableHttp"	Cline MCP Official Guide
Gemini CLI	Manual configuration required View ConfigNote: Add an mcpServer object to .gemini/settings.json file{ "Microsoft Learn MCP Server": { "httpUrl": "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp" }}	How to set up your MCP server
Qwen Code	Manual configuration required View ConfigNote: Add an mcpServer object to .qwen/settings.json file{ "Microsoft Learn MCP Server": { "httpUrl": "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp" }}	Configure the MCP server in settings.json
GitHub	Manual configuration required View ConfigNote: Navigate to Settings → Coding agent{ "mslearn": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "-y", "mcp-remote", "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp" ], "tools":["*"] }}

Alternative Installation (for legacy clients or local configuration)

For clients that don't support native remote MCP servers or if you prefer local configuration, you can use mcp-remote as a proxy:

Client	Manual Configuration	MCP Guide
Claude Desktop (legacy config)	View ConfigNote: Only use this if Settings → Integrations doesn't work{ "microsoft.docs.mcp": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "-y", "mcp-remote", "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp" ] }}Add to claude_desktop_config.json	Claude Desktop MCP Guide
Windsurf	View Config{ "microsoft.docs.mcp": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "-y", "mcp-remote", "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp" ] }}	Windsurf MCP Guide
Kiro	View Config{ "microsoft.docs.mcp": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "-y", "mcp-remote", "https://learn.microsoft.com/api/mcp" ] }}	Kiro MCP Guide

▶️ Getting Started

1. For VS Code: Open GitHub Copilot in VS Code and switch to Agent mode
2. For Claude Desktop: After adding the integration, you'll see the MCP tools icon in the chat interface
3. You should see the Learn MCP Server in the list of available tools
4. Try a prompt that tells the agent to use the MCP Server, such as "what are the az cli commands to create an Azure container app according to official Microsoft Learn documentation?"
5. The agent should be able to use the MCP Server tools to complete your query

⚠️ Building a Custom Client

If your use case requires a direct, programmatic integration, it is essential to understand that MCP is a dynamic protocol, not a static API. The available tools and their schemas will evolve.

To build a resilient client that will not break as the service is updated, you should adhere to the following principles:

1. Discover Tools Dynamically: Your client should fetch current tool definitions from the server at runtime (e.g., using tools/list). Do not hard-code tool names or parameters.
2. Refresh on Failure: Your client should handle errors during tool/invoke calls. If a tool call fails with an error indicating it is missing or its schema has changed (e.g., an HTTP 404 or 400 error), your client should assume its cache is stale and automatically trigger a refresh by calling tools/list.
3. Handle Live Updates: Your client should listen for server notifications (e.g., listChanged) and refresh its tool cache accordingly.

❓ Troubleshooting

💻 System Prompt

Even tool-friendly models like Claude Sonnet 4 sometimes fail to call MCP tools by default; use system prompts to encourage usage.

Here's an example of a Cursor rule (a system prompt) that will cause the LLM to utilize microsoft.docs.mcp more frequently:

## Querying Microsoft Documentation

You have access to MCP tools called `microsoft_docs_search` and `microsoft_docs_fetch` - these tools allow you to search through and fetch Microsoft's latest official documentation, and that information might be more detailed or newer than what's in your training data set.

When handling questions around how to work with native Microsoft technologies, such as C#, F#, ASP.NET Core, Microsoft.Extensions, NuGet, Entity Framework, the `dotnet` runtime - please use this tool for research purposes when dealing with specific / narrowly defined questions that may occur.

⚠️ Common Issues

Issue	Possible Solution
Connection errors	Verify your network connection and that the server URL is correctly entered
No results returned	Try rephrasing your query with more specific technical terms
Tool not appearing in VS Code	Restart VS Code or check that the MCP extension is properly installed
HTTP status 405	Method not allowed happens when a browser tries to connect to the endpoint. Try using the MCP Server through VS Code GitHub Copilot or MCP Inspector instead.

🆘 Getting Support

• Ask questions, share ideas
• Create an issue

🔮 Future Enhancements

The Microsoft Learn MCP Server team is working on several enhancements:

• microsoft_code_search tool: Helps agents find precise, official Microsoft sample code snippets
• Improved telemetry to help inform server enhancements
• Expanding coverage to additional Microsoft documentation sources
• Improved query understanding for more precise results

📚 Additional Resources

• Microsoft Learn MCP Server product documentation
• Microsoft MCP Servers
• Microsoft Learn
• Model Context Protocol Specification