# Resource Operations
> Access static and templated resources from MCP servers.
export const VersionBadge = ({version}) => {
return `<code className="version-badge-container">`
`<p className="version-badge">`
`<span className="version-badge-label">`New in version:
`<code className="version-badge-version">`{version}`</code>`
`</p>`
`</code>`;
};
<VersionBadge version="2.0.0" />
Resources are data sources exposed by MCP servers. They can be static files or dynamic templates that generate content based on parameters.
## Types of Resources
MCP servers expose two types of resources:
* **Static Resources**: Fixed content accessible via URI (e.g., configuration files, documentation)
* **Resource Templates**: Dynamic resources that accept parameters to generate content (e.g., API endpoints, database queries)
## Listing Resources
### Static Resources
Use `list_resources()` to retrieve all static resources available on the server:
```python
async with client:
resources = await client.list_resources()
# resources -> list[mcp.types.Resource]
for resource in resources:
print(f"Resource URI: {resource.uri}")
print(f"Name: {resource.name}")
print(f"Description: {resource.description}")
print(f"MIME Type: {resource.mimeType}")
# Access tags and other metadata
if hasattr(resource, '_meta') and resource._meta:
fastmcp_meta = resource._meta.get('_fastmcp', {})
print(f"Tags: {fastmcp_meta.get('tags', [])}")
```
### Resource Templates
Use `list_resource_templates()` to retrieve available resource templates:
```python
async with client:
templates = await client.list_resource_templates()
# templates -> list[mcp.types.ResourceTemplate]
for template in templates:
print(f"Template URI: {template.uriTemplate}")
print(f"Name: {template.name}")
print(f"Description: {template.description}")
# Access tags and other metadata
if hasattr(template, '_meta') and template._meta:
fastmcp_meta = template._meta.get('_fastmcp', {})
print(f"Tags: {fastmcp_meta.get('tags', [])}")
```
### Filtering by Tags
<VersionBadge version="2.11.0" />
You can use the `meta` field to filter resources based on their tags:
```python
async with client:
resources = await client.list_resources()
# Filter resources by tag
config_resources = [
resource for resource in resources
if hasattr(resource, '_meta') and resource._meta and
resource._meta.get('_fastmcp', {}) and
'config' in resource._meta.get('_fastmcp', {}).get('tags', [])
]
print(f"Found {len(config_resources)} config resources")
```
<Note>
The `_meta` field is part of the standard MCP specification. FastMCP servers include tags and other metadata within a `_fastmcp` namespace (e.g., `_meta._fastmcp.tags`) to avoid conflicts with user-defined metadata. This behavior can be controlled with the server's `include_fastmcp_meta` setting - when disabled, the `_fastmcp` namespace won't be included. Other MCP server implementations may not provide this metadata structure.
</Note>
## Reading Resources
### Static Resources
Read a static resource using its URI:
```python
async with client:
# Read a static resource
content = await client.read_resource("file:///path/to/README.md")
# content -> list[mcp.types.TextResourceContents | mcp.types.BlobResourceContents]
# Access text content
if hasattr(content[0], 'text'):
print(content[0].text)
# Access binary content
if hasattr(content[0], 'blob'):
print(f"Binary data: {len(content[0].blob)} bytes")
```
### Resource Templates
Read from a resource template by providing the URI with parameters:
```python
async with client:
# Read a resource generated from a template
# For example, a template like "weather://{{city}}/current"
weather_content = await client.read_resource("weather://london/current")
# Access the generated content
print(weather_content[0].text) # Assuming text JSON response
```
## Content Types
Resources can return different content types:
### Text Resources
```python
async with client:
content = await client.read_resource("resource://config/settings.json")
for item in content:
if hasattr(item, 'text'):
print(f"Text content: {item.text}")
print(f"MIME type: {item.mimeType}")
```
### Binary Resources
```python
async with client:
content = await client.read_resource("resource://images/logo.png")
for item in content:
if hasattr(item, 'blob'):
print(f"Binary content: {len(item.blob)} bytes")
print(f"MIME type: {item.mimeType}")
# Save to file
with open("downloaded_logo.png", "wb") as f:
f.write(item.blob)
```
## Working with Multi-Server Clients
When using multi-server clients, resource URIs are automatically prefixed with the server name:
```python
async with client: # Multi-server client
# Access resources from different servers
weather_icons = await client.read_resource("weather://weather/icons/sunny")
templates = await client.read_resource("resource://assistant/templates/list")
print(f"Weather icon: {weather_icons[0].blob}")
print(f"Templates: {templates[0].text}")
```
## Raw MCP Protocol Access
For access to the complete MCP protocol objects, use the `*_mcp` methods:
```python
async with client:
# Raw MCP methods return full protocol objects
resources_result = await client.list_resources_mcp()
# resources_result -> mcp.types.ListResourcesResult
templates_result = await client.list_resource_templates_mcp()
# templates_result -> mcp.types.ListResourceTemplatesResult
content_result = await client.read_resource_mcp("resource://example")
# content_result -> mcp.types.ReadResourceResult
```
## Common Resource URI Patterns
Different MCP servers may use various URI schemes:
```python
# File system resources
"file:///path/to/file.txt"
# Custom protocol resources
"weather://london/current"
"database://users/123"
# Generic resource protocol
"resource://config/settings"
"resource://templates/email"
```
<Tip>
Resource URIs and their formats depend on the specific MCP server implementation. Check the server's documentation for available resources and their URI patterns.
</Tip>