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docs / resources

MCP Resources (5)

MCP resources expose ServiceNow records as readable data via server.resource(). Unlike tools (which execute actions), resources provide direct data access — clients can read a resource URI to get the current state of a record.

What Are MCP Resources?

Resources follow the MCP resource protocol. A client reads a URI like servicenow://incident/{sys_id} and receives the record as JSON. Resources support:

  • Fixed resources: Static URIs like servicenow://me that always resolve to the same logical record (the current user)
  • Template resources: Parameterized URIs like servicenow://incident/{sys_id} where the client provides the identifier

How to Use Resources

Resources are consumed by the AI agent (MCP client), not by humans directly. The agent reads a resource URI to pull structured data into the conversation context — similar to how a tool returns data, but without side effects.

When the Agent Uses Resources

During a conversation, the AI agent may read resources automatically when it needs record data. For example, if you ask "what's my ServiceNow profile?", the agent can read servicenow://me to get your user record.

Resources are particularly useful for:

  • Providing context — the agent reads a record before deciding what actions to take
  • Referencing data — fetching an incident or change request to answer questions about it
  • Avoiding tool overhead — resources are read-only lookups, simpler than invoking a full tool

Programmatic (MCP SDK)

Any MCP client can list and read resources via the protocol:

// List available resources
const { resources } = await client.listResources();

// List resource templates (parameterized URIs)
const { resourceTemplates } = await client.listResourceTemplates();

// Read a fixed resource
const result = await client.readResource({ uri: "servicenow://me" });
// result.contents[0].text contains the JSON record

// Read a template resource by filling in the sys_id
const incident = await client.readResource({
  uri: "servicenow://incident/a1b2c3d4e5f6a1b2c3d4e5f6a1b2c3d4"
});

Available Resources

Resource URI Type Description
my_profile servicenow://me Fixed Current authenticated user's profile
incident servicenow://incident/{sys_id} Template Incident record by sys_id
change_request servicenow://change_request/{sys_id} Template Change request record by sys_id
kb_knowledge servicenow://kb_knowledge/{sys_id} Template Knowledge base article by sys_id
catalog servicenow://catalog/{sys_id} Template Service catalog item by sys_id

Behavior

  • All resources return JSON with mimeType: "application/json"
  • Template resources validate sys_id format (32-character hex) before making API calls
  • Errors are returned as JSON error content, not exceptions — resource reads never crash the server
  • Resources use the same per-user OAuth delegation as tools — the authenticated user's permissions apply

Implementation

Resources are registered in src/resources/servicenow.ts via registerResources(). They share the getContext closure from the tool registry for authentication and client instantiation.

See also: Tools Overview · Prompts Overview