MCP Architecture Diagram Template

Diagram a Model Context Protocol setup — the host, MCP client, JSON-RPC protocol, and servers bridging to real resources.

Use this template

What you get

Host with LLM and MCP client on one side, servers on the other
JSON-RPC protocol link connecting client to servers
Each server bridges to a real resource: files, repo, database

What this template is for

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) architecture diagram shows how an AI application connects to external tools and data through a standard client-server protocol instead of bespoke integrations. This template lays out the three roles MCP defines: the host (the AI app embedding an LLM and one or more MCP clients), the MCP servers (each exposing a specific capability — filesystem, Git, a database), and the JSON-RPC protocol that connects them. Each server bridges to a real resource behind it. Use it to design an MCP integration, document which servers your host talks to, or explain why MCP replaces N×M custom connectors with one protocol.

When to use this template

Design which MCP servers a new AI application needs before building integrations.
Explain to a teammate how MCP standardizes tool access across different AI hosts.
Document the resources each MCP server exposes for a security review.
Show the boundary between the host (your app) and servers (third-party or internal).
Plan a custom MCP server that wraps an internal database or API.
Compare MCP's one-protocol model against point-to-point tool integrations.

How to use it

1Draw the host frame on the left — it contains the LLM and an MCP client.
2Draw the servers frame on the right — one box per MCP server (filesystem, Git, database).
3Connect the MCP client to the servers with the protocol link (JSON-RPC).
4Behind each server, add the real resource it bridges to (files, repo, database).
5Connect each server to its resource to show what it actually accesses.
6Label the client→server link as the MCP protocol to make the standard explicit.