MCP Glossary

Clear definitions for MCP, AI agents, tool calling, and deployment models.

Model Context Protocol (MCP)

An open standard for connecting AI assistants to external data sources and tools.

An AI system that plans steps and uses tools to complete tasks autonomously.

When an AI model invokes a structured external function during a conversation.

Vendor-specific term for structured tool invocation by an LLM.

Read-only contextual data an MCP server exposes to AI clients.

A reusable prompt template published by an MCP server.

Permissions granted when connecting a third-party platform to MCP360.

MCP access limited to queries and reports with no write operations.

MCP access that allows agents to create, update, or delete records.

A remotely managed MCP server operated by a SaaS provider.

An MCP server you deploy and operate in your own infrastructure.