Logging

specification/2026-07-28/server/utilities/logging First recorded · 130 lines, first recorded

# Logging ## User Interaction Model ## Capabilities ## Log Levels ## Requesting Log Messages ### Per-request log level ## Protocol Messages ### Log Message Notifications ## Error Handling ## Implementation Considerations ## Security

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# Logging

<div id="enable-section-numbers" />

<Warning>
  **Deprecated**: The Logging feature is deprecated as of protocol version
  `2026-07-28`
  ([SEP-2577](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/pull/2577)).
  Under the [feature lifecycle policy](/community/feature-lifecycle), it remains
  in the specification for at least twelve months after this revision's release
  before it becomes eligible for removal. New implementations **SHOULD NOT**
  adopt it; existing implementations **SHOULD** migrate to logging to `stderr`
  for stdio transports, or to [OpenTelemetry](https://opentelemetry.io/) for
  structured observability. See the [deprecated features
  registry](/specification/2026-07-28/deprecated).
</Warning>

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) provides a standardized way for servers to send
structured log messages to clients. Clients control logging verbosity per-request via
`_meta`, with servers sending notifications containing severity levels, optional logger
names, and arbitrary JSON-serializable data.

## User Interaction Model

Implementations are free to expose logging through any interface pattern that suits their
needs—the protocol itself does not mandate any specific user interaction model.

## Capabilities

Servers that emit log message notifications **MUST** declare the `logging` capability:

```json theme={null}
{
  "capabilities": {
    "logging": {}
  }
}
```

## Log Levels

The protocol follows the standard syslog severity levels specified in
[RFC 5424](https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc5424#section-6.2.1):

| Level     | Description                      | Example Use Case           |
| --------- | -------------------------------- | -------------------------- |
| debug     | Detailed debugging information   | Function entry/exit points |
| info      | General informational messages   | Operation progress updates |
| notice    | Normal but significant events    | Configuration changes      |
| warning   | Warning conditions               | Deprecated feature usage   |
| error     | Error conditions                 | Operation failures         |
| critical  | Critical conditions              | System component failures  |
| alert     | Action must be taken immediately | Data corruption detected   |
| emergency | System is unusable               | Complete system failure    |

## Requesting Log Messages

### Per-request log level

To receive log messages for a specific request, include
`io.modelcontextprotocol/logLevel` in the request's `_meta`. The server **MUST NOT**
emit `notifications/message` for a request that does not include this field.

When the field is present, the server **MAY** send `notifications/message`
notifications at or above the requested level on the response stream of that
request, before the final response. `notifications/message` is request-scoped:
the server **MUST NOT** deliver it on a
[`subscriptions/listen`](/specification/2026-07-28/basic/patterns/subscriptions)
stream or on any stream other than the one carrying the response to the request
that set the log level.

## Protocol Messages

### Log Message Notifications

Servers send log messages using `notifications/message` notifications:

```json theme={null}
{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "method": "notifications/message",
  "params": {
    "level": "error",
    "logger": "database",
    "data": {
      "error": "Connection failed",
      "details": {
        "host": "localhost",
        "port": 5432
      }
    }
  }
}
```

## Error Handling

If the `io.modelcontextprotocol/logLevel` value carried in a request's `_meta`
is not a recognized [log level](#log-levels), the server **SHOULD** reject that
request with a standard JSON-RPC error:

* Invalid log level: `-32602` (Invalid params)
* Internal errors: `-32603` (Internal error)

## Implementation Considerations

1. Servers **SHOULD**:
   * Rate limit log messages
   * Include relevant context in data field
   * Use consistent logger names
   * Remove sensitive information

2. Clients **MAY**:
   * Present log messages in the UI
   * Implement log filtering/search
   * Display severity visually
   * Persist log messages

## Security

1. Log messages **MUST NOT** contain:
   * Credentials or secrets
   * Personal identifying information
   * Internal system details that could aid attacks

2. Implementations **SHOULD**:
   * Rate limit messages
   * Validate all data fields
   * Control log access
   * Monitor for sensitive content