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graft — Claude Code skill: one server for HTTP API and MCP

Guides an agent through building and refining Graft servers, where a tool is declared once and served both as a REST endpoint and an MCP tool.

Install into Claude Code · Skills CLI (Vercel) All methods and platforms ↓
npx skills add schrepa/graft --skill graft -a claude-code
Open on GitHub

What graft does

The skill activates on Graft work: authoring a server, wrapping someone else's API in proxy mode, or bringing docs and examples in line with what the graft package does now. Three reference files sit behind it — app authoring, proxy and OpenAPI, validation and release hygiene — and the agent loads only the one it needs.

Graft's premise is a single declaration: a name, a schema, a handler. The same handler, auth middleware and validation then run over HTTP and over MCP alike. Discovery is the server's job, covering /.well-known/agent.json, /.well-known/mcp.json, /openapi.json, /docs, /llms.txt, /llms-full.txt and /health. MCP traffic goes to POST /mcp.

Every example in the skill shows both access patterns — a tools/call invocation next to the matching HTTP request. Proxy mode works from a graft.proxy.yaml listing operations on a target API, started with graft serve --config graft.proxy.yaml. The direct route is graft serve --openapi ./openapi.yaml --target https://api.example.com. With no repo or shell access the agent asks for the smallest set of files instead of guessing, and states its assumptions.

What it helps with

  • declare a tool once and expose it over HTTP and MCP
  • wrap an existing REST API as MCP tools without rewriting it
  • share auth and validation across both protocols
  • generate an OpenAPI spec and docs pages automatically
  • sync README and examples with current graft behavior

Example prompts for the agent

  • Define a list_items tool with app.tool and show both the MCP and HTTP ways to call it
  • Wrap this API in Graft proxy mode and start it with graft serve --config graft.proxy.yaml
  • Check that the README examples match the current exports and CLI

How to install graft

1Skills CLI (Vercel)

npx skills add schrepa/graft --skill graft -a claude-code

2Manually: put the files in place

~/.claude/skills/graft/SKILL.md

Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/graft/

Step by step, with commands for each platform: How to install skills in Claude Code: five ways

Questions about graft

How do I install graft in Claude Code?

Run npx skills add schrepa/graft --skill graft -a claude-code. The skill lands in ~/.claude/skills/graft/SKILL.md.

What does the graft skill do?

It helps an agent build and refine Graft servers: defining tools and handlers, configuring auth middleware, setting up HTTP and stdio transports, generating OpenAPI docs, and wrapping existing APIs in proxy mode.

Which endpoints does Graft serve on its own?

/.well-known/agent.json, /.well-known/mcp.json, /openapi.json, /docs, /llms.txt, /llms-full.txt and /health. MCP requests go to POST /mcp.

Source text

SKILL.md · Apache-2.0
---
name: graft
description: >-
  Use when building, refactoring, or documenting Graft apps and proxies,
  including when asked to create a tool server, API server, dual-protocol
  server, or MCP-HTTP bridge. Graft's core thesis: define tools once and serve
  them as both HTTP REST endpoints and MCP tools from the same server, with
  discovery, docs, and OpenAPI generated automatically. Covers concrete actions
  such as defining tools and handlers, configuring authentication middleware,
  setting up HTTP and stdio transports, generating OpenAPI documentation,
  wrapping existing APIs via proxy mode, and wiring up the full CLI workflow.
---

# Graft

Use this skill when the task is about creating or refining a Graft server, wrapping an existing API with Graft proxy mode, or updating contributor-facing docs and examples so they match the current `graft` package behavior.

## Product thesis

Graft's core value has three parts:

1. **Define once** — tools with a name, schema, and handler.
2. **Serve as HTTP and MCP** — from the same server, through a single shared pipeline (same auth, validation, middleware).
3. **Discovery is automatic** — agents find tools via `agent.json`, `mcp.json`, `llms.txt`. Humans get interactive docs (`/docs`) and an OpenAPI spec (`/openapi.json`). Zero configuration.

When explaining Graft, lead with all three parts. When showing examples, demonstrate both access patterns (MCP and HTTP) and mention what the server auto-serves. This applies to both source-based apps and proxy mode.

## Workflow

1. Identify the mode before proposing changes:
- App authoring: `createApp(...)`, tools, resources, prompts, HTTP routes, Node or fetch integration.
- Proxy/OpenAPI: `graft serve --openapi ...` or `graft.proxy.yaml`.
- Docs/release hygiene: README, install instructions, skills, examples, contributor checks.

2. Ground in the current repo before using memory:
- If tool access is available, inspect the current source, public exports, CLI commands, scaffold templates, and tests.
- If tool access is not available, ask for the smallest set of files or examples needed to avoid guessing.

3. Follow the current public contract in examples and reviews:
- Inline tool examples: prefer `app.tool('name', config)`.
- Modular tool examples: prefer `defineTool(...)` plus `app.tool(definedTool)`.
- Auth shapes: `true`, `['role']`, or `{ roles: [...] }`.
- MCP Streamable HTTP endpoint: `POST /mcp`.
- Auto-served framework endpoints: `/.well-known/agent.json`, `/.well-known/mcp.json`, `/openapi.json`, `/docs`, `/llms.txt`, `/llms-full.txt`, `/health`.
- Full CLI: `serve`, `dev`, `check`, `test`, `studio`, `install`, `add-tool`.
- When showing tool examples, demonstrate both the MCP `tools/call` invocation and the equivalent HTTP request (e.g. `GET /list-items?q=hello` or `POST /create-entry`).

4. Use tools where they materially improve correctness, but stay portable:
- With repo or shell access, inspect files and run validation commands after making changes.
- Without repo or shell access, state assumptions explicitly and keep recommendations tied to visible source or user-provided snippets.

5. Load only the reference you need:
- App authoring: [references/app-authoring.md](references/app-authoring.md)
- Proxy/OpenAPI wrapping: [references/proxy-openapi.md](references/proxy-openapi.md)
- Validation, docs, and release hygiene: [references/validation-release.md](references/validation-release.md)

## Quick examples

### Inline tool — both access patterns

```ts
import { createApp } from '@schrepa/graft'
import { z } from 'zod'

const app = createApp()

app.tool('list_items', {
  description: 'List items matching a query.',
  params: z.object({ q: z.string() }),
  auth: true,
  handler: async ({ q }) => ({
    items: ['hello', 'world'].filter((item) => item.includes(q)),
  }),
})

export default app
```

**MCP (`tools/call`):**
```json
{ "method": "tools/call", "params": { "name": "list_items", "arguments": { "q": "hello" } } }
```

**HTTP equivalent:**
```
GET /list-items?q=hello
Authorization: Bearer <token>
```

The same handler, auth middleware, and validation run for both.

### Proxy mode — `graft.proxy.yaml`

```yaml
target: https://petstore3.swagger.io/api/v3
tools:
  - method: GET
    path: /pet/findByStatus
    name: find_pets_by_status
    description: Find pets by status.
    parameters:
      type: object
      properties:
        status:
          type: string
  - method: POST
    path: /pet
    name: create_pet
    description: Create a pet.
    parameters:
      type: object
      properties:
        name:
          type: string
      required: [name]
```

Start the proxy server:
```
graft serve --config graft.proxy.yaml
```

Graft exposes each configured operation as both an HTTP endpoint and an MCP tool, and auto-generates `/openapi.json`, `/docs`, and discovery files.

For the direct OpenAPI path, use:
```
graft serve --openapi ./openapi.yaml --target https://api.example.com
```

## Guardrails

- Do not document unsupported behavior just because an older example mentioned it.
- Keep examples executable and small; prefer one correct pattern over many variants.
- Prefer current source and tests over stale notes, blog posts, or memory.
- Do not mention registry or publishing artifacts unless they actually exist in the repo being edited.
- When a docs claim is likely to drift, add or update an automated check.

© schrepa · Apache-2.0 · schrepa/graft

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