MCP Deployment # Overview A map of the MCP server lifecycle and the six-tab edit flow you will return to dozens of times. Every other page in this group covers one tab in depth — start here when you are not sure which one you need. ## The MCP server lifecycle at a glance Every server you run goes through the same five steps: create the record, configure it, load it with content, cut an immutable version, and activate that version on the public endpoint. The endpoint URL is fixed from the moment the server is created — everything after that is iteration on what gets served from it. ``` create record -> configure (Details) -> load content -> cut version -> activate -> served ``` ## Anatomy of an MCP server record A server has an identity, a permanent endpoint, and three attached collections: - Identity: name, slug, description, visibility (public or private). - Endpoint: a permanent URL keyed on an immutable internal identifier — the slug is cosmetic and can change without breaking clients. - Tools (collection): a many-to-many pivot of File Search, Code Execute, and API URL tools enabled on this server. - Content (collection): typed records, file uploads, and Git-imported files keyed by unique slug. - Versions (collection): an ordered history of immutable snapshots, with one marked active and one marked default. ## The six-tab edit flow Editing a server is split across six URL-addressable tabs. Each one answers a single question and links to a single page in this group: Tab Answers the question Read more Details Name, slug, description, visibility, which tools are enabled? [Server Configuration](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/configuration) Contents What documents does this server expose? [Content & Resources](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/content) Categories How is content labelled for File Search? [Content & Resources](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/content) Groups Which records belong logically together? [Content & Resources](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/content) Relations Which records reference which? [Content & Resources](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/content) Versions Which snapshot is currently served? Which is the fallback? [Versioning & Releases](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/versioning) ## How a request reaches a version Every inbound request goes through the same waterfall: 1. If an active version is set, serve it. 2. Otherwise, fall back to the default version. 3. If neither is set, the endpoint returns a 503 — the server has no servable snapshot. Switching the active version is immediate. There is no rebuild and no redeploy — clients see the new snapshot on the next request. ## What is snapshotted, what is live - Snapshotted into the version: content records, categories (denormalised by name), groups and group memberships, relations (by slug). - Read live on every request: which tools are attached to the server (the pivot), each tool's configuration, and the server's name and visibility setting. Toggling a tool on or off — or editing its configuration — therefore takes effect immediately on every server it is attached to. Editing content does not: you must cut a new version and activate it. ## What does not live on the server record - Billing and plan limits — those live on the organisation. - Member access — controlled by your organisation's roles, not per-server settings. - Per-request logs — surfaced under Observability rather than the server edit form. ## Where to go next I want to… Go to rename the server, change visibility, or attach a tool [Server Configuration](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/configuration) load documents, organise them, or relate them [Content & Resources](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/content) cut a new release, activate a snapshot, or roll back [Versioning & Releases](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/versioning) decide between public and private, or switch an existing server [Public vs Private Servers](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/access) understand quotas, 429 responses, or plan capacity [Rate Limits](https://vectoralix.com/docs/deployment/rate-limits) **Repository-backed content?:** If your content lives in a Git repository instead of being typed or uploaded by hand, the Source Integrations group covers GitHub, Bitbucket, and GitLab end-to-end.