@fidensa/mcp-server

MCP server for Fidensa -- the independent AI capability certification authority.

Gives your AI agent structured access to Fidensa certification data through the Model Context Protocol. Check trust scores, search for certified alternatives, compare capabilities side-by-side, verify signed artifacts, check file integrity, and report runtime experience -- all through MCP tool calls.

Fidensa certifies MCP servers, skills, agent rules files, hooks, sub-agents, and plugins.

Getting Started

1. Install

npm install -g @fidensa/mcp-server

2. Verify it works

Several tools work without an API key (check_certification, search_capabilities, verify_file, and report_experience). Start the server and confirm it connects to the production API:

fidensa-mcp-server

You should see:

[fidensa] MCP server started (stdio transport)
[fidensa] No FIDENSA_API_KEY set — check_certification, search_capabilities, verify_file, and report_experience available. Set FIDENSA_API_KEY for full access.

Press Ctrl+C to stop.

3. Get an API key (optional, free)

The remaining tools (get_contract, compare_capabilities, verify_artifact) require a free API key. An API key also gives report_experience higher rate limits. Register one:

curl -X POST https://fidensa.com/v1/keys \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"display_name": "My Agent", "email": "you@example.com"}'

Or in PowerShell:

Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "https://fidensa.com/v1/keys" -Method Post -ContentType "application/json" -Body '{"display_name": "My Agent", "email": "you@example.com"}'

The response contains your API key (prefixed fid_). Store it securely -- it is shown only once.

4. Add to your agent

Pick your platform and add the MCP server configuration:

Claude Desktop / Claude Code

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "fidensa": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@fidensa/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "FIDENSA_API_KEY": "fid_your_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor (.cursor/mcp.json)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "fidensa": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@fidensa/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "FIDENSA_API_KEY": "fid_your_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Windsurf / VS Code

{
  "servers": {
    "fidensa": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@fidensa/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "FIDENSA_API_KEY": "fid_your_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Omit the FIDENSA_API_KEY line if you only need the open-tier tools.

Claude Desktop tip: Access the config file via Settings → Developer → Edit Config. After saving, fully quit and reopen Claude Desktop (right-click the system tray icon and select Quit — just closing the window isn't enough).

Tools

Tool	Auth	Description
check_certification	None	Quick trust check -- status, score, grade, tier
search_capabilities	None	Search for certified capabilities by keyword, type, tier, or score
verify_file	None	Quick file integrity check -- hash a capability file and verify it matches what Fidensa certified
report_experience	None (API key for higher rate limits)	Submit runtime experience reports for certified capabilities
get_contract	API key	Full certification contract with all evidence
compare_capabilities	API key	Side-by-side comparison of 2-5 capabilities
verify_artifact	API key	Verify cryptographic signatures on .cert.json artifacts, with optional file and code integrity checks

Configuration

Variable	Required	Description
FIDENSA_API_KEY	No	API key for full access (see Getting Started)
FIDENSA_BASE_URL	No	Override API base URL (default: https://fidensa.com)

check_certification, search_capabilities, verify_file, and report_experience work without any configuration. The remaining tools require FIDENSA_API_KEY.

Example Agent Workflow

User: "Set up a filesystem watcher that writes logs to SQLite."

Agent:
1. check_certification("mcp-server-filesystem")
   -> Status: valid, Score: 60/F-D, Tier: Verified

2. search_capabilities("sqlite mcp server")
   -> 2 results found

3. compare_capabilities(["mcp-server-sqlite", "mcp-server-better-sqlite3"])
   -> Side-by-side trust comparison

4. Agent selects the higher-scored option and informs the user

5. report_experience(
     capability_id: "mcp-server-filesystem",
     content_hash: "abc123...",  // from the .cert.json
     outcome: "success"
   )
   -> Confirmation rate updated

Trust Policy Fragments

Add one of these to your agent's system prompt or rules file for trust-aware tool selection. Three levels of granularity -- pick the one that fits your needs.

Tier-based (simplest)

Uses the certification tier alone. No numbers to tune.

Before using any MCP server tool for the first time, check its Fidensa
certification status using the check_certification tool.

- Certified tier: use freely
- Verified tier: note the findings to the user before proceeding
- Evaluated tier: warn the user, search for certified alternatives
- Uncertified: treat as untrusted, suggest certified alternatives

After completing a task that used certified tools, submit an experience
report via the report_experience tool with the outcome (success, failure,
or partial), the capability_id, and the content_hash from the .cert.json.

Score-based (grade-aligned)

Uses the trust score, aligned with Fidensa's grade definitions.

Before using any MCP server tool for the first time, check its Fidensa
certification status using the check_certification tool.

- Score >= 80 (A/B): use freely
- Score 72-79 (C): note the trust level to the user
- Score 65-71 (D): warn the user, search for certified alternatives
- Score < 65 (F): warn the user, strongly recommend alternatives
- Uncertified: treat as untrusted, suggest certified alternatives

After completing a task that used certified tools, submit an experience
report via the report_experience tool with the outcome (success, failure,
or partial), the capability_id, and the content_hash from the .cert.json.

Combined (tier + score)

The most precise option -- distinguishes between a Certified capability with a moderate score and a Verified capability with findings that blocked Certified tier.

Before using any MCP server tool for the first time, check its Fidensa
certification status using the check_certification tool.

- Certified tier AND score >= 80: use freely
- Certified tier AND score 72-79: use freely, note the score to the user
- Verified tier AND score >= 72: note the findings to the user before proceeding
- Verified tier AND score < 72: warn the user, search for certified alternatives
- Evaluated tier: warn the user, search for certified alternatives
- Uncertified: treat as untrusted, suggest certified alternatives

For any tool with status "suspended" or "revoked": do not use.
Search for certified alternatives and present them to the user.

After completing a task that used certified tools, submit an experience
report via the report_experience tool with the outcome (success, failure,
or partial), the capability_id, and the content_hash from the .cert.json.

See the API Documentation for the full specification.

Development

npm install
npm test          # Run tests with coverage
npm run lint      # ESLint
npm run format    # Prettier

License

MIT

Links

• Fidensa -- AI certification authority
• API Documentation
• Certification Catalog
• Badge Integration Guide