The Model Context Protocol just forgot how to start a conversation. Revision 2026-07-28 deleted the initialize handshake. There is no session, no ping, nothing to resume. Every request now carries its own protocol version and capabilities in _meta — and if the server needs something, it asks inside the reply.

In this instructor-led workshop you will build a Java MCP server from scratch, over raw STDIO, with no SDK and no framework. Chapter by chapter you will implement the transport, JSON-RPC, server/discover, tools, resources, and prompts — then the pieces that only make sense once memory is gone: Multi Round-Trip Requests (ask by answering), MCP Apps (a tool that returns a UI), and Tasks (call now, fetch later).

You will leave with a working server you can point at Cursor, Claude Code, or Windsurf, and a wire-level understanding of the protocol that SDKs hide.

Audience: Java developers comfortable with JSON who want to see how agents actually talk to tools.
Prerequisites: JDK 21+, Gradle, and a laptop that can run MCP Inspector.