Inception MCP Server

ADR-017: Domain Development Lifecycle

MCP Server for AI-driven Business Case creation through conversational interface.

Overview

This MCP server provides tools for creating, refining, and finalizing Business Cases through a structured question-answer workflow. It integrates with the governance database and optionally uses LLM for intelligent extraction.

Tools

Installation

cd packages/inception-mcp
pip install -e .

Configuration

Environment variables:

# Database connection
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:pass@localhost:5432/platform

# LLM Gateway (optional)
LLM_GATEWAY_URL=http://localhost:8080/v1
LLM_API_KEY=sk-...
LLM_MODEL=claude-3-sonnet

Usage

Run as MCP Server

inception-mcp

Configure in Windsurf/Claude Desktop

Add to mcp_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "inception": {
      "command": "inception-mcp",
      "env": {
        "DATABASE_URL": "postgresql://..."
      }
    }
  }
}

Workflow

1. Start: Call start_business_case with initial description
2. Refine: Answer questions via answer_question (7 questions)
3. Finalize: Call finalize_business_case to complete
4. Review: Submit via submit_for_review when ready

Example Session

User: Create BC for "Wir brauchen eine bessere Suchfunktion"

→ start_business_case(initial_description="Wir brauchen...")
← session_id, bc_code="BC-001", question="Wer ist die Zielgruppe?"

User: Alle registrierten Benutzer

→ answer_question(session_id, answer="Alle registrierten Benutzer")
← question="Welche konkreten Vorteile werden erwartet?"

... (5 more questions) ...

→ finalize_business_case(session_id, derive_use_cases=true)
← bc_code="BC-001", derived_use_cases=[...], next_steps=[...]

Questions

The inception workflow asks these questions in order:

1. target_audience: Who benefits?
2. expected_benefits: What benefits are expected?
3. scope: What's included?
4. out_of_scope: What's excluded?
5. success_criteria: How to measure success?
6. risks: What risks exist?
7. requires_adr: Is an ADR needed?

Database Schema

Uses tables from apps.governance:

• platform.dom_business_case
• platform.dom_use_case
• platform.dom_conversation
• platform.dom_conversation_turn
• platform.dom_status_history
• platform.lkp_domain / platform.lkp_choice

Development

# Install dev dependencies
pip install -e ".[dev]"

# Run tests
pytest

Related

• ADR-015: Platform Governance System
• ADR-017: Domain Development Lifecycle
• governance app: Django models and admin