MCP Transport
The communication layer that carries MCP messages between client and server, typically local stdio or a network-based streamable HTTP transport.
Analogy
Like choosing between a direct cable or a network connection to send the same data; the message is the same, only the pipe differs.
Why it matters
Choosing the right transport determines whether your MCP server runs locally on your machine or is reachable as a remote hosted service.
In practice
A local server using stdio, versus a hosted server reachable over streamable HTTP.