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137 metadata timestamps (#776)
* Metadata / creation dates Signed-off-by: Mihai Criveti <[email protected]> * Metadata / creation dates Signed-off-by: Mihai Criveti <[email protected]> * Metadata / creation dates Signed-off-by: Mihai Criveti <[email protected]> * Security headers CSP Signed-off-by: Mihai Criveti <[email protected]> * Display metadata for resources Signed-off-by: Madhav Kandukuri <[email protected]> * eslint fix Signed-off-by: Madhav Kandukuri <[email protected]> --------- Signed-off-by: Mihai Criveti <[email protected]> Co-authored-by: Madhav Kandukuri <[email protected]>
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‎docs/docs/manage/.pages‎

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- index.md
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- backup.md
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- bulk-import.md
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- metadata-tracking.md
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- export-import.md
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- export-import-tutorial.md
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- export-import-reference.md

‎docs/docs/manage/index.md‎

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| [Export/Import Tutorial](export-import-tutorial.md) | Step-by-step tutorial for getting started with export/import |
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| [Export/Import Reference](export-import-reference.md) | Quick reference guide for export/import commands and APIs |
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| [Bulk Import](bulk-import.md) | Import multiple tools at once for migrations and team onboarding |
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| [Metadata Tracking](metadata-tracking.md) | 📊 **NEW** - Comprehensive audit trails and entity metadata tracking |
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| [Well-Known URIs](well-known-uris.md) | Configure robots.txt, security.txt, and custom well-known files |
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| [Logging](logging.md) | Configure structured logging, log destinations, and log rotation |
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‎docs/docs/manage/metadata-tracking.md‎

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# 📊 Metadata Tracking & Audit Trails
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MCP Gateway provides comprehensive metadata tracking for all entities (Tools, Resources, Prompts, Servers, Gateways) to enable enterprise-grade audit trails, compliance monitoring, and operational troubleshooting.
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---
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## 🎯 **Overview**
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Every entity in MCP Gateway now includes detailed metadata about:
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- **Who** created or modified the entity
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- **When** the operation occurred
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- **From where** (IP address, user agent)
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- **How** it was created (UI, API, bulk import, federation)
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- **Source tracking** for federated entities and bulk operations
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---
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## 📊 **Metadata Fields**
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All entities include the following metadata fields:
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| Category | Field | Description | Example Values |
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|----------|-------|-------------|----------------|
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| **Creation** | `created_by` | Username who created entity | `"admin"`, `"alice"`, `"anonymous"` |
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| | `created_at` | Creation timestamp | `"2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"` |
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| | `created_from_ip` | IP address of creator | `"192.168.1.100"`, `"10.0.0.1"` |
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| | `created_via` | Creation method | `"ui"`, `"api"`, `"import"`, `"federation"` |
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| | `created_user_agent` | Browser/client info | `"Mozilla/5.0"`, `"curl/7.68.0"` |
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| **Modification** | `modified_by` | Last modifier username | `"bob"`, `"system"`, `"anonymous"` |
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| | `modified_at` | Last modification timestamp | `"2024-01-16T14:22:00Z"` |
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| | `modified_from_ip` | IP of last modifier | `"172.16.0.1"` |
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| | `modified_via` | Modification method | `"ui"`, `"api"` |
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| | `modified_user_agent` | Client of last change | `"HTTPie/2.4.0"` |
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| **Source** | `import_batch_id` | Bulk import UUID | `"550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000"` |
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| | `federation_source` | Source gateway name | `"gateway-prod-east"` |
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| | `version` | Change tracking version | `1`, `2`, `3`... |
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---
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## 🖥️ **Viewing Metadata**
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### **Admin UI**
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Metadata is displayed in the detail view modals for all entity types:
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1. **Navigate** to any entity list (Tools, Resources, Prompts, Servers, Gateways)
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2. **Click "View"** on any entity
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3. **Scroll down** to the "Metadata" section
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**Example metadata display:**
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```
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┌─ Metadata ──────────────────────────────────────┐
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│ Created By: admin │
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│ Created At: 1/15/2024, 10:30:00 AM │
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│ Created From: 192.168.1.100 │
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│ Created Via: ui │
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│ Last Modified By: alice │
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│ Last Modified At: 1/16/2024, 2:22:00 PM │
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│ Version: 3 │
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│ Import Batch: N/A │
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└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
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```
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### **API Responses**
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All entity read endpoints include metadata fields in JSON responses:
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```bash
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# Get tool with metadata
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curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
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http://localhost:4444/tools/abc123
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{
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"id": "abc123",
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"name": "example_tool",
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"description": "Example tool",
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"createdBy": "admin",
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"createdAt": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
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"createdFromIp": "192.168.1.100",
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"createdVia": "ui",
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"createdUserAgent": "Mozilla/5.0...",
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"modifiedBy": "alice",
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"modifiedAt": "2024-01-16T14:22:00Z",
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"version": 3,
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"importBatchId": null,
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"federationSource": null,
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...
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}
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```
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---
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## 🔍 **Metadata by Source Type**
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### **Manual Creation (UI/API)**
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- `created_via`: `"ui"` or `"api"`
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- `created_by`: Authenticated username
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- `created_from_ip`: Client IP address
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- `federation_source`: `null`
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- `import_batch_id`: `null`
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### **Bulk Import Operations**
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- `created_via`: `"import"`
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- `import_batch_id`: UUID linking related imports
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- `created_by`: User who initiated import
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- `federation_source`: `null`
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### **Federation (MCP Server Discovery)**
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- `created_via`: `"federation"`
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- `federation_source`: Source gateway name
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- `created_by`: User who registered the gateway
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- `import_batch_id`: `null`
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### **Legacy Entities (Pre-Metadata)**
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- All metadata fields: `null`
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- UI displays: `"Legacy Entity"`, `"Pre-metadata"`
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- `version`: `1` (automatically assigned)
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---
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## 🛡️ **Authentication Compatibility**
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Metadata tracking works seamlessly across all authentication modes:
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### **With Authentication (`AUTH_REQUIRED=true`)**
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```bash
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# Example: User "admin" creates a tool
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{
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"createdBy": "admin",
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"createdVia": "api",
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"createdFromIp": "192.168.1.100"
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}
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```
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### **Without Authentication (`AUTH_REQUIRED=false`)**
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```bash
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# Example: Anonymous creation
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{
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"createdBy": "anonymous",
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"createdVia": "api",
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"createdFromIp": "192.168.1.100"
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}
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```
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### **JWT vs Basic Authentication**
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- **JWT Authentication**: Extracts username from token payload (`username` or `sub` field)
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- **Basic Authentication**: Uses provided username directly
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- **Both formats handled gracefully** by the `extract_username()` utility
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---
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## 🔄 **Version Tracking**
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Each entity maintains a version number that increments on modifications:
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```bash
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# Initial creation
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POST /tools -> version: 1
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# First update
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PUT /tools/123 -> version: 2
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# Second update
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PUT /tools/123 -> version: 3
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```
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Version tracking helps identify:
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- **Configuration drift** between environments
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- **Change frequency** for troubleshooting
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- **Rollback points** for recovery scenarios
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---
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## 📈 **Use Cases**
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### **Security Auditing**
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- Track who created/modified sensitive configurations
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- Identify unauthorized changes by IP address
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- Monitor bulk import operations for compliance
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### **Operational Troubleshooting**
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- Trace entity origins during incident response
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- Identify batch operations that may have caused issues
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- Understand federation dependencies between gateways
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### **Compliance Reporting**
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- Generate audit reports for regulatory requirements
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- Track change management processes
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- Demonstrate access controls and change attribution
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### **Development & Testing**
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- Identify test vs production entities
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- Track deployment-specific configurations
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- Monitor cross-environment migrations
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---
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## 🔧 **Configuration**
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### **No Additional Setup Required**
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Metadata tracking is **automatically enabled** for all new installations and upgrades:
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- **Database migration** runs automatically on startup
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- **Existing entities** show graceful fallbacks for missing metadata
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- **No environment variables** needed - uses existing `AUTH_REQUIRED` setting
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### **Proxy Support**
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Metadata capture automatically handles reverse proxy scenarios:
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```bash
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# Respects X-Forwarded-For headers
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X-Forwarded-For: 203.0.113.1, 192.168.1.1, 127.0.0.1
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# Records: created_from_ip = "203.0.113.1" (original client)
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```
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### **Privacy Considerations**
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The system captures IP addresses and user agents for audit purposes:
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- **IP addresses**: Consider GDPR/privacy implications for EU deployments
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- **User agents**: May contain personally identifiable information
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- **Data retention**: Define policies for metadata archival
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- **Access control**: Metadata follows same permissions as parent entity
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---
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## 🚀 **Migration Guide**
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### **Upgrading Existing Deployments**
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1. **Automatic Migration**
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```bash
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# Migration runs automatically on startup
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# Or run manually:
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alembic upgrade head
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```
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2. **Verify Migration**
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- Check admin UI - all entities show metadata sections
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- API responses include new metadata fields
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- Legacy entities display gracefully
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3. **No Downtime Required**
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- All metadata columns are nullable
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- Existing functionality unchanged
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- Gradual adoption of metadata features
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### **Metadata Backfill (Optional)**
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For enhanced audit trails, optionally backfill known metadata:
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```sql
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-- Backfill system-created entities
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UPDATE tools SET
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created_by = 'system',
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created_via = 'migration',
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version = 1
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WHERE created_by IS NULL;
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-- Similar for other entity tables
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UPDATE gateways SET created_by = 'system', created_via = 'migration', version = 1 WHERE created_by IS NULL;
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UPDATE servers SET created_by = 'system', created_via = 'migration', version = 1 WHERE created_by IS NULL;
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UPDATE prompts SET created_by = 'system', created_via = 'migration', version = 1 WHERE created_by IS NULL;
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UPDATE resources SET created_by = 'system', created_via = 'migration', version = 1 WHERE created_by IS NULL;
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```
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---
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## 🔮 **Future Enhancements**
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### **Enhanced Audit Features**
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- **Change history tracking** - Before/after state comparison
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- **Metadata-based filtering** - Search entities by creator, date, source
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- **Audit log export** - Generate compliance reports
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- **Custom metadata fields** - User-defined entity attributes
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### **Cross-Gateway Features**
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- **Metadata synchronization** across federated gateways
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- **Trust scoring** based on metadata quality
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- **Provenance tracking** for complex federation scenarios
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### **Analytics Integration**
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- **Usage pattern analysis** from metadata
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- **Creator activity dashboards**
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- **Import/export trend monitoring**
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---
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## 📋 **API Examples**
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### **Creating Entities with Metadata**
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Metadata is captured automatically - no additional parameters needed:
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```bash
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# Create tool - metadata captured automatically
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curl -X POST http://localhost:4444/tools \
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-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
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-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
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-d '{
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"name": "example_tool",
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"url": "http://example.com/api",
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"integration_type": "REST",
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"request_type": "GET"
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}'
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# Response includes metadata
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{
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"id": "abc123",
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"name": "example_tool",
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"createdBy": "admin",
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"createdAt": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
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"createdVia": "api",
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"version": 1,
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...
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}
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```
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### **Filtering by Metadata (Future)**
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# Future enhancement - filter by creator
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GET /tools?created_by=admin
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# Filter by creation method
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GET /tools?created_via=federation
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# Filter by date range
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GET /tools?created_after=2024-01-01&created_before=2024-01-31
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```
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---
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## ❓ **FAQ**
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### **Q: Will this affect existing deployments?**
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A: No breaking changes. Existing entities show graceful fallbacks, all APIs work unchanged.
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### **Q: What happens if authentication is disabled?**
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A: Metadata still works - `created_by` will be `"anonymous"` instead of a username.
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### **Q: How much storage does metadata require?**
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A: Minimal - approximately 13 additional nullable text columns per entity.
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### **Q: Can I disable metadata tracking?**
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A: Not currently - metadata is core to the audit system. All fields are optional and backwards compatible.
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### **Q: How do I export metadata for compliance?**
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A: Use the standard export functionality - metadata is included in all entity exports.
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This comprehensive metadata system provides enterprise-grade audit capabilities while maintaining full backwards compatibility and operational simplicity.

‎docs/docs/overview/features.md‎

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* **FastAPI** + Jinja2 + HTMX + Alpine.js
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* Tailwind CSS for styling
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??? info "📊 Audit & Metadata Tracking"
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* **Comprehensive metadata** for all entities (Tools, Resources, Prompts, Servers, Gateways)
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* **Creation tracking** - who, when, from where, how
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* **Modification history** - change attribution and versioning
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* **Federation source** tracking for MCP server entities
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* **Bulk import** batch identification
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* **Auth-agnostic** - works with/without authentication
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* **Backwards compatible** - legacy entities show graceful fallbacks
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---
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## 🗄 Persistence, Caching & Observability

‎docs/docs/overview/index.md‎

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- Federation of multiple MCP servers into one composable catalog
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- Protocol enforcement, health monitoring, and registry centralization
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- A visual Admin UI to manage everything in real time
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- **Comprehensive audit trails** with metadata tracking for all entities
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- **Comprehensive doctest coverage** ensuring all code examples are tested and verified
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Whether you're integrating REST APIs, local functions, or full LLM agents, MCP Gateway standardizes access and transport - over HTTP, WebSockets, SSE, StreamableHttp or stdio.

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