modelcontextprotocol / modelcontextprotocol/python-sdk

Using transport="stdio" closes real stdio, causing ValueError after server exits

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bug good first issue P3
Dominant language
Python
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Description

Initial Checks
Description

Hi! I ran into an issue where running the server with transport="stdio" causes subsequent stdio operations to fail after the server exits.

Minimal reproduction
from mcp.server.fastmcp import FastMCP

mcp = FastMCP("Demo")
mcp.run(transport="stdio")
print("?")

When using Ctrl+D to exit the server, the final print raises:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "...", line 5, in <module>
    print("?")
ValueError: I/O operation on closed file.

I’m not sure if this is intended behavior though.

Likely cause

In stdio.py, stdio is wrapped like this:
https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/python-sdk/blob/5301298225968ce0fa8ae62870f950709da14dc6/src/mcp/server/stdio.py#L44-L47

When these wrappers are closed, they also close the sys.stdin.buffer / sys.stdout.buffer.

Proposed fix
    if not stdin:
        stdin_fd = os.dup(sys.stdin.fileno())
        stdin_bin = os.fdopen(stdin_fd, "rb", closefd=True)
        stdin = anyio.wrap_file(TextIOWrapper(stdin_bin, encoding="utf-8"))
    if not stdout:
        stdout_fd = os.dup(sys.stdout.fileno())
        stdout_bin = os.fdopen(stdout_fd, "wb", closefd=True)
        stdout = anyio.wrap_file(TextIOWrapper(stdout_bin, encoding="utf-8"))
Python & MCP Python SDK
Python 3.10.15
mcp==1.25.0

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start in src/mcp/server/stdio.py around the wrapper setup at the linked lines, then run the minimal FastMCP reproduction from the issue. Confirm that closing the stdio wrappers no longer closes the process's real standard streams, and verify that the final print succeeds after the server exits.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
python
Domain
backend
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
2/5
Estimated time
1-3 hours
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Clearly specified
Newbie friendliness
68/100

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