# How an MCP client should tell your OAuth server who it is

DevFeed: [How an MCP client should tell your OAuth server who it is](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/how-an-mcp-client-should-tell-your-oauth-server-who-it-is-16027.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://workos.com/blog/mcp-client-identity-dcr-cimd-auth-md>)

Author: WorkOS

Published: 2026-08-12T00:00:00Z

Content type: comparison

Language: en

Sources: [WorkOS Blog](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/workos-blog.md>)

Topics: [Model Context Protocol](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/model-context-protocol.md>), [OAuth](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/oauth.md>), [Authorization](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/authorization.md>), [API](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/api.md>), [client](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/client.md>), [audit trail](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/audit-trail.md>), [Deployment](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/deployment.md>)

Tags: [api](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/api.md>), [audit-trail](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/audit-trail.md>), [authorization](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/authorization.md>), [mcp](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mcp.md>), [oauth](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/oauth.md>), [open](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/open.md>), [protocol](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/protocol.md>), [server](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/server.md>)

## AI overview

This article compares three ways an MCP client can identify itself to an OAuth authorization server: Dynamic Client Registration, Client ID Metadata Documents, and auth.md. It explains that DCR and CIMD establish software identity, while auth.md also addresses user delegation, and describes the MCP registration priority order and relevant deployment tradeoffs.

## Source excerpt

Dynamic Client Registration is deprecated, and Client ID Metadata Documents answer only half the question. Here is what each pattern actually proves, and how auth.md adds the user delegation they leave out.