FilesystemMCP

A local, customizable MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for filesystem access — forked from the official Anthropic implementation and extended with additional functionality.

Credits

This project is based on the official @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem package by Anthropic, licensed under the terms found in the original repository. The original codebase provides a secure, well-structured foundation for filesystem access via MCP.

Related MCP server: file-system-mcp-server

Why this fork?

The goal of this fork is to extend the original server with additional tools and customizations for personal/local use, while keeping the core security model (allowed directories, path validation) intact.

Setup

1. Install dependencies

cd FilesystemMCP
npm install

2. Build

npm run build

3. Configure Claude

In your claude_desktop_config.json, point the filesystem server to your local build:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "filesystem": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/path/to/FilesystemMCP/dist/index.js",
        "/your/allowed/directory"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude after saving.

Tools

File Management

• read_text_file / read_file — Read file contents as text (supports head/tail)

• read_media_file — Read image or audio files as base64

• read_multiple_files — Read multiple files in one call

• write_file — Create a new file. Never overwrites: if path already exists, the content is automatically saved instead to an incremented filename (name (1).ext, name (2).ext, ...) and the response is flagged as an error pointing you at copy_lines_between_files/move_lines_between_files/append_to_file to merge it in properly.

• copy_file — Copy a file server-side

• delete_file — Permanently delete a file

• create_directory — Create directories recursively

• list_directory — List directory contents

• list_directory_with_sizes — List with file sizes and sorting

• directory_tree — Recursive JSON tree view

• move_file — Move or rename files

• search_files — Glob-based recursive file search

• get_file_info — File metadata (size, timestamps, permissions)

• file_stats — Quick size/line-count/preview without a full read

• list_allowed_directories — Show configured allowed paths

Targeted Editing (prefer these over write_file for existing files)

• edit_file — Line-range replacements (multiple edits per call), returns a git-style diff, supports dryRun

• replace_lines — Replace a known line range directly (more token-efficient than edit_file once you have line numbers)

• insert_lines — Insert content after a given line number

• delete_lines — Delete a line range

• append_to_file — Append to the end of a file (always safe, never touches existing content)

Reorganising Without Rewriting

• copy_lines — Copy a line range and insert the copy elsewhere in the same file; originals preserved

• move_lines — Cut a line range and paste it elsewhere in the same file; throws if the destination falls inside the source range

• copy_lines_between_files — Copy a line range from one file into a different file (created if missing); source untouched

• move_lines_between_files — Cut a line range from one file into a different file; the destination is written first and only on success is the block removed from the source, so a failed move never loses data

Search

• find_in_file — Phrase search within one file (whitespace-normalized, so line-wrapped phrases still match); returns startLine/endLine for chaining into the tools above

• find_in_files — Same, recursively across a directory, with glob filtering

JavaScript-aware helpers

• list_js_functions — List function/class definitions with line ranges

• get_js_function / replace_js_function — Extract or replace a named function by name (no need to know line numbers)

• get_js_imports / replace_js_imports / add_js_import — Inspect or modify the imports block

Recommended workflow

To build up a new file from scratch or combine content from elsewhere without ever rewriting large blocks: write_file (or append_to_file on an existing file) to land the raw content, then find_in_file to locate line numbers, then copy_lines/move_lines/copy_lines_between_files/move_lines_between_files to reorganise. Reach for edit_file/replace_lines only for small, targeted changes — never to rewrite a whole file.

License

See the original repository for license details.