@shxiaj/everything-mcp
This server provides an MCP interface to the Everything Windows file search engine, enabling lightning-fast file system queries with the following capabilities:
Search files and folders (
everything_search) — Search your entire Windows file system using Everything's powerful search syntax, including:Wildcards (
*.txt,foo*), boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT)Content search (
content:TODO), size filters (size:>1mb), date filters (datemodified:today)Path/parent filters, file type/extension filters, attribute filters, and regular expressions
Pagination (offset, max results) and case sensitivity, whole-word, and path matching options
Check Everything version (
everything_version) — Retrieve version details of the running Everything instance.Check Everything status (
everything_status) — Verify whether Everything is running and its database is loaded.Get file attributes (
everything_file_info) — Retrieve Windows file attributes (e.g., read-only, hidden) and run count for a specific file or folder path.
Click on "Deploy Server".
Wait a few minutes for the server to deploy. Once ready, it will show a "Started" state.
In the chat, type
@followed by the MCP server name and your instructions, e.g., "@@shxiaj/everything-mcp find all pdf files on desktop"
That's it! The server will respond to your query, and you can continue using it as needed.
Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots.
@shxiaj/everything-mcp
MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for Everything — the lightning-fast Windows file search engine.
Forked and extended from everythingsdk-mcp.
Uses ffi-rs to call the Everything SDK natively and @modelcontextprotocol/sdk for the MCP server protocol.
Features
Dual SDK support — Auto-detects Everything 1.5 (SDK v3) or 1.4 (SDK v2)
Lightning-fast file search — Leverage Everything's native search capabilities
Multiple tools — Search, version check, status, and file info
Flexible configuration — Environment variable overrides for SDK paths
Related MCP server: Everything Search MCP Server
Prerequisites
Windows (the Everything SDK is Windows-only)
Everything 1.4+ installed and running (download)
Node.js 18+ and npm
Installation
npm install
npm run buildUsage
Running the MCP server
npx @shxiaj/everything-mcpThe server communicates via stdin/stdout (MCP stdio transport).
Configuring in Claude Desktop / VS Code Copilot
Add to your MCP client configuration:
{
"mcpServers": {
"@shxiaj/everything-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["@shxiaj/everything-mcp"]
}
}
}Environment Variables
Variable | Description | Default |
| Force SDK version ( | Auto-detect |
| Path to the Everything SDK v3 directory |
|
| Full path to the Everything SDK v3 DLL |
|
| Path to the Everything SDK v2 directory |
|
| Full path to the Everything SDK v2 DLL |
|
| Override v3 IPC pipe name | Auto-probe |
Tools
everything_search
Search for files and folders using Everything search syntax.
Parameters:
query(required) — Search query using Everything syntaxmaxResults— Max results (default: 50, max: 1000)offset— Zero-based offset for paginationmatchCase— Case-sensitive searchmatchWholeWord— Match whole words onlymatchPath— Match against full pathregex— Treat query as regex
Everything search syntax examples:
*.txt— all .txt filesfoo bar— files containing both "foo" AND "bar"foo|bar— files containing "foo" OR "bar"ext:jpg size:>1mb— JPEGs larger than 1 MBfolder:node_modules— folders named node_modulescontent:TODO— files containing "TODO" in their contentdatemodified:today— files modified todayparent:C:\Projects— files under C:\Projects
everything_version
Get the version information of the running Everything instance.
everything_status
Check if Everything is running and its database is loaded.
everything_file_info
Get Windows file attributes and run count for a specific file path.
Parameters:
path(required) — Full path to the file or folder
SDK Architecture
src/
├── index.ts # MCP server entry point (tools, request handlers)
├── everything-client.ts # EverythingClient + SdkProvider abstraction
├── ffi-bindings.ts # Raw FFI bindings to Everything3_*.dll (SDK v3, Everything 1.5)
└── ffi-bindings-v14.ts # Raw FFI bindings to Everything*.dll (SDK v2, Everything 1.4)EverythingClient auto-detects the SDK version: tries v3 first, falls back to v2. Override with EVERYTHING_SDK_VERSION=v2 or v3 env var.
SDK v3 (Everything 1.5) vs SDK v2 (Everything 1.4)
Aspect | SDK v3 (Everything 1.5) | SDK v2 (Everything 1.4) |
DLL names |
|
|
API prefix |
|
|
Connection | Explicit | Implicit via IPC on |
State model | Per-client, per-search-state objects | Global mutable state |
Search exec |
|
|
Result props | Must call | Use |
File info | Direct | Requires a search with |
License
MIT
Available Tools
4 toolseverything_file_infoA
Get file attributes (Windows attributes, run count) for a specific file path using Everything.
Inputs: path (required).
everything_searchA
Search for files and folders on Windows using Everything.
Everything search syntax supports:
Basic search: "foo.txt" finds files named foo.txt
Wildcards: ".txt", "foo", ".jpg|.png"
Boolean operators: "foo bar" (AND), "foo|bar" (OR), "!" prefix (NOT)
Content search: "content:hello" searches file contents
Size filters: "size:>1mb", "size:100kb..1mb"
Date filters: "datemodified:today", "datecreated:2024-01-01"
Path filters: "path:Downloads", "parent:C:\Projects"
Attribute filters: "attrib:readonly", "attrib:hidden"
Type filters: "ext:jpg", "type:audio"
Regex: enable regex mode for regex patterns
And many more...
Examples: "ext:jpg size:>1mb", "*.ts", "folder:node_modules", "content:TODO"
Inputs: query (required), maxResults, offset, matchCase, +3 more.
everything_statusA
Check if the Everything search engine is running and its database is loaded.
Inputs: no named parameters.
everything_versionA
Get the version information of the running Everything search engine.
Inputs: no named parameters.
Tool Schema Changelog
Recent tool additions, removals, and schema changes observed during successful MCP inspections.
Loading tool schema changelog…
TDQS
Scored across 4 tools
Each tool has a clearly distinct purpose: file_info for specific file attributes, search for complex queries, status for service health, and version for engine version. No overlap.
All tools follow the consistent pattern 'everything_<verb_or_noun>', using snake_case with clear verb/noun (info, search, status, version).
4 tools cover the core operations (search, file info, status, version) without being too few or too many for a search engine wrapper.
The set covers primary use cases: search, file details, service status, and version. Missing index management tools (e.g., update index) but those are advanced features.
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