Everything Search MCP Server

A powerful Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that integrates with Everything Search Engine, providing lightning-fast file search capabilities across your entire system. This server enables natural language file searches and advanced filtering options through MCP-compatible applications like Claude Desktop, VS Code, and other MCP clients.

Table of Contents

• Features
• Quick Start
  • Prerequisites
  • Step 1: Install Everything Search Engine
  • Step 2: Install the MCP Server
  • Step 3: Configure Your MCP Client
  • Step 4: Restart Your MCP Client
• Usage
• Examples
• Parameters Reference
• Troubleshooting
• What's New
• Development
• Contributing
• License
• Support

Features

• 🚀 Lightning Fast Search: Leverages Everything Search Engine's instant file indexing
• 🔍 Natural Language Queries: Search using natural language descriptions like "large video files" or "recent documents"
• 🎯 Advanced Search Options: Case sensitivity, whole word matching, regex support
• 📁 Path-Based Search: Search within specific directories or across entire drives
• 📊 Smart Sorting: Sort by name, path, size, or modification date
• 🎨 Rich Formatting: Human-readable file sizes and formatted dates
• 🌐 Global Installation: Install once, use everywhere across all MCP clients
• ⚡ Real-time Results: Instant search results as you type
• 🔧 Highly Configurable: Customizable ports, scopes, and search parameters

Quick Start

Prerequisites

1. Windows OS (Everything Search Engine is Windows-only)
2. Node.js 16+ - Download here
3. Everything Search Engine - Download here

Step 1: Install Everything Search Engine

1. Download and install Everything Search Engine
2. Open Everything Search
3. Go to Tools > Options > HTTP Server
4. ✅ Enable HTTP Server
5. Set port to 8011 (default)
6. Click OK and restart Everything

Step 2: Install the MCP Server

Option A: Global Installation (Recommended)

npm install -g everything-search-mcp-server

Note: If you haven't published to npm yet, users should use Option B (From Source) until the package is available on npm.

Option B: From Source

git clone https://github.com/ananyaakamat/everything-search-mcp-server.git
cd everything-search-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build
npm install -g .

Step 3: Configure Your MCP Client

For Claude Desktop

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "everything-search": {
      "command": "everything-search-mcp-server",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Config File Locations:

• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
• macOS: ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

For VS Code

For quick installation, use one of the one-click install buttons below...

For manual installation, add the following JSON block to your User Settings (JSON) file in VS Code. You can do this by pressing Ctrl + Shift + P and typing Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON).

Optionally, you can add it to a file called .vscode/mcp.json in your workspace. This will allow you to share the configuration with others.

Note that the mcp key is needed when using the mcp.json file.

Add to your VS Code settings.json:

{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "everything-search": {
        "command": "everything-search-mcp-server",
        "args": []
      }
    }
  }
}

Settings File Locations:

• Windows: %APPDATA%\Code\User\settings.json
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/settings.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Code/User/settings.json

Note: Ensure you have the MCP extension installed in VS Code for MCP server support.

Step 4: Restart Your MCP Client

Restart Claude Desktop or VS Code to load the new server.

Step 5: Verify Installation

Test that the server is working:

# Check if the command is available
everything-search-mcp-server --help

# Or test with a simple search (if Everything is running)
# The server should start and respond to MCP requests

In your MCP client, try a simple search like:

• "Search for README files"
• "Find all .txt files"
• "Show me large video files"
• "Find recent Word documents"

Usage

The server provides two powerful tools:

1. search - Advanced File Search

{
  "query": "search terms",
  "scope": "C:",
  "caseSensitive": false,
  "wholeWord": false,
  "regex": false,
  "path": false,
  "maxResults": 100,
  "sortBy": "name",
  "ascending": true
}

2. natural_search - Natural Language Search

{
  "naturalQuery": "find all video files larger than 1GB",
  "maxResults": 50
}

Examples

Basic Searches

// Find all PDF files
{
  "query": "*.pdf",
  "maxResults": 10
}

// Search for "readme" files
{
  "query": "readme",
  "maxResults": 5
}

Advanced Searches

// Case-sensitive search in specific directory
{
  "query": "Config",
  "scope": "C:\\Users\\YourName\\AppData",
  "caseSensitive": true,
  "maxResults": 20
}

// Regex search for JavaScript files
{
  "query": ".*\\.(js|ts)$",
  "regex": true,
  "sortBy": "date_modified",
  "ascending": false
}

Natural Language Searches

// Find large video files
{
  "naturalQuery": "large video files on desktop",
  "maxResults": 10
}

// Find recent documents
{
  "naturalQuery": "documents modified this week",
  "maxResults": 15
}

// Find development projects
{
  "naturalQuery": "programming projects with package.json",
  "maxResults": 5
}

Parameters Reference

search Tool Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
query	string	required	Search query string
scope	string	"C:"	Search scope/directory
caseSensitive	boolean	false	Enable case-sensitive matching
wholeWord	boolean	false	Match whole words only
regex	boolean	false	Enable regular expressions
path	boolean	false	Search in file paths
maxResults	number	100	Maximum results (1-1000)
sortBy	string	"name"	Sort by: name, path, size, date_modified
ascending	boolean	true	Sort direction

natural_search Tool Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
naturalQuery	string	required	Natural language search description
maxResults	number	100	Maximum results (1-1000)

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. "Connection refused" error

   • Ensure Everything Search is running
   • Verify HTTP Server is enabled (Tools > Options > HTTP Server)
   • Check port 8011 is not blocked by firewall

2. "Command not found" error

   • Ensure the server is installed globally: npm install -g everything-search-mcp-server
   • Verify Node.js is in your PATH

3. No results returned

   • Allow Everything to complete initial indexing (can take a few minutes for large drives)
   • Check if Everything can find files through its GUI first
   • Verify your search scope exists and is accessible
   • Ensure you have read permissions for the search directory

4. Performance issues

   • Reduce maxResults for faster responses
   • Use more specific search scopes to limit search area
   • Consider using exact file extensions instead of wildcards

Configuration

Custom Port Configuration

If you need to use a different port:

1. Change Everything's HTTP port (Tools > Options > HTTP Server)
2. Set environment variable: EVERYTHING_PORT=8012
3. Or modify the server source code

Debug Mode

Enable debug logging:

DEBUG=everything-search:* everything-search-mcp-server

What's New

Version 1.0.0 🎉

• Initial Release: Complete MCP server implementation
• Natural Language Search: AI-powered search queries
• Global Installation: Easy npm-based installation
• Multi-Client Support: Works with Claude Desktop, VS Code, and other MCP clients
• Advanced Search Options: Regex, case sensitivity, path search
• Rich Documentation: Comprehensive setup and usage guide

Development

Building from Source

git clone https://github.com/ananyaakamat/everything-search-mcp-server.git
cd everything-search-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build

Running Tests

npm test

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch: git checkout -b feature-name
3. Make your changes
4. Add tests if applicable
5. Commit: git commit -am 'Add feature'
6. Push: git push origin feature-name
7. Create a Pull Request

License

ISC License - see LICENSE file for details.

Support

• 🐛 Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
• 💬 Discussions: GitHub Discussions
• 📧 Email: anant.kamat.in@gmail.com

Related Projects

• Everything Search Engine - The powerful file search engine this server integrates with
• Model Context Protocol - The protocol this server implements
• Claude Desktop - AI assistant with MCP support

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