Everything MCP Server

License

Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Everything, the blazing-fast file search engine for Windows. Enables instant file and folder searching through MCP.

Features

Lightning Fast: Leverages Everything's instant search capabilities
Powerful Search Syntax: Wildcards, regex, boolean operators, size filters, date filters
File Details: Get comprehensive file information (size, dates, attributes)
Flexible Filtering: Filter by type, size, date, attributes, and more
Sorting: Sort results by name, path, size, extension, or dates

Prerequisites

Windows Only - Everything search engine must be installed:

Download Everything: https://www.voidtools.com/downloads/
Install Everything and let it index your drives
Verify es.exe (command-line interface) is available:
- Usually located at: C:\\Program Files\\Everything\\es.exe
- Or install via Scoop: scoop install everything

Installation

Using NPX (Recommended)

npx @danielsimonjr/everything-mcp

Global Installation

npm install -g @danielsimonjr/everything-mcp

From Source

git clone https://github.com/danielsimonjr/everything-mcp.git
cd everything-mcp
npm install
chmod +x index.js

Configuration

Claude Desktop

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

Using NPX

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "everything": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@danielsimonjr/everything-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Using Global Install

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "everything": {
      "command": "everything-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Custom es.exe Path

If es.exe is not in your PATH, set the ES_PATH environment variable:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "everything": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@danielsimonjr/everything-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "ES_PATH": "C:\\\\Program Files\\\\Everything\\\\es.exe"
      }
    }
  }
}

VS Code

Add to .vscode/mcp.json:

{
  "servers": {
    "everything": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@danielsimonjr/everything-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

1. `search`

Search for files and folders using Everything's powerful search syntax.

Parameters:

query (required): Search query using Everything syntax
maxResults (optional): Maximum number of results (default: 50)
regex (optional): Use regular expression search (default: false)
caseSensitive (optional): Match case (default: false)
wholeWord (optional): Match whole words only (default: false)
matchPath (optional): Match full path and filename (default: false)
foldersOnly (optional): Return only folders (default: false)
filesOnly (optional): Return only files (default: false)
sortBy (optional): Sort by name, path, size, extension, date-created, date-modified, date-accessed
sortDescending (optional): Sort in descending order (default: false)
showSize (optional): Include file size in results (default: false)
showDateModified (optional): Include date modified in results (default: false)
parentPath (optional): Search only within this parent path

Example:

{
  "query": "*.js",
  "sortBy": "date-modified",
  "sortDescending": true,
  "maxResults": 20
}

2. `get_file_info`

Get detailed information about a specific file.

Parameters:

filename (required): Full path or filename to get information about

Returns: File size, creation date, modification date, access date, and attributes

Example:

{
  "filename": "C:\\\\Users\\\\username\\\\document.txt"
}

Everything Search Syntax

Everything supports powerful search syntax:

Basic Search

Simple text: readme
Wildcards: *.txt, file?.doc
Multiple terms: report 2024 (AND is implicit)

Boolean Operators

AND: file AND document or file document
OR: txt OR doc
NOT: NOT backup or !backup

File Extensions

Single: ext:jpg
Multiple: ext:jpg;png;gif

Size Filters

Exact: size:1024kb
Greater than: size:>1mb
Less than: size:<100kb
Range: size:1mb..10mb

Date Filters

Modified: dm:today, dm:lastweek, dm:2024
Created: dc:yesterday
Accessed: da:thismonth

Attributes

Hidden: attrib:H
Read-only: attrib:R
System: attrib:S
Directory: attrib:D

Path Matching

In folder: path:C:\\Users\\
Parent: parent:Downloads

Advanced

Regex: Enable with regex: true parameter
Case-sensitive: Enable with caseSensitive: true
Whole word: Enable with wholeWord: true

See Everything Search Syntax for complete reference.

Usage Examples

Example 1: Find Recent JavaScript Files

Tell Claude:

Use Everything to find all JavaScript files modified in the last week, sorted by date

Claude will use:

{
  "query": "*.js dm:lastweek",
  "sortBy": "date-modified",
  "sortDescending": true,
  "maxResults": 50
}

Example 2: Find Large Files

Tell Claude:

Find all files larger than 100MB

Claude will use:

{
  "query": "size:>100mb",
  "showSize": true,
  "sortBy": "size",
  "sortDescending": true
}

Example 3: Search in Specific Directory

Tell Claude:

Find all Python files in my Documents folder

Claude will use:

{
  "query": "*.py",
  "parentPath": "C:\\\\Users\\\\username\\\\Documents"
}

Example 4: Get File Information

Tell Claude:

Get detailed information about C:\\config.json

Claude will use:

{
  "filename": "C:\\\\config.json"
}

How It Works

Everything Service: Everything runs as a Windows service, maintaining a real-time index of all files
es.exe: Command-line interface to query the Everything database
MCP Server: Wraps es.exe and provides MCP tools for Claude
Instant Results: Searches complete in milliseconds, even across millions of files

Troubleshooting

Everything Not Found

Error: Failed to execute es.exe

Solutions:

Verify Everything is installed: Download from https://www.voidtools.com/
Ensure Everything service is running (check system tray)
Verify es.exe location:
- Default: C:\\Program Files\\Everything\\es.exe
- Scoop: C:\\Users\\<username>\\scoop\\apps\\everything\\current\\es.exe
Set ES_PATH environment variable in MCP config

No Results Found

Causes:

Query doesn't match any files
Everything database not fully indexed yet
Incorrect search syntax

Solutions:

Try a broader search term
Check Everything GUI to verify files are indexed
Review search syntax

Permission Issues

Issue: Can't access certain directories

Solution: Run Everything as administrator or adjust folder permissions

Development

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/danielsimonjr/everything-mcp.git
cd everything-mcp

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Make executable
chmod +x index.js

# Test locally
node index.js

Contributing

Contributions welcome! Please:

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch
Make your changes
Test thoroughly
Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

Everything by voidtools - The amazing search engine
Model Context Protocol by Anthropic