everything vs photon
Side-by-side comparison to help you pick between these two MCP servers.
everything by modelcontextprotocol | photon by portel-dev | |
|---|---|---|
| Stars | ★ 85,748 | ★ 94 |
| 30d uses | — | — |
| Score | 77 | 47 |
| Official | ✓ | — |
| Categories | Developer ToolsAI / LLM ToolsOther | Developer ToolsAI / LLM ToolsProductivity |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last commit | this month | this month |
everything · Summary
Official MCP test server exercising all protocol features for client builders.
photon · Summary
Photon turns TypeScript files into MCP servers, CLI tools, and web interfaces with minimal boilerplate.
everything · Use cases
- Testing MCP client implementations against all protocol features
- Learning MCP protocol capabilities through a reference server
- Validating client compatibility with different transport methods
photon · Use cases
- Building AI-accessible tools without MCP server expertise
- Creating multi-interface tools with a single codebase
- Rapid prototyping of functionality for both humans and AI
everything · Install
NPX (recommended)
{
"mcpServers": {
"everything": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-everything"]
}
}
}On Windows, use cmd /c:
{
"mcpServers": {
"everything": {
"command": "cmd",
"args": ["/c", "npx", "-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-everything"]
}
}
}Docker
{
"mcpServers": {
"everything": {
"command": "docker",
"args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "mcp/everything"]
}
}
}Global install
npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-everything@latest
npx @modelcontextprotocol/server-everythingphoton · Install
Install Photon globally:
bun add -g @portel/photonCreate a new photon:
photon new my-toolInstall as MCP server for Claude Desktop:
photon mcp install my-toolAdd to Claude Desktop config:
{
"mcpServers": {
"my-tool": {
"command": "photon",
"args": ["mcp", "my-tool"]
}
}
}