filesystem vs zen
Side-by-side comparison to help you pick between these two MCP servers.
filesystem by modelcontextprotocol | zen by sheshbabu | |
|---|---|---|
| Stars | ★ 85,748 | ★ 1,085 |
| 30d uses | — | — |
| Score | 77 | 53 |
| Official | ✓ | — |
| Categories | File SystemDeveloper ToolsProductivity | ProductivityKnowledge GraphFile System |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last commit | this month | 1 mo ago |
filesystem · Summary
A feature-rich MCP server for filesystem operations with dynamic directory access control.
zen · Summary
Selfhosted notes app with MCP integration for searching, listing and reading notes.
filesystem · Use cases
- Enable AI models to read and write project files during development
- Allow Claude or other MCP clients to browse and analyze codebases
- Provide secure sandboxed access to specific directories for content generation
zen · Use cases
- Personal knowledge management with MCP-powered note retrieval
- Team collaboration using self-hosted note-taking with API access
- Building custom AI workflows that reference personal notes
filesystem · Install
Installation
Using NPX
{
"mcpServers": {
"filesystem": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem",
"/path/to/allowed/directory"
]
}
}
}Using Docker
{
"mcpServers": {
"filesystem": {
"command": "docker",
"args": [
"run",
"-i",
"--rm",
"--mount", "type=bind,src=/path/to/allowed/dir,dst=/projects/allowed/dir",
"mcp/filesystem",
"/projects"
]
}
}
}VS Code Extension
Click the installation buttons in the README to install directly in VS Code.
zen · Install
Installation
Build from source
$ make buildLocal Development
Run the application using default configuration
$ make devMCP Configuration
Add to Claude Desktop config.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"zen": {
"command": "path-to-zen-executable",
"args": ["--mcp"]
}
}
}