Desktop Commander MCP Server

Run terminal commands, edit files, and manage local desktop workflows through MCP clients like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code.

Remote serverstreamable-httpPython

What is the Desktop Commander MCP MCP server?

If you want an AI assistant working directly with Desktop Commander MCP, the desktop commander mcp mcp server is the bridge. Run terminal commands, edit files, and manage local desktop workflows through MCP clients like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code.

What Desktop Commander MCP does

Work with code and text, run processes, and automate tasks, going far beyond other AI editors - while using host client subscriptions instead of API token costs.

Key capabilities

  • Remote AI Control — - Use Desktop Commander from ChatGPT, Claude web, and other AI services via Remote MCP
  • File Preview UI — - Visual file previews in Claude Desktop with rendered markdown, inline images, expandable content, built-in markdown editor, and quick "Open in folder" access
  • Enhanced terminal commands with interactive process control —
  • Execute code in memory (Python, Node.js, R) without saving files —
  • Instant data analysis - just ask to analyze CSV/JSON/Excel files —
  • Native Excel file support — - Read, write, edit, and search Excel files (.xlsx, .xls, .xlsm) without external tools
  • PDF support — - Read PDFs with text extraction, create new PDFs from markdown, modify existing PDFs
  • DOCX support — - Read, create, edit, and search Word documents (.docx) with surgical XML editing and markdown-to-DOCX conversion

Tools it exposes

Once connected, the assistant can call this tool directly:

  • Security — The Security tool exposed by this server

Installing the desktop commander mcp mcp server

The server is distributed via npm as @wonderwhy-er/desktop-commander, so most clients can run it without a manual build step. Add it to your MCP client's configuration and restart the client to pick it up — the copy-paste configs for Claude Desktop, Claude Code and Cursor are on this page.

Good to know

  • This is a hosted server — you point your client at an endpoint rather than running a local process.
  • Written in Python.
  • Every MCP client asks for confirmation before a tool call by default — keep that on while you learn what the desktop commander mcp mcp server does with your data.
  • Listed here as part of the SyncDev MCP directory; each entry is reviewed before it goes live.

Available tools

ToolWhat it does
SecurityThe Security tool exposed by this server.

How to install the Desktop Commander MCP MCP server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "desktop-commander": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@wonderwhy-er/desktop-commander@latest"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Configuration as documented by the project. Restart the client after saving.

Example prompts to try

  • Use Desktop Commander MCP to Security.

Frequently asked questions

It connects Desktop Commander MCP to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor, exposing 1 tool (Security) that the assistant can call on your behalf. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with Desktop Commander MCP directly.