Context and discovery
Read active pane context, list locations and directories, search indexes, inspect paths, read bounded text, and compute checksums.
Twenty-eight typed tools / local stdio
A local MCP file manager for Windows
Reliable AI file work without arbitrary shell execution, cloud file uploads, or unrestricted machine access.
Explore Better
Tools built around real file workflows
The MCP sidecar is a thin adapter. Explore Better remains the authority for filesystem state, policy, indexing, transactions, and recovery.
Analysis
Run durable disk-usage, duplicate, and folder-comparison jobs with progress, cancellation, and paginated results.
Safe operations
Plan transfers, rename, delete, archive, create, text writes, labels, and collections; then apply, monitor, control, or undo.
9.8 mstyped filename search median
72.3 msexact disk analysis median
130.4 msduplicate job median
All three workflows matched ground truth. Equivalent fresh PowerShell baselines measured 536.1 ms, 445.4 ms, and 580.5 ms respectively. A warm persistent shell may be faster.
Explore Better
A deliberately narrow security boundary
The server uses local stdio and an authenticated same-user named pipe. It has no remote HTTP transport, arbitrary shell tool, terminal control, registry mutation, or AI-controlled elevation.
Exact roots
Effective access intersects per-client profile roots, client roots when supplied, and Windows permissions after canonicalization.
Read-first
Profiles default to read-only. Permanent deletion and writable tools are separate permissions, disabled unless selected.
Auditable
A rotating local audit records the client, tool, paths, policy decision, duration, and job or operation IDs, never file contents or tokens.
Explore Better
Install the standalone MCP bundle
The Windows MCPB release contains the native stdio sidecar, manifest, tool catalogue, prompts, screenshots, license, and SHA-256 metadata.
Registry name: io.github.terrorproforma/explore-better Transport: stdio Platform: Windows x64 Profile: required, separately revocable App: auto-discovered from the normal per-user install