Filesystem MCP

Server: user-filesystem / filesystem

Default file I/O channel. Prefer MCP across environments; fall back to host-native tools (Cursor Read/Write/StrReplace) when unavailable.

Tools

Tool	Purpose
read_text_file	Read text (preferred)
read_file	Read file (supports head/tail)
read_multiple_files	Batch read
read_media_file	Read media
write_file	Write (must read first to check existence)
edit_file	Precise edit on existing file
move_file	Move/rename
list_directory	List directory
list_directory_with_sizes	List with sizes
list_allowed_directories	View whitelist roots
directory_tree	Directory tree
search_files	Search by filename/path pattern
get_file_info	File metadata
create_directory	Create directory

Read/Write Policy

Read

1. read_text_file (preferred) or read_file
2. If path uncertain → list_allowed_directories first
3. One MCP failure → fall back to host Read with one-line reason

Write

1. Must read_text_file to check existence first
2. Not exists → write_file to create
3. Exists and not full overwrite → edit_file
4. Forbidden: write_file overwrite without existence check

Search

Need	Prefer
Symbols / call chains / impact	Codegraph
Exact string / i18n key	Host Grep
Filename / path pattern	search_files
Directory structure	directory_tree

Whitelist

list_allowed_directories roots must cover the workspace root.

Scenario	Recommended root
Frontend repo only	…/AOPS/ui
Monorepo	…/AOPS

Not recommended: only …/ui/src — breaks reads of .cursor/rules, package.json, etc.

See Host Setup.

Examples

Read package.json at project root

Change "Hello, World!" to "Hello, MCP!" in hello.py

Related

• Routing · File I/O
• Host Setup · Whitelist