read_fileLABSCO SUMMARY
Built for the case where the official filesystem server gets slow.
The maintainers say plainly that the official Filesystem MCP Server already reaches WSL files through the \\wsl.localhost network path. This exists for large directory trees and search-heavy work, where running find and grep inside the distribution beats walking directories from Node. Both can run side by side.
What it is
A Node.js MCP server for filesystem operations inside Windows Subsystem for Linux, forked from the official Filesystem MCP Server and reimplemented around native Linux commands.
What you get
- Files read one at a time, several at once, or in numbered parts for files too large to take whole
- Files written, and edited with Git-style multi-line matching
- A dry-run option on edits, so a change can be previewed before it is applied
- Directories created, listed and deleted, files and directories moved, and file metadata read
- Search inside a distribution using WSL's own
findandgrep, which is where the speed difference over recursive Node traversal shows - Multiple WSL distributions supported from the same Windows host
Requirements
Windows with WSL and at least one distribution installed, plus Node. Access is limited to the directories you list in args — nothing outside them is reachable.
Setup effort
Add the configuration to your client
USE CASES
01
Searching a large WSL repository from Windows
Let the search run as native find and grep inside the distribution instead of a recursive walk over the network path.
02
Reading a file too big to take in one go
Pull it part by part rather than blowing the context on a single read.
03
Making a careful edit to a Linux-side file
Run the multi-line edit as a dry run first, check what it would change, then apply it.
04
Setting up a directory of new files
Create the directory and write the files into the distribution directly from the Windows host.
05
Comparing files across two distributions
Read from more than one WSL distribution in the same session rather than switching shells.
14 tools
Listed in project docs. Your client may show a different list.
read_file_by_partsread_multiple_fileswrite_fileedit_filecreate_directorylist_directorydirectory_treemove_filesearch_filessearch_in_filesget_file_infolist_allowed_directorieslist_wsl_distributionsBEFORE YOU INSTALL
What to know first
Tools you get
14 tools named in the project's documentation.
Requires
- Windows with WSL and at least one Linux distribution installed
- npx on PATH
Where it runs
Both documented setups run the server on your machine.
INSTALLATION
Connect your client
MCP Clients
Claude Desktop — specific distro
CLAUDE DESKTOP — SPECIFIC DISTRO · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"wsl-filesystem": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-server-wsl-filesystem",
"--distro=Ubuntu-20.04",
"/home/<YOUR_USERNAME>/documents"
]
}
}
}Claude Desktop — default distro
CLAUDE DESKTOP — DEFAULT DISTRO · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"wsl-filesystem": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-server-wsl-filesystem",
"/home/<YOUR_USERNAME>/documents"
]
}
}
}
