Comparison

Filesystem (Reference) vs Desktop Commander

Filesystem (Reference) is an MCP server published by modelcontextprotocol. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). Desktop Commander is an MCP server published by wonderwhy-er. Marketplaces we read that list it: 6 (Official MCP Registry, Claude Code: claude-plugins-official, Docker MCP Catalog, Claude: knowledge-work-plugins, Claude Code: claude-plugins-community, Community GitHub marketplaces). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-15. This pair was picked by a reader, not by our comparison rule, so search engines are asked not to index the page.

Where each is published

Where each is published
Marketplace	Filesystem (Reference)	Desktop Commander
Docker MCP Catalog	Listed Version: sha256:35fcf0217ca0 Forks (GitHub): 11 790 Pulls (Docker Hub): 291 170 Stars (Docker Hub): 28 Stars (GitHub): 91 268 Not marked · First seen 2026-10-11	Listed Version: sha256:5df787069e37 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Pulls (Docker Hub): 236 238 Stars (Docker Hub): 22 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen 2026-10-11
Official MCP Registry	Not listed	Listed Version: 0.3.0 Downloads/month (npm): 926 846 Downloads/week (npm): 204 381 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen 2026-10-11
Claude Code: claude-plugins-official	Not listed	Listed Version: 0.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen 2026-10-11
Claude: knowledge-work-plugins	Not listed	Listed Version: 0.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen 2026-10-11
Claude Code: claude-plugins-community	Not listed	Listed Version: 0.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen 2026-10-11

Each figure is the marketplace's own and is never added up across marketplaces. A marketplace that publishes no figure shows none: no number is not zero.

The facts side by side

Filesystem (Reference) vs Desktop Commander
Fact	Filesystem (Reference)	Desktop Commander
Marketplaces that list it (differs)	1 (worse)	6 (better)
Stars (GitHub) (differs)	91 268 (better)	10 050 (worse)
Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs)	291 170 (better)	236 238 (worse)
Forks (GitHub) (differs)	11 790 (better)	1 272 (worse)
Last release (differs)	Not published	2026-10-13
Where it runs (differs)	On your machine (mcp/filesystem)	On your machine (@wonderwhy-er/desktop-commander)
Transport	stdio	stdio
Tools it declares (differs)	11	26
Environment variables it asks for	Not published	Not published
Parts of the bundle (differs)	Not a bundle	7
Licence (differs)	NOASSERTION	MIT
Repository (differs)	github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers	github.com/wonderwhy-er/desktopcommandermcp
Changes in the last 7 days (differs)	0	3
First seen	2026-10-11	2026-10-11

Lines where the two differ have a tinted background and bold values. Where the data itself says which value is better (more marketplaces, a larger figure of the same marketplace, a fresher release, a verified mark on a marketplace that lists both), the better one is also marked green with ▲ and the worse one red with ▼. Where it runs, the transport, the tools, the settings, hooks, the bundle's parts, the licence and the week's changes are marked only as different: more or fewer is not better in itself.

What each says it does

Filesystem (Reference)

In its own words, on Docker MCP Catalog:

Local filesystem access with configurable allowed paths.

Desktop Commander

In its own words, on Official MCP Registry:

MCP server for terminal commands, file operations, and process management

How to run each

Filesystem (Reference) As a local MCP server: Docker image

Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport stdio filesystem -- docker run -i --rm mcp/filesystem

Desktop Commander As a local MCP server: npm package

Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport stdio desktop-commander -- npx -y @wonderwhy-er/desktop-commander

Commands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.

Tools each declares

Only Filesystem (Reference) declares

directory_tree
edit_file
list_allowed_directories
search_files

Only Desktop Commander declares

edit_block
force_terminate
get_config
get_more_search_results
get_prompts
get_recent_tool_calls
get_usage_stats
give_feedback_to_desktop_commander
interact_with_process
kill_process
list_processes
list_searches

Show the remaining 7

list_sessions
read_process_output
set_config_value
start_process
start_search
stop_search
write_pdf

Both declare

create_directory
get_file_info
list_directory
move_file
read_file
read_multiple_files
write_file

Tool names as each marketplace publishes them. More tools is not better in itself: compare what each needs for the job.

Settings each asks for

Neither one's marketplaces publish the settings it asks for.

What it can do: Filesystem (Reference) · What it can do: Desktop Commander · Compare two other plugins

Data comes from the Docker MCP Catalog (desktop.docker.com/mcp/catalog) and Docker Hub. Data comes from the Official MCP Registry (registry.modelcontextprotocol.io), CC0 1.0. Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/claude-plugins-official/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/claude-plugins-community/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Data comes from public marketplace files in GitHub repositories of their authors. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on 2026-10-15. We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.