Cordon vs HOL Guard

In-depth architectural comparison of the Cordon and HOL Guard MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose Cordon when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Security domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: Per-server and per-tool policy enforcement, Structured JSON audit logging, Terminal and Slack approval workflows.

Explore Cordon Details

Choose HOL Guard when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Security domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: Pre-action review for agent operations, Policy-based allow, block, and approval decisions, Local receipts and approval history.

Explore HOL Guard Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Cordon Security	HOL Guard Security
Summary	Security gateway for MCP. Policy enforcement, audit logging, human-in-the-loop approvals.	Local-first AI agent security evidence and approval workflows through HOL Guard's stdio MCP server.
Category & Scope	Security	Security
Quality signal

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations

Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cordon": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@getcordon/cli"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "hol-guard": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "hol-guard"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Related MCP Server Comparisons