Google Drive vs Obsideo MCP
A side-by-side look at the Google Drive and Obsideo MCP MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Google Drive for file systems work; choose Obsideo MCP for file systems as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Google Drive when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the File Systems domain.
- You want tools like
get_account, get_file, list_folder.
Choose Obsideo MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the File Systems domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
trial, signup_start, signup_verify.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | File Systems | File Systems |
| Quality signal | 45/100 · Fair | 63/100 · Good |
| Install command | Not confirmed yet | Confirmed |
| Transport | — | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | Not declared |
| Pricing | Not declared | Not declared |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 0 | 0 |
| Directory activity | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 35 | 13 |
| Full listing | View Google Drive | View Obsideo MCP |
Tools & capabilities
Google Drive tools 35
get_accountWho is signed in, storage used, whether this account has shared drives, and which of this server's tools are registeredget_fileEverything about one file: kind, location, link, size, owner, who can see it, who cannot download it, and what you may do with itlist_folderOne page of a folder's contents, or a budgeted tree of everything below itsearch_filesFind files across My Drive, files shared with you, and every shared drive, or under one folder at any depthread_fileThe text of a file: a Doc as markdown, a Sheet as csv, a Word, Excel or PowerPoint file (or its OpenDocument counterpart) read here as text, a log or source file as itself, windowed with a continuationextract_textThe text in a PDF or an image, read by Google's OCR through a temporary Google Doc copy that is deleted againdownload_fileWrite a file to the local directory, converting a Google document on the way out, checksum-verifiedcreate_fileA new empty Google file, or one written from text you have here, with optional conversionupload_fileSend a local file, in one request or in chunks that survive a dropped connectionupdate_contentReplace what is inside a file, keeping its id, its place and everything that points at it, and refusing to lose the comments Google Docs keeps in a Markdown filecreate_folderA new folder, refusing a duplicate name unless you allow itupdate_fileRename, describe, star, color, set properties, restrict downloads and re-sharing, or give a folder limited access- +23 more on the listing page
Obsideo MCP tools 13
trialCreate a free Obsideo account with no email and no human in the loop: a small proof-of-work and a ~10 second wait in place of identity. Returns a real account on the production network (100 MB, about 7 days, RF=3 replication, continuous possession proofs) and saves credentials locally. You usually do NOT need to call this: the first put/get/ls/usage auto-creates a trial if no account is configured. Call it to provision explicitly. To keep data beyond the trial, claim it with an email via signup_start (same account and data, quota rises to 12 GB). Takes about 15 to 30 seconds (proof of work plus a 10 second issuance window); progress is reported while it runs.signup_startStart Obsideo signup: emails a 6-digit verification code (12 GB free tier, no card, no expiry). If a no-email trial is configured on this machine, this CLAIMS it in place: same account, bucket, keys and data, only the quota rises. Otherwise it creates a new account for the email. Use a real inbox you or your human can read; documentation placeholders and disposable domains are refused with labeled errors. Then call signup_verify.signup_verifyComplete signup with the emailed code. When claiming a trial, nothing but the quota and the identity changes (credentials stay valid, no propagation wait). For a new account, generates the Ed25519 account signing keypair locally (only the public half is sent) and stores S3 credentials in ~/.obsideo/mcp.json; re-running that path rotates credentials and keypair with no overlap, so do not re-run to retry.putStore a local file or inline content as an object. ENCRYPTED BY DEFAULT: the bytes are encrypted client-side with AES-256-GCM using a locally generated, user-held key before they leave the machine, so the platform stores ciphertext it cannot read. The key lives only in the local config file and Obsideo has no copy: if the user loses it the data is unrecoverable, so tell them to back it up. Pass encrypt=false only when another tool must read the stored bytes directly (S3 interop); that stores plaintext. Zero-byte objects are rejected. Objects are replicated to 3 providers and verified on a continuous cryptographic challenge cycle. The first call on a fresh machine also creates the account and can take 20 to 50 seconds; progress is reported while it runs. Encrypted objects are readable only with this machine's key: there is no cross-user sharing of encrypted objects.getRetrieve an object. Encrypted objects (the default for anything stored through this server) are decrypted automatically with the local key; retrieval from a machine without that key will fail, which is the intended property. Small text objects return inline; pass local_path for anything else. WRITES TO DISK: passing local_path writes the bytes to that path and overwrites any existing file there, so treat it as a write operation and confirm the path with your human first.lsList stored objects (size TAB key), optionally under a prefix.rmDelete an object by key.verifyIndependently verify that the network still holds an object, without downloading it. Challenges each provider directly and compares every answer, on this machine, against a merkle root. For objects stored through this server, that root is the one this machine recorded at upload time, if the local record still has it. Pass local_path (your copy of the stored file) to compare against a root computed from that file instead. If neither is available, it falls back to the coordinator's recorded root and says so. The coordinator chooses which providers to ask, where to reach them, and the public keys their signatures are checked against. Returns how many providers proved possession right now, how many of those answers were signed, and whether any returned bad data.usageShow account storage usage versus quota.planShow the account's plan: free tier or paid blocks (200 GB per block, $5/month each), status, period end, and any upgrade offer waiting for the human's agreement. Never changes anything and never contacts Stripe.upgradeGet a Stripe-hosted checkout link for a paid plan of N x 200 GB blocks at $5/month per block. This tool charges NOTHING and changes nothing: the human opens the link and pays on Stripe's page, and the quota rises after payment. Call it only when the human has asked for more space, and hand the link back to them; do not open or submit it yourself. If the account already has a paid plan this returns the plan instead (plan size is never changed from here; only the human's click on Obsideo's emailed agree link does that).portalGet the Stripe Customer Portal link for a paid plan: cancel, change card, download invoices. For the human to open. Cancelling keeps everything stored and readable; the account returns to its free quota at the end of the paid period.- +1 more on the listing page
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Google Drive
No confirmed install command for Google Drive yet — follow the setup steps linked from its listing page rather than a guessed package name.
Obsideo MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"regan-milne-obsideo-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"obsideo-mcp"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Google Drive is categorized under File Systems and uses an install path we have not confirmed yet. Obsideo MCP belongs to File Systems and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Google Drive for file systems work and Obsideo MCP for file systems.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client. Google Drive has no confirmed install command yet — follow its own setup instructions.
Google Drive has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Obsideo MCP has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add google-drive-3 and regan-milne-obsideo-mcp as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Google Drive has a quality signal of 45/100 (Fair) with 2 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. Obsideo MCP has 63/100 (Good) with 2 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.
