What is the key difference between Terminal History MCP and When?

Terminal History MCP belongs to the Command Line category with local stdio execution, while When belongs to the Command Line category with local stdio execution.

How do I install Terminal History MCP or When in Claude Desktop or Cursor?

Copy the mcpServers JSON configuration snippet provided on this page into your claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json file and restart your AI client.

Are Terminal History MCP and When free or paid?

Terminal History MCP operates under a Free / Open Source model (No auth required). When operates under a Free / Open Source model (No auth required).

Which MCP server has more tools and community activity?

Terminal History MCP lists 5 tools with 1 views and 4 GitHub stars. When lists 6 tools with 2 views and 3 GitHub stars.

Can I use both Terminal History MCP and When together in the same MCP host?

Yes! MCP hosts like Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, and VS Code support configuring multiple servers under the mcpServers object simultaneously.

Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison

Terminal History MCP vs When

In-depth architectural comparison of the Terminal History MCP and When 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.

At a Glance & Executive Verdict

Terminal History MCP

Command Line · Local stdio

Quality: 60/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required

When

Command Line · Local stdio

Quality: 56/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required

Verdict Summary: Choose Terminal History MCP if you need specialized Command Line tools running via a local process. Choose When if your workspace requires Command Line integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose Terminal History MCP when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Command Line domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
Primary tools included: reindex, search_history, recent_in_dir.

Explore Terminal History MCP Details

Choose When when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Command Line domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
Primary tools included: Single MCP server exposing eight endpoints for six tools, Auto-detect stack and regenerate context files, Port conflict scanning.

Explore When Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Terminal History MCP HasanJahidul Command Line	When WhenLabs-org Command Line
Summary	Full-text search over your shell history (zsh / bash / fish) via SQLite FTS5. Local-only. 11-pattern secret redaction runs BEFORE insert. Captures cwd / exit code / duration via opt-in shell hook. Tools: searchhistory, recentindir, failedcommands, commandchains, reindex.	Developer toolkit: auto-detect stack for AI context files, catch port conflicts, validate .env schemas, spot docs drift, audit dependency licenses, and time coding tasks — 7 MCP tools, one install.
Category & Scope

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Terminal History MCP Tools (5)

reindex

Re-parses the local shell history files (`~/.zsh_history`, `~/.bash_history`) and the hook's extended log into the SQLite index. Idempotent — already-indexed commands are skipped by hash, so it is safe to call repeatedly. Run it after a burst of shell activity to make recent commands searchable. Reads only local files; writes only to `~/.terminal-history-mcp/`. Takes no arguments. Returns counts of parsed / inserted / skipped entries.

search_history

Read-only. Full-text search (SQLite FTS5, stemmed, Unicode-aware) over all indexed shell commands. Supports keyword and prefix queries — e.g. `docker build`, `git reb*`. Returns the most recent matches first, each with timestamp, shell, cwd, and exit code when available. Local index only; nothing is sent anywhere. If a query returns nothing you may need `reindex` first.

recent_in_dir

Read-only. Lists the most recent commands that were run with a given working directory — answers "what was I doing in this project?". Requires the shell hook to have been installed (legacy entries have no cwd and won't appear). Returns newest first with timestamps and exit codes. Local index only.

failed_commands

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).

Terminal History MCP Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "hasanjahidul-terminal-history-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcpize"
      ]
    }
  }
}

When Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "whenlabs-org-when": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@whenlabs/when"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Frequently Asked Questions

Terminal History MCP is categorized under Command Line and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, When belongs to Command Line using local stdio subprocess. Select Terminal History MCP when you need capabilities focused on command line and When when you require tools for command line.

More alternatives to Terminal History MCP More alternatives to When Command Line category hub