Jetbrains Debugger MCP Plugin vs Codesurface

In-depth architectural comparison of the Jetbrains Debugger MCP Plugin and Codesurface 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 Jetbrains Debugger MCP Plugin when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: list_run_configurations, execute_run_configuration, list_debug_sessions.

Explore Jetbrains Debugger MCP Plugin Details

Choose Codesurface when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: search, get_signature, get_class.

Explore Codesurface Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Jetbrains Debugger MCP Plugin hechtcarmel Developer Tools	Codesurface Developer Tools
Summary	A JetBrains IDE plugin that exposes an MCP server, giving AI coding assistants full programmatic control over the debugger.	Indexes your codebase's public API and serves it via compact MCP tool responses.
Category & Scope	Developer Tools

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": {
    "hechtcarmel-jetbrains-debugger-mcp-plugin": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "hechtcarmel-jetbrains-debugger-mcp-plugin"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "codesurface": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "codesurface"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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