Workflow MCP vs Open Computer Use

In-depth architectural comparison of the Workflow MCP and Open Computer Use 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 Workflow MCP when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Cloud Platforms domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).

Explore Workflow MCP Details

Choose Open Computer Use when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Cloud Platforms domain.
• You prefer remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).

Explore Open Computer Use Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Workflow MCP Cloud Platforms	Open Computer Use Cloud Platforms
Summary	Session-bound Docker workflow server through Codex. State is discarded with the container.	Give any LLM its own computer — Docker sandboxes with bash, browser, docs, and sub-agents
Category & Scope	Cloud Platforms	Cloud Platforms

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": {
    "workflow-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "workflow-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "open-computer-use": {
      "url": "http://localhost:8081/mcp"
    }
  }
}

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