# Open WebSearch (MCP server)

> Open WebSearch is an MCP server that adds search and knowledge tools to AI assistants such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code and Cursor. Multi-engine MCP server, CLI, and local daemon… It has 1,874 GitHub stars, is released under the Apache-2.0 license and runs locally with docker run -i --rm -e MODE -e DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE -e ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES -e SYSTEMROOT ghcr.io/aas-ee/open-web-search.

open-websearch provides an MCP server, CLI, and local daemon, and can also be paired with skill-guided agent workflows for live web search and content retrieval without API keys.

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Repository | https://github.com/Aas-ee/open-webSearch |
| GitHub stars | 1,874 |
| License | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript |
| Transport | stdio |
| Packages | docker: ghcr.io/aas-ee/open-web-search |
| Remote URL | none |
| Needs API key | no |
| Official | no |
| Works with | Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code |
| Category | AI & search |
| Latest release | v2.2.0 (Sep 28, 2026) |
| Last commit | Oct 8, 2026 |

## Install

### Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json)

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "open-websearch": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "-e",
        "MODE",
        "-e",
        "DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE",
        "-e",
        "ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES",
        "-e",
        "SYSTEMROOT",
        "ghcr.io/aas-ee/open-web-search"
      ],
      "env": {
        "MODE": "your-value",
        "DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE": "your-value",
        "ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES": "your-value",
        "SYSTEMROOT": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Settings > Developer > Edit Config. macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/, Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\. Restart Claude Desktop afterwards.

### Claude Code

```sh
claude mcp add --env MODE=your-value --env DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE=your-value --env ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES=your-value --env SYSTEMROOT=your-value --transport stdio open-websearch -- docker run -i --rm -e MODE -e DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE -e ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES -e SYSTEMROOT ghcr.io/aas-ee/open-web-search
```

### Cursor (.cursor/mcp.json)

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "open-websearch": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "-e",
        "MODE",
        "-e",
        "DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE",
        "-e",
        "ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES",
        "-e",
        "SYSTEMROOT",
        "ghcr.io/aas-ee/open-web-search"
      ],
      "env": {
        "MODE": "your-value",
        "DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE": "your-value",
        "ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES": "your-value",
        "SYSTEMROOT": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Project file; use ~/.cursor/mcp.json to enable it in every project.

### VS Code (.vscode/mcp.json)

```json
{
  "servers": {
    "open-websearch": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "-e",
        "MODE",
        "-e",
        "DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE",
        "-e",
        "ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES",
        "-e",
        "SYSTEMROOT",
        "ghcr.io/aas-ee/open-web-search"
      ],
      "env": {
        "MODE": "your-value",
        "DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE": "your-value",
        "ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES": "your-value",
        "SYSTEMROOT": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Config formats checked against the official docs on 2026-10-07.

## Environment variables

- `MODE`: Shown in the README's example configuration.
- `DEFAULT_SEARCH_ENGINE`: Shown in the README's example configuration.
- `ALLOWED_SEARCH_ENGINES`: Shown in the README's example configuration.
- `SYSTEMROOT`: Shown in the README's example configuration.

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