Open-source Google Drive (Workspace MCP) MCP alternatives
The Google Workspace MCP scoped to Drive is open source, so you can read what it does before granting it access: search files, read content, create files and folders, and import into Docs, Slides, and Sheets. The catch is that it still talks to Google's API, so the workspace itself stays closed even when the client is open.
Every server below publishes its source too. That matters when you need to vet which API calls an agent can make against your files, pin a version you trust, or patch behaviour yourself instead of waiting on a vendor.
The 8 best open-source alternatives
Nextcloud is open source end to end, server and platform, and its community MCP server reaches files, notes, calendar, contacts, tables, deck, and talk across 110+ tools. You can read the repo and host the whole stack yourself.
Set up Nextcloud →MinIO publishes its server and runs S3-style object storage you operate: browse buckets, read and write objects, manage tags and versioning, and ask AI questions about stored objects, all inspectable in source.
Set up MinIO →- BoxOfficial
Box's server is open source even though the product is hosted: search, read, organize, and run Box AI over your content via OAuth, with code you can audit before wiring it in.
Set up Box → Open and CLI-driven, the AWS Labs server runs any AWS CLI command with validation and a read-only mode, reaching S3 and the rest of AWS from a repo you can read.
Set up AWS (AWS Labs) →For editable pages rather than raw files, Notion's server is open source and searches, reads, and writes across a workspace over OAuth, with source you can confirm the scope of.
Set up Notion →Cloudflare publishes its remote server code, which reaches R2 object storage alongside Workers, KV, and D1, so you can see exactly which APIs the agent can touch.
Set up Cloudflare →When files live in chat, the community Slack server is open source and reads history, DMs, and search without a workspace bot, its code there to inspect before use.
Set up Slack →Doist's official Todoist server is open source and focused on tasks: create, find, update, and complete tasks, projects, labels, and reminders, useful when a Drive folder is standing in for a checklist.
Set up Todoist →
How to choose
Among the open-source options, Nextcloud and MinIO let you run and audit the whole storage stack rather than only the client. Box, AWS, and Cloudflare publish their servers while keeping the storage hosted. If your files are really docs or tasks, Notion and Todoist fit, and Slack covers files shared in chat. Whichever you pick, read the repo before granting write access.
FAQ
- Is the Google Drive MCP server open source?
- Yes, the Google Workspace MCP scoped to Drive publishes its source, so you can audit which API calls it makes. The underlying storage is still Google Drive, reached over its API, so the product itself stays closed even though the client is open.
- Which open-source alternative lets me self-host the storage too?
- Nextcloud and MinIO. Both publish their code and run on your own infrastructure, so the storage and the server are under your control. Box, AWS, and Cloudflare publish the server but keep the storage on their hosted platforms.