The Version Story plugin gives Claude the same comparison engine as the MCP server — compare, merge, combine, and version history — but it runs inside Claude rather than being called across the network, and it is faster because the plugin's own scripts orchestrate the work.
| Runs | Locally, inside Claude Desktop and Claude Cowork sessions |
| Download | version-story-mcp-plugin.plugin |
| Auth | OAuth sign-in to a Version Story account, handled by the plugin |
| Ships | A bundled MCP server plus a /compare skill |
Why it is faster
With the hosted MCP server, the agent carries out the whole workflow itself: stage the work,
PUT each file, call a wait tool, call it again, fetch the download manifest, fetch each file.
Every one of those steps is a model turn, and every document byte travels through the agent's
own HTTP calls.
The plugin collapses that. Its tools are scripts, so a single tool call runs the staging, transfers, waiting, and downloads end to end on the user's machine. The model makes a handful of calls instead of a dozen, and reads none of the file bytes.
The plugin also reads documents straight off the disk — including synced Dropbox, Box, OneDrive, and Google Drive folders — so nothing has to be attached to the conversation first, and finished redlines are written back into a folder the user already has open.
How it works
- Install. The user uploads the
.pluginfile in Claude's plugin settings. Claude starts the bundled MCP server as a local process and registers its tools and the/compareskill. See the Claude installation guide. - Sign in. The first tool call that needs an account triggers
sign_in. On a desktop machine the plugin opens the browser itself; in a cloud session it hands back a sign-in link and takes the redirect address throughcomplete_sign_in. - Prepare.
prepare_documentsresolves the paths the user named, confirming the files exist and are formats the engine handles. - Run.
create_redlines— orcreate_merged_document,create_version_history_document— stages the work with Version Story, uploads the sources, waits for the engine, and downloads the artifacts, all within the one call. - Save.
save_redlineswrites the finished files where the user wants them, and the result carries the interactive redline URL for viewing the tracked changes in the Version Story app.
Because the plugin performs its own transfers from its own process, no network egress allowlist is involved on the user's machine. That setting applies to the connector, which is covered in the MCP server installation guide.
Plugin or connector
They coexist. Where both are present Claude merges them into one tool set and reaches for the plugin, because it is the shorter path to the same comparison.
| Plugin | Connector (MCP server) | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Claude Desktop, Claude Cowork | Any Claude surface, any device |
| Source documents | Files on the user's computer | Files uploaded to the conversation |
| Orchestration | The plugin's scripts | The agent, call by call |
| Network allowlist | Not needed | *.versionstory.com required |
The connector remains the fallback for plain Claude Chat, where the plugin does not run.
Updating
From version 0.14.0 the plugin checks for a newer release when it starts and walks the user
through installing it. Uploading a newer .plugin file with the same name replaces the
installed version — no need to remove the old one first.