diff --git a/website/docs/guides/cron-troubleshooting.md b/website/docs/guides/cron-troubleshooting.md index 73739defb5..27a7db33ef 100644 --- a/website/docs/guides/cron-troubleshooting.md +++ b/website/docs/guides/cron-troubleshooting.md @@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ When a cron job isn't behaving as expected, work through these checks in order. hermes cron list ``` -Look for the job and confirm its state is `scheduled` (not `paused` or `completed`). If it shows `completed`, the repeat count may be exhausted — edit the job to reset it. +Look for the job and confirm its state is `[active]` (not `[paused]` or `[completed]`). If it shows `[completed]`, the repeat count may be exhausted — edit the job to reset it. ### Check 2: Confirm the schedule is correct @@ -34,13 +34,11 @@ A misformatted schedule silently defaults to one-shot or is rejected entirely. T If the job fires once and then disappears from the list, it's a one-shot schedule (`30m`, `1d`, or an ISO timestamp) — expected behavior. -### Check 3: Is the gateway or CLI actually running? +### Check 3: Is the gateway running? -Cron ticks are delivered by: -- **Gateway mode**: the long-running gateway process ticking every 60 seconds -- **CLI mode**: only when you run `hermes cron` commands or have an active CLI session +Cron jobs are fired by the gateway's background ticker thread, which ticks every 60 seconds. A regular CLI chat session does **not** automatically fire cron jobs. -If you're expecting jobs to fire automatically, use gateway mode (`hermes gateway` or `hermes serve`). A CLI session that exits will stop cron scheduling. +If you're expecting jobs to fire automatically, you need a running gateway (`hermes gateway` or `hermes serve`). For one-off debugging, you can manually trigger a tick with `hermes cron tick`. ### Check 4: Check the system clock and timezone @@ -64,8 +62,15 @@ Delivery targets are case-sensitive and require the correct platform to be confi | `telegram` | `TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN` in `~/.hermes/.env` | | `discord` | `DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN` in `~/.hermes/.env` | | `slack` | `SLACK_BOT_TOKEN` in `~/.hermes/.env` | +| `whatsapp` | WhatsApp gateway configured | +| `signal` | Signal gateway configured | +| `matrix` | Matrix homeserver configured | | `email` | SMTP configured in `config.yaml` | +| `sms` | SMS provider configured | | `local` | Write access to `~/.hermes/cron/output/` | +| `origin` | Delivers to the chat where the job was created | + +Other supported platforms include `mattermost`, `homeassistant`, `dingtalk`, `feishu`, `wecom`, `bluebubbles`, and `webhook`. You can also target a specific chat with `platform:chat_id` syntax (e.g., `telegram:-1001234567890`). If delivery fails, the job still runs — it just won't send anywhere. Check `hermes cron list` for updated `last_error` field (if available). @@ -110,7 +115,7 @@ Skill names are case-sensitive and must match the installed skill's folder name. ### Check 3: Skills that require interactive tools -Cron jobs run with the `cronjob` toolset disabled (recursion guard). If a skill requires browser automation, code execution, or other interactive tools, the job will fail at execution time. +Cron jobs run with the `cronjob`, `messaging`, and `clarify` toolsets disabled. This prevents recursive cron creation, direct message sending (delivery is handled by the scheduler), and interactive prompts. If a skill relies on these toolsets, it won't work in a cron context. Check the skill's documentation to confirm it works in non-interactive (headless) mode. @@ -133,7 +138,7 @@ In this example, `context-skill` loads before `target-skill`. If a job ran and failed, you may see error context in: 1. The chat where the job delivers (if delivery succeeded) -2. `~/.hermes/logs/` for scheduler logs +2. `~/.hermes/logs/agent.log` for scheduler messages (or `errors.log` for warnings) 3. The job's `last_run` metadata via `hermes cron list` ### Check 2: Common error patterns @@ -146,13 +151,13 @@ hermes cron edit --script ~/.hermes/scripts/your-script.py ``` **"Skill not found" at job execution** -The skill must be installed on the machine running the scheduler. If you move between machines, skills don't automatically sync. Run `hermes skills sync` or reinstall. +The skill must be installed on the machine running the scheduler. If you move between machines, skills don't automatically sync — reinstall them with `hermes skills install `. **Job runs but delivers nothing** Likely a delivery target issue (see Delivery Failures above) or a silently suppressed response (`[SILENT]`). **Job hangs or times out** -The scheduler has a default execution timeout. Long-running jobs should use scripts to handle collection and deliver only the result — don't let the agent run unbounded loops. +The scheduler uses an inactivity-based timeout (default 600s, configurable via `HERMES_CRON_TIMEOUT` env var, `0` for unlimited). The agent can run as long as it's actively calling tools — the timer only fires after sustained inactivity. Long-running jobs should use scripts to handle data collection and deliver only the result. ### Check 3: Lock contention @@ -181,9 +186,9 @@ chmod 600 ~/.hermes/cron/jobs.json # Your user should own it Each cron job creates a fresh AIAgent session, which may involve provider authentication and model loading. For time-sensitive schedules, add buffer time (e.g., `0 8 * * *` instead of `0 9 * * *`). -### Too many concurrent jobs +### Too many overlapping jobs -The default thread pool allows limited concurrent job execution. If you have many overlapping jobs, they queue up. Consider staggering schedules or splitting high-frequency jobs across different time windows. +The scheduler executes jobs sequentially within each tick. If multiple jobs are due at the same time, they run one after another. Consider staggering schedules (e.g., `0 9 * * *` and `5 9 * * *` instead of both at `0 9 * * *`) to avoid delays. ### Large script output @@ -195,7 +200,7 @@ Scripts that dump megabytes of output will slow down the agent and may hit token ```bash hermes cron list # Show all jobs, states, next_run times -hermes cron run # Trigger immediate execution (for testing) +hermes cron run # Schedule for next tick (for testing) hermes cron edit # Fix configuration issues hermes logs # View recent Hermes logs hermes skills list # Verify installed skills @@ -207,8 +212,8 @@ hermes skills list # Verify installed skills If you've worked through this guide and the issue persists: -1. Run the job immediately with `hermes cron run ` and watch for errors in the chat output -2. Check `~/.hermes/logs/scheduler.log` (if logging is enabled) +1. Run the job with `hermes cron run ` (fires on next gateway tick) and watch for errors in the chat output +2. Check `~/.hermes/logs/agent.log` for scheduler messages and `~/.hermes/logs/errors.log` for warnings 3. Open an issue at [github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent) with: - The job ID and schedule - The delivery target diff --git a/website/sidebars.ts b/website/sidebars.ts index 720ccafd52..a8fb0b6b8b 100644 --- a/website/sidebars.ts +++ b/website/sidebars.ts @@ -143,6 +143,7 @@ const sidebars: SidebarsConfig = { 'guides/use-voice-mode-with-hermes', 'guides/build-a-hermes-plugin', 'guides/automate-with-cron', + 'guides/cron-troubleshooting', 'guides/work-with-skills', 'guides/delegation-patterns', 'guides/migrate-from-openclaw',