* feat(skills): inject absolute skill dir and expand ${HERMES_SKILL_DIR} templates
When a skill loads, the activation message now exposes the absolute
skill directory and substitutes ${HERMES_SKILL_DIR} /
${HERMES_SESSION_ID} tokens in the SKILL.md body, so skills with
bundled scripts can instruct the agent to run them by absolute path
without an extra skill_view round-trip.
Also adds opt-in inline-shell expansion: !`cmd` snippets in SKILL.md
are pre-executed (with the skill directory as CWD) and their stdout is
inlined into the message before the agent reads it. Off by default —
enable via skills.inline_shell in config.yaml — because any snippet
runs on the host without approval.
Changes:
- agent/skill_commands.py: template substitution, inline-shell
expansion, absolute skill-dir header, supporting-files list now
shows both relative and absolute forms.
- hermes_cli/config.py: new skills.template_vars,
skills.inline_shell, skills.inline_shell_timeout knobs.
- tests/agent/test_skill_commands.py: coverage for header, both
template tokens (present and missing session id), template_vars
disable, inline-shell default-off, enabled, CWD, and timeout.
- website/docs/developer-guide/creating-skills.md: documents the
template tokens, the absolute-path header, and the opt-in inline
shell with its security caveat.
Validation: tests/agent/ 1591 passed (includes 9 new tests).
E2E: loaded a real skill in an isolated HERMES_HOME; confirmed
${HERMES_SKILL_DIR} resolves to the absolute path, ${HERMES_SESSION_ID}
resolves to the passed task_id, !`date` runs when opt-in is set, and
stays literal when it isn't.
* feat(terminal): source ~/.bashrc (and user-listed init files) into session snapshot
bash login shells don't source ~/.bashrc, so tools that install themselves
there — nvm, asdf, pyenv, cargo, custom PATH exports — stay invisible to
the environment snapshot Hermes builds once per session. Under systemd
or any context with a minimal parent env, that surfaces as
'node: command not found' in the terminal tool even though the binary
is reachable from every interactive shell on the machine.
Changes:
- tools/environments/local.py: before the login-shell snapshot bootstrap
runs, prepend guarded 'source <file>' lines for each resolved init
file. Missing files are skipped, each source is wrapped with a
'[ -r ... ] && . ... || true' guard so a broken rc can't abort the
bootstrap.
- hermes_cli/config.py: new terminal.shell_init_files (explicit list,
supports ~ and ${VAR}) and terminal.auto_source_bashrc (default on)
knobs. When shell_init_files is set it takes precedence; when it's
empty and auto_source_bashrc is on, ~/.bashrc gets auto-sourced.
- tests/tools/test_local_shell_init.py: 10 tests covering the resolver
(auto-bashrc, missing file, explicit override, ~/${VAR} expansion,
opt-out) and the prelude builder (quoting, guarded sourcing), plus
a real-LocalEnvironment snapshot test that confirms exports in the
init file land in subsequent commands' environment.
- website/docs/reference/faq.md: documents the fix in Troubleshooting,
including the zsh-user pattern of sourcing ~/.zshrc or nvm.sh
directly via shell_init_files.
Validation: 10/10 new tests pass; tests/tools/test_local_*.py 40/40
pass; tests/agent/ 1591/1591 pass; tests/hermes_cli/test_config.py
50/50 pass. E2E in an isolated HERMES_HOME: confirmed that a fake
~/.bashrc setting a marker var and PATH addition shows up in a real
LocalEnvironment().execute() call, that auto_source_bashrc=false
suppresses it, that an explicit shell_init_files entry wins over the
auto default, and that a missing bashrc is silently skipped.
llm-wiki was the only shipped skill using metadata.hermes.config, which
caused 'hermes update' and 'hermes config migrate' to prompt for a wiki
directory on every run — even for users who have never touched the skill
— because 'enabled' is opt-out (all shipped skills count as enabled unless
explicitly disabled). Declining the prompt didn't persist anything, so
the nag fired again on every update.
Switch llm-wiki to the env var + runtime default pattern that obsidian and
google-workspace already use: WIKI_PATH env var, default $HOME/wiki. No
prompting infrastructure, no config.yaml touch, no nag loop.
Changes:
- skills/research/llm-wiki/SKILL.md: remove metadata.hermes.config,
document WIKI_PATH env var in the Wiki Location section, update the
orientation snippet and initialization guidance.
- Docs: replace llm-wiki's wiki.path examples with a generic 'myplugin.path'
placeholder across configuration.md, features/skills.md, and
creating-skills.md so users don't try to set skills.config.wiki.path
expecting llm-wiki to use it.
- skills-catalog.md: mention WIKI_PATH instead of skills.config.wiki.path.
E2E verified: discover_all_skill_config_vars() and get_missing_skill_config_vars()
both return 0 entries after this change, so the prompt branch in migrate_config()
no longer fires.
The metadata.hermes.config feature stays in place for third-party skills
that genuinely need structured config, but built-ins now prefer env vars.
Skills can now declare config.yaml settings via metadata.hermes.config
in their SKILL.md frontmatter. Values are stored under skills.config.*
namespace, prompted during hermes config migrate, shown in hermes config
show, and injected into the skill context at load time.
Also adds the llm-wiki skill (Karpathy's LLM Wiki pattern) as the first
skill to use the new config interface, declaring wiki.path.
Skill config interface (new):
- agent/skill_utils.py: extract_skill_config_vars(), discover_all_skill_config_vars(),
resolve_skill_config_values(), SKILL_CONFIG_PREFIX
- agent/skill_commands.py: _inject_skill_config() injects resolved values
into skill messages as [Skill config: ...] block
- hermes_cli/config.py: get_missing_skill_config_vars(), skill config
prompting in migrate_config(), Skill Settings in show_config()
LLM Wiki skill (skills/research/llm-wiki/SKILL.md):
- Three-layer architecture (raw sources, wiki pages, schema)
- Three operations (ingest, query, lint)
- Session orientation, page thresholds, tag taxonomy, update policy,
scaling guidance, log rotation, archiving workflow
Docs: creating-skills.md, configuration.md, skills.md, skills-catalog.md
Closes#5100
Three docs pages updated:
- security.md: New 'Credential File Passthrough' section, updated
sandbox filter table to include Docker/Modal rows, added info box
about Docker env_passthrough merge
- creating-skills.md: New 'Credential File Requirements' section
with frontmatter examples and guidance on when to use env vars
vs credential files
- environment-variables.md: Updated TERMINAL_DOCKER_FORWARD_ENV
description to note auto-passthrough from skills
New documentation for features that existed in code but had no docs:
New page:
- context-references.md: Full docs for @-syntax inline context
injection (@file:, @folder:, @diff, @staged, @git:, @url:) with
line ranges, CLI autocomplete, size limits, sensitive path blocking,
and error handling
configuration.md additions:
- Environment variable substitution: ${VAR_NAME} syntax in config.yaml
with expansion, fallback, and multi-reference support
- Gateway streaming: Progressive token delivery on messaging platforms
via message editing (StreamingConfig: enabled, transport, edit_interval,
buffer_threshold, cursor) with platform support matrix
- Web search backends: Three providers (Firecrawl, Parallel, Tavily)
with web.backend config key, capability matrix, auto-detection from
API keys, self-hosted Firecrawl, and Parallel search modes
security.md additions:
- SSRF protection: Always-on URL validation blocking private networks,
loopback, link-local, CGNAT, cloud metadata hostnames, with
fail-closed DNS and redirect chain re-validation
- Tirith pre-exec security scanning: Content-level command scanning
for homograph URLs, pipe-to-interpreter, terminal injection with
auto-install, SHA-256/cosign verification, config options, and
fail-open/fail-closed modes
sessions.md addition:
- Auto-generated session titles: Background LLM-powered title
generation after first exchange
creating-skills.md additions:
- Conditional skill activation: requires_toolsets, requires_tools,
fallback_for_toolsets, fallback_for_tools frontmatter fields with
matching logic and use cases
- Environment variable requirements: required_environment_variables
frontmatter for automatic env passthrough to sandboxed execution,
plus terminal.env_passthrough user config
* feat: env var passthrough for skills and user config
Skills that declare required_environment_variables now have those vars
passed through to sandboxed execution environments (execute_code and
terminal). Previously, execute_code stripped all vars containing KEY,
TOKEN, SECRET, etc. and the terminal blocklist removed Hermes
infrastructure vars — both blocked skill-declared env vars.
Two passthrough sources:
1. Skill-scoped (automatic): when a skill is loaded via skill_view and
declares required_environment_variables, vars that are present in
the environment are registered in a session-scoped passthrough set.
2. Config-based (manual): terminal.env_passthrough in config.yaml lets
users explicitly allowlist vars for non-skill use cases.
Changes:
- New module: tools/env_passthrough.py — shared passthrough registry
- hermes_cli/config.py: add terminal.env_passthrough to DEFAULT_CONFIG
- tools/skills_tool.py: register available skill env vars on load
- tools/code_execution_tool.py: check passthrough before filtering
- tools/environments/local.py: check passthrough in _sanitize_subprocess_env
and _make_run_env
- 19 new tests covering all layers
* docs: add environment variable passthrough documentation
Document the env var passthrough feature across four docs pages:
- security.md: new 'Environment Variable Passthrough' section with
full explanation, comparison table, and security considerations
- code-execution.md: update security section, add passthrough subsection,
fix comparison table
- creating-skills.md: add tip about automatic sandbox passthrough
- skills.md: add note about passthrough after secure setup docs
Live-tested: launched interactive CLI, loaded a skill with
required_environment_variables, verified TEST_SKILL_SECRET_KEY was
accessible inside execute_code sandbox (value: passthrough-test-value-42).
Document the expanded skills hub functionality, including:
- skills.sh source usage
- well-known endpoint discovery
- check/update commands
- real install/inspect examples
- accurate --force semantics and trust policy behavior
Also verified the docs site with a successful Docusaurus production build.
When a skill declares required_environment_variables in its YAML
frontmatter, missing env vars trigger a secure TUI prompt (identical
to the sudo password widget) when the skill is loaded. Secrets flow
directly to ~/.hermes/.env, never entering LLM context.
Key changes:
- New required_environment_variables frontmatter field for skills
- Secure TUI widget (masked input, 120s timeout)
- Gateway safety: messaging platforms show local setup guidance
- Legacy prerequisites.env_vars normalized into new format
- Remote backend handling: conservative setup_needed=True
- Env var name validation, file permissions hardened to 0o600
- Redact patterns extended for secret-related JSON fields
- 12 existing skills updated with prerequisites declarations
- ~48 new tests covering skip, timeout, gateway, remote backends
- Dynamic panel widget sizing (fixes hardcoded width from original PR)
Cherry-picked from PR #723 by kshitijk4poor, rebased onto current main
with conflict resolution.
Fixes#688
Co-authored-by: kshitijk4poor <kshitijk4poor@users.noreply.github.com>
Add a 'platforms' field to SKILL.md frontmatter that restricts skills
to specific operating systems. Skills with platforms: [macos] only
appear in the system prompt, skills_list(), and slash commands on macOS.
Skills without the field load everywhere (backward compatible).
Implementation:
- skill_matches_platform() in tools/skills_tool.py — core filter
- Wired into all 3 discovery paths: prompt_builder.py, skills_tool.py,
skill_commands.py
- 28 new tests across 3 test files
New bundled Apple/macOS skills (all platforms: [macos]):
- imessage — Send/receive iMessages via imsg CLI
- apple-reminders — Manage Reminders via remindctl CLI
- apple-notes — Manage Notes via memo CLI
- findmy — Track devices/AirTags via AppleScript + screen capture
Docs updated: CONTRIBUTING.md, AGENTS.md, creating-skills.md,
skills.md (user guide)
- 25 documentation pages covering Getting Started, User Guide, Developer Guide, and Reference
- Docusaurus with custom amber/gold theme matching the landing page branding
- GitHub Actions workflow to deploy landing page + docs to GitHub Pages
- Landing page at root, docs at /docs/ on hermes-agent.nousresearch.com
- Content extracted and restructured from existing repo docs (README, AGENTS.md, CONTRIBUTING.md, docs/)
- Auto-deploy on push to main when website/ or landingpage/ changes
