hermes-agent/agent/file_safety.py
Brian D. Evans 162c7856ca
fix(file-safety): add sandbox-mirror soft guard for writes to per-task .hermes mirrors (#32213)
#32049 reports that under terminal.backend: docker, write_file / patch
calls to authoritative profile state (SOUL.md, memories, etc.) land on
the sandbox-local mirror at
``<HERMES_HOME>/profiles/<name>/sandboxes/<backend>/<task>/home/.hermes/...``
— a path the host Hermes process never reads. The tool reports success,
the user sees no behavior change, and on disk two divergent copies of
SOUL.md (or any other profile file) accumulate.

The existing classify_cross_profile_target guard does not catch this:
its parts[2] check sees "sandboxes" and returns None, and the path is
in-profile from the inner-mirror perspective so even a fixed version
would not fire.

Add a parallel sandbox-mirror classifier in agent/file_safety:

  * classify_sandbox_mirror_target() detects the
    ``…/sandboxes/<backend>/<task>/home/.hermes/…`` shape via path parts.
    Detection is path-shape only — backend-agnostic, does not require
    the file to exist, and works regardless of which HERMES_HOME resolves.
  * get_sandbox_mirror_warning() returns a model-facing warning that
    names the mirror root and the inner authoritative path the agent
    likely meant.

Wire both detectors through tools/file_tools._check_cross_profile_path
so the existing write_file and v4a patch call sites pick up the new
guard with no API change. The bypass kwarg (``cross_profile=True``)
remains shared between the two guards — same "I know what I'm doing"
escape valve after explicit user direction.

This is the defense-in-depth piece of the proposal in #32049 ("any
…/sandboxes/<backend>/…/home/…hermes/… path as sandbox-mirror"). It
catches the host-side speculation case where the agent writes a literal
sandbox-mirror path. The inner-container case (where the bind mount
strips the ``sandboxes/`` prefix from the agent's path view) is out of
scope for this surgical change — that requires either a dispatch-layer
host-side check before the container handoff, or the host-side
``profile_state`` / ``soul`` tool the issue also proposes.

Soft guard, NOT a security boundary — matches the existing
classify_cross_profile_target contract.

Co-authored-by: briandevans <252620095+briandevans@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: Ben Barclay <ben@nousresearch.com>
2026-06-02 11:29:24 +10:00

563 lines
22 KiB
Python

"""Shared file safety rules used by both tools and ACP shims."""
from __future__ import annotations
import os
from pathlib import Path
from typing import Optional
def _hermes_home_path() -> Path:
"""Resolve the active HERMES_HOME (profile-aware) without circular imports."""
try:
from hermes_constants import get_hermes_home # local import to avoid cycles
return get_hermes_home()
except Exception:
return Path(os.path.expanduser("~/.hermes"))
def _hermes_root_path() -> Path:
"""Resolve the Hermes root dir (always the parent of any profile, never per-profile)."""
try:
from hermes_constants import get_default_hermes_root # local import to avoid cycles
return get_default_hermes_root()
except Exception:
return Path(os.path.expanduser("~/.hermes"))
def build_write_denied_paths(home: str) -> set[str]:
"""Return exact sensitive paths that must never be written."""
hermes_home = _hermes_home_path()
hermes_root = _hermes_root_path()
return {
os.path.realpath(p)
for p in [
os.path.join(home, ".ssh", "authorized_keys"),
os.path.join(home, ".ssh", "id_rsa"),
os.path.join(home, ".ssh", "id_ed25519"),
os.path.join(home, ".ssh", "config"),
# Active profile .env (or top-level .env when not in profile mode).
str(hermes_home / ".env"),
# Top-level .env, even when running under a profile — overwriting it
# leaks credentials across every profile that inherits from root (#15981).
str(hermes_root / ".env"),
# Active profile Anthropic PKCE credential store.
str(hermes_home / ".anthropic_oauth.json"),
# Top-level Anthropic PKCE credential store remains sensitive even
# when a profile is active; default/non-profile sessions still read it.
str(hermes_root / ".anthropic_oauth.json"),
os.path.join(home, ".bashrc"),
os.path.join(home, ".zshrc"),
os.path.join(home, ".profile"),
os.path.join(home, ".bash_profile"),
os.path.join(home, ".zprofile"),
os.path.join(home, ".netrc"),
os.path.join(home, ".pgpass"),
os.path.join(home, ".npmrc"),
os.path.join(home, ".pypirc"),
os.path.join(home, ".git-credentials"),
"/etc/sudoers",
"/etc/passwd",
"/etc/shadow",
]
}
def build_write_denied_prefixes(home: str) -> list[str]:
"""Return sensitive directory prefixes that must never be written."""
return [
os.path.realpath(p) + os.sep
for p in [
os.path.join(home, ".ssh"),
os.path.join(home, ".aws"),
os.path.join(home, ".gnupg"),
os.path.join(home, ".kube"),
"/etc/sudoers.d",
"/etc/systemd",
os.path.join(home, ".docker"),
os.path.join(home, ".azure"),
os.path.join(home, ".config", "gh"),
os.path.join(home, ".config", "gcloud"),
]
]
def get_safe_write_root() -> Optional[str]:
"""Return the resolved HERMES_WRITE_SAFE_ROOT path, or None if unset."""
root = os.getenv("HERMES_WRITE_SAFE_ROOT", "")
if not root:
return None
try:
return os.path.realpath(os.path.expanduser(root))
except Exception:
return None
def is_write_denied(path: str) -> bool:
"""Return True if path is blocked by the write denylist or safe root."""
home = os.path.realpath(os.path.expanduser("~"))
resolved = os.path.realpath(os.path.expanduser(str(path)))
if resolved in build_write_denied_paths(home):
return True
for prefix in build_write_denied_prefixes(home):
if resolved.startswith(prefix):
return True
# Hermes control-plane files: block both the ACTIVE profile's view
# (hermes_home) AND the global root view. Without the root pass, a
# profile-mode session leaves <root>/auth.json + <root>/config.yaml
# writable — letting a prompt-injected write_file overwrite the global
# files that every profile inherits from (same shape as #15981).
control_file_names = ("auth.json", "config.yaml", "webhook_subscriptions.json")
mcp_tokens_dir_name = "mcp-tokens"
hermes_dirs = []
for base in (_hermes_home_path(), _hermes_root_path()):
try:
real = os.path.realpath(base)
if real not in hermes_dirs:
hermes_dirs.append(real)
except Exception:
continue
for base_real in hermes_dirs:
for name in control_file_names:
try:
if resolved == os.path.realpath(os.path.join(base_real, name)):
return True
except Exception:
continue
try:
mcp_real = os.path.realpath(os.path.join(base_real, mcp_tokens_dir_name))
if resolved == mcp_real or resolved.startswith(mcp_real + os.sep):
return True
except Exception:
pass
try:
pairing_real = os.path.realpath(os.path.join(base_real, "pairing"))
if resolved == pairing_real or resolved.startswith(pairing_real + os.sep):
return True
except Exception:
pass
safe_root = get_safe_write_root()
if safe_root and not (resolved == safe_root or resolved.startswith(safe_root + os.sep)):
return True
return False
# Common secret-bearing project-local environment file basenames.
# These are blocked because .env files routinely contain API keys,
# database passwords, and other credentials.
_BLOCKED_PROJECT_ENV_BASENAMES: set[str] = {
".env",
".env.local",
".env.development",
".env.production",
".env.test",
".env.staging",
".envrc",
}
def get_read_block_error(path: str) -> Optional[str]:
"""Return an error message when a read targets a denied Hermes path.
Three categories are blocked:
* Internal Hermes cache files under ``HERMES_HOME/skills/.hub`` —
readable metadata that an attacker could use as a prompt-injection
carrier.
* Credential / secret stores under HERMES_HOME and the global Hermes
root: ``auth.json``, ``auth.lock``, ``.anthropic_oauth.json``,
``.env``, ``webhook_subscriptions.json``, ``auth/google_oauth.json``,
and anything under ``mcp-tokens/``. These hold plaintext provider keys,
OAuth tokens, and HMAC secrets that the agent never needs to read
directly — provider tools / gateway adapters consume them through
internal channels.
* Project-local environment files anywhere on disk: ``.env``,
``.env.local``, ``.env.development``, ``.env.production``,
``.env.test``, ``.env.staging``, ``.envrc``. These routinely hold
API keys, database passwords, and other credentials for the user's
own projects. The agent helping debug a project shouldn't normally
need to read these — ``.env.example`` is the documented-shape
substitute.
**This is NOT a security boundary.** The terminal tool runs as the
same OS user with shell access; the agent can still ``cat auth.json``
or ``cat ~/.hermes/.env`` and exfiltrate the file. The read-deny exists
as defense-in-depth that:
* Returns a clear error to models that respect tool denials, which
empirically prompts most modern models to stop rather than reach
for the shell.
* Surfaces a visible audit trail when something tries to read
credentials — easier to spot in logs than a generic ``cat``.
Treat any user-visible framing around this as "may help" rather than
"stops attackers." A determined model or malicious instruction can
always shell out.
Callers that resolve relative paths against a non-process cwd
(e.g. ``TERMINAL_CWD`` in ``tools/file_tools.py``) MUST pre-resolve
and pass the absolute path string. This function's own ``resolve()``
is anchored at the Python process cwd, so a relative input like
``"auth.json"`` would otherwise miss the denylist when the task's
terminal cwd differs from the process cwd.
"""
resolved = Path(path).expanduser().resolve()
# Resolve BOTH the active HERMES_HOME (profile-aware) AND the global
# Hermes root so credential stores at <root>/auth.json etc. are also
# blocked when running under a profile (HERMES_HOME points at
# <root>/profiles/<name> in profile mode). Same shape as the write
# deny widening (#15981, #14157).
hermes_dirs: list[Path] = []
for base in (_hermes_home_path(), _hermes_root_path()):
try:
real = base.resolve()
if real not in hermes_dirs:
hermes_dirs.append(real)
except Exception:
continue
# Skills .hub: prompt-injection carriers.
for hd in hermes_dirs:
blocked_dirs = [
hd / "skills" / ".hub" / "index-cache",
hd / "skills" / ".hub",
]
for blocked in blocked_dirs:
try:
resolved.relative_to(blocked)
except ValueError:
continue
return (
f"Access denied: {path} is an internal Hermes cache file "
"and cannot be read directly to prevent prompt injection. "
"Use the skills_list or skill_view tools instead."
)
# Credential / secret stores. Exact-file matches under either
# HERMES_HOME or <root>.
credential_file_names = (
"auth.json",
"auth.lock",
".anthropic_oauth.json",
".env",
"webhook_subscriptions.json",
os.path.join("auth", "google_oauth.json"),
# Bitwarden Secrets Manager disk cache: stores plaintext secret values
# to avoid re-fetching across back-to-back CLI invocations. The file
# was introduced by #31968 but not added to this guard.
os.path.join("cache", "bws_cache.json"),
)
for hd in hermes_dirs:
for name in credential_file_names:
try:
blocked = (hd / name).resolve()
except Exception:
continue
if resolved == blocked:
return (
f"Access denied: {path} is a Hermes credential store "
"and cannot be read directly. Provider tools consume "
"these credentials through internal channels. "
"(Defense-in-depth — not a security boundary; the "
"terminal tool can still bypass.)"
)
# mcp-tokens/: directory prefix match — anything inside is OAuth
# token material.
for hd in hermes_dirs:
try:
mcp_tokens = (hd / "mcp-tokens").resolve()
except Exception:
continue
if resolved == mcp_tokens:
return (
f"Access denied: {path} is the Hermes MCP token directory "
"and cannot be read directly. (Defense-in-depth — not a "
"security boundary; the terminal tool can still bypass.)"
)
try:
resolved.relative_to(mcp_tokens)
except ValueError:
continue
return (
f"Access denied: {path} is a Hermes MCP token file "
"and cannot be read directly. (Defense-in-depth — not a "
"security boundary; the terminal tool can still bypass.)"
)
# Block common secret-bearing project-local .env files anywhere on disk.
# The agent helping a user with their project rarely needs to read raw
# .env contents — .env.example is the documented-shape substitute. The
# terminal tool can still ``cat .env``; this is defense-in-depth, not a
# boundary (see module docstring).
if resolved.name in _BLOCKED_PROJECT_ENV_BASENAMES:
return (
f"Access denied: {path} is a secret-bearing environment file "
"and cannot be read to prevent credential leakage. "
"If you need to check the file structure, read .env.example instead. "
"(Defense-in-depth — not a security boundary; the terminal tool can still bypass.)"
)
return None
# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
# Cross-profile write guard (#TBD)
#
# Hermes profiles are separate HERMES_HOME dirs under
# ``<root>/profiles/<name>/``. Each profile has its own skills/, plugins/,
# cron/, memories/. When an agent runs under one profile, writing into
# ANOTHER profile's directories is almost always wrong — those skills /
# plugins / cron jobs / memories affect a different session the user runs
# from a different shell.
#
# Soft guard, NOT a security boundary: the agent runs as the same OS user
# and has unrestricted terminal access, so this returns a warning the model
# can choose to honor or override with ``cross_profile=True``. Same shape
# as the dangerous-command approval flow — the agent is told the boundary
# exists, and explicit user direction is required to cross it.
#
# Reference: May 2026 incident where a hermes-security profile session
# edited skills under both ``~/.hermes/profiles/hermes-security/skills/``
# AND ``~/.hermes/skills/`` (the default profile's skills) without realizing
# the second path belonged to a different profile.
# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
# Profile-scoped directories under HERMES_HOME / <root> / <root>/profiles/<X>/
# that should be guarded. Adding a new area here extends the guard with no
# other code change.
PROFILE_SCOPED_AREAS = ("skills", "plugins", "cron", "memories")
def _resolve_active_profile_name() -> str:
"""Return the active profile name derived from HERMES_HOME.
``~/.hermes`` -> ``"default"``
``~/.hermes/profiles/X`` -> ``"X"``
Falls back to ``"default"`` on any resolution failure so the guard
never raises into the tool path.
"""
try:
home_real = _hermes_home_path().resolve()
root_real = _hermes_root_path().resolve()
except (OSError, RuntimeError):
return "default"
profiles_dir = root_real / "profiles"
try:
rel = home_real.relative_to(profiles_dir)
parts = rel.parts
if len(parts) >= 1:
return parts[0]
except ValueError:
pass
return "default"
def classify_cross_profile_target(path: str) -> Optional[dict]:
"""Classify a write target as cross-profile if it lands in another
profile's scoped area (skills/plugins/cron/memories).
Returns ``None`` when the target is outside Hermes scope, or is inside
the ACTIVE profile, or doesn't hit a profile-scoped area. Otherwise
returns a dict with:
* ``active_profile``: name of the profile the agent is running as
* ``target_profile``: name of the profile the path belongs to
* ``area``: which scoped area (``"skills"``, ``"plugins"``, etc.)
* ``target_path``: the resolved path string
The caller decides what to do with the result — surface a warning to
the model, prompt the user, or (with explicit consent /
``cross_profile=True``) proceed anyway.
"""
try:
target = Path(os.path.expanduser(str(path))).resolve()
root_real = _hermes_root_path().resolve()
except (OSError, RuntimeError):
return None
target_profile: Optional[str] = None
area: Optional[str] = None
try:
rel = target.relative_to(root_real)
except ValueError:
return None
parts = rel.parts
if not parts:
return None
if parts[0] in PROFILE_SCOPED_AREAS:
# ``<root>/<area>/...`` → default profile.
target_profile = "default"
area = parts[0]
elif (
parts[0] == "profiles"
and len(parts) >= 3
and parts[2] in PROFILE_SCOPED_AREAS
):
# ``<root>/profiles/<name>/<area>/...`` → named profile.
target_profile = parts[1]
area = parts[2]
else:
return None
active_profile = _resolve_active_profile_name()
if target_profile == active_profile:
# In-profile write — not a cross-profile event.
return None
return {
"active_profile": active_profile,
"target_profile": target_profile,
"area": area,
"target_path": str(target),
}
def get_cross_profile_warning(path: str) -> Optional[str]:
"""Return a model-facing warning string when ``path`` is cross-profile.
Returns ``None`` when the write is in-scope (same profile) or outside
Hermes entirely. Caller is expected to surface the warning to the
agent as a tool-result error, NOT to silently allow the write — the
agent must either get explicit user direction to proceed, or pass
``cross_profile=True`` to its write tool.
This is defense-in-depth: the terminal tool runs as the same OS user
and can write any of these paths without going through this guard.
Treat the guard as a confusion-reducer, not a security boundary.
"""
info = classify_cross_profile_target(path)
if info is None:
return None
return (
f"Cross-profile write blocked by soft guard: {info['target_path']} "
f"belongs to Hermes profile {info['target_profile']!r}, but the "
f"agent is running under profile {info['active_profile']!r}. "
f"Editing another profile's {info['area']}/ will affect that "
f"profile's future sessions, not the one you are currently in. "
f"Confirm with the user before proceeding. To bypass this guard "
f"after explicit user direction, retry the call with "
f"``cross_profile=True``. (Defense-in-depth — not a security "
f"boundary; the terminal tool can still bypass.)"
)
# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
# Sandbox-mirror write guard (#32049)
#
# Non-local terminal backends (Docker, Daytona, etc.) bind a sandbox-local
# directory to the container's ``$HOME``. The on-disk layout looks like
#
# <HERMES_HOME>/profiles/<name>/sandboxes/<backend>/<task>/home/.hermes/...
#
# When the agent (running host-side) speculates that authoritative profile
# state lives at one of those sandbox-mirror paths, the write lands on the
# mirror — never read by the host process — while the host file is left
# untouched. The agent reports success, the user sees no change, and on
# disk two divergent copies accumulate. See #32049 for evidence.
#
# This guard is path-shape-only: it detects the
# ``…/sandboxes/<backend>/<task>/home/.hermes/…`` segment and warns
# regardless of which Hermes profile is active. It does NOT cover the
# inner-container case where the bind mount strips the ``sandboxes/`` prefix
# (the agent's view inside the container is plain ``/root/.hermes/...``);
# that case needs a separate dispatch-layer or host-side ``profile_state``
# tool.
# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
def _find_sandbox_mirror_segments(parts: tuple) -> Optional[int]:
"""Return the index of the inner ``.hermes`` part in a sandbox-mirror path.
Matches ``…/sandboxes/<backend>/<task>/home/.hermes/…`` and returns the
index where the inner Hermes-state portion starts. Returns ``None`` for
paths that do not contain the sandbox-mirror shape.
"""
for i, part in enumerate(parts):
if part != "sandboxes":
continue
# Need at least: sandboxes / <backend> / <task> / home / .hermes / <thing>
if i + 5 >= len(parts):
continue
if parts[i + 3] == "home" and parts[i + 4] == ".hermes":
return i + 4
return None
def classify_sandbox_mirror_target(path: str) -> Optional[dict]:
"""Classify a write target as a sandbox-mirror of authoritative Hermes state.
Returns ``None`` when the path does not match the sandbox-mirror shape.
Otherwise returns a dict with:
* ``target_path``: the resolved path string
* ``mirror_root``: the ``…/sandboxes/<backend>/<task>/home/.hermes``
prefix (so callers can show users which sandbox owns the mirror)
* ``inner_path``: the portion under the mirror's ``.hermes`` (what the
agent likely meant to address on the host)
Detection is path-shape-only — does not require any Hermes resolver to
succeed, so it works correctly even when called from contexts where
HERMES_HOME resolution would be ambiguous.
"""
try:
target = Path(os.path.expanduser(str(path))).resolve()
except (OSError, RuntimeError):
return None
parts = target.parts
inner_idx = _find_sandbox_mirror_segments(parts)
if inner_idx is None:
return None
mirror_root = str(Path(*parts[: inner_idx + 1]))
inner_path = str(Path(*parts[inner_idx + 1 :])) if inner_idx + 1 < len(parts) else ""
return {
"target_path": str(target),
"mirror_root": mirror_root,
"inner_path": inner_path,
}
def get_sandbox_mirror_warning(path: str) -> Optional[str]:
"""Return a model-facing warning when ``path`` lands in a sandbox mirror.
Returns ``None`` when the path is not a sandbox-mirror target. Caller
is expected to surface the warning to the agent as a tool-result
error. The bypass kwarg (``cross_profile=True``) is shared with the
cross-profile guard: both are soft "I know what I'm doing" overrides
a user can authorise.
Defense-in-depth, NOT a security boundary: the terminal tool runs as
the same OS user and can write the mirror path directly. The guard
exists to surface the misclassification before the silent-success +
divergent-copy footgun in #32049 fires.
"""
info = classify_sandbox_mirror_target(path)
if info is None:
return None
return (
f"Sandbox-mirror write blocked by soft guard: {info['target_path']} "
f"sits under {info['mirror_root']!r}, which is a per-task mirror "
f"created by a non-local terminal backend (docker/daytona/etc.). "
f"Writes here land on a copy that the host Hermes process never "
f"reads — the authoritative file is likely {info['inner_path']!r} "
f"under the real HERMES_HOME. Use the host-side tool for "
f"authoritative state (e.g. ``memory`` for memories), or address "
f"the host path directly. To bypass this guard after explicit "
f"user direction, retry the call with ``cross_profile=True``. "
f"(Defense-in-depth — not a security boundary; the terminal tool "
f"can still bypass.)"
)