* feat(desktop): session hygiene, archive, media streaming + connecting overlay
Address a batch of desktop feedback:
- Stop leaking empty "Untitled" sessions: the TUI gateway pre-created a DB
row on every session.create (i.e. every launch/draft). Persist the row
lazily on first prompt instead, and hide message-less rows in the sidebar.
- Archive/hide sessions: new `archived` column + set_session_archived, web
API (`?archived=` + PATCH archived), Ctrl/⌘-click and a context-menu item
in the sidebar, and an "Archived Chats" settings panel to restore/delete.
- Videos load via a streaming `hermes-media://` protocol instead of capped,
in-memory data URLs (16 MB limit) — bypasses the cap and supports seeking.
- Background-process completions route to the session that launched them:
the completion event now carries session_key and each poller only consumes
its own.
- Sidebar: "Group by workspace" toggle is always visible; each workspace
group gets a "+" to start a session in that directory; "New agent"/"Agents"
relabeled to "New session"/"Sessions".
- New gateway connecting overlay (ascii decode → fade out) replacing the bare
skeleton/"starting gateway" state.
* fix(desktop): bail connecting overlay on boot error
The shownRef latch kept the connecting overlay mounted behind
BootFailureOverlay after a hard boot failure. Return null on boot.error
so the failure recovery surface fully owns the screen.
* fix(desktop): address Copilot review
- /api/sessions: validate `archived` (400 on unknown) and return `archived`
as a JSON boolean instead of SQLite's 0/1.
- PATCH /api/sessions/{id}: 400 (not a misleading 404) when the body has no
updatable fields; stop conflating a no-op with "not found".
- hermes-media protocol: drop `bypassCSP` — streaming only needs
secure/standard/stream/supportFetchAPI.
- Sidebar workspace header: split the toggle and the "+" into sibling buttons
so we no longer nest interactive elements inside a <button>.
* fix(desktop): address Copilot re-review
- hermes-media protocol: restrict streaming to an audio/video extension
allowlist (415 otherwise) so it can't be used to read arbitrary local files.
- Connecting overlay: use z-[1200] instead of the non-standard z-1200 utility.
* Potential fix for pull request finding
Co-authored-by: Copilot Autofix powered by AI <175728472+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
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Co-authored-by: Copilot Autofix powered by AI <175728472+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
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Hermes Desktop ☤
The native desktop app for Hermes Agent — the self-improving AI agent from Nous Research. Same agent, same skills, same memory as the CLI and gateway, in a polished native window — chat with streaming tool output, side-by-side previews, a file browser, voice, and settings, no terminal required. Available for macOS, Windows, and Linux.
| Chat with the full agent | Streaming responses, live tool activity, structured tool summaries, and the same conversation history as every other Hermes surface. |
| Side-by-side previews | Render web pages, files, and tool outputs in a right-hand pane while you keep chatting. |
| File browser | Explore and preview the working directory without leaving the app. |
| Voice | Talk to Hermes and hear it back. |
| Settings & onboarding | Manage providers, models, tools, and credentials from a real UI. First-run setup gets you to your first message in seconds. |
| Stays current | Built-in updates pull the latest agent and rebuild the app in place. |
Install
Install with Hermes (recommended)
Add --include-desktop to the one-line installer and it sets up the agent and builds the desktop app in one go:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/main/scripts/install.sh | bash -s -- --include-desktop
Already have the Hermes CLI? Just run:
hermes desktop
It builds and launches the GUI against your existing install — same config, keys, sessions, and skills. On first launch Hermes walks you through picking a provider and model; nothing else to configure.
Prebuilt installers
When a release ships desktop installers they're attached to its releases page — .dmg (macOS), .exe / .msi (Windows), .AppImage / .deb / .rpm (Linux). These are published manually, so the install-with-Hermes path above is the most reliable way to get the latest.
Updating
The app checks for updates in the background and offers a one-click update when one is ready. You can also update any time from the CLI:
hermes update
Requirements
The installer handles everything for you (Python 3.11+, a portable Git, ripgrep). The only thing worth knowing:
- Windows — the installer bundles its own Git and Python; no admin rights or system changes required.
- macOS / Linux — uses your system Python 3.11+ (installed automatically if missing).
Development
Want to hack on the app itself? Install workspace deps from the repo root once, then run the dev server from this directory:
npm install # from repo root — links apps/desktop, web, apps/shared
cd apps/desktop
npm run dev # Vite renderer + Electron, which boots the Python backend
Point the app at a specific source checkout, or sandbox it away from your real config:
HERMES_DESKTOP_HERMES_ROOT=/path/to/clone npm run dev
HERMES_HOME=/tmp/throwaway npm run dev
npm run dev:fake-boot # exercise the startup overlay with deterministic delays
Building installers
npm run dist:mac # DMG + zip
npm run dist:win # NSIS + MSI
npm run dist:linux # AppImage + deb + rpm
npm run pack # unpacked app under release/ (no installer)
Installers are built and uploaded to GitHub Releases manually. macOS/Windows signing & notarization happen automatically when the relevant credentials are present in the environment (CSC_LINK / CSC_KEY_PASSWORD / APPLE_* for macOS, WIN_CSC_* for Windows).
How it works
The packaged app ships only the Electron shell. On first launch it installs the Hermes Agent runtime into HERMES_HOME (~/.hermes, or %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes on Windows) — the same layout a CLI install uses, so the two are interchangeable. The renderer (React, in src/) talks to a hermes dashboard --tui backend over the standard gateway APIs and reuses the embedded TUI rather than reimplementing chat. The install, backend-resolution, and self-update logic all live in electron/main.cjs.
Verification
Run before opening a PR (lint may surface pre-existing warnings but must exit cleanly):
npm run fix
npm run type-check
npm run lint
npm run test:desktop:all
Troubleshooting
Boot logs land in HERMES_HOME/logs/desktop.log (includes backend output and recent Python tracebacks) — check it first if the app reports a boot failure.
# Force a clean first-launch setup
rm "$HOME/.hermes/hermes-agent/.hermes-bootstrap-complete" # macOS/Linux
# Rebuild a broken Python venv
rm -rf "$HOME/.hermes/hermes-agent/venv" # macOS/Linux
# Reset a stuck macOS microphone prompt
tccutil reset Microphone com.nousresearch.hermes
Community
- 💬 Discord
- 📖 Documentation
- 🐛 Issues
License
MIT — see LICENSE.
Built by Nous Research.