website/docs/reference/cli-commands.md

metadata

sidebar_position: 1
title: CLI Commands Reference
description: Authoritative reference for Hermes terminal commands and command families

CLI Commands Reference

This page covers the terminal commands you run from your shell.

For in-chat slash commands, see Slash Commands Reference.

Global entrypoint

hermes [global-options] <command> [subcommand/options]

Global options

Option	Description
--version, -V	Show version and exit.
--resume <session>, -r <session>	Resume a previous session by ID or title.
--continue [name], -c [name]	Resume the most recent session, or the most recent session matching a title.
--worktree, -w	Start in an isolated git worktree for parallel-agent workflows.
--yolo	Bypass dangerous-command approval prompts.
--pass-session-id	Include the session ID in the agent's system prompt.

Top-level commands

Command	Purpose
hermes chat	Interactive or one-shot chat with the agent.
hermes model	Interactively choose the default provider and model.
hermes gateway	Run or manage the messaging gateway service.
hermes setup	Interactive setup wizard for all or part of the configuration.
hermes whatsapp	Configure and pair the WhatsApp bridge.
hermes login / logout	Authenticate with OAuth-backed providers.
hermes status	Show agent, auth, and platform status.
hermes cron	Inspect and tick the cron scheduler.
hermes doctor	Diagnose config and dependency issues.
hermes config	Show, edit, migrate, and query configuration files.
hermes pairing	Approve or revoke messaging pairing codes.
hermes skills	Browse, install, publish, audit, and configure skills.
hermes honcho	Manage Honcho cross-session memory integration.
hermes acp	Run Hermes as an ACP server for editor integration.
hermes tools	Configure enabled tools per platform.
hermes sessions	Browse, export, prune, rename, and delete sessions.
hermes insights	Show token/cost/activity analytics.
hermes claw	OpenClaw migration helpers.
hermes version	Show version information.
hermes update	Pull latest code and reinstall dependencies.
hermes uninstall	Remove Hermes from the system.

hermes chat

hermes chat [options]

Common options:

Option	Description
-q, --query "..."	One-shot, non-interactive prompt.
-m, --model <model>	Override the model for this run.
-t, --toolsets <csv>	Enable a comma-separated set of toolsets.
--provider <provider>	Force a provider: auto, openrouter, nous, openai-codex, copilot, copilot-acp, anthropic, zai, kimi-coding, minimax, minimax-cn, kilocode.
-s, --skills <name>	Preload one or more skills for the session (can be repeated or comma-separated).
-v, --verbose	Verbose output.
-Q, --quiet	Programmatic mode: suppress banner/spinner/tool previews.
--resume <session> / --continue [name]	Resume a session directly from chat.
--worktree	Create an isolated git worktree for this run.
--checkpoints	Enable filesystem checkpoints before destructive file changes.
--yolo	Skip approval prompts.
--pass-session-id	Pass the session ID into the system prompt.

Examples:

hermes
hermes chat -q "Summarize the latest PRs"
hermes chat --provider openrouter --model anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6
hermes chat --toolsets web,terminal,skills
hermes chat --quiet -q "Return only JSON"
hermes chat --worktree -q "Review this repo and open a PR"

hermes model

Interactive provider + model selector.

hermes model

Use this when you want to:

• switch default providers
• log into OAuth-backed providers during model selection
• pick from provider-specific model lists
• configure a custom/self-hosted endpoint
• save the new default into config

/model slash command (mid-session)

Switch models without leaving a session:

/model                              # Show current model and available options
/model claude-sonnet-4              # Switch model (auto-detects provider)
/model zai:glm-5                    # Switch provider and model
/model custom:qwen-2.5              # Use model on your custom endpoint
/model custom                       # Auto-detect model from custom endpoint
/model custom:local:qwen-2.5        # Use a named custom provider
/model openrouter:anthropic/claude-sonnet-4  # Switch back to cloud

Provider and base URL changes are persisted to config.yaml automatically. When switching away from a custom endpoint, the stale base URL is cleared to prevent it leaking into other providers.

hermes gateway

hermes gateway <subcommand>

Subcommands:

Subcommand	Description
run	Run the gateway in the foreground.
start	Start the installed gateway service.
stop	Stop the service.
restart	Restart the service.
status	Show service status.
install	Install as a user service (systemd on Linux, launchd on macOS).
uninstall	Remove the installed service.
setup	Interactive messaging-platform setup.

hermes setup

hermes setup [model|terminal|gateway|tools|agent] [--non-interactive] [--reset]

Use the full wizard or jump into one section:

Section	Description
model	Provider and model setup.
terminal	Terminal backend and sandbox setup.
gateway	Messaging platform setup.
tools	Enable/disable tools per platform.
agent	Agent behavior settings.

Options:

Option	Description
--non-interactive	Use defaults / environment values without prompts.
--reset	Reset configuration to defaults before setup.

hermes whatsapp

hermes whatsapp

Runs the WhatsApp pairing/setup flow, including mode selection and QR-code pairing.

hermes login / hermes logout

hermes login [--provider nous|openai-codex] [--portal-url ...] [--inference-url ...]
hermes logout [--provider nous|openai-codex]

login supports:

• Nous Portal OAuth/device flow
• OpenAI Codex OAuth/device flow

Useful options for login:

• --no-browser
• --timeout <seconds>
• --ca-bundle <pem>
• --insecure

hermes status

hermes status [--all] [--deep]

Option	Description
--all	Show all details in a shareable redacted format.
--deep	Run deeper checks that may take longer.

hermes cron

hermes cron <list|create|edit|pause|resume|run|remove|status|tick>

Subcommand	Description
list	Show scheduled jobs.
create / add	Create a scheduled job from a prompt, optionally attaching one or more skills via repeated --skill.
edit	Update a job's schedule, prompt, name, delivery, repeat count, or attached skills. Supports --clear-skills, --add-skill, and --remove-skill.
pause	Pause a job without deleting it.
resume	Resume a paused job and compute its next future run.
run	Trigger a job on the next scheduler tick.
remove	Delete a scheduled job.
status	Check whether the cron scheduler is running.
tick	Run due jobs once and exit.

hermes doctor

hermes doctor [--fix]

Option	Description
--fix	Attempt automatic repairs where possible.

hermes config

hermes config <subcommand>

Subcommands:

Subcommand	Description
show	Show current config values.
edit	Open config.yaml in your editor.
set <key> <value>	Set a config value.
path	Print the config file path.
env-path	Print the .env file path.
check	Check for missing or stale config.
migrate	Add newly introduced options interactively.

hermes pairing

hermes pairing <list|approve|revoke|clear-pending>

Subcommand	Description
list	Show pending and approved users.
approve <platform> <code>	Approve a pairing code.
revoke <platform> <user-id>	Revoke a user's access.
clear-pending	Clear pending pairing codes.

hermes skills

hermes skills <subcommand>

Subcommands:

Subcommand	Description
browse	Paginated browser for skill registries.
search	Search skill registries.
install	Install a skill.
inspect	Preview a skill without installing it.
list	List installed skills.
check	Check installed hub skills for upstream updates.
update	Reinstall hub skills with upstream changes when available.
audit	Re-scan installed hub skills.
uninstall	Remove a hub-installed skill.
publish	Publish a skill to a registry.
snapshot	Export/import skill configurations.
tap	Manage custom skill sources.
config	Interactive enable/disable configuration for skills by platform.

Common examples:

hermes skills browse
hermes skills browse --source official
hermes skills search react --source skills-sh
hermes skills search https://mintlify.com/docs --source well-known
hermes skills inspect official/security/1password
hermes skills inspect skills-sh/vercel-labs/json-render/json-render-react
hermes skills install official/migration/openclaw-migration
hermes skills install skills-sh/anthropics/skills/pdf --force
hermes skills check
hermes skills update
hermes skills config

Notes:

• --force can override non-dangerous policy blocks for third-party/community skills.
• --force does not override a dangerous scan verdict.
• --source skills-sh searches the public skills.sh directory.
• --source well-known lets you point Hermes at a site exposing /.well-known/skills/index.json.

hermes honcho

hermes honcho <subcommand>

Subcommands:

Subcommand	Description
setup	Interactive Honcho setup wizard.
status	Show current Honcho config and connection status.
sessions	List known Honcho session mappings.
map	Map the current directory to a Honcho session name.
peer	Show or update peer names and dialectic reasoning level.
mode	Show or set memory mode: hybrid, honcho, or local.
tokens	Show or set token budgets for context and dialectic.
identity	Seed or show the AI peer identity representation.
migrate	Migration guide from openclaw-honcho to Hermes Honcho.

hermes acp

hermes acp

Starts Hermes as an ACP (Agent Client Protocol) stdio server for editor integration.

Related entrypoints:

hermes-acp
python -m acp_adapter

Install support first:

pip install -e '.[acp]'

See ACP Editor Integration and ACP Internals.

hermes mcp

hermes mcp <subcommand>

Manage MCP (Model Context Protocol) server configurations.

Subcommand	Description
add <name> [--url URL] [--command CMD] [--args ...] [--auth oauth|header]	Add an MCP server with automatic tool discovery.
remove <name> (alias: rm)	Remove an MCP server from config.
list (alias: ls)	List configured MCP servers.
test <name>	Test connection to an MCP server.
configure <name> (alias: config)	Toggle tool selection for a server.

See MCP Config Reference and Use MCP with Hermes.

hermes plugins

hermes plugins <subcommand>

Manage Hermes Agent plugins.

Subcommand	Description
install <identifier> [--force]	Install a plugin from a Git URL or owner/repo.
update <name>	Pull latest changes for an installed plugin.
remove <name> (aliases: rm, uninstall)	Remove an installed plugin.
list (alias: ls)	List installed plugins.

See Plugins and Build a Hermes Plugin.

hermes tools

hermes tools [--summary]

Option	Description
--summary	Print the current enabled-tools summary and exit.

Without --summary, this launches the interactive per-platform tool configuration UI.

hermes sessions

hermes sessions <subcommand>

Subcommands:

Subcommand	Description
list	List recent sessions.
browse	Interactive session picker with search and resume.
export <output> [--session-id ID]	Export sessions to JSONL.
delete <session-id>	Delete one session.
prune	Delete old sessions.
stats	Show session-store statistics.
rename <session-id> <title>	Set or change a session title.

hermes insights

hermes insights [--days N] [--source platform]

Option	Description
--days <n>	Analyze the last n days (default: 30).
--source <platform>	Filter by source such as cli, telegram, or discord.

hermes claw

hermes claw migrate

Used to migrate settings, memories, skills, and keys from OpenClaw to Hermes.

Maintenance commands

Command	Description
hermes version	Print version information.
hermes update	Pull latest changes and reinstall dependencies.
hermes uninstall [--full] [--yes]	Remove Hermes, optionally deleting all config/data.

See also

• Slash Commands Reference
• CLI Interface
• Sessions
• Skills System
• Skins & Themes