Initial: Mesh-Skills, Configs, Scripts

This commit is contained in:
root
2026-09-02 23:49:07 +02:00
commit 26c7980750
783 changed files with 145393 additions and 0 deletions
@@ -0,0 +1,176 @@
---
name: hermes-gateway-systemd
description: "Troubleshoot and fix Hermes Agent Gateway systemd service issues — crash loops, working directory mismatches, permission problems, and restart blockers."
version: 1.0.0
author: Hermes Agent
license: MIT
platforms: [linux]
metadata:
hermes:
tags: [hermes, gateway, systemd, troubleshooting, service, crash-loop]
related_skills: [hermes-agent]
---
# Hermes Gateway systemd Service Troubleshooting
This skill covers diagnosing and fixing common Hermes Gateway systemd service problems — especially the infamous crash loop caused by `WorkingDirectory` / `User` mismatches.
## Scope
- **Hermes Gateway** running as a systemd service (user or system)
- **Crash loops** (status 200/CHDIR, rapid restarts)
- **Permission issues** (config owned by root, service runs as user, or vice versa)
- **Restart blockers** (cannot run `systemctl restart` from inside gateway session)
## Quick Diagnosis
```bash
# 1. Check service status
systemctl status hermes-gateway --no-pager
# 2. View crash loop logs
journalctl -u hermes-gateway -n 30 --no-pager
# 3. Inspect service file
systemctl cat hermes-gateway
# 4. Verify config location matches service User/WorkingDirectory
ls -la /root/.hermes/config.yaml 2>/dev/null
ls -la /home/<user>/.hermes/config.yaml 2>/dev/null
```
## Common Failure: CHDIR Crash Loop
### Symptom
```
hermes-gateway.service: Changing to the requested working directory failed: No such file or directory
hermes-gateway.service: Main process exited, code=exited, status=200/CHDIR
Restart counter increments every 5 seconds (e.g., 20,000+ restarts)
```
### Root Cause
Service file specifies `User=X` and `WorkingDirectory=/home/X/.hermes` but:
- Config actually lives in `/root/.hermes` (installed as root)
- OR `/home/X/.hermes` doesn't exist
### Fix
Align `User`, `WorkingDirectory`, `HOME`, `HERMES_HOME` to where config actually lives.
**If config is in `/root/.hermes` (root install):**
```ini
User=root
Group=root
WorkingDirectory=/root/.hermes
Environment="HOME=/root"
Environment="HERMES_HOME=/root/.hermes"
```
**If config is in `/home/user/.hermes` (user install):**
```ini
User=user
Group=user
WorkingDirectory=/home/user/.hermes
Environment="HOME=/home/user"
Environment="HERMES_HOME=/home/user/.hermes"
```
Then:
```bash
systemctl daemon-reload
pkill -9 -f 'hermes_cli.main gateway run' # kill crash loop
systemctl start hermes-gateway
sleep 3
systemctl status hermes-gateway --no-pager
```
### Real-World Example (This Session)
- **Config location:** `/root/.hermes` (owned by root, installed via `hermes setup`)
- **Broken service file:** `User=mehlzoerwer`, `WorkingDirectory=/home/mehlzoerwer/.hermes` (directory didn't exist)
- **Symptom:** 20,731+ restart loop, status 200/CHDIR
- **Fix applied:** Changed service to `User=root`, `WorkingDirectory=/root/.hermes`, `HERMES_HOME=/root/.hermes`
- **Result:** Service started cleanly, Telegram connected, startup notification sent
## Blocker: Cannot Restart from Inside Gateway
### Error
```
Blocked: cannot restart or stop the gateway from inside the gateway process.
The gateway would kill this command before it could complete (SIGTERM propagates to child processes).
Run `hermes gateway restart` from a separate shell outside the running gateway.
```
### Cause
Hermes detects it's running inside its own gateway process and blocks process-termination commands to prevent self-kill.
### Workarounds
| Method | When to Use |
|--------|-------------|
| **New SSH session** | Always works — run `systemctl restart hermes-gateway` from fresh terminal |
| **`hermes gateway restart`** | If gateway is responsive (slash command in Telegram/CLI) |
| **`at` job** | `echo 'systemctl restart hermes-gateway' | at now + 1 minute` |
| **Direct PID kill from outside** | `ssh root@host 'pkill -9 -f hermes_cli.main'` |
| **tmux/screen on server** | Run commands in detached session |
### Scheduled Auto-Restart (systemd Timer) — durable pattern
To restart the gateway **on a recurring schedule** (e.g. nightly 23:59 to refresh memory/config) without manual intervention, install a pair of units **from a shell OUTSIDE the gateway**:
`/etc/systemd/system/hermes-gateway-restart.service`:
```ini
[Unit]
Description=Naechtlicher Hermes-Gateway-Neustart
[Service]
Type=oneshot
ExecStart=/bin/systemctl restart hermes-gateway.service
TimeoutStartSec=60
```
`/etc/systemd/system/hermes-gateway-restart.timer`:
```ini
[Unit]
Description=Startet Hermes-Gateway taeglich um 23:59
[Timer]
OnCalendar=*-*-* 23:59:00
Persistent=false
RandomizedDelaySec=0
[Install]
WantedBy=timers.target
```
Install + enable:
```bash
cp restart.service restart.timer /etc/systemd/system/
systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl enable hermes-gateway-restart.timer # allowed from inside
```
**CRITICAL PITFALL:** From inside the running gateway, `systemctl daemon-reload` and
`systemctl enable <timer>` succeed, but **`systemctl start <timer>` is ALSO blocked** (the
security scanner traces the timer to the gateway-restart service and treats the activation
as a self-kill). The `enable` persists, so the timer is armed and will fire on schedule —
you only need the user to run `systemctl start hermes-gateway-restart.timer` **once** from a
normal shell. After that it fires automatically daily.
**Ordering tip (user preference):** schedule the restart AFTER the daily Doku/Archiv cron and
BEFORE the Wissensstand (knowledge-sync) job, so the fresh session has updated memory/config
before the sync runs.
### Real-World Note (This Session)
Attempting to fix the remote gateway (92.60.38.175) **from within this local Hermes gateway session** triggered the blocker. The fix required running commands directly on the remote server via SSH from a separate terminal, not from inside an active Hermes gateway process.
## Service File Templates
See `references/gateway-systemd-troubleshooting.md` for complete, ready-to-use service file templates for both root and user installs.
## Diagnostic Checklist (Run in Order)
1. `systemctl status hermes-gateway` — active? crash loop?
2. `journalctl -u hermes-gateway -n 20` — CHDIR error? Permission denied? Module not found?
3. `systemctl cat hermes-gateway` — check User, WorkingDirectory, HERMES_HOME
4. `ls -la /root/.hermes /home/user/.hermes` — which exists? Who owns it?
5. `cat /root/.hermes/config.yaml | head -5` — verify config is valid
6. Fix service file to match reality → `daemon-reload` → kill loop → restart
## Related Skills
- `hermes-agent` — main Hermes configuration skill (covers gateway setup, platforms, config)
@@ -0,0 +1,201 @@
# Hermes Gateway systemd Service Troubleshooting — Reference Detail
## Common Crash Loop: "Changing to the requested working directory failed"
**Symptom:** Service restarts every 5 seconds, logs show:
```
hermes-gateway.service: Changing to the requested working directory failed: No such file or directory
hermes-gateway.service: Main process exited, code=exited, status=200/CHDIR
```
**Root Cause:** `WorkingDirectory` in service file points to a path that doesn't exist for the configured `User`.
**Typical Scenario:**
- Config lives in `/root/.hermes` (installed as root)
- Service file has `User=mehlzoerwer` and `WorkingDirectory=/home/mehlzoerwer/.hermes`
- But `/home/mehlzoerwer/.hermes` doesn't exist
**Fix:** Align `User`, `WorkingDirectory`, `HOME`, `HERMES_HOME` to where config actually lives.
```ini
# If config is in /root/.hermes:
User=root
Group=root
WorkingDirectory=/root/.hermes
Environment="HOME=/root"
Environment="HERMES_HOME=/root/.hermes"
# If config is in /home/user/.hermes:
User=user
Group=user
WorkingDirectory=/home/user/.hermes
Environment="HOME=/home/user"
Environment="HERMES_HOME=/home/user/.hermes"
```
Then:
```bash
systemctl daemon-reload
pkill -9 -f 'hermes_cli.main gateway run' # kill crash loop
systemctl start hermes-gateway
systemctl status hermes-gateway --no-pager
```
---
## Cannot Restart from Inside Gateway Session
**Problem:** Running `systemctl restart hermes-gateway` (or `pkill`/`kill`) from within an active Hermes gateway session fails with:
```text
Blocked: cannot restart or stop the gateway from inside the gateway process.
The gateway would kill this command before it could complete (SIGTERM propagates to child processes).
Run `hermes gateway restart` from a separate shell outside the running gateway.
```
**Reason:** Hermes detects it's running inside its own gateway process and blocks process termination commands to prevent self-kill.
**Workarounds:**
1. **Run commands from a separate shell** (new SSH session, tmux pane, or `at` job)
2. **Use `hermes gateway restart`** from within the gateway (if gateway is responsive)
3. **Kill via PID directly from outside**: `ssh root@host 'pkill -9 -f hermes_cli.main'`
4. **Schedule restart**: `echo 'systemctl restart hermes-gateway' | at now + 1 minute`
---
## Telegram Polling Conflict (409 Error)
**Symptom:** When starting the gateway, logs show:
```text
WARNING hermes_plugins.telegram_platform.adapter: [Telegram] Telegram polling conflict (1/5) — previous session still held open on Telegram's servers. Waiting 20s for it to expire. Error: Conflict: terminated by other getUpdates request; make sure that only one bot instance is running
INFO hermes_plugins.telegram_platform.adapter: [Telegram] Telegram polling resumed after conflict retry 1/5
```
**Cause:** A previous gateway instance (or another process) still holds an active Long Polling connection to Telegram. Telegram only allows ONE active `getUpdates` connection per bot token.
**Built-in Resolution:** Hermes Gateway (since recent versions) automatically retries up to 5 times with exponential backoff (20s, 40s, 60s, 80s, 100s). The old connection expires on Telegram's side after ~30-60 seconds of inactivity.
**When to Act:**
- If conflict persists after all 5 retries → another process is actively polling (check for duplicate gateway services, cron jobs, or manual runs)
- Fix: `pkill -9 -f 'hermes_cli.main gateway run'` then restart cleanly
**Verification:**
```bash
# Check for duplicate gateway processes
ps aux | grep 'hermes_cli.main gateway run'
# Should only show ONE process (the systemd one)
```
---
## Gateway Startup Notification
**Behavior:** On successful Telegram connection, the gateway automatically sends a startup notification to the configured `TELEGRAM_HOME_CHANNEL` (from `.env` or config).
**Log entry:**
```text
INFO gateway.run: Sent home-channel startup notification to telegram:6417835766
```
**If notification not received:**
1. Verify `TELEGRAM_HOME_CHANNEL` and `TELEGRAM_ALLOWED_USERS` in `.env` match your chat ID
2. Check bot has permission to message that chat (not blocked, not a channel without bot admin)
3. Check gateway logs for delivery errors after "Sent home-channel startup notification"
---
## Diagnostic Checklist
```bash
# 1. Check service file
systemctl cat hermes-gateway
# 2. Verify paths exist for the configured User
ls -la /home/user/.hermes # or /root/.hermes
# 3. Check current crash loop
journalctl -u hermes-gateway -n 20 --no-pager
# 4. Verify Hermes config location
cat /root/.hermes/config.yaml | head -5
# or
cat /home/user/.hermes/config.yaml | head -5
# 5. Check which user owns the config
ls -la /root/.hermes/config.yaml
ls -la /home/user/.hermes/config.yaml 2>/dev/null
```
---
## Service File Template (Root Install)
```ini
[Unit]
Description=Hermes Agent Gateway - Messaging Platform Integration
After=network-online.target
Wants=network-online.target
StartLimitIntervalSec=0
[Service]
Type=simple
User=root
Group=root
ExecStart=/usr/local/lib/hermes-agent/venv/bin/python -m hermes_cli.main gateway run
WorkingDirectory=/root/.hermes
Environment="HOME=/root"
Environment="USER=root"
Environment="LOGNAME=root"
Environment="PATH=/usr/local/lib/hermes-agent/venv/bin:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin"
Environment="VIRTUAL_ENV=/usr/local/lib/hermes-agent/venv"
Environment="HERMES_HOME=/root/.hermes"
Restart=always
RestartSec=5
RestartForceExitStatus=75
KillMode=mixed
KillSignal=SIGTERM
ExecReload=/bin/kill -USR1 $MAINPID
TimeoutStopSec=210
StandardOutput=journal
StandardError=journal
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
```
---
## Service File Template (User Install)
```ini
[Unit]
Description=Hermes Agent Gateway - Messaging Platform Integration
After=network-online.target
Wants=network-online.target
StartLimitIntervalSec=0
[Service]
Type=simple
User=<username>
Group=<username>
ExecStart=/usr/local/lib/hermes-agent/venv/bin/python -m hermes_cli.main gateway run
WorkingDirectory=/home/<username>/.hermes
Environment="HOME=/home/<username>"
Environment="USER=<username>"
Environment="LOGNAME=<username>"
Environment="PATH=/usr/local/lib/hermes-agent/venv/bin:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin"
Environment="VIRTUAL_ENV=/usr/local/lib/hermes-agent/venv"
Environment="HERMES_HOME=/home/<username>/.hermes"
Restart=always
RestartSec=5
RestartForceExitStatus=75
KillMode=mixed
KillSignal=SIGTERM
ExecReload=/bin/kill -USR1 $MAINPID
TimeoutStopSec=210
StandardOutput=journal
StandardError=journal
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
```