test: cover patch did-you-mean end-to-end (#960)

- add focused QA tests for replace-mode rich hints without legacy generic hints
- verify ambiguous replace failures do not show did-you-mean noise
- verify V4A patch validation surfaces rich hints
- verify skill patching surfaces rich hints on true no-match failures

hermes_cli/config.py

@@ -523,7 +523,7 @@ DEFAULT_CONFIG = {
     
     # Text-to-speech configuration
     "tts": {
-        "provider": "edge",  # "edge" (free) | "elevenlabs" (premium) | "openai" | "minimax" | "mistral" | "neutts" (local) | "kittentts" (local)
+        "provider": "edge",  # "edge" (free) | "elevenlabs" (premium) | "openai" | "minimax" | "mistral" | "neutts" (local)
         "edge": {
             "voice": "en-US-AriaNeural",
             # Popular: AriaNeural, JennyNeural, AndrewNeural, BrianNeural, SoniaNeural
@@ -547,12 +547,6 @@ DEFAULT_CONFIG = {
             "model": "neuphonic/neutts-air-q4-gguf",  # HuggingFace model repo
             "device": "cpu",  # cpu, cuda, or mps
         },
-        "kittentts": {
-            "model": "KittenML/kitten-tts-nano-0.8-int8",  # 25MB int8 default
-            "voice": "Jasper",  # Jasper, Bella, Luna, Bruno, Rosie, Hugo, Kiki, Leo
-            "speed": 1.0,
-            "clean_text": True,
-        },
     },
     
     "stt": {

hermes_cli/setup.py

@@ -443,16 +443,6 @@ def _print_setup_summary(config: dict, hermes_home):
             tool_status.append(("Text-to-Speech (NeuTTS local)", True, None))
         else:
             tool_status.append(("Text-to-Speech (NeuTTS — not installed)", False, "run 'hermes setup tts'"))
-    elif tts_provider == "kittentts":
-        try:
-            import importlib.util
-            kittentts_ok = importlib.util.find_spec("kittentts") is not None
-        except Exception:
-            kittentts_ok = False
-        if kittentts_ok:
-            tool_status.append(("Text-to-Speech (KittenTTS local)", True, None))
-        else:
-            tool_status.append(("Text-to-Speech (KittenTTS — not installed)", False, "run 'hermes setup tts'"))
     else:
         tool_status.append(("Text-to-Speech (Edge TTS)", True, None))
 
@@ -901,7 +891,6 @@ def _install_neutts_deps() -> bool:
                 return False
         else:
             print_warning("espeak-ng is required for NeuTTS. Install it manually before using NeuTTS.")
-            return False
 
     # Install neutts Python package
     print()
@@ -921,34 +910,8 @@ def _install_neutts_deps() -> bool:
         return False
 
 
-def _install_kittentts_deps() -> bool:
-    """Install KittenTTS dependencies with user approval. Returns True on success."""
-    import subprocess
-    import sys
-
-    wheel_url = (
-        "https://github.com/KittenML/KittenTTS/releases/download/"
-        "0.8.1/kittentts-0.8.1-py3-none-any.whl"
-    )
-    print()
-    print_info("Installing kittentts Python package (~25-80MB model downloaded on first use)...")
-    print()
-    try:
-        subprocess.run(
-            [sys.executable, "-m", "pip", "install", "-U", wheel_url, "soundfile", "--quiet"],
-            check=True, timeout=300,
-        )
-        print_success("kittentts installed successfully")
-        return True
-    except (subprocess.CalledProcessError, subprocess.TimeoutExpired) as e:
-        print_error(f"Failed to install kittentts: {e}")
-        print_info(f"Try manually: python -m pip install -U '{wheel_url}' soundfile")
-        return False
-
-
 def _setup_tts_provider(config: dict):
-    """Interactive TTS provider selection with install flow for local providers."""
-
+    """Interactive TTS provider selection with install flow for NeuTTS."""
     tts_config = config.get("tts", {})
     current_provider = tts_config.get("provider", "edge")
     subscription_features = get_nous_subscription_features(config)
@@ -960,7 +923,6 @@ def _setup_tts_provider(config: dict):
         "minimax": "MiniMax TTS",
         "mistral": "Mistral Voxtral TTS",
         "neutts": "NeuTTS",
-        "kittentts": "KittenTTS",
     }
     current_label = provider_labels.get(current_provider, current_provider)
 
@@ -982,10 +944,9 @@ def _setup_tts_provider(config: dict):
             "MiniMax TTS (high quality with voice cloning, needs API key)",
             "Mistral Voxtral TTS (multilingual, native Opus, needs API key)",
             "NeuTTS (local on-device, free, ~300MB model download)",
-            "KittenTTS (local on-device, free, lightweight ~25-80MB ONNX)",
         ]
     )
-    providers.extend(["edge", "elevenlabs", "openai", "minimax", "mistral", "neutts", "kittentts"])
+    providers.extend(["edge", "elevenlabs", "openai", "minimax", "mistral", "neutts"])
     choices.append(f"Keep current ({current_label})")
     keep_current_idx = len(choices) - 1
     idx = prompt_choice("Select TTS provider:", choices, keep_current_idx)
@@ -1027,28 +988,6 @@ def _setup_tts_provider(config: dict):
                 print_info("Skipping install. Set tts.provider to 'neutts' after installing manually.")
                 selected = "edge"
 
-    elif selected == "kittentts":
-        try:
-            import importlib.util
-            already_installed = importlib.util.find_spec("kittentts") is not None
-        except Exception:
-            already_installed = False
-
-        if already_installed:
-            print_success("KittenTTS is already installed")
-        else:
-            print()
-            print_info("KittenTTS is lightweight (~25-80MB, CPU-only, no API key required).")
-            print_info("Voices: Jasper, Bella, Luna, Bruno, Rosie, Hugo, Kiki, Leo")
-            print()
-            if prompt_yes_no("Install KittenTTS now?", True):
-                if not _install_kittentts_deps():
-                    print_warning("KittenTTS installation incomplete. Falling back to Edge TTS.")
-                    selected = "edge"
-            else:
-                print_info("Skipping install. Set tts.provider to 'kittentts' after installing manually.")
-                selected = "edge"
-
     elif selected == "elevenlabs":
         existing = get_env_value("ELEVENLABS_API_KEY")
         if not existing:

hermes_cli/tools_config.py

@@ -164,14 +164,6 @@ TOOL_CATEGORIES = {
                 ],
                 "tts_provider": "mistral",
             },
-            {
-                "name": "KittenTTS",
-                "badge": "local · free",
-                "tag": "Lightweight local ONNX TTS (~25MB), no API key",
-                "env_vars": [],
-                "tts_provider": "kittentts",
-                "post_setup": "kittentts",
-            },
         ],
     },
     "web": {
@@ -411,36 +403,6 @@ def _run_post_setup(post_setup_key: str):
             _print_warning("    Node.js not found. Install Camofox via Docker:")
             _print_info("      docker run -p 9377:9377 -e CAMOFOX_PORT=9377 jo-inc/camofox-browser")
 
-    elif post_setup_key == "kittentts":
-        try:
-            __import__("kittentts")
-            _print_success("    kittentts is already installed")
-            return
-        except ImportError:
-            pass
-        import subprocess
-        _print_info("    Installing kittentts (~25-80MB model, CPU-only)...")
-        wheel_url = (
-            "https://github.com/KittenML/KittenTTS/releases/download/"
-            "0.8.1/kittentts-0.8.1-py3-none-any.whl"
-        )
-        try:
-            result = subprocess.run(
-                [sys.executable, "-m", "pip", "install", "-U", wheel_url, "soundfile", "--quiet"],
-                capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=300,
-            )
-            if result.returncode == 0:
-                _print_success("    kittentts installed")
-                _print_info("    Voices: Jasper, Bella, Luna, Bruno, Rosie, Hugo, Kiki, Leo")
-                _print_info("    Models: KittenML/kitten-tts-nano-0.8-int8 (25MB), micro (41MB), mini (80MB)")
-            else:
-                _print_warning("    kittentts install failed:")
-                _print_info(f"      {result.stderr.strip()[:300]}")
-                _print_info(f"    Run manually: python -m pip install -U '{wheel_url}' soundfile")
-        except subprocess.TimeoutExpired:
-            _print_warning("    kittentts install timed out (>5min)")
-            _print_info(f"    Run manually: python -m pip install -U '{wheel_url}' soundfile")
-
     elif post_setup_key == "rl_training":
         try:
             __import__("tinker_atropos")

tests/tools/test_fuzzy_match.py

@@ -148,3 +148,184 @@ class TestStrategyNameSurfaced:
         assert count == 0
         assert strategy is None
         assert err is not None
+
+
+class TestEscapeDriftGuard:
+    """Tests for the escape-drift guard that catches bash/JSON serialization
+    artifacts where an apostrophe gets prefixed with a spurious backslash
+    in tool-call transport.
+    """
+
+    def test_drift_blocked_apostrophe(self):
+        """File has ', old_string and new_string both have \\' — classic
+        tool-call drift. Guard must block with a helpful error instead of
+        writing \\' literals into source code."""
+        content = "x = \"hello there\"\n"
+        # Simulate transport-corrupted old_string and new_string where an
+        # apostrophe-like context got prefixed with a backslash. The content
+        # itself has no apostrophe, but both strings do — matching via
+        # whitespace/anchor strategies would otherwise succeed.
+        old_string = "x = \"hello there\" # don\\'t edit\n"
+        new_string = "x = \"hi there\" # don\\'t edit\n"
+        # This particular pair won't match anything, so it exits via
+        # no-match path. Build a case where a non-exact strategy DOES match.
+        content = "line\n    x = 1\nline"
+        old_string = "line\n  x = \\'a\\'\nline"
+        new_string = "line\n  x = \\'b\\'\nline"
+        new, count, strategy, err = fuzzy_find_and_replace(content, old_string, new_string)
+        assert count == 0
+        assert err is not None and "Escape-drift" in err
+        assert "backslash" in err.lower()
+        assert new == content  # file untouched
+
+    def test_drift_blocked_double_quote(self):
+        """Same idea but with \\" drift instead of \\'."""
+        content = 'line\n    x = 1\nline'
+        old_string = 'line\n  x = \\"a\\"\nline'
+        new_string = 'line\n  x = \\"b\\"\nline'
+        new, count, strategy, err = fuzzy_find_and_replace(content, old_string, new_string)
+        assert count == 0
+        assert err is not None and "Escape-drift" in err
+
+    def test_drift_allowed_when_file_genuinely_has_backslash_escapes(self):
+        """If the file already contains \\' (e.g. inside an existing escaped
+        string), the model is legitimately preserving it. Guard must NOT
+        fire."""
+        content = "line\n  x = \\'a\\'\nline"
+        old_string = "line\n  x = \\'a\\'\nline"
+        new_string = "line\n  x = \\'b\\'\nline"
+        new, count, strategy, err = fuzzy_find_and_replace(content, old_string, new_string)
+        assert err is None
+        assert count == 1
+        assert "\\'b\\'" in new
+
+    def test_drift_allowed_on_exact_match(self):
+        """Exact matches bypass the drift guard entirely — if the file
+        really contains the exact bytes old_string specified, it's not
+        drift."""
+        content = "hello \\'world\\'"
+        new, count, strategy, err = fuzzy_find_and_replace(
+            content, "hello \\'world\\'", "hello \\'there\\'"
+        )
+        assert err is None
+        assert count == 1
+        assert strategy == "exact"
+
+    def test_drift_allowed_when_adding_escaped_strings(self):
+        """Model is adding new content with \\' that wasn't in the original.
+        old_string has no \\', so guard doesn't fire."""
+        content = "line1\nline2\nline3"
+        old_string = "line1\nline2\nline3"
+        new_string = "line1\nprint(\\'added\\')\nline2\nline3"
+        new, count, strategy, err = fuzzy_find_and_replace(content, old_string, new_string)
+        assert err is None
+        assert count == 1
+        assert "\\'added\\'" in new
+
+    def test_no_drift_check_when_new_string_lacks_suspect_chars(self):
+        """Fast-path: if new_string has no \\' or \\", guard must not
+        fire even on fuzzy match."""
+        content = "def foo():\n    pass"  # extra space ignored by line_trimmed
+        old_string = "def foo():\n  pass"
+        new_string = "def bar():\n  return 1"
+        new, count, strategy, err = fuzzy_find_and_replace(content, old_string, new_string)
+        assert err is None
+        assert count == 1
+
+
+class TestFindClosestLines:
+    def setup_method(self):
+        from tools.fuzzy_match import find_closest_lines
+        self.find_closest_lines = find_closest_lines
+
+    def test_finds_similar_line(self):
+        content = "def foo():\n    pass\ndef bar():\n    return 1\n"
+        result = self.find_closest_lines("def baz():", content)
+        assert "def foo" in result or "def bar" in result
+
+    def test_returns_empty_for_no_match(self):
+        content = "completely different content here"
+        result = self.find_closest_lines("xyzzy_no_match_possible_!!!", content)
+        assert result == ""
+
+    def test_returns_empty_for_empty_inputs(self):
+        assert self.find_closest_lines("", "some content") == ""
+        assert self.find_closest_lines("old string", "") == ""
+
+    def test_includes_context_lines(self):
+        content = "line1\nline2\ndef target():\n    pass\nline5\n"
+        result = self.find_closest_lines("def target():", content)
+        assert "target" in result
+
+    def test_includes_line_numbers(self):
+        content = "line1\nline2\ndef foo():\n    pass\n"
+        result = self.find_closest_lines("def foo():", content)
+        # Should include line numbers in format "N| content"
+        assert "|" in result
+
+
+class TestFormatNoMatchHint:
+    """Gating tests for format_no_match_hint — the shared helper that decides
+    whether a 'Did you mean?' snippet should be appended to an error.
+    """
+
+    def setup_method(self):
+        from tools.fuzzy_match import format_no_match_hint
+        self.fmt = format_no_match_hint
+
+    def test_fires_on_could_not_find_with_match(self):
+        """Classic no-match: similar content exists → hint fires."""
+        content = "def foo():\n    pass\ndef bar():\n    pass\n"
+        result = self.fmt(
+            "Could not find a match for old_string in the file",
+            0, "def baz():", content,
+        )
+        assert "Did you mean" in result
+        assert "foo" in result or "bar" in result
+
+    def test_silent_on_ambiguous_match_error(self):
+        """'Found N matches' is not a missing-match failure — no hint."""
+        content = "aaa bbb aaa\n"
+        result = self.fmt(
+            "Found 2 matches for old_string. Provide more context to make it unique, or use replace_all=True.",
+            0, "aaa", content,
+        )
+        assert result == ""
+
+    def test_silent_on_escape_drift_error(self):
+        """Escape-drift errors are intentional blocks — hint would mislead."""
+        content = "x = 1\n"
+        result = self.fmt(
+            "Escape-drift detected: old_string and new_string contain the literal sequence '\\\\''...",
+            0, "x = \\'1\\'", content,
+        )
+        assert result == ""
+
+    def test_silent_on_identical_strings(self):
+        """old_string == new_string — hint irrelevant."""
+        result = self.fmt(
+            "old_string and new_string are identical",
+            0, "foo", "foo bar\n",
+        )
+        assert result == ""
+
+    def test_silent_when_match_count_nonzero(self):
+        """If match succeeded, we shouldn't be in the error path — defense in depth."""
+        result = self.fmt(
+            "Could not find a match for old_string in the file",
+            1, "foo", "foo bar\n",
+        )
+        assert result == ""
+
+    def test_silent_on_none_error(self):
+        """No error at all — no hint."""
+        result = self.fmt(None, 0, "foo", "bar\n")
+        assert result == ""
+
+    def test_silent_when_no_similar_content(self):
+        """Even for a valid no-match error, skip hint when nothing similar exists."""
+        result = self.fmt(
+            "Could not find a match for old_string in the file",
+            0, "totally_unique_xyzzy_qux", "abc\nxyz\n",
+        )
+        assert result == ""

tests/tools/test_patch_did_you_mean.py

@@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
+import json
+import os
+import textwrap
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import tools.skill_manager_tool as skill_manager_tool
+from tools.file_tools import patch_tool
+from tools.skill_manager_tool import _create_skill, _patch_skill
+
+
+def _disable_patch_tool_guards(monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.setattr("tools.file_tools._check_sensitive_path", lambda _path: None)
+    monkeypatch.setattr("tools.file_tools._check_file_staleness", lambda _path, _task_id: None)
+    monkeypatch.setattr("tools.file_tools._log_and_check_conflict", lambda _path, _task_id, _action: None)
+
+
+def test_patch_tool_replace_no_match_shows_rich_hint_without_legacy_hint(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    _disable_patch_tool_guards(monkeypatch)
+    sample = tmp_path / "sample.py"
+    sample.write_text("def foo():\n    return 1\n\ndef bar():\n    return 2\n", encoding="utf-8")
+
+    raw = patch_tool(
+        mode="replace",
+        path=str(sample),
+        old_string="def barycentric():",
+        new_string="def barycentric_new():",
+        task_id="qa960-replace-rich-hint",
+    )
+
+    result = json.loads(raw)
+    assert result["success"] is False
+    assert "Could not find a match" in result["error"]
+    assert "Did you mean one of these sections?" in result["error"]
+    assert "def bar():" in result["error"] or "def foo():" in result["error"]
+    assert "[Hint:" not in raw
+
+
+def test_patch_tool_replace_ambiguous_error_does_not_show_did_you_mean(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    _disable_patch_tool_guards(monkeypatch)
+    sample = tmp_path / "sample.py"
+    sample.write_text("aaa\nbbb\naaa\n", encoding="utf-8")
+
+    raw = patch_tool(
+        mode="replace",
+        path=str(sample),
+        old_string="aaa",
+        new_string="ccc",
+        task_id="qa960-replace-ambiguous",
+    )
+
+    result = json.loads(raw)
+    assert result["success"] is False
+    assert "Found 2 matches" in result["error"]
+    assert "Did you mean one of these sections?" not in result["error"]
+    assert "[Hint:" not in raw
+
+
+def test_patch_tool_v4a_no_match_shows_rich_hint(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    _disable_patch_tool_guards(monkeypatch)
+    sample = tmp_path / "sample.py"
+    sample.write_text("def foo():\n    return 1\n", encoding="utf-8")
+
+    patch = textwrap.dedent(
+        f"""\
+        *** Begin Patch
+        *** Update File: {sample}
+        @@
+        -def barycentric():
+        +def barycentric_new():
+        *** End Patch
+        """
+    )
+
+    raw = patch_tool(mode="patch", patch=patch, task_id="qa960-v4a-rich-hint")
+    result = json.loads(raw)
+    assert result["success"] is False
+    assert "Patch validation failed" in result["error"]
+    assert "Did you mean one of these sections?" in result["error"]
+    assert "def foo():" in result["error"]
+
+
+def test_skill_patch_no_match_shows_rich_hint(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.setenv("HERMES_HOME", str(tmp_path))
+    skills_dir = tmp_path / "skills"
+    skills_dir.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_manager_tool, "SKILLS_DIR", skills_dir)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_manager_tool, "_security_scan_skill", lambda _skill_dir: None)
+
+    _create_skill(
+        "qa-skill",
+        textwrap.dedent(
+            """\
+            ---
+            name: qa-skill
+            description: test
+            ---
+
+            Step 1: Do the thing.
+            Step 2: Verify the thing.
+            """
+        ),
+    )
+
+    result = _patch_skill(
+        "qa-skill",
+        "Step 1: Do the production rollout.",
+        "Step 1: Updated.",
+    )
+
+    assert result["success"] is False
+    assert "Could not find a match" in result["error"]
+    assert "Did you mean one of these sections?" in result["error"]
+    assert "Step 1: Do the thing." in result["error"]
+    assert "file_preview" in result

tests/tools/test_tts_kittentts.py

@@ -1,236 +0,0 @@
-"""Tests for the KittenTTS local provider in tools/tts_tool.py."""
-
-import json
-from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
-
-import numpy as np
-import pytest
-
-
-@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
-def clean_env(monkeypatch):
-    for key in ("HERMES_SESSION_PLATFORM",):
-        monkeypatch.delenv(key, raising=False)
-
-
-@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
-def clear_kittentts_cache():
-    """Reset the module-level model cache between tests."""
-    from tools import tts_tool as _tt
-    _tt._kittentts_model_cache.clear()
-    yield
-    _tt._kittentts_model_cache.clear()
-
-
-@pytest.fixture
-def mock_kittentts_module():
-    """Inject a fake kittentts + soundfile module that return stub objects."""
-    fake_model = MagicMock()
-    # 24kHz float32 PCM at ~2s of silence
-    fake_model.generate.return_value = np.zeros(48000, dtype=np.float32)
-    fake_cls = MagicMock(return_value=fake_model)
-    fake_kittentts = MagicMock()
-    fake_kittentts.KittenTTS = fake_cls
-
-    # Stub soundfile — the real package isn't installed in CI venv, and
-    # _generate_kittentts does `import soundfile as sf` at runtime.
-    fake_sf = MagicMock()
-
-    def _fake_write(path, audio, samplerate):
-        # Emulate writing a real file so downstream path checks succeed.
-        import pathlib
-
-        pathlib.Path(path).write_bytes(b"RIFF\x00\x00\x00\x00WAVEfmt fake")
-
-    fake_sf.write = _fake_write
-
-    with patch.dict(
-        "sys.modules",
-        {"kittentts": fake_kittentts, "soundfile": fake_sf},
-    ):
-        yield fake_model, fake_cls
-
-
-class TestGenerateKittenTts:
-    def test_successful_wav_generation(self, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module):
-        from tools.tts_tool import _generate_kittentts
-
-        fake_model, fake_cls = mock_kittentts_module
-        output_path = str(tmp_path / "test.wav")
-        result = _generate_kittentts("Hello world", output_path, {})
-
-        assert result == output_path
-        assert (tmp_path / "test.wav").exists()
-        fake_cls.assert_called_once()
-        fake_model.generate.assert_called_once()
-
-    def test_config_passes_voice_speed_cleantext(self, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module):
-        from tools.tts_tool import _generate_kittentts
-
-        fake_model, _ = mock_kittentts_module
-        config = {
-            "kittentts": {
-                "model": "KittenML/kitten-tts-mini-0.8",
-                "voice": "Luna",
-                "speed": 1.25,
-                "clean_text": False,
-            }
-        }
-        _generate_kittentts("Hi there", str(tmp_path / "out.wav"), config)
-
-        call_kwargs = fake_model.generate.call_args.kwargs
-        assert call_kwargs["voice"] == "Luna"
-        assert call_kwargs["speed"] == 1.25
-        assert call_kwargs["clean_text"] is False
-
-    def test_default_model_and_voice(self, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module):
-        from tools.tts_tool import (
-            DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_MODEL,
-            DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_VOICE,
-            _generate_kittentts,
-        )
-
-        fake_model, fake_cls = mock_kittentts_module
-        _generate_kittentts("Hi", str(tmp_path / "out.wav"), {})
-
-        fake_cls.assert_called_once_with(DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_MODEL)
-        assert fake_model.generate.call_args.kwargs["voice"] == DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_VOICE
-
-    def test_model_is_cached_across_calls(self, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module):
-        from tools.tts_tool import _generate_kittentts
-
-        _, fake_cls = mock_kittentts_module
-        _generate_kittentts("One", str(tmp_path / "a.wav"), {})
-        _generate_kittentts("Two", str(tmp_path / "b.wav"), {})
-
-        # Same model name → class instantiated exactly once
-        assert fake_cls.call_count == 1
-
-    def test_different_models_are_cached_separately(self, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module):
-        from tools.tts_tool import _generate_kittentts
-
-        _, fake_cls = mock_kittentts_module
-        _generate_kittentts(
-            "A",
-            str(tmp_path / "a.wav"),
-            {"kittentts": {"model": "KittenML/kitten-tts-nano-0.8-int8"}},
-        )
-        _generate_kittentts(
-            "B",
-            str(tmp_path / "b.wav"),
-            {"kittentts": {"model": "KittenML/kitten-tts-mini-0.8"}},
-        )
-
-        assert fake_cls.call_count == 2
-
-    def test_non_wav_extension_triggers_ffmpeg_conversion(
-        self, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module, monkeypatch
-    ):
-        """Non-.wav output path causes WAV → target ffmpeg conversion."""
-        from tools import tts_tool as _tt
-
-        calls = []
-
-        def fake_shutil_which(cmd):
-            return "/usr/bin/ffmpeg" if cmd == "ffmpeg" else None
-
-        def fake_run(cmd, check=False, timeout=None, **kw):
-            calls.append(cmd)
-            # Emulate ffmpeg writing the output file
-            import pathlib
-
-            out_path = cmd[-1]
-            pathlib.Path(out_path).write_bytes(b"fake-mp3-data")
-            return MagicMock(returncode=0)
-
-        monkeypatch.setattr(_tt.shutil, "which", fake_shutil_which)
-        monkeypatch.setattr(_tt.subprocess, "run", fake_run)
-
-        output_path = str(tmp_path / "test.mp3")
-        result = _tt._generate_kittentts("Hi", output_path, {})
-
-        assert result == output_path
-        assert len(calls) == 1
-        assert calls[0][0] == "/usr/bin/ffmpeg"
-
-    def test_missing_kittentts_raises_import_error(self, tmp_path, monkeypatch):
-        """When kittentts package is not installed, _import_kittentts raises."""
-        import sys
-
-        monkeypatch.setitem(sys.modules, "kittentts", None)
-        from tools.tts_tool import _generate_kittentts
-
-        with pytest.raises((ImportError, TypeError)):
-            _generate_kittentts("Hi", str(tmp_path / "out.wav"), {})
-
-
-class TestCheckKittenttsAvailable:
-    def test_reports_available_when_package_present(self, monkeypatch):
-        import importlib.util
-        from tools.tts_tool import _check_kittentts_available
-
-        fake_spec = MagicMock()
-        monkeypatch.setattr(
-            importlib.util,
-            "find_spec",
-            lambda name: fake_spec if name == "kittentts" else None,
-        )
-        assert _check_kittentts_available() is True
-
-    def test_reports_unavailable_when_package_missing(self, monkeypatch):
-        import importlib.util
-        from tools.tts_tool import _check_kittentts_available
-
-        monkeypatch.setattr(importlib.util, "find_spec", lambda name: None)
-        assert _check_kittentts_available() is False
-
-
-class TestDispatcherBranch:
-    def test_kittentts_not_installed_returns_helpful_error(self, monkeypatch, tmp_path):
-        """When provider=kittentts but package missing, return JSON error with setup hint."""
-        import sys
-
-        monkeypatch.setitem(sys.modules, "kittentts", None)
-        monkeypatch.setenv("HERMES_HOME", str(tmp_path))
-
-        from tools.tts_tool import text_to_speech_tool
-
-        # Write a config telling it to use kittentts
-        import yaml
-
-        (tmp_path / "config.yaml").write_text(
-            yaml.safe_dump({"tts": {"provider": "kittentts"}})
-        )
-
-        result = json.loads(text_to_speech_tool(text="Hello"))
-        assert result["success"] is False
-        assert "kittentts" in result["error"].lower()
-        assert "hermes setup tts" in result["error"].lower()
-
-    def test_non_telegram_explicit_wav_path_is_preserved(
-        self, monkeypatch, tmp_path, mock_kittentts_module
-    ):
-        """Explicit WAV outputs should stay WAV outside Telegram sessions."""
-        import yaml
-        from tools import tts_tool as _tt
-
-        monkeypatch.setenv("HERMES_HOME", str(tmp_path))
-        (tmp_path / "config.yaml").write_text(
-            yaml.safe_dump({"tts": {"provider": "kittentts"}})
-        )
-
-        def fail_convert(_path):
-            raise AssertionError("_convert_to_opus should not run outside Telegram")
-
-        monkeypatch.setattr(_tt, "_convert_to_opus", fail_convert)
-
-        result = json.loads(
-            _tt.text_to_speech_tool(
-                text="Hello from KittenTTS",
-                output_path=str(tmp_path / "out.wav"),
-            )
-        )
-
-        assert result["success"] is True
-        assert result["file_path"] == str(tmp_path / "out.wav")
-        assert (tmp_path / "out.wav").exists()

tools/file_operations.py

@@ -757,12 +757,14 @@ class ShellFileOperations(FileOperations):
             content, old_string, new_string, replace_all
         )
         
-        if error:
-            return PatchResult(error=error)
-        
-        if match_count == 0:
-            return PatchResult(error=f"Could not find match for old_string in {path}")
-        
+        if error or match_count == 0:
+            err_msg = error or f"Could not find match for old_string in {path}"
+            try:
+                from tools.fuzzy_match import format_no_match_hint
+                err_msg += format_no_match_hint(err_msg, match_count, old_string, content)
+            except Exception:
+                pass
+            return PatchResult(error=err_msg)
         # Write back
         write_result = self.write_file(path, new_content)
         if write_result.error:

tools/file_tools.py

@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import os
 import threading
 import time
 from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any, Dict, Optional
 from tools.binary_extensions import has_binary_extension
 from tools.file_operations import ShellFileOperations
 from agent.redact import redact_sensitive_text
@@ -690,8 +691,11 @@ def patch_tool(mode: str = "replace", path: str = None, old_string: str = None,
         result_json = json.dumps(result_dict, ensure_ascii=False)
         # Hint when old_string not found — saves iterations where the agent
         # retries with stale content instead of re-reading the file.
+        # Suppressed when patch_replace already attached a rich "Did you mean?"
+        # snippet (which is strictly more useful than the generic hint).
         if result_dict.get("error") and "Could not find" in str(result_dict["error"]):
-            result_json += "\n\n[Hint: old_string not found. Use read_file to verify the current content, or search_files to locate the text.]"
+            if "Did you mean one of these sections?" not in str(result_dict["error"]):
+                result_json += "\n\n[Hint: old_string not found. Use read_file to verify the current content, or search_files to locate the text.]"
         return result_json
     except Exception as e:
         return tool_error(str(e))

tools/fuzzy_match.py

@@ -93,6 +93,21 @@ def fuzzy_find_and_replace(content: str, old_string: str, new_string: str,
                     f"Provide more context to make it unique, or use replace_all=True."
                 )
 
+            # Escape-drift guard: when the matched strategy is NOT `exact`,
+            # we matched via some form of normalization. If new_string
+            # contains shell/JSON-style escape sequences (\\' or \\") that
+            # would be written literally into the file but the matched
+            # region of the file has no such sequences, this is almost
+            # certainly tool-call serialization drift — the model typed
+            # an apostrophe/quote and the transport added a stray
+            # backslash. Writing new_string as-is would corrupt the file.
+            # Block with a helpful error so the model re-reads and retries
+            # instead of the caller silently persisting garbage (or not).
+            if strategy_name != "exact":
+                drift_err = _detect_escape_drift(content, matches, old_string, new_string)
+                if drift_err:
+                    return content, 0, None, drift_err
+
             # Perform replacement
             new_content = _apply_replacements(content, matches, new_string)
             return new_content, len(matches), strategy_name, None
@@ -101,6 +116,46 @@ def fuzzy_find_and_replace(content: str, old_string: str, new_string: str,
     return content, 0, None, "Could not find a match for old_string in the file"
 
 
+def _detect_escape_drift(content: str, matches: List[Tuple[int, int]],
+                         old_string: str, new_string: str) -> Optional[str]:
+    """Detect tool-call escape-drift artifacts in new_string.
+
+    Looks for ``\\'`` or ``\\"`` sequences that are present in both
+    old_string and new_string (i.e. the model copy-pasted them as "context"
+    it intended to preserve) but don't exist in the matched region of the
+    file. That pattern indicates the transport layer inserted spurious
+    shell-style escapes around apostrophes or quotes — writing new_string
+    verbatim would literally insert ``\\'`` into source code.
+
+    Returns an error string if drift is detected, None otherwise.
+    """
+    # Cheap pre-check: bail out unless new_string actually contains a
+    # suspect escape sequence. This keeps the guard free for all the
+    # common, correct cases.
+    if "\\'" not in new_string and '\\"' not in new_string:
+        return None
+
+    # Aggregate matched regions of the file — that's what new_string will
+    # replace. If the suspect escapes are present there already, the
+    # model is genuinely preserving them (valid for some languages /
+    # escaped strings); accept the patch.
+    matched_regions = "".join(content[start:end] for start, end in matches)
+
+    for suspect in ("\\'", '\\"'):
+        if suspect in new_string and suspect in old_string and suspect not in matched_regions:
+            plain = suspect[1]  # "'" or '"'
+            return (
+                f"Escape-drift detected: old_string and new_string contain "
+                f"the literal sequence {suspect!r} but the matched region of "
+                f"the file does not. This is almost always a tool-call "
+                f"serialization artifact where an apostrophe or quote got "
+                f"prefixed with a spurious backslash. Re-read the file with "
+                f"read_file and pass old_string/new_string without "
+                f"backslash-escaping {plain!r} characters."
+            )
+    return None
+
+
 def _apply_replacements(content: str, matches: List[Tuple[int, int]], new_string: str) -> str:
     """
     Apply replacements at the given positions.
@@ -564,3 +619,86 @@ def _map_normalized_positions(original: str, normalized: str,
         original_matches.append((orig_start, min(orig_end, len(original))))
     
     return original_matches
+
+
+def find_closest_lines(old_string: str, content: str, context_lines: int = 2, max_results: int = 3) -> str:
+    """Find lines in content most similar to old_string for "did you mean?" feedback.
+
+    Returns a formatted string showing the closest matching lines with context,
+    or empty string if no useful match is found.
+    """
+    if not old_string or not content:
+        return ""
+
+    old_lines = old_string.splitlines()
+    content_lines = content.splitlines()
+
+    if not old_lines or not content_lines:
+        return ""
+
+    # Use first line of old_string as anchor for search
+    anchor = old_lines[0].strip()
+    if not anchor:
+        # Try second line if first is blank
+        candidates = [l.strip() for l in old_lines if l.strip()]
+        if not candidates:
+            return ""
+        anchor = candidates[0]
+
+    # Score each line in content by similarity to anchor
+    scored = []
+    for i, line in enumerate(content_lines):
+        stripped = line.strip()
+        if not stripped:
+            continue
+        ratio = SequenceMatcher(None, anchor, stripped).ratio()
+        if ratio > 0.3:
+            scored.append((ratio, i))
+
+    if not scored:
+        return ""
+
+    # Take top matches
+    scored.sort(key=lambda x: -x[0])
+    top = scored[:max_results]
+
+    parts = []
+    seen_ranges = set()
+    for _, line_idx in top:
+        start = max(0, line_idx - context_lines)
+        end = min(len(content_lines), line_idx + len(old_lines) + context_lines)
+        key = (start, end)
+        if key in seen_ranges:
+            continue
+        seen_ranges.add(key)
+        snippet = "\n".join(
+            f"{start + j + 1:4d}| {content_lines[start + j]}"
+            for j in range(end - start)
+        )
+        parts.append(snippet)
+
+    if not parts:
+        return ""
+
+    return "\n---\n".join(parts)
+
+
+def format_no_match_hint(error: Optional[str], match_count: int,
+                         old_string: str, content: str) -> str:
+    """Return a '\\n\\nDid you mean...' snippet for plain no-match errors.
+
+    Gated so the hint only fires for actual "old_string not found" failures.
+    Ambiguous-match ("Found N matches"), escape-drift, and identical-strings
+    errors all have ``match_count == 0`` but a "did you mean?" snippet would
+    be misleading — those failed for unrelated reasons.
+
+    Returns an empty string when there's nothing useful to append.
+    """
+    if match_count != 0:
+        return ""
+    if not error or not error.startswith("Could not find"):
+        return ""
+    hint = find_closest_lines(old_string, content)
+    if not hint:
+        return ""
+    return "\n\nDid you mean one of these sections?\n" + hint

tools/patch_parser.py

@@ -290,10 +290,16 @@ def _validate_operations(
                 )
                 if count == 0:
                     label = f"'{hunk.context_hint}'" if hunk.context_hint else "(no hint)"
-                    errors.append(
+                    msg = (
                         f"{op.file_path}: hunk {label} not found"
                         + (f" — {match_error}" if match_error else "")
                     )
+                    try:
+                        from tools.fuzzy_match import format_no_match_hint
+                        msg += format_no_match_hint(match_error, count, search_pattern, simulated)
+                    except Exception:
+                        pass
+                    errors.append(msg)
                 else:
                     # Advance simulation so subsequent hunks validate correctly.
                     # Reuse the result from the call above — no second fuzzy run.
@@ -537,7 +543,13 @@ def _apply_update(op: PatchOperation, file_ops: Any) -> Tuple[bool, str]:
                             error = None
                 
                 if error:
-                    return False, f"Could not apply hunk: {error}"
+                    err_msg = f"Could not apply hunk: {error}"
+                    try:
+                        from tools.fuzzy_match import format_no_match_hint
+                        err_msg += format_no_match_hint(error, 0, search_pattern, new_content)
+                    except Exception:
+                        pass
+                    return False, err_msg
         else:
             # Addition-only hunk (no context or removed lines).
             # Insert at the location indicated by the context hint, or at end of file.

tools/skill_manager_tool.py

@@ -575,9 +575,15 @@ def _patch_skill(
     if match_error:
         # Show a short preview of the file so the model can self-correct
         preview = content[:500] + ("..." if len(content) > 500 else "")
+        err_msg = match_error
+        try:
+            from tools.fuzzy_match import format_no_match_hint
+            err_msg += format_no_match_hint(match_error, match_count, old_string, content)
+        except Exception:
+            pass
         return {
             "success": False,
-            "error": match_error,
+            "error": err_msg,
             "file_preview": preview,
         }
 

tools/tts_tool.py

@@ -2,14 +2,13 @@
 """
 Text-to-Speech Tool Module
 
-Supports seven TTS providers:
+Supports six TTS providers:
 - Edge TTS (default, free, no API key): Microsoft Edge neural voices
 - ElevenLabs (premium): High-quality voices, needs ELEVENLABS_API_KEY
 - OpenAI TTS: Good quality, needs OPENAI_API_KEY
 - MiniMax TTS: High-quality with voice cloning, needs MINIMAX_API_KEY
 - Mistral (Voxtral TTS): Multilingual, native Opus, needs MISTRAL_API_KEY
 - NeuTTS (local, free, no API key): On-device TTS via neutts_cli, needs neutts installed
-- KittenTTS (local, free, no API key): Lightweight on-device ONNX TTS via kittentts
 
 Output formats:
 - Opus (.ogg) for Telegram voice bubbles (requires ffmpeg for Edge TTS)
@@ -78,12 +77,6 @@ def _import_sounddevice():
     return sd
 
 
-def _import_kittentts():
-    """Lazy import KittenTTS. Returns the class or raises ImportError."""
-    from kittentts import KittenTTS
-    return KittenTTS
-
-
 # ===========================================================================
 # Defaults
 # ===========================================================================
@@ -93,8 +86,6 @@ DEFAULT_ELEVENLABS_VOICE_ID = "pNInz6obpgDQGcFmaJgB"  # Adam
 DEFAULT_ELEVENLABS_MODEL_ID = "eleven_multilingual_v2"
 DEFAULT_ELEVENLABS_STREAMING_MODEL_ID = "eleven_flash_v2_5"
 DEFAULT_OPENAI_MODEL = "gpt-4o-mini-tts"
-DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_MODEL = "KittenML/kitten-tts-nano-0.8-int8"  # 25MB
-DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_VOICE = "Jasper"
 DEFAULT_OPENAI_VOICE = "alloy"
 DEFAULT_OPENAI_BASE_URL = "https://api.openai.com/v1"
 DEFAULT_MINIMAX_MODEL = "speech-2.8-hd"
@@ -457,15 +448,6 @@ def _check_neutts_available() -> bool:
         return False
 
 
-def _check_kittentts_available() -> bool:
-    """Check if the kittentts engine is importable (installed locally)."""
-    try:
-        import importlib.util
-        return importlib.util.find_spec("kittentts") is not None
-    except Exception:
-        return False
-
-
 def _default_neutts_ref_audio() -> str:
     """Return path to the bundled default voice reference audio."""
     return str(Path(__file__).parent / "neutts_samples" / "jo.wav")
@@ -529,51 +511,6 @@ def _generate_neutts(text: str, output_path: str, tts_config: Dict[str, Any]) ->
     return output_path
 
 
-# ===========================================================================
-# Provider: KittenTTS (local, lightweight)
-# ===========================================================================
-
-# Module-level cache for KittenTTS model instances
-_kittentts_model_cache: Dict[str, Any] = {}
-
-
-def _generate_kittentts(text: str, output_path: str, tts_config: Dict[str, Any]) -> str:
-    """Generate speech using the local KittenTTS ONNX model."""
-    KittenTTS = _import_kittentts()
-    kt_config = tts_config.get("kittentts", {})
-    model_name = kt_config.get("model", DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_MODEL)
-    voice = kt_config.get("voice", DEFAULT_KITTENTTS_VOICE)
-    speed = kt_config.get("speed", 1.0)
-    clean_text = kt_config.get("clean_text", True)
-
-    global _kittentts_model_cache
-    if model_name not in _kittentts_model_cache:
-        logger.info("[KittenTTS] Loading model: %s", model_name)
-        _kittentts_model_cache[model_name] = KittenTTS(model_name)
-
-    model = _kittentts_model_cache[model_name]
-    audio = model.generate(text, voice=voice, speed=speed, clean_text=clean_text)
-
-    import soundfile as sf
-
-    wav_path = output_path
-    if not output_path.endswith(".wav"):
-        wav_path = output_path.rsplit(".", 1)[0] + ".wav"
-
-    sf.write(wav_path, audio, 24000)
-
-    if wav_path != output_path:
-        ffmpeg = shutil.which("ffmpeg")
-        if ffmpeg:
-            conv_cmd = [ffmpeg, "-i", wav_path, "-y", "-loglevel", "error", output_path]
-            subprocess.run(conv_cmd, check=True, timeout=30)
-            os.remove(wav_path)
-        else:
-            os.rename(wav_path, output_path)
-
-    return output_path
-
-
 # ===========================================================================
 # Main tool function
 # ===========================================================================
@@ -685,19 +622,6 @@ def text_to_speech_tool(
             logger.info("Generating speech with NeuTTS (local)...")
             _generate_neutts(text, file_str, tts_config)
 
-        elif provider == "kittentts":
-            try:
-                _import_kittentts()
-            except ImportError:
-                return json.dumps({
-                    "success": False,
-                    "error": "KittenTTS provider selected but 'kittentts' package not installed. "
-                             "Run 'hermes setup tts' and choose KittenTTS, or install manually: "
-                             "pip install https://github.com/KittenML/KittenTTS/releases/download/0.8.1/kittentts-0.8.1-py3-none-any.whl"
-                }, ensure_ascii=False)
-            logger.info("Generating speech with KittenTTS (local, lightweight)...")
-            _generate_kittentts(text, file_str, tts_config)
-
         else:
             # Default: Edge TTS (free), with NeuTTS as local fallback
             edge_available = True
@@ -734,10 +658,10 @@ def text_to_speech_tool(
                 "error": f"TTS generation produced no output (provider: {provider})"
             }, ensure_ascii=False)
 
-        # Try Opus conversion for Telegram compatibility only.
-        # Outside Telegram, preserve the caller's explicit output format.
+        # Try Opus conversion for Telegram compatibility
+        # Edge TTS outputs MP3, NeuTTS outputs WAV — both need ffmpeg conversion
         voice_compatible = False
-        if want_opus and provider in ("edge", "neutts", "minimax", "kittentts") and not file_str.endswith(".ogg"):
+        if provider in ("edge", "neutts", "minimax") and not file_str.endswith(".ogg"):
             opus_path = _convert_to_opus(file_str)
             if opus_path:
                 file_str = opus_path
@@ -818,8 +742,6 @@ def check_tts_requirements() -> bool:
         pass
     if _check_neutts_available():
         return True
-    if _check_kittentts_available():
-        return True
     return False
 
 

website/docs/user-guide/features/tts.md

@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ Hermes Agent supports both text-to-speech output and voice message transcription
 
 ## Text-to-Speech
 
-Convert text to speech with seven providers:
+Convert text to speech with six providers:
 
 | Provider | Quality | Cost | API Key |
 |----------|---------|------|---------|
@@ -20,7 +20,6 @@ Convert text to speech with seven providers:
 | **MiniMax TTS** | Excellent | Paid | `MINIMAX_API_KEY` |
 | **Mistral (Voxtral TTS)** | Excellent | Paid | `MISTRAL_API_KEY` |
 | **NeuTTS** | Good | Free | None needed |
-| **KittenTTS** | Good | Free (local) | None needed |
 
 ### Platform Delivery
 
@@ -36,7 +35,7 @@ Convert text to speech with seven providers:
 ```yaml
 # In ~/.hermes/config.yaml
 tts:
-  provider: "edge"              # "edge" | "elevenlabs" | "openai" | "minimax" | "mistral" | "neutts" | "kittentts"
+  provider: "edge"              # "edge" | "elevenlabs" | "openai" | "minimax" | "mistral" | "neutts"
   speed: 1.0                    # Global speed multiplier (provider-specific settings override this)
   edge:
     voice: "en-US-AriaNeural"   # 322 voices, 74 languages
@@ -63,11 +62,6 @@ tts:
     ref_text: ''
     model: neuphonic/neutts-air-q4-gguf
     device: cpu
-  kittentts:
-    model: KittenML/kitten-tts-nano-0.8-int8   # 25MB int8 default; also micro and mini variants
-    voice: Jasper                               # Jasper, Bella, Luna, Bruno, Rosie, Hugo, Kiki, Leo
-    speed: 1.0
-    clean_text: true
 ```
 
 **Speed control**: The global `tts.speed` value applies to all providers by default. Each provider can override it with its own `speed` setting (e.g., `tts.openai.speed: 1.5`). Provider-specific speed takes precedence over the global value. Default is `1.0` (normal speed).
@@ -80,7 +74,6 @@ Telegram voice bubbles require Opus/OGG audio format:
 - **Edge TTS** (default) outputs MP3 and needs **ffmpeg** to convert:
 - **MiniMax TTS** outputs MP3 and needs **ffmpeg** to convert for Telegram voice bubbles
 - **NeuTTS** outputs WAV and also needs **ffmpeg** to convert for Telegram voice bubbles
-- **KittenTTS** outputs WAV and also needs **ffmpeg** to convert for Telegram voice bubbles
 
 ```bash
 # Ubuntu/Debian
@@ -93,7 +86,7 @@ brew install ffmpeg
 sudo dnf install ffmpeg
 ```
 
-Without ffmpeg, Edge TTS, MiniMax TTS, NeuTTS, and KittenTTS audio are sent as regular audio files (playable, but shown as a rectangular player instead of a voice bubble).
+Without ffmpeg, Edge TTS, MiniMax TTS, and NeuTTS audio are sent as regular audio files (playable, but shown as a rectangular player instead of a voice bubble).
 
 :::tip
 If you want voice bubbles without installing ffmpeg, switch to the OpenAI, ElevenLabs, or Mistral provider.