Files
hermes-agent/website/docs/reference/cli-commands.md
teknium1 b3ea7714f5 docs: add dedicated /compress command documentation
Add a detailed section for /compress in the CLI Commands Reference,
explaining what it does, when to use it, requirements, and output format.
Previously only had a one-line table entry.
2026-03-08 17:21:15 -07:00

9.0 KiB

sidebar_position, title, description
sidebar_position title description
1 CLI Commands Reference Comprehensive reference for all hermes CLI commands and slash commands

CLI Commands Reference

Terminal Commands

These are commands you run from your shell.

Core Commands

Command Description
hermes Start interactive chat (default)
hermes chat -q "Hello" Single query mode (non-interactive)
hermes chat --continue / -c Resume the most recent session
hermes chat -c "my project" Resume a session by name (latest in lineage)
hermes chat --resume <id> / -r <id> Resume a specific session by ID or title
hermes chat --model <name> Use a specific model
hermes chat --provider <name> Force a provider (nous, openrouter, zai, kimi-coding, minimax, minimax-cn)
hermes chat --toolsets "web,terminal" / -t Use specific toolsets
hermes chat --verbose Enable verbose/debug output
hermes --worktree / -w Start in an isolated git worktree (for parallel agents)

Provider & Model Management

Command Description
hermes model Switch provider and model interactively
hermes login OAuth login to a provider (use --provider to specify)
hermes logout Clear provider authentication

Configuration

Command Description
hermes setup Full setup wizard (provider, terminal, messaging)
hermes config View current configuration
hermes config edit Open config.yaml in your editor
hermes config set KEY VAL Set a specific value
hermes config check Check for missing config (useful after updates)
hermes config migrate Interactively add missing options
hermes tools Interactive tool configuration per platform
hermes status Show configuration status (including auth)
hermes doctor Diagnose issues

Maintenance

Command Description
hermes update Update to latest version
hermes uninstall Uninstall (can keep configs for later reinstall)
hermes version Show version info

Gateway (Messaging + Cron)

Command Description
hermes gateway Run gateway in foreground
hermes gateway setup Configure messaging platforms interactively
hermes gateway install Install as system service (Linux/macOS)
hermes gateway start Start the service
hermes gateway stop Stop the service
hermes gateway restart Restart the service
hermes gateway status Check service status
hermes gateway uninstall Uninstall the system service
hermes whatsapp Pair WhatsApp via QR code

Skills

Command Description
hermes skills browse Browse all available skills with pagination (official first)
hermes skills search <query> Search skill registries
hermes skills install <identifier> Install a skill (with security scan)
hermes skills inspect <identifier> Preview before installing
hermes skills list List installed skills
hermes skills list --source hub List hub-installed skills only
hermes skills audit Re-scan all hub skills
hermes skills uninstall <name> Remove a hub skill
hermes skills publish <path> --to github --repo owner/repo Publish a skill
hermes skills snapshot export <file> Export skill config
hermes skills snapshot import <file> Import from snapshot
hermes skills tap add <repo> Add a custom source
hermes skills tap remove <repo> Remove a source
hermes skills tap list List custom sources

Cron & Pairing

Command Description
hermes cron list View scheduled jobs
hermes cron status Check if cron scheduler is running
hermes cron tick Manually trigger a cron tick
hermes pairing list View pending + approved users
hermes pairing approve <platform> <code> Approve a pairing code
hermes pairing revoke <platform> <user_id> Remove user access
hermes pairing clear-pending Clear all pending pairing requests

Sessions

Command Description
hermes sessions list Browse past sessions (shows title, preview, last active)
hermes sessions rename <id> <title> Set or change a session's title
hermes sessions export <id> Export a session
hermes sessions delete <id> Delete a specific session
hermes sessions prune Remove old sessions
hermes sessions stats Show session statistics

Insights

Command Description
hermes insights Show usage analytics for the last 30 days
hermes insights --days 7 Analyze a custom time window
hermes insights --source telegram Filter by platform

Slash Commands (Inside Chat)

Type / in the interactive CLI to see an autocomplete dropdown.

Navigation & Control

Command Description
/help Show available commands
/quit Exit the CLI (aliases: /exit, /q)
/clear Clear screen and reset conversation
/new Start a new conversation
/reset Reset conversation only (keep screen)

Tools & Configuration

Command Description
/tools List all available tools
/toolsets List available toolsets
/model [provider:model] Show or change the current model (supports provider:model syntax to switch providers)
/provider Show available providers with auth status
/config Show current configuration
/prompt [text] View/set custom system prompt
/personality [name] Set a predefined personality

Conversation

Command Description
/history Show conversation history
/retry Retry the last message
/undo Remove the last user/assistant exchange
/save Save the current conversation
/compress Manually compress conversation context
/title [name] Set or show the current session's title
/usage Show token usage for this session
/insights [--days N] Show usage insights and analytics (last 30 days)

/compress

Manually triggers context compression on the current conversation. This summarizes middle turns of the conversation while preserving the first 3 and last 4 turns, significantly reducing token count. Useful when:

  • The conversation is getting long and you want to reduce costs
  • You're approaching the model's context limit
  • You want to continue the conversation without starting fresh

Requirements: at least 4 messages in the conversation. The configured model (or compression.summary_model from config) is used to generate the summary. After compression, the session continues seamlessly with the compressed history.

Reports the result as: Compressed: X → Y messages, ~N → ~M tokens.

:::tip Compression also happens automatically when approaching context limits (configurable via compression.threshold in config.yaml). Use /compress when you want to trigger it early. :::

Media & Input

Command Description
/paste Check clipboard for an image and attach it (see Vision & Image Paste)

Skills & Scheduling

Command Description
/cron Manage scheduled tasks
/skills Browse, search, install, inspect, or manage skills
/platforms Show gateway/messaging platform status
/verbose Cycle tool progress: off → new → all → verbose
/<skill-name> Invoke any installed skill

Gateway-Only Commands

These work in messaging platforms (Telegram, Discord, Slack, WhatsApp) but not the interactive CLI:

Command Description
/stop Stop the running agent (no follow-up message)
/sethome Set this chat as the home channel
/status Show session info
/reload-mcp Reload MCP servers from config
/update Update Hermes Agent to the latest version

Keybindings

Key Action
Enter Send message
Alt+Enter / Ctrl+J New line (multi-line input)
Alt+V Paste image from clipboard (see Vision & Image Paste)
Ctrl+V Paste text + auto-check for clipboard image
Ctrl+C Clear input/images, interrupt agent, or exit (contextual)
Ctrl+D Exit
Tab Autocomplete slash commands

:::tip Commands are case-insensitive — /HELP works the same as /help. :::

:::info Image paste keybindings Alt+V works in most terminals but not in VSCode's integrated terminal (VSCode intercepts Alt+key combos). Ctrl+V only triggers an image check when the clipboard also contains text (terminals don't send paste events for image-only clipboard). The /paste command is the universal fallback. See the full compatibility table. :::