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docs(windows): correct native data dir to %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes (#42856)

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* docs(windows): correct native data dir to %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes

The Windows-native guide claimed a deliberate split where config, auth,
skills, and sessions live under %USERPROFILE%\.hermes. That is not what
the installer does: scripts/install.ps1 sets HERMES_HOME=%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes,
so data actually lives in %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes alongside the disposable
install (the hermes-agent\, git\, node\, bin\ subdirectories) — `hermes
config` confirms config.yaml/.env resolve there, not under %USERPROFILE%.

Update the data-layout table, the "split is deliberate" note, the env-var
and uninstall sections to describe the real layout: data and install share
the %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes root, reinstall only replaces hermes-agent\, and
a full wipe targets %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes (with %USERPROFILE%\.hermes kept
only as a legacy/WSL cleanup). Mention HERMES_HOME as the override knob.

* docs(windows): fix PATH + bin layout to match installer

The installer adds hermes-agent\venv\Scripts (where hermes.exe lives) to
User PATH and sets HERMES_HOME — not %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\bin. The \bin
dir holds Hermes's managed uv.exe, not a hermes.cmd shim. Correct the
install-step list and the data-layout table accordingly.

* fix(install): show real HERMES_HOME path in setup messages

The native Windows installer wrote config/env/skills under $HermesHome
(%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes) but its success messages claimed ~/.hermes,
which doesn't exist on native Windows. Print the actual paths so a new
user can find their config, .env, and skills.
This commit is contained in:
xxxigm
2026-06-09 14:11:20 -05:00
committed by GitHub
parent 8d71c38919
commit 02f878ec5a
2 changed files with 23 additions and 22 deletions
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website/docs/user-guide/windows-native.md
+11 -10
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@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ The installer auto-retries flaky git fetches and strips BOM from any downloaded
### Desktop installer (alternative)
A thin GUI installer is also available — useful if you'd rather double-click an `.exe` than open PowerShell. Download Hermes Desktop, run the installer, and on first launch the GUI calls `install.ps1` under the hood to provision Python (via `uv`), Node, PortableGit, and the rest of the dependency bootstrap described below. After the first run, the desktop app and the PowerShell-installed `hermes` CLI share the same `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent` install and `%USERPROFILE%\.hermes` data directory — switch between the GUI and the CLI freely.
A thin GUI installer is also available — useful if you'd rather double-click an `.exe` than open PowerShell. Download Hermes Desktop, run the installer, and on first launch the GUI calls `install.ps1` under the hood to provision Python (via `uv`), Node, PortableGit, and the rest of the dependency bootstrap described below. After the first run, the desktop app and the PowerShell-installed `hermes` CLI share the same `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent` install and `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes` data directory — switch between the GUI and the CLI freely.
Use the desktop installer when you want a familiar Windows install experience or you're handing Hermes to a non-developer; use the PowerShell one-liner when you're already in a terminal.
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ Top-to-bottom, in order:
6. **Tiered `uv pip install`** — tries `.[all]` first, falls back to progressively smaller sets (`[messaging,dashboard,ext]` → `[messaging]` → `.`) if a `git+https` dep flakes on rate-limited GitHub. Prevents "single flake drops you to a bare install" failure mode.
7. **Auto-installs messaging SDKs** keyed off `.env` — if `TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN` / `DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN` / `SLACK_BOT_TOKEN` / `SLACK_APP_TOKEN` / `WHATSAPP_ENABLED` are present, runs `python -m ensurepip --upgrade` and targeted `pip install` calls so each platform's SDK is actually importable.
8. **Sets `HERMES_GIT_BASH_PATH`** to the resolved `bash.exe` so Hermes finds it deterministically in fresh shells.
9. **Adds `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\bin` to User PATH** — exposes the `hermes` command after you open a new terminal.
9. **Adds `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent\venv\Scripts` to User PATH and sets `HERMES_HOME=%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes`** — exposes the `hermes` command (and points it at your data dir) after you open a new terminal.
10. **Runs `hermes setup`** — the normal first-run wizard (model, provider, toolsets). Skip with `-SkipSetup`.
:::tip Skip provider hunting on Windows
@@ -202,15 +202,15 @@ Services require admin rights to install and tie the gateway's lifecycle to mach
| Path | Contents |
|---|---|
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent\` | Git checkout + venv. Safe to `Remove-Item -Recurse` and reinstall. |
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent\` | Git checkout + venv. `venv\Scripts\hermes.exe` is the command added to User PATH. Safe to `Remove-Item -Recurse` and reinstall. |
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\git\` | PortableGit (only if the installer provisioned it). |
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\node\` | Portable Node.js (only if the installer provisioned it). |
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\bin\` | `hermes.cmd` shim, added to User PATH. |
| `%USERPROFILE%\.hermes\` | Your config, auth, skills, sessions, logs. **Survives reinstalls.** |
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\bin\` | Hermes's managed `uv.exe` (the Python manager it uses for updates). |
| `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\` (root) | Your config, auth, skills, sessions, logs (`config.yaml`, `.env`, `skills\`, `sessions\`, `logs\`, …). **Survives reinstalls.** |
The split is deliberate: `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes` is disposable infrastructure (you can blow it away and the one-liner restores it). `%USERPROFILE%\.hermes` is your data — config, memory, skills, session history — and is identical in shape to a Linux install. Mirror it between machines and your Hermes moves with you.
On native Windows the installer sets `HERMES_HOME=%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes`, so your data and the disposable install live under the **same** `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes` root: the install/runtime is the `hermes-agent\`, `git\`, `node\`, and `bin\` subdirectories, while your data files sit directly in `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes`. Reinstalling only replaces the `hermes-agent\` checkout, so your data survives — but because the two share a root, **don't** `Remove-Item -Recurse %LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes` if you want to keep your data; delete the `hermes-agent\` subdirectory instead. Your data directory is identical in shape to a Linux `~/.hermes`, so you can mirror it between machines.
**Override `HERMES_HOME`:** set the environment variable to point at a different data dir. Works the same as on Linux.
**Override `HERMES_HOME`:** set the environment variable to point at a different data dir (e.g. `%USERPROFILE%\.hermes` to match a Linux/WSL layout). Works the same as on Linux.
## Browser tool
@@ -235,7 +235,7 @@ hermes --version
### Environment variables
Hermes honors both `$env:X` (process-scope) and User environment variables (permanent, set in System Properties → Environment Variables). Setting API keys in `%USERPROFILE%\.hermes\.env` is the normal path — same as Linux:
Hermes honors both `$env:X` (process-scope) and User environment variables (permanent, set in System Properties → Environment Variables). Setting API keys in `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\.env` (your `HERMES_HOME`) is the normal path — same as Linux:
```
OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-...
@@ -262,14 +262,15 @@ From PowerShell:
hermes uninstall
```
That's the clean path — removes the schtasks entry, Startup folder shortcut, `hermes.cmd` shim, deletes `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent\`, and trims the User PATH. It leaves `%USERPROFILE%\.hermes\` alone (your config, auth, skills, sessions, logs) in case you're reinstalling.
That's the clean path — removes the schtasks entry, Startup folder shortcut, `hermes.cmd` shim, deletes `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\hermes-agent\`, and trims the User PATH. It leaves the rest of `%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes\` alone (your config, auth, skills, sessions, logs) in case you're reinstalling.
To nuke everything:
```powershell
hermes uninstall
Remove-Item -Recurse -Force "$env:USERPROFILE\.hermes"
Remove-Item -Recurse -Force "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\hermes"
# Also remove a legacy CLI/WSL data dir if you ever used one:
Remove-Item -Recurse -Force "$env:USERPROFILE\.hermes"
```
The `hermes uninstall` CLI subcommand also handles the case where the schtasks entry was registered under a different task name (older installs) — it searches by install path rather than by hardcoded task name.