diff --git a/agent/context_compressor.py b/agent/context_compressor.py
index dfb93b30aa..5f0792be88 100644
--- a/agent/context_compressor.py
+++ b/agent/context_compressor.py
@@ -763,6 +763,33 @@ class ContextCompressor(ContextEngine):
 
         return "\n\n".join(parts)
 
+    def _fallback_to_main_for_compression(self, e: Exception, reason: str) -> None:
+        """Switch from a separate ``summary_model`` back to the main model.
+
+        Centralises the bookkeeping shared by every fallback branch in
+        :meth:`_generate_summary` (model-not-found, timeout, JSON decode,
+        unknown error): record the aux-model failure for ``/usage``-style
+        callers, clear the summary model so the next call uses the main one,
+        and clear the cooldown so the immediate retry can run.
+
+        ``reason`` is a short human-readable phrase ("unavailable",
+        "timed out", "returned invalid JSON", "failed") that is interpolated
+        into the warning log.
+        """
+        self._summary_model_fallen_back = True
+        logging.warning(
+            "Summary model '%s' %s (%s). "
+            "Falling back to main model '%s' for compression.",
+            self.summary_model, reason, e, self.model,
+        )
+        _err_text = str(e).strip() or e.__class__.__name__
+        if len(_err_text) > 220:
+            _err_text = _err_text[:217].rstrip() + "..."
+        self._last_aux_model_failure_error = _err_text
+        self._last_aux_model_failure_model = self.summary_model
+        self.summary_model = ""  # empty = use main model
+        self._summary_failure_cooldown_until = 0.0  # no cooldown — retry immediately
+
     def _generate_summary(self, turns_to_summarize: List[Dict[str, Any]], focus_topic: str = None) -> Optional[str]:
         """Generate a structured summary of conversation turns.
 
@@ -961,28 +988,42 @@ The user has requested that this compaction PRIORITISE preserving all informatio
                 _status in (408, 429, 502, 504)
                 or "timeout" in _err_str
             )
+            # Non-JSON / malformed-body responses from misconfigured providers
+            # or proxies (e.g. an HTML 502 page returned with
+            # ``Content-Type: application/json``) bubble up as
+            # ``json.JSONDecodeError`` from the OpenAI SDK's ``response.json()``,
+            # or as a wrapping ``APIResponseValidationError`` whose message
+            # carries the substring "expecting value".  Treat these like a
+            # transient provider failure: one retry on the main model, then a
+            # short cooldown.  Issue #22244.
+            _is_json_decode = (
+                isinstance(e, json.JSONDecodeError)
+                or "expecting value" in _err_str
+            )
+            if _is_json_decode and not _is_model_not_found and not _is_timeout:
+                logger.error(
+                    "Context compression failed: auxiliary LLM returned a "
+                    "non-JSON response. provider=%s summary_model=%s "
+                    "main_model=%s base_url=%s err=%s",
+                    self.provider or "auto",
+                    self.summary_model or "(main)",
+                    self.model,
+                    self.base_url or "default",
+                    e,
+                )
             if (
-                (_is_model_not_found or _is_timeout)
+                (_is_model_not_found or _is_timeout or _is_json_decode)
                 and self.summary_model
                 and self.summary_model != self.model
                 and not getattr(self, "_summary_model_fallen_back", False)
             ):
-                self._summary_model_fallen_back = True
-                logging.warning(
-                    "Summary model '%s' unavailable (%s). "
-                    "Falling back to main model '%s' for compression.",
-                    self.summary_model, e, self.model,
-                )
-                # Record the aux-model failure so callers can warn the user
-                # even if the retry-on-main succeeds — a misconfigured aux
-                # model is something the user needs to fix.
-                _err_text = str(e).strip() or e.__class__.__name__
-                if len(_err_text) > 220:
-                    _err_text = _err_text[:217].rstrip() + "..."
-                self._last_aux_model_failure_error = _err_text
-                self._last_aux_model_failure_model = self.summary_model
-                self.summary_model = ""  # empty = use main model
-                self._summary_failure_cooldown_until = 0.0  # no cooldown
+                if _is_json_decode:
+                    _reason = "returned invalid JSON"
+                elif _is_model_not_found:
+                    _reason = "unavailable"
+                else:
+                    _reason = "timed out"
+                self._fallback_to_main_for_compression(e, _reason)
                 return self._generate_summary(turns_to_summarize, focus_topic=focus_topic)  # retry immediately
 
             # Unknown-error best-effort retry on main model.  Losing N turns of
@@ -999,26 +1040,13 @@ The user has requested that this compaction PRIORITISE preserving all informatio
                 and self.summary_model != self.model
                 and not getattr(self, "_summary_model_fallen_back", False)
             ):
-                self._summary_model_fallen_back = True
-                logging.warning(
-                    "Summary model '%s' failed (%s). "
-                    "Retrying on main model '%s' before giving up.",
-                    self.summary_model, e, self.model,
-                )
-                # Record the aux-model failure (see 404 branch above) — user
-                # should know their configured model is broken even if main
-                # recovers the call.
-                _err_text = str(e).strip() or e.__class__.__name__
-                if len(_err_text) > 220:
-                    _err_text = _err_text[:217].rstrip() + "..."
-                self._last_aux_model_failure_error = _err_text
-                self._last_aux_model_failure_model = self.summary_model
-                self.summary_model = ""  # empty = use main model
-                self._summary_failure_cooldown_until = 0.0
+                self._fallback_to_main_for_compression(e, "failed")
                 return self._generate_summary(turns_to_summarize, focus_topic=focus_topic)
 
-            # Transient errors (timeout, rate limit, network) — shorter cooldown
-            _transient_cooldown = 60
+            # Transient errors (timeout, rate limit, network, JSON decode) —
+            # shorter cooldown for JSON decode since the body shape can flip
+            # back to valid quickly when an upstream proxy recovers.
+            _transient_cooldown = 30 if _is_json_decode else 60
             self._summary_failure_cooldown_until = time.monotonic() + _transient_cooldown
             err_text = str(e).strip() or e.__class__.__name__
             if len(err_text) > 220:
diff --git a/agent/prompt_builder.py b/agent/prompt_builder.py
index d60c72562f..d907a58158 100644
--- a/agent/prompt_builder.py
+++ b/agent/prompt_builder.py
@@ -564,6 +564,18 @@ PLATFORM_HINTS = {
         "code fences). Treat this like a conversation, not a document. Keep responses "
         "brief and natural."
     ),
+    "webui": (
+        "You are in the Hermes WebUI, a browser-based chat interface. "
+        "Full Markdown rendering is supported — headings, bold, italic, code "
+        "blocks, tables, math (LaTeX), and Mermaid diagrams all render natively. "
+        "To display local or remote media/files inline, include "
+        "MEDIA:/absolute/path/to/file or MEDIA:https://... in your response. "
+        "Local file paths must be absolute. Images, audio (with playback speed "
+        "controls), video, PDFs, HTML, CSV, diffs/patches, and Excalidraw files "
+        "render as rich previews. Do not use Markdown image syntax like "
+        "![alt](/path) for local files; local paths are not served that way. "
+        "Use MEDIA:/absolute/path instead."
+    ),
 }
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/agent/transports/types.py b/agent/transports/types.py
index f0da1eb6f8..2deb157535 100644
--- a/agent/transports/types.py
+++ b/agent/transports/types.py
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ class ToolCall:
         return (self.provider_data or {}).get("response_item_id")
 
     @property
-    def extra_content(self) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
+    def extra_content(self) -> dict[str, Any] | None:
         """Gemini extra_content (thought_signature) from provider_data.
 
         Gemini 3 thinking models attach ``extra_content`` with a
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/src/lib/api.ts b/apps/dashboard/src/lib/api.ts
index 6568e979bc..2b571b6277 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/src/lib/api.ts
+++ b/apps/dashboard/src/lib/api.ts
@@ -553,13 +553,14 @@ export interface ModelsAnalyticsResponse {
 
 export interface CronJob {
   id: string;
-  name?: string;
-  prompt: string;
-  schedule: { kind: string; expr: string; display: string };
-  schedule_display: string;
+  name?: string | null;
+  prompt?: string | null;
+  script?: string | null;
+  schedule?: { kind?: string; expr?: string; display?: string };
+  schedule_display?: string | null;
   enabled: boolean;
-  state: string;
-  deliver?: string;
+  state?: string | null;
+  deliver?: string | null;
   last_run_at?: string | null;
   next_run_at?: string | null;
   last_error?: string | null;
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/src/pages/CronPage.tsx b/apps/dashboard/src/pages/CronPage.tsx
index 90cc25abe0..e994c96f27 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/src/pages/CronPage.tsx
+++ b/apps/dashboard/src/pages/CronPage.tsx
@@ -23,6 +23,50 @@ function formatTime(iso?: string | null): string {
   return d.toLocaleString();
 }
 
+function asText(value: unknown): string {
+  return typeof value === "string" ? value : "";
+}
+
+function truncateText(value: string, maxLength: number): string {
+  return value.length > maxLength
+    ? value.slice(0, maxLength) + "..."
+    : value;
+}
+
+function getJobPrompt(job: CronJob): string {
+  return asText(job.prompt);
+}
+
+function getJobName(job: CronJob): string {
+  return asText(job.name).trim();
+}
+
+function getJobTitle(job: CronJob): string {
+  const name = getJobName(job);
+  if (name) return name;
+
+  const prompt = getJobPrompt(job);
+  if (prompt) return truncateText(prompt, 60);
+
+  const script = asText(job.script);
+  if (script) return truncateText(script, 60);
+
+  return job.id || "Cron job";
+}
+
+function getJobScheduleDisplay(job: CronJob): string {
+  return (
+    asText(job.schedule_display) ||
+    asText(job.schedule?.display) ||
+    asText(job.schedule?.expr) ||
+    "—"
+  );
+}
+
+function getJobState(job: CronJob): string {
+  return asText(job.state) || (job.enabled === false ? "disabled" : "scheduled");
+}
+
 const STATUS_TONE: Record<string, "success" | "warning" | "destructive"> = {
   enabled: "success",
   scheduled: "success",
@@ -84,17 +128,17 @@ export default function CronPage() {
 
   const handlePauseResume = async (job: CronJob) => {
     try {
-      const isPaused = job.state === "paused";
+      const isPaused = getJobState(job) === "paused";
       if (isPaused) {
         await api.resumeCronJob(job.id);
         showToast(
-          `${t.cron.resume}: "${job.name || job.prompt.slice(0, 30)}"`,
+          `${t.cron.resume}: "${truncateText(getJobTitle(job), 30)}"`,
           "success",
         );
       } else {
         await api.pauseCronJob(job.id);
         showToast(
-          `${t.cron.pause}: "${job.name || job.prompt.slice(0, 30)}"`,
+          `${t.cron.pause}: "${truncateText(getJobTitle(job), 30)}"`,
           "success",
         );
       }
@@ -108,7 +152,7 @@ export default function CronPage() {
     try {
       await api.triggerCronJob(job.id);
       showToast(
-        `${t.cron.triggerNow}: "${job.name || job.prompt.slice(0, 30)}"`,
+        `${t.cron.triggerNow}: "${truncateText(getJobTitle(job), 30)}"`,
         "success",
       );
       loadJobs();
@@ -124,7 +168,7 @@ export default function CronPage() {
         try {
           await api.deleteCronJob(id);
           showToast(
-            `${t.common.delete}: "${job?.name || (job?.prompt ?? "").slice(0, 30) || id}"`,
+            `${t.common.delete}: "${job ? truncateText(getJobTitle(job), 30) : id}"`,
             "success",
           );
           loadJobs();
@@ -161,7 +205,9 @@ export default function CronPage() {
         title={t.cron.confirmDeleteTitle}
         description={
           pendingJob
-            ? `"${pendingJob.name || pendingJob.prompt.slice(0, 40)}" — ${t.cron.confirmDeleteMessage}`
+            ? `"${truncateText(getJobTitle(pendingJob), 40)}" — ${
+                t.cron.confirmDeleteMessage
+              }`
             : t.cron.confirmDeleteMessage
         }
         loading={jobDelete.isDeleting}
@@ -265,85 +311,90 @@ export default function CronPage() {
           </Card>
         )}
 
-        {jobs.map((job) => (
-          <Card key={job.id}>
-            <CardContent className="flex items-center gap-4 py-4">
-              <div className="flex-1 min-w-0">
-                <div className="flex items-center gap-2 mb-1">
-                  <span className="font-medium text-sm truncate">
-                    {job.name ||
-                      job.prompt.slice(0, 60) +
-                        (job.prompt.length > 60 ? "..." : "")}
-                  </span>
-                  <Badge tone={STATUS_TONE[job.state] ?? "secondary"}>
-                    {job.state}
-                  </Badge>
-                  {job.deliver && job.deliver !== "local" && (
-                    <Badge tone="outline">{job.deliver}</Badge>
+        {jobs.map((job) => {
+          const state = getJobState(job);
+          const promptText = getJobPrompt(job);
+          const title = getJobTitle(job);
+          const hasName = Boolean(getJobName(job));
+          const deliver = asText(job.deliver);
+
+          return (
+            <Card key={job.id}>
+              <CardContent className="flex items-center gap-4 py-4">
+                <div className="flex-1 min-w-0">
+                  <div className="flex items-center gap-2 mb-1">
+                    <span className="font-medium text-sm truncate">
+                      {title}
+                    </span>
+                    <Badge tone={STATUS_TONE[state] ?? "secondary"}>
+                      {state}
+                    </Badge>
+                    {deliver && deliver !== "local" && (
+                      <Badge tone="outline">{deliver}</Badge>
+                    )}
+                  </div>
+                  {hasName && promptText && (
+                    <p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground truncate mb-1">
+                      {truncateText(promptText, 100)}
+                    </p>
+                  )}
+                  <div className="flex items-center gap-4 text-xs text-muted-foreground">
+                    <span className="font-mono">{getJobScheduleDisplay(job)}</span>
+                    <span>
+                      {t.cron.last}: {formatTime(job.last_run_at)}
+                    </span>
+                    <span>
+                      {t.cron.next}: {formatTime(job.next_run_at)}
+                    </span>
+                  </div>
+                  {job.last_error && (
+                    <p className="text-xs text-destructive mt-1">
+                      {job.last_error}
+                    </p>
                   )}
                 </div>
-                {job.name && (
-                  <p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground truncate mb-1">
-                    {job.prompt.slice(0, 100)}
-                    {job.prompt.length > 100 ? "..." : ""}
-                  </p>
-                )}
-                <div className="flex items-center gap-4 text-xs text-muted-foreground">
-                  <span className="font-mono">{job.schedule_display}</span>
-                  <span>
-                    {t.cron.last}: {formatTime(job.last_run_at)}
-                  </span>
-                  <span>
-                    {t.cron.next}: {formatTime(job.next_run_at)}
-                  </span>
+
+                <div className="flex items-center gap-1 shrink-0">
+                  <Button
+                    ghost
+                    size="icon"
+                    title={state === "paused" ? t.cron.resume : t.cron.pause}
+                    aria-label={
+                      state === "paused" ? t.cron.resume : t.cron.pause
+                    }
+                    onClick={() => handlePauseResume(job)}
+                    className={
+                      state === "paused" ? "text-success" : "text-warning"
+                    }
+                  >
+                    {state === "paused" ? <Play /> : <Pause />}
+                  </Button>
+
+                  <Button
+                    ghost
+                    size="icon"
+                    title={t.cron.triggerNow}
+                    aria-label={t.cron.triggerNow}
+                    onClick={() => handleTrigger(job)}
+                  >
+                    <Zap />
+                  </Button>
+
+                  <Button
+                    ghost
+                    destructive
+                    size="icon"
+                    title={t.common.delete}
+                    aria-label={t.common.delete}
+                    onClick={() => jobDelete.requestDelete(job.id)}
+                  >
+                    <Trash2 />
+                  </Button>
                 </div>
-                {job.last_error && (
-                  <p className="text-xs text-destructive mt-1">
-                    {job.last_error}
-                  </p>
-                )}
-              </div>
-
-              <div className="flex items-center gap-1 shrink-0">
-                <Button
-                  ghost
-                  size="icon"
-                  title={job.state === "paused" ? t.cron.resume : t.cron.pause}
-                  aria-label={
-                    job.state === "paused" ? t.cron.resume : t.cron.pause
-                  }
-                  onClick={() => handlePauseResume(job)}
-                  className={
-                    job.state === "paused" ? "text-success" : "text-warning"
-                  }
-                >
-                  {job.state === "paused" ? <Play /> : <Pause />}
-                </Button>
-
-                <Button
-                  ghost
-                  size="icon"
-                  title={t.cron.triggerNow}
-                  aria-label={t.cron.triggerNow}
-                  onClick={() => handleTrigger(job)}
-                >
-                  <Zap />
-                </Button>
-
-                <Button
-                  ghost
-                  destructive
-                  size="icon"
-                  title={t.common.delete}
-                  aria-label={t.common.delete}
-                  onClick={() => jobDelete.requestDelete(job.id)}
-                >
-                  <Trash2 />
-                </Button>
-              </div>
-            </CardContent>
-          </Card>
-        ))}
+              </CardContent>
+            </Card>
+          );
+        })}
       </div>
 
       <PluginSlot name="cron:bottom" />
diff --git a/cli-config.yaml.example b/cli-config.yaml.example
index d7b7dcf931..07d00add21 100644
--- a/cli-config.yaml.example
+++ b/cli-config.yaml.example
@@ -500,6 +500,7 @@ group_sessions_per_user: true
 # Stream tokens to messaging platforms in real-time. The bot sends a message
 # on first token, then progressively edits it as more tokens arrive.
 # Disabled by default — enable to try the streaming UX on Telegram/Discord/Slack.
+# For Telegram, partial edits are sent as plain text and only the final edit uses MarkdownV2.
 streaming:
   enabled: false
   # transport: edit           # "edit" = progressive editMessageText
diff --git a/cli.py b/cli.py
index 596794909f..fed96a157b 100644
--- a/cli.py
+++ b/cli.py
@@ -5463,7 +5463,8 @@ class HermesCLI:
             return
 
         if not self._session_db:
-            _cprint("  Session database not available.")
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            _cprint(f"  {format_session_db_unavailable()}")
             return
 
         # Resolve title or ID
@@ -5574,7 +5575,8 @@ class HermesCLI:
             return
 
         if not self._session_db:
-            _cprint("  Session database not available.")
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            _cprint(f"  {format_session_db_unavailable()}")
             return
 
         parts = cmd_original.split(None, 1)
@@ -6850,7 +6852,8 @@ class HermesCLI:
                                 self._pending_title = new_title
                                 _cprint(f"  Session title queued: {new_title} (will be saved on first message)")
                     else:
-                        _cprint("  Session database not available.")
+                        from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+                        _cprint(f"  {format_session_db_unavailable()}")
                 else:
                     _cprint("  Usage: /title <your session title>")
             else:
@@ -6865,7 +6868,8 @@ class HermesCLI:
                     else:
                         _cprint("  No title set. Usage: /title <your session title>")
                 else:
-                    _cprint("  Session database not available.")
+                    from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+                    _cprint(f"  {format_session_db_unavailable()}")
         elif canonical == "new":
             parts = cmd_original.split(maxsplit=1)
             title = parts[1].strip() if len(parts) > 1 else None
diff --git a/cron/jobs.py b/cron/jobs.py
index 566db1e6db..a7c87d223e 100644
--- a/cron/jobs.py
+++ b/cron/jobs.py
@@ -72,6 +72,65 @@ def _apply_skill_fields(job: Dict[str, Any]) -> Dict[str, Any]:
     return normalized
 
 
+def _coerce_job_text(value: Any, fallback: str = "") -> str:
+    """Coerce legacy/hand-edited nullable cron fields to strings for readers."""
+    if value is None:
+        return fallback
+    return str(value)
+
+
+def _schedule_display_for_job(job: Dict[str, Any]) -> str:
+    display = _coerce_job_text(job.get("schedule_display")).strip()
+    if display:
+        return display
+
+    schedule = job.get("schedule")
+    if isinstance(schedule, dict):
+        for key in ("display", "value", "expr", "run_at"):
+            text = _coerce_job_text(schedule.get(key)).strip()
+            if text:
+                return text
+    elif schedule is not None:
+        return str(schedule)
+
+    return "?"
+
+
+def _normalize_job_record(job: Dict[str, Any]) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+    """Return a read-safe cron job shape for UI/API/tool/scheduler consumers.
+
+    Older or hand-edited jobs can have nullable fields like ``prompt``,
+    ``name``, or ``schedule_display``.  Keep storage untouched on read, but
+    ensure consumers never crash while formatting or running those records.
+    """
+    normalized = _apply_skill_fields(job)
+    job_id = _coerce_job_text(normalized.get("id"), "unknown")
+    prompt = _coerce_job_text(normalized.get("prompt"))
+    normalized["id"] = job_id
+    normalized["prompt"] = prompt
+
+    name = _coerce_job_text(normalized.get("name")).strip()
+    if not name:
+        script = _coerce_job_text(normalized.get("script")).strip()
+        label_source = (
+            prompt
+            or (normalized["skills"][0] if normalized.get("skills") else "")
+            or script
+            or job_id
+            or "cron job"
+        )
+        name = label_source[:50].strip() or "cron job"
+    normalized["name"] = name
+    normalized["schedule_display"] = _schedule_display_for_job(normalized)
+
+    state = _coerce_job_text(normalized.get("state")).strip()
+    if not state:
+        state = "scheduled" if normalized.get("enabled", True) else "paused"
+    normalized["state"] = state
+
+    return normalized
+
+
 def _secure_dir(path: Path):
     """Set directory to owner-only access (0700). No-op on Windows."""
     try:
@@ -533,11 +592,12 @@ def create_job(
     else:
         context_from = None
 
-    label_source = (prompt or (normalized_skills[0] if normalized_skills else None) or (normalized_script if normalized_no_agent else None)) or "cron job"
+    prompt_text = _coerce_job_text(prompt)
+    label_source = (prompt_text or (normalized_skills[0] if normalized_skills else None) or (normalized_script if normalized_no_agent else None)) or "cron job"
     job = {
         "id": job_id,
         "name": name or label_source[:50].strip(),
-        "prompt": prompt,
+        "prompt": prompt_text,
         "skills": normalized_skills,
         "skill": normalized_skills[0] if normalized_skills else None,
         "model": normalized_model,
@@ -581,13 +641,13 @@ def get_job(job_id: str) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
     jobs = load_jobs()
     for job in jobs:
         if job["id"] == job_id:
-            return _apply_skill_fields(job)
+            return _normalize_job_record(job)
     return None
 
 
 def list_jobs(include_disabled: bool = False) -> List[Dict[str, Any]]:
     """List all jobs, optionally including disabled ones."""
-    jobs = [_apply_skill_fields(j) for j in load_jobs()]
+    jobs = [_normalize_job_record(j) for j in load_jobs()]
     if not include_disabled:
         jobs = [j for j in jobs if j.get("enabled", True)]
     return jobs
@@ -637,7 +697,7 @@ def update_job(job_id: str, updates: Dict[str, Any]) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]
 
         jobs[i] = updated
         save_jobs(jobs)
-        return _apply_skill_fields(jobs[i])
+        return _normalize_job_record(jobs[i])
     return None
 
 
diff --git a/cron/scheduler.py b/cron/scheduler.py
index b8ea95692c..7fda096031 100644
--- a/cron/scheduler.py
+++ b/cron/scheduler.py
@@ -845,7 +845,7 @@ def _build_job_prompt(job: dict, prerun_script: Optional[tuple] = None) -> str:
             result is used for prompt injection. When omitted, the script
             (if any) runs inline as before.
     """
-    prompt = job.get("prompt", "")
+    prompt = str(job.get("prompt") or "")
     skills = job.get("skills")
 
     # Run data-collection script if configured, inject output as context.
@@ -933,6 +933,8 @@ def _build_job_prompt(job: dict, prerun_script: Optional[tuple] = None) -> str:
     if skills is None:
         legacy = job.get("skill")
         skills = [legacy] if legacy else []
+    elif isinstance(skills, str):
+        skills = [skills]
 
     skill_names = [str(name).strip() for name in skills if str(name).strip()]
     if not skill_names:
@@ -1015,7 +1017,7 @@ def run_job(job: dict) -> tuple[bool, str, str, Optional[str]]:
         Tuple of (success, full_output_doc, final_response, error_message)
     """
     job_id = job["id"]
-    job_name = job["name"]
+    job_name = str(job.get("name") or job.get("prompt") or job_id or "cron job")
 
     # ---------------------------------------------------------------
     # no_agent short-circuit — the script IS the job, no LLM involvement.
@@ -1204,10 +1206,31 @@ def run_job(job: dict) -> tuple[bool, str, str, Optional[str]]:
     # don't clobber each other's targets (os.environ is process-global).
     from gateway.session_context import set_session_vars, clear_session_vars, _VAR_MAP
 
+    # Cron execution is an internal scheduler context, not a live inbound
+    # gateway message. Do not seed HERMES_SESSION_* contextvars from the
+    # stored ``origin`` (which is delivery routing metadata, not a sender
+    # identity). Several tool consumers branch on these vars during job
+    # execution and would otherwise behave as if a real user from the
+    # origin chat was driving the agent:
+    #   - tools/terminal_tool.py: background-process notification routing
+    #     (notify_on_complete / watch_patterns) reads HERMES_SESSION_PLATFORM
+    #     and HERMES_SESSION_CHAT_ID to populate watcher_platform / chat_id,
+    #     which would route completion notifications to the origin chat
+    #     instead of via HERMES_CRON_AUTO_DELIVER_* below.
+    #   - tools/tts_tool.py: picks Opus vs MP3 based on
+    #     HERMES_SESSION_PLATFORM == "telegram".
+    #   - tools/skills_tool.py + agent/prompt_builder.py: per-platform
+    #     skill-disable lists and the system-prompt cache key both consume
+    #     HERMES_SESSION_PLATFORM.
+    #   - tools/send_message_tool.py: mirror source labelling and the
+    #     send_message gate read HERMES_SESSION_PLATFORM.
+    # Cron output delivery itself reads job["origin"] directly via
+    # _resolve_origin(job) and the HERMES_CRON_AUTO_DELIVER_* vars set
+    # below, so clearing HERMES_SESSION_* here does not affect delivery.
     _ctx_tokens = set_session_vars(
-        platform=origin["platform"] if origin else "",
-        chat_id=str(origin["chat_id"]) if origin else "",
-        chat_name=origin.get("chat_name", "") if origin else "",
+        platform="",
+        chat_id="",
+        chat_name="",
     )
     _cron_delivery_vars = (
         "HERMES_CRON_AUTO_DELIVER_PLATFORM",
diff --git a/environments/agent_loop.py b/environments/agent_loop.py
index 891ce42f44..7ca3a0f6dd 100644
--- a/environments/agent_loop.py
+++ b/environments/agent_loop.py
@@ -403,7 +403,7 @@ class HermesAgentLoop:
                                     # Run tool calls in a thread pool so backends that
                                     # use asyncio.run() internally (modal, docker, daytona) get
                                     # a clean event loop instead of deadlocking.
-                                    loop = asyncio.get_event_loop()
+                                    loop = asyncio.get_running_loop()
                                     # Capture current tool_name/args for the lambda
                                     _tn, _ta, _tid = tool_name, args, self.task_id
                                     tool_result = await loop.run_in_executor(
diff --git a/environments/benchmarks/terminalbench_2/terminalbench2_env.py b/environments/benchmarks/terminalbench_2/terminalbench2_env.py
index db6f6f58d7..0e88ac347f 100644
--- a/environments/benchmarks/terminalbench_2/terminalbench2_env.py
+++ b/environments/benchmarks/terminalbench_2/terminalbench2_env.py
@@ -575,7 +575,7 @@ class TerminalBench2EvalEnv(HermesAgentBaseEnv):
                 # other tasks, tqdm updates, and timeout timers).
                 ctx = ToolContext(task_id)
                 try:
-                    loop = asyncio.get_event_loop()
+                    loop = asyncio.get_running_loop()
                     reward = await loop.run_in_executor(
                         None,  # default thread pool
                         self._run_tests, eval_item, ctx, task_name,
diff --git a/gateway/platform_registry.py b/gateway/platform_registry.py
index a52f659692..96bfe1ccad 100644
--- a/gateway/platform_registry.py
+++ b/gateway/platform_registry.py
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ Usage (gateway side):
 
 import logging
 from dataclasses import dataclass, field
-from typing import Any, Callable, Optional
+from typing import Any, Awaitable, Callable, Optional
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
@@ -125,6 +125,23 @@ class PlatformEntry:
     # resolve the default chat/room ID.  Empty = no cron home-channel support.
     cron_deliver_env_var: str = ""
 
+    # ── Standalone (out-of-process) sending ──
+    # Optional: async coroutine that delivers a message without a live
+    # gateway adapter.  Called by ``tools/send_message_tool._send_via_adapter``
+    # when ``cron`` runs in a separate process from the gateway and the
+    # in-process adapter weakref is therefore ``None``.
+    #
+    # Signature:
+    #     async (pconfig, chat_id, message, *, thread_id=None,
+    #            media_files=None, force_document=False) -> dict
+    #
+    # Returns ``{"success": True, "message_id": ...}`` on success or
+    # ``{"error": str}`` on failure.  Plugin authors typically open an
+    # ephemeral connection / acquire a fresh OAuth token, send, and close.
+    # Without this hook, plugin platforms cannot serve as cron ``deliver=``
+    # targets when the gateway is not co-resident with the cron process.
+    standalone_sender_fn: Optional[Callable[..., Awaitable[dict]]] = None
+
 
 class PlatformRegistry:
     """Central registry of platform adapters.
diff --git a/gateway/platforms/ADDING_A_PLATFORM.md b/gateway/platforms/ADDING_A_PLATFORM.md
index 5091c4647c..80ebd27c5d 100644
--- a/gateway/platforms/ADDING_A_PLATFORM.md
+++ b/gateway/platforms/ADDING_A_PLATFORM.md
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ The plugin system automatically handles: adapter creation, config parsing,
 user authorization, cron delivery, send_message routing, system prompt hints,
 status display, gateway setup, and more.
 
-**Three optional hooks cover the edges most adapters need:**
+**Optional hooks cover the edges most adapters need:**
 
 - `env_enablement_fn: () -> Optional[dict]` — seeds `PlatformConfig.extra`
   (and an optional `home_channel` dict) from env vars BEFORE the adapter is
@@ -24,6 +24,11 @@ status display, gateway setup, and more.
 - `cron_deliver_env_var: str` — name of the `*_HOME_CHANNEL` env var.  When
   set, `deliver=<name>` cron jobs route to this var without editing
   `cron/scheduler.py`'s hardcoded sets.
+- `standalone_sender_fn: async (...) -> dict`: out-of-process delivery
+  for cron jobs that run separately from the gateway.  Without this, a
+  `deliver=<name>` job fires correctly but the actual send returns
+  `No live adapter for platform '<name>'`.  Pair with `cron_deliver_env_var`
+  for end-to-end cron support.  See the docsite for the signature.
 - `plugin.yaml` `requires_env` / `optional_env` rich-dict entries —
   auto-populate `OPTIONAL_ENV_VARS` in `hermes_cli/config.py` so the setup
   wizard surfaces proper descriptions, prompts, password flags, and URLs.
diff --git a/gateway/platforms/api_server.py b/gateway/platforms/api_server.py
index cde7813623..faee4c23b6 100644
--- a/gateway/platforms/api_server.py
+++ b/gateway/platforms/api_server.py
@@ -312,7 +312,12 @@ class ResponseStore:
             self._conn = sqlite3.connect(db_path, check_same_thread=False)
         except Exception:
             self._conn = sqlite3.connect(":memory:", check_same_thread=False)
-        self._conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+        # Use shared WAL-fallback helper so response_store.db degrades
+        # gracefully on NFS/SMB/FUSE-mounted HERMES_HOME (same filesystem
+        # issue addressed for state.db/kanban.db — see
+        # hermes_state._WAL_INCOMPAT_MARKERS).
+        from hermes_state import apply_wal_with_fallback
+        apply_wal_with_fallback(self._conn, db_label="response_store.db")
         self._conn.execute(
             """CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS responses (
                 response_id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,
diff --git a/gateway/platforms/base.py b/gateway/platforms/base.py
index 3e8c1433e6..90888d7b3d 100644
--- a/gateway/platforms/base.py
+++ b/gateway/platforms/base.py
@@ -40,6 +40,52 @@ def _platform_name(platform) -> str:
     return str(value or "").lower()
 
 
+def _thread_metadata_for_source(source, reply_to_message_id: str | None = None) -> dict | None:
+    """Build platform-aware thread metadata for adapter sends.
+
+    Most platforms route threaded sends with a generic ``thread_id`` metadata
+    value. Telegram private-chat topics created through Hermes' DM-topic helper
+    are exposed in updates as ``message_thread_id`` plus a reply anchor, but
+    outbound sends only render in the correct Telegram lane when the adapter
+    supplies both ``message_thread_id`` and ``reply_to_message_id``. Mark those
+    lanes so the Telegram adapter can avoid the known-bad partial routes.
+    """
+    thread_id = getattr(source, "thread_id", None)
+    if thread_id is None:
+        return None
+    metadata = {"thread_id": thread_id}
+    if _platform_name(getattr(source, "platform", None)) == "telegram" and getattr(source, "chat_type", None) == "dm":
+        metadata["telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"] = True
+        anchor = reply_to_message_id or getattr(source, "message_id", None)
+        if anchor is not None:
+            metadata["telegram_reply_to_message_id"] = str(anchor)
+    return metadata
+
+
+def _reply_anchor_for_event(event) -> str | None:
+    """Return reply_to id for platforms that need reply semantics.
+
+    Telegram forum/supergroup topics should be routed by topic metadata, not by
+    replying to the triggering message. Hermes-created Telegram private-chat
+    topic lanes are different: Bot API sends reject their ``message_thread_id``
+    and do not route with ``direct_messages_topic_id``. Those lanes only remain
+    visible when sent with both the private topic thread id and a reply to the
+    triggering user message.
+    """
+    source = getattr(event, "source", None)
+    platform = _platform_name(getattr(source, "platform", None))
+    thread_id = getattr(source, "thread_id", None)
+    if platform == "telegram" and thread_id and getattr(source, "chat_type", None) == "dm":
+        # Reply to the triggering user message. Replying to Telegram's earlier
+        # topic seed/anchor can render the bot response outside the active lane.
+        return getattr(event, "message_id", None) or getattr(event, "reply_to_message_id", None)
+    if platform == "telegram" and thread_id:
+        return None
+    if platform == "feishu" and thread_id and getattr(event, "reply_to_message_id", None):
+        return getattr(event, "reply_to_message_id", None)
+    return getattr(event, "message_id", None)
+
+
 def should_send_media_as_audio(platform, ext: str, is_voice: bool = False) -> bool:
     """Return True when a media file should use the platform's audio sender.
 
@@ -1719,7 +1765,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         """
         # Fallback: send URL as text (subclasses override for native images)
         text = f"{caption}\n{image_url}" if caption else image_url
-        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to)
+        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to, metadata=metadata)
     
     async def send_animation(
         self,
@@ -1798,6 +1844,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         audio_path: str,
         caption: Optional[str] = None,
         reply_to: Optional[str] = None,
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
         **kwargs,
     ) -> SendResult:
         """
@@ -1810,7 +1857,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         text = f"🔊 Audio: {audio_path}"
         if caption:
             text = f"{caption}\n{text}"
-        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to)
+        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def play_tts(
         self,
@@ -1832,6 +1879,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         video_path: str,
         caption: Optional[str] = None,
         reply_to: Optional[str] = None,
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
         **kwargs,
     ) -> SendResult:
         """
@@ -1843,7 +1891,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         text = f"🎬 Video: {video_path}"
         if caption:
             text = f"{caption}\n{text}"
-        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to)
+        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_document(
         self,
@@ -1852,6 +1900,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         caption: Optional[str] = None,
         file_name: Optional[str] = None,
         reply_to: Optional[str] = None,
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
         **kwargs,
     ) -> SendResult:
         """
@@ -1863,7 +1912,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         text = f"📎 File: {file_path}"
         if caption:
             text = f"{caption}\n{text}"
-        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to)
+        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_image_file(
         self,
@@ -1871,6 +1920,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         image_path: str,
         caption: Optional[str] = None,
         reply_to: Optional[str] = None,
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
         **kwargs,
     ) -> SendResult:
         """
@@ -1883,7 +1933,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         text = f"🖼️ Image: {image_path}"
         if caption:
             text = f"{caption}\n{text}"
-        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to)
+        return await self.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=text, reply_to=reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     @staticmethod
     def extract_media(content: str) -> Tuple[List[Tuple[str, bool]], str]:
@@ -2558,7 +2608,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         current_guard = self._active_sessions.get(session_key)
         command_guard = asyncio.Event()
         self._active_sessions[session_key] = command_guard
-        thread_meta = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+        thread_meta = _thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, _reply_anchor_for_event(event))
 
         try:
             response = await self._message_handler(event)
@@ -2579,13 +2629,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
                 _r = await self._send_with_retry(
                     chat_id=event.source.chat_id,
                     content=_text,
-                    reply_to=(
-                        event.reply_to_message_id
-                        if event.source.platform == Platform.FEISHU
-                        and event.source.thread_id
-                        and event.reply_to_message_id
-                        else event.message_id
-                    ),
+                    reply_to=_reply_anchor_for_event(event),
                     metadata=thread_meta,
                 )
                 if _eph_ttl > 0 and _r.success and _r.message_id:
@@ -2678,20 +2722,14 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
                     self.name, cmd, session_key,
                 )
                 try:
-                    _thread_meta = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+                    _thread_meta = _thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, _reply_anchor_for_event(event))
                     response = await self._message_handler(event)
                     _text, _eph_ttl = self._unwrap_ephemeral(response)
                     if _text:
                         _r = await self._send_with_retry(
                             chat_id=event.source.chat_id,
                             content=_text,
-                            reply_to=(
-                                event.reply_to_message_id
-                                if event.source.platform == Platform.FEISHU
-                                and event.source.thread_id
-                                and event.reply_to_message_id
-                                else event.message_id
-                            ),
+                            reply_to=_reply_anchor_for_event(event),
                             metadata=_thread_meta,
                         )
                         if _eph_ttl > 0 and _r.success and _r.message_id:
@@ -2783,7 +2821,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
         self._active_sessions[session_key] = interrupt_event
         
         # Start continuous typing indicator (refreshes every 2 seconds)
-        _thread_metadata = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+        _thread_metadata = _thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, _reply_anchor_for_event(event))
         _keep_typing_kwargs = {"metadata": _thread_metadata}
         try:
             _keep_typing_sig = inspect.signature(self._keep_typing)
@@ -2911,11 +2949,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
                 # Send the text portion
                 if text_content:
                     logger.info("[%s] Sending response (%d chars) to %s", self.name, len(text_content), event.source.chat_id)
-                    _reply_anchor = (
-                        event.reply_to_message_id
-                        if event.source.platform == Platform.FEISHU and event.source.thread_id and event.reply_to_message_id
-                        else event.message_id
-                    )
+                    _reply_anchor = _reply_anchor_for_event(event)
                     result = await self._send_with_retry(
                         chat_id=event.source.chat_id,
                         content=text_content,
@@ -3108,7 +3142,7 @@ class BasePlatformAdapter(ABC):
             try:
                 error_type = type(e).__name__
                 error_detail = str(e)[:300] if str(e) else "no details available"
-                _thread_metadata = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+                _thread_metadata = _thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, _reply_anchor_for_event(event))
                 await self.send(
                     chat_id=event.source.chat_id,
                     content=(
diff --git a/gateway/platforms/feishu.py b/gateway/platforms/feishu.py
index cd9504e1da..0470aaa266 100644
--- a/gateway/platforms/feishu.py
+++ b/gateway/platforms/feishu.py
@@ -1404,6 +1404,9 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         # Exec approval button state (approval_id → {session_key, message_id, chat_id})
         self._approval_state: Dict[int, Dict[str, str]] = {}
         self._approval_counter = itertools.count(1)
+        # Update prompt button state (prompt_id → {session_key, message_id, chat_id})
+        self._update_prompt_state: Dict[int, Dict[str, str]] = {}
+        self._update_prompt_counter = itertools.count(1)
         # Feishu reaction deletion requires the opaque reaction_id returned
         # by create, so we cache it per message_id.
         self._pending_processing_reactions: "OrderedDict[str, str]" = OrderedDict()
@@ -1856,6 +1859,74 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
             logger.warning("[Feishu] send_exec_approval failed: %s", exc)
             return SendResult(success=False, error=str(exc))
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _build_update_prompt_card(*, prompt: str, default: str, prompt_id: int) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+        default_hint = f"\n\nDefault: `{default}`" if default else ""
+
+        def _btn(label: str, answer: str, btn_type: str) -> dict:
+            return {
+                "tag": "button",
+                "text": {"tag": "plain_text", "content": label},
+                "type": btn_type,
+                "value": {
+                    "hermes_update_prompt_action": answer,
+                    "update_prompt_id": prompt_id,
+                },
+            }
+
+        return {
+            "config": {"wide_screen_mode": True},
+            "header": {
+                "title": {"content": "⚕ Update Needs Your Input", "tag": "plain_text"},
+                "template": "orange",
+            },
+            "elements": [
+                {"tag": "markdown", "content": f"{prompt}{default_hint}"},
+                {
+                    "tag": "action",
+                    "actions": [
+                        _btn("✓ Yes", "y", "primary"),
+                        _btn("✗ No", "n", "danger"),
+                    ],
+                },
+            ],
+        }
+
+    async def send_update_prompt(
+        self, chat_id: str, prompt: str, default: str = "",
+        session_key: str = "",
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
+    ) -> SendResult:
+        """Send an interactive update prompt with Yes/No buttons."""
+        if not self._client:
+            return SendResult(success=False, error="Not connected")
+
+        try:
+            prompt_id = next(self._update_prompt_counter)
+            payload = json.dumps(
+                self._build_update_prompt_card(prompt=prompt, default=default, prompt_id=prompt_id),
+                ensure_ascii=False,
+            )
+            response = await self._feishu_send_with_retry(
+                chat_id=chat_id,
+                msg_type="interactive",
+                payload=payload,
+                reply_to=None,
+                metadata=metadata,
+            )
+
+            result = self._finalize_send_result(response, "send_update_prompt failed")
+            if result.success:
+                self._update_prompt_state[prompt_id] = {
+                    "session_key": session_key,
+                    "message_id": result.message_id or "",
+                    "chat_id": chat_id,
+                }
+            return result
+        except Exception as exc:
+            logger.warning("[Feishu] send_update_prompt failed: %s", exc)
+            return SendResult(success=False, error=str(exc))
+
     @staticmethod
     def _build_resolved_approval_card(*, choice: str, user_name: str) -> Dict[str, Any]:
         """Build raw card JSON for a resolved approval action."""
@@ -1875,6 +1946,28 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
             ],
         }
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _build_resolved_update_prompt_card(*, answer: str, user_name: str) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+        yes = answer == "y"
+        label = "Yes" if yes else "No"
+        return {
+            "config": {"wide_screen_mode": True},
+            "header": {
+                "title": {"content": f"{'✅' if yes else '❌'} Update prompt answered: {label}", "tag": "plain_text"},
+                "template": "green" if yes else "red",
+            },
+            "elements": [
+                {"tag": "markdown", "content": f"Answered by **{user_name}**"},
+            ],
+        }
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _write_update_prompt_response(answer: str) -> None:
+        response_path = get_hermes_home() / ".update_response"
+        tmp_path = response_path.with_suffix(".tmp")
+        tmp_path.write_text(answer)
+        tmp_path.replace(response_path)
+
     async def send_voice(
         self,
         chat_id: str,
@@ -2372,9 +2465,19 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         action = getattr(event, "action", None)
         action_value = getattr(action, "value", {}) or {}
         hermes_action = action_value.get("hermes_action") if isinstance(action_value, dict) else None
+        update_prompt_action = (
+            action_value.get("hermes_update_prompt_action")
+            if isinstance(action_value, dict) else None
+        )
 
         if hermes_action:
             return self._handle_approval_card_action(event=event, action_value=action_value, loop=loop)
+        if update_prompt_action:
+            return self._handle_update_prompt_card_action(
+                event=event,
+                action_value=action_value,
+                loop=loop,
+            )
 
         self._submit_on_loop(loop, self._handle_card_action_event(data))
         if P2CardActionTriggerResponse is None:
@@ -2386,10 +2489,26 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         """Return True when the adapter loop can accept thread-safe submissions."""
         return loop is not None and not bool(getattr(loop, "is_closed", lambda: False)())
 
-    def _submit_on_loop(self, loop: Any, coro: Any) -> None:
+    def _submit_on_loop(self, loop: Any, coro: Any) -> bool:
         """Schedule background work on the adapter loop with shared failure logging."""
-        future = asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe(coro, loop)
+        try:
+            future = asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe(coro, loop)
+        except Exception:
+            coro.close()
+            logger.warning("[Feishu] Failed to schedule background callback work", exc_info=True)
+            return False
         future.add_done_callback(self._log_background_failure)
+        return True
+
+    def _is_interactive_operator_authorized(self, open_id: str) -> bool:
+        """Return whether this card-action operator may answer gated prompts."""
+        normalized = str(open_id or "").strip()
+        if not normalized:
+            return False
+        allowed_ids = set(self._admins) | set(self._allowed_group_users)
+        if not allowed_ids:
+            return True
+        return "*" in allowed_ids or normalized in allowed_ids
 
     def _handle_approval_card_action(self, *, event: Any, action_value: Dict[str, Any], loop: Any) -> Any:
         """Schedule approval resolution and build the synchronous callback response."""
@@ -2403,7 +2522,8 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         open_id = str(getattr(operator, "open_id", "") or "")
         user_name = self._get_cached_sender_name(open_id) or open_id
 
-        self._submit_on_loop(loop, self._resolve_approval(approval_id, choice, user_name))
+        if not self._submit_on_loop(loop, self._resolve_approval(approval_id, choice, user_name)):
+            return P2CardActionTriggerResponse() if P2CardActionTriggerResponse else None
 
         if P2CardActionTriggerResponse is None:
             return None
@@ -2415,6 +2535,41 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
             response.card = card
         return response
 
+    def _handle_update_prompt_card_action(self, *, event: Any, action_value: Dict[str, Any], loop: Any) -> Any:
+        """Schedule update prompt resolution and build the synchronous callback response."""
+        prompt_id = action_value.get("update_prompt_id")
+        if prompt_id is None:
+            logger.debug("[Feishu] Card action missing update_prompt_id, ignoring")
+            return P2CardActionTriggerResponse() if P2CardActionTriggerResponse else None
+        if prompt_id not in self._update_prompt_state:
+            logger.debug("[Feishu] Update prompt %s already resolved or unknown", prompt_id)
+            return P2CardActionTriggerResponse() if P2CardActionTriggerResponse else None
+
+        answer = str(action_value.get("hermes_update_prompt_action", "") or "").strip().lower()
+        if answer not in {"y", "n"}:
+            logger.debug("[Feishu] Card action has invalid update prompt answer=%r", answer)
+            return P2CardActionTriggerResponse() if P2CardActionTriggerResponse else None
+
+        operator = getattr(event, "operator", None)
+        open_id = str(getattr(operator, "open_id", "") or "")
+        if not self._is_interactive_operator_authorized(open_id):
+            logger.warning("[Feishu] Unauthorized update prompt click by %s", open_id or "<unknown>")
+            return P2CardActionTriggerResponse() if P2CardActionTriggerResponse else None
+
+        user_name = self._get_cached_sender_name(open_id) or open_id
+        if not self._submit_on_loop(loop, self._resolve_update_prompt(prompt_id, answer, user_name)):
+            return P2CardActionTriggerResponse() if P2CardActionTriggerResponse else None
+
+        if P2CardActionTriggerResponse is None:
+            return None
+        response = P2CardActionTriggerResponse()
+        if CallBackCard is not None:
+            card = CallBackCard()
+            card.type = "raw"
+            card.data = self._build_resolved_update_prompt_card(answer=answer, user_name=user_name)
+            response.card = card
+        return response
+
     async def _resolve_approval(self, approval_id: Any, choice: str, user_name: str) -> None:
         """Pop approval state and unblock the waiting agent thread."""
         state = self._approval_state.pop(approval_id, None)
@@ -2431,6 +2586,21 @@ class FeishuAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         except Exception as exc:
             logger.error("Failed to resolve gateway approval from Feishu button: %s", exc)
 
+    async def _resolve_update_prompt(self, prompt_id: Any, answer: str, user_name: str) -> None:
+        """Persist an update prompt answer for the detached update process."""
+        state = self._update_prompt_state.pop(prompt_id, None)
+        if not state:
+            logger.debug("[Feishu] Update prompt %s already resolved or unknown", prompt_id)
+            return
+        try:
+            self._write_update_prompt_response(answer)
+            logger.info(
+                "Feishu update prompt resolved for session %s (answer=%s, user=%s)",
+                state["session_key"], answer, user_name,
+            )
+        except Exception as exc:
+            logger.error("Failed to resolve Feishu update prompt: %s", exc)
+
     async def _handle_reaction_event(self, event_type: str, data: Any) -> None:
         """Fetch the reacted-to message; if it was sent by this bot, emit a synthetic text event."""
         if not self._client:
diff --git a/gateway/platforms/telegram.py b/gateway/platforms/telegram.py
index e4bba209b8..0ae2787deb 100644
--- a/gateway/platforms/telegram.py
+++ b/gateway/platforms/telegram.py
@@ -361,6 +361,63 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         thread_id = metadata.get("thread_id") or metadata.get("message_thread_id")
         return str(thread_id) if thread_id is not None else None
 
+    @classmethod
+    def _metadata_direct_messages_topic_id(cls, metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]]) -> Optional[str]:
+        if not metadata:
+            return None
+        topic_id = metadata.get("direct_messages_topic_id") or metadata.get("telegram_direct_messages_topic_id")
+        return str(topic_id) if topic_id is not None else None
+
+    @classmethod
+    def _metadata_reply_to_message_id(cls, metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]]) -> Optional[int]:
+        if not metadata:
+            return None
+        reply_to = metadata.get("telegram_reply_to_message_id")
+        return int(reply_to) if reply_to is not None else None
+
+    @classmethod
+    def _reply_to_message_id_for_send(
+        cls,
+        reply_to: Optional[str],
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
+    ) -> Optional[int]:
+        if reply_to:
+            return int(reply_to)
+        if metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"):
+            return cls._metadata_reply_to_message_id(metadata)
+        return None
+
+    @classmethod
+    def _thread_kwargs_for_send(
+        cls,
+        chat_id: str,
+        thread_id: Optional[str],
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
+        reply_to_message_id: Optional[int] = None,
+    ) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+        """Return Telegram send kwargs for forum and direct-message topic routing.
+
+        Supergroup/forum topics use ``message_thread_id``. True Bot API Direct
+        Messages topics can opt in with explicit ``direct_messages_topic_id``
+        metadata. Hermes-created private-chat topic lanes are marked with
+        ``telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback`` and must send the private topic
+        thread id together with a reply anchor. Live testing showed that either
+        parameter alone can render outside the visible lane.
+        """
+        if metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"):
+            if reply_to_message_id is None:
+                reply_to_message_id = cls._metadata_reply_to_message_id(metadata)
+            if reply_to_message_id is None:
+                return {}
+            return {"message_thread_id": cls._message_thread_id_for_send(thread_id)}
+        direct_topic_id = cls._metadata_direct_messages_topic_id(metadata)
+        if direct_topic_id is not None:
+            return {
+                "message_thread_id": None,
+                "direct_messages_topic_id": int(direct_topic_id),
+            }
+        return {"message_thread_id": cls._message_thread_id_for_send(thread_id)}
+
     @classmethod
     def _message_thread_id_for_send(cls, thread_id: Optional[str]) -> Optional[int]:
         if not thread_id or str(thread_id) == cls._GENERAL_TOPIC_THREAD_ID:
@@ -384,6 +441,65 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
     def _is_thread_not_found_error(error: Exception) -> bool:
         return "thread not found" in str(error).lower()
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _is_bad_request_error(error: Exception) -> bool:
+        name = error.__class__.__name__.lower()
+        if name == "badrequest" or name.endswith("badrequest"):
+            return True
+        try:
+            from telegram.error import BadRequest
+            return isinstance(error, BadRequest)
+        except ImportError:
+            return False
+
+    @classmethod
+    def _should_retry_without_dm_topic_reply_anchor(
+        cls,
+        error: Exception,
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]],
+        reply_to_message_id: Optional[int],
+    ) -> bool:
+        return (
+            bool(metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"))
+            and reply_to_message_id is not None
+            and cls._is_bad_request_error(error)
+            and "message to be replied not found" in str(error).lower()
+        )
+
+    async def _send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+        self,
+        send_fn: Any,
+        send_kwargs: Dict[str, Any],
+        metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]],
+        reply_to_message_id: Optional[int],
+        media_label: str,
+        reset_media: Optional[Any] = None,
+    ) -> Any:
+        """Retry stale private-topic media replies once without the topic anchor."""
+        try:
+            return await send_fn(**send_kwargs)
+        except Exception as send_err:
+            if not self._should_retry_without_dm_topic_reply_anchor(
+                send_err,
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_message_id,
+            ):
+                raise
+            logger.warning(
+                "[%s] Reply target deleted for Telegram %s, "
+                "retrying without reply/topic anchor: %s",
+                self.name,
+                media_label,
+                send_err,
+            )
+            if reset_media is not None:
+                reset_media()
+            retry_kwargs = dict(send_kwargs)
+            retry_kwargs["reply_to_message_id"] = None
+            retry_kwargs.pop("message_thread_id", None)
+            retry_kwargs.pop("direct_messages_topic_id", None)
+            return await send_fn(**retry_kwargs)
+
     def _fallback_ips(self) -> list[str]:
         """Return validated fallback IPs from config (populated by _apply_env_overrides)."""
         configured = self.config.extra.get("fallback_ips", []) if getattr(self.config, "extra", None) else []
@@ -1254,9 +1370,23 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 _TimedOut = None  # type: ignore[assignment,misc]
 
             for i, chunk in enumerate(chunks):
-                should_thread = self._should_thread_reply(reply_to, i)
-                reply_to_id = int(reply_to) if should_thread else None
-                effective_thread_id = self._message_thread_id_for_send(thread_id)
+                metadata_reply_to = self._metadata_reply_to_message_id(metadata)
+                reply_to_source = reply_to or (
+                    str(metadata_reply_to)
+                    if metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback") and metadata_reply_to is not None else None
+                )
+                if metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"):
+                    should_thread = reply_to_source is not None
+                else:
+                    should_thread = self._should_thread_reply(reply_to_source, i)
+                reply_to_id = int(reply_to_source) if should_thread and reply_to_source else None
+                thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    thread_id,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                )
+                effective_thread_id = thread_kwargs.get("message_thread_id")
 
                 msg = None
                 for _send_attempt in range(3):
@@ -1268,7 +1398,7 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                                 text=chunk,
                                 parse_mode=ParseMode.MARKDOWN_V2,
                                 reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
-                                message_thread_id=effective_thread_id,
+                                **thread_kwargs,
                                 **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
                             )
                         except Exception as md_error:
@@ -1281,7 +1411,7 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                                     text=plain_chunk,
                                     parse_mode=None,
                                     reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
-                                    message_thread_id=effective_thread_id,
+                                    **thread_kwargs,
                                     **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
                                 )
                             else:
@@ -1302,17 +1432,30 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                                     self.name, effective_thread_id,
                                 )
                                 effective_thread_id = None
+                                thread_kwargs = {"message_thread_id": None}
                                 continue
                             err_lower = str(send_err).lower()
                             if "message to be replied not found" in err_lower and reply_to_id is not None:
                                 # Original message was deleted before we
-                                # could reply — clear reply target and retry
-                                # so the response is still delivered.
+                                # could reply. For private-topic fallback
+                                # sends, message_thread_id is only valid with
+                                # the reply anchor, so drop both together.
                                 logger.warning(
                                     "[%s] Reply target deleted, retrying without reply_to: %s",
                                     self.name, send_err,
                                 )
                                 reply_to_id = None
+                                if metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"):
+                                    thread_kwargs = {}
+                                    effective_thread_id = None
+                                else:
+                                    thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                                        chat_id,
+                                        thread_id,
+                                        metadata,
+                                        reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                                    )
+                                    effective_thread_id = thread_kwargs.get("message_thread_id")
                                 continue
                             # Other BadRequest errors are permanent — don't retry
                             raise
@@ -1372,6 +1515,14 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         if not self._bot:
             return SendResult(success=False, error="Not connected")
         try:
+            if not finalize:
+                await self._bot.edit_message_text(
+                    chat_id=int(chat_id),
+                    message_id=int(message_id),
+                    text=content,
+                )
+                return SendResult(success=True, message_id=message_id)
+
             formatted = self.format_message(content)
             try:
                 await self._bot.edit_message_text(
@@ -1494,13 +1645,19 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 ]
             ])
             thread_id = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
-            message_thread_id = self._message_thread_id_for_send(thread_id)
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(None, metadata)
             msg = await self._bot.send_message(
                 chat_id=int(chat_id),
                 text=text,
                 parse_mode=ParseMode.MARKDOWN,
                 reply_markup=keyboard,
-                message_thread_id=message_thread_id,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                **self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    thread_id,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                ),
                 **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
             )
             return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
@@ -1558,9 +1715,16 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 "reply_markup": keyboard,
                 **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
             }
-            message_thread_id = self._message_thread_id_for_send(thread_id)
-            if message_thread_id is not None:
-                kwargs["message_thread_id"] = message_thread_id
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(None, metadata)
+            kwargs["reply_to_message_id"] = reply_to_id
+            kwargs.update(
+                self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    thread_id,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                )
+            )
 
             msg = await self._bot.send_message(**kwargs)
 
@@ -1603,9 +1767,16 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 "reply_markup": keyboard,
                 **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
             }
-            message_thread_id = self._message_thread_id_for_send(thread_id)
-            if message_thread_id is not None:
-                kwargs["message_thread_id"] = message_thread_id
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(None, metadata)
+            kwargs["reply_to_message_id"] = reply_to_id
+            kwargs.update(
+                self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    thread_id,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                )
+            )
 
             msg = await self._bot.send_message(**kwargs)
             self._slash_confirm_state[confirm_id] = session_key
@@ -1664,12 +1835,19 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
             )
 
             thread_id = metadata.get("thread_id") if metadata else None
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(None, metadata)
             msg = await self._bot.send_message(
                 chat_id=int(chat_id),
                 text=text,
                 parse_mode=ParseMode.MARKDOWN,
                 reply_markup=keyboard,
-                message_thread_id=int(thread_id) if thread_id else None,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                **self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    thread_id,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                ),
                 **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
             )
 
@@ -2046,17 +2224,47 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                         session_key, confirm_id, choice,
                     )
                     if result_text and query.message:
-                        # Inherit the prompt message's thread so the reply
-                        # lands in the same supergroup topic / reply chain.
+                        # Inherit the prompt message's topic. Supergroup forums
+                        # use message_thread_id; Telegram private DM-topic lanes
+                        # need both the private topic id and the prompt reply anchor.
                         thread_id = getattr(query.message, "message_thread_id", None)
+                        chat = getattr(query.message, "chat", None)
+                        chat_type = getattr(chat, "type", None)
+                        prompt_message_id = getattr(query.message, "message_id", None)
                         send_kwargs: Dict[str, Any] = {
                             "chat_id": int(query.message.chat_id),
                             "text": result_text,
                             "parse_mode": ParseMode.MARKDOWN,
                             **self._link_preview_kwargs(),
                         }
-                        if thread_id is not None:
-                            send_kwargs["message_thread_id"] = thread_id
+                        chat_type_value = getattr(chat_type, "value", chat_type)
+                        is_private_chat = str(chat_type_value).lower() in {
+                            "private",
+                            str(ChatType.PRIVATE).lower(),
+                            str(getattr(ChatType.PRIVATE, "value", ChatType.PRIVATE)).lower(),
+                        }
+                        if thread_id is not None and is_private_chat and prompt_message_id is not None:
+                            reply_to_id = int(prompt_message_id)
+                            send_kwargs["reply_to_message_id"] = reply_to_id
+                            send_kwargs.update(
+                                self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                                    str(query.message.chat_id),
+                                    str(thread_id),
+                                    {
+                                        "thread_id": str(thread_id),
+                                        "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+                                    },
+                                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                                )
+                            )
+                        elif thread_id is not None:
+                            send_kwargs.update(
+                                self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                                    str(query.message.chat_id),
+                                    str(thread_id),
+                                    {"thread_id": str(thread_id)},
+                                )
+                            )
                         await self._bot.send_message(**send_kwargs)
                 except Exception as exc:
                     logger.error("[%s] slash-confirm callback failed: %s", self.name, exc, exc_info=True)
@@ -2137,22 +2345,50 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 # .ogg / .opus files -> send as voice (round playable bubble)
                 if ext in (".ogg", ".opus"):
                     _voice_thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
-                    msg = await self._bot.send_voice(
-                        chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                        voice=audio_file,
-                        caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                        reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                        message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_voice_thread),
+                    reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+                    voice_thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                        chat_id,
+                        _voice_thread,
+                        metadata,
+                        reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                    )
+                    msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                        self._bot.send_voice,
+                        {
+                            "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                            "voice": audio_file,
+                            "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                            "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                            **voice_thread_kwargs,
+                        },
+                        metadata,
+                        reply_to_id,
+                        "voice",
+                        reset_media=lambda: audio_file.seek(0),
                     )
                 elif ext in (".mp3", ".m4a"):
                     # Telegram's Bot API sendAudio only accepts MP3 / M4A.
                     _audio_thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
-                    msg = await self._bot.send_audio(
-                        chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                        audio=audio_file,
-                        caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                        reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                        message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_audio_thread),
+                    reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+                    audio_thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                        chat_id,
+                        _audio_thread,
+                        metadata,
+                        reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                    )
+                    msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                        self._bot.send_audio,
+                        {
+                            "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                            "audio": audio_file,
+                            "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                            "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                            **audio_thread_kwargs,
+                        },
+                        metadata,
+                        reply_to_id,
+                        "audio",
+                        reset_media=lambda: audio_file.seek(0),
                     )
                 else:
                     # Formats Telegram can't play natively (.wav, .flac, ...)
@@ -2172,7 +2408,7 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 e,
                 exc_info=True,
             )
-            return await super().send_voice(chat_id, audio_path, caption, reply_to)
+            return await super().send_voice(chat_id, audio_path, caption, reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_multiple_images(
         self,
@@ -2227,7 +2463,6 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
 
         from urllib.parse import unquote as _unquote
         _thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
-        _thread_id = self._message_thread_id_for_send(_thread)
 
         # Chunk into groups of 10 (Telegram's album limit)
         CHUNK = 10
@@ -2263,10 +2498,33 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                     "[%s] Sending media group of %d photo(s) (chunk %d/%d)",
                     self.name, len(media), chunk_idx + 1, len(chunks),
                 )
-                await self._bot.send_media_group(
-                    chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                    media=media,
-                    message_thread_id=_thread_id,
+                reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(None, metadata)
+                thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    _thread,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                )
+
+                def _reset_opened_files() -> None:
+                    for fh in opened_files:
+                        try:
+                            fh.seek(0)
+                        except Exception:
+                            pass
+
+                await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                    self._bot.send_media_group,
+                    {
+                        "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                        "media": media,
+                        "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                        **thread_kwargs,
+                    },
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_id,
+                    "media group",
+                    reset_media=_reset_opened_files,
                 )
             except Exception as e:
                 logger.warning(
@@ -2303,13 +2561,27 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 return SendResult(success=False, error=self._missing_media_path_error("Image", image_path))
 
             _thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+            thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                chat_id,
+                _thread,
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+            )
             with open(image_path, "rb") as image_file:
-                msg = await self._bot.send_photo(
-                    chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                    photo=image_file,
-                    caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                    reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                    message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_thread),
+                msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                    self._bot.send_photo,
+                    {
+                        "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                        "photo": image_file,
+                        "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                        "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                        **thread_kwargs,
+                    },
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_id,
+                    "photo",
+                    reset_media=lambda: image_file.seek(0),
                 )
             return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
         except Exception as e:
@@ -2360,7 +2632,7 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                     doc_err,
                     exc_info=True,
                 )
-                return await super().send_image_file(chat_id, image_path, caption, reply_to)
+                return await super().send_image_file(chat_id, image_path, caption, reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_document(
         self,
@@ -2382,20 +2654,34 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
 
             display_name = file_name or os.path.basename(file_path)
             _thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+            thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                chat_id,
+                _thread,
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+            )
 
             with open(file_path, "rb") as f:
-                msg = await self._bot.send_document(
-                    chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                    document=f,
-                    filename=display_name,
-                    caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                    reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                    message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_thread),
+                msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                    self._bot.send_document,
+                    {
+                        "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                        "document": f,
+                        "filename": display_name,
+                        "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                        "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                        **thread_kwargs,
+                    },
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_id,
+                    "document",
+                    reset_media=lambda: f.seek(0),
                 )
             return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
         except Exception as e:
             print(f"[{self.name}] Failed to send document: {e}")
-            return await super().send_document(chat_id, file_path, caption, file_name, reply_to)
+            return await super().send_document(chat_id, file_path, caption, file_name, reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_video(
         self,
@@ -2415,18 +2701,32 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 return SendResult(success=False, error=self._missing_media_path_error("Video", video_path))
 
             _thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+            thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                chat_id,
+                _thread,
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+            )
             with open(video_path, "rb") as f:
-                msg = await self._bot.send_video(
-                    chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                    video=f,
-                    caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                    reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                    message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_thread),
+                msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                    self._bot.send_video,
+                    {
+                        "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                        "video": f,
+                        "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                        "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                        **thread_kwargs,
+                    },
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_id,
+                    "video",
+                    reset_media=lambda: f.seek(0),
                 )
             return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
         except Exception as e:
             print(f"[{self.name}] Failed to send video: {e}")
-            return await super().send_video(chat_id, video_path, caption, reply_to)
+            return await super().send_video(chat_id, video_path, caption, reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_image(
         self,
@@ -2452,12 +2752,25 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         try:
             # Telegram can send photos directly from URLs (up to ~5MB)
             _photo_thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
-            msg = await self._bot.send_photo(
-                chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                photo=image_url,
-                caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,  # Telegram caption limit
-                reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_photo_thread),
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+            photo_thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                chat_id,
+                _photo_thread,
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+            )
+            msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                self._bot.send_photo,
+                {
+                    "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                    "photo": image_url,
+                    "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                    "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                    **photo_thread_kwargs,
+                },
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_id,
+                "URL photo",
             )
             return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
         except Exception as e:
@@ -2474,13 +2787,25 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                     resp = await client.get(image_url)
                     resp.raise_for_status()
                     image_data = resp.content
-                
-                msg = await self._bot.send_photo(
-                    chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                    photo=image_data,
-                    caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                    reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                    message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_photo_thread),
+
+                upload_thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                    chat_id,
+                    _photo_thread,
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+                )
+                msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                    self._bot.send_photo,
+                    {
+                        "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                        "photo": image_data,
+                        "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                        "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                        **upload_thread_kwargs,
+                    },
+                    metadata,
+                    reply_to_id,
+                    "uploaded photo",
                 )
                 return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
             except Exception as e2:
@@ -2491,7 +2816,7 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                     exc_info=True,
                 )
                 # Final fallback: send URL as text
-                return await super().send_image(chat_id, image_url, caption, reply_to)
+                return await super().send_image(chat_id, image_url, caption, reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_animation(
         self,
@@ -2507,12 +2832,25 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
         
         try:
             _anim_thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
-            msg = await self._bot.send_animation(
-                chat_id=int(chat_id),
-                animation=animation_url,
-                caption=caption[:1024] if caption else None,
-                reply_to_message_id=int(reply_to) if reply_to else None,
-                message_thread_id=self._message_thread_id_for_send(_anim_thread),
+            reply_to_id = self._reply_to_message_id_for_send(reply_to, metadata)
+            animation_thread_kwargs = self._thread_kwargs_for_send(
+                chat_id,
+                _anim_thread,
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_message_id=reply_to_id,
+            )
+            msg = await self._send_with_dm_topic_reply_anchor_retry(
+                self._bot.send_animation,
+                {
+                    "chat_id": int(chat_id),
+                    "animation": animation_url,
+                    "caption": caption[:1024] if caption else None,
+                    "reply_to_message_id": reply_to_id,
+                    **animation_thread_kwargs,
+                },
+                metadata,
+                reply_to_id,
+                "animation",
             )
             return SendResult(success=True, message_id=str(msg.message_id))
         except Exception as e:
@@ -2523,13 +2861,21 @@ class TelegramAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 exc_info=True,
             )
             # Fallback: try as a regular photo
-            return await self.send_image(chat_id, animation_url, caption, reply_to)
+            return await self.send_image(chat_id, animation_url, caption, reply_to, metadata=metadata)
 
     async def send_typing(self, chat_id: str, metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None) -> None:
         """Send typing indicator."""
         if self._bot:
             try:
                 _typing_thread = self._metadata_thread_id(metadata)
+                # Skip the Bot API call entirely for Hermes-created DM topic
+                # lanes: send_chat_action only accepts message_thread_id, which
+                # Telegram's Bot API 10.0 rejects for these lanes. The send
+                # path uses the reply-anchor fallback instead, but typing has
+                # no equivalent — skipping avoids noisy "thread not found"
+                # debug logs on every typing tick.
+                if metadata and metadata.get("telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"):
+                    return
                 message_thread_id = self._message_thread_id_for_typing(_typing_thread)
                 # No retry-without-thread fallback here: _message_thread_id_for_typing
                 # already maps the forum General topic to None, so any non-None value
diff --git a/gateway/run.py b/gateway/run.py
index 457dc60d75..edf09b282f 100644
--- a/gateway/run.py
+++ b/gateway/run.py
@@ -571,6 +571,7 @@ from gateway.platforms.base import (
     EphemeralReply,
     MessageEvent,
     MessageType,
+    _reply_anchor_for_event,
     merge_pending_message_event,
 )
 from gateway.restart import (
@@ -1217,7 +1218,13 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             from hermes_state import SessionDB
             self._session_db = SessionDB()
         except Exception as e:
-            logger.debug("SQLite session store not available: %s", e)
+            # WARNING (not DEBUG) so the failure appears in errors.log — matches
+            # cli.py's handling of the same init path.  Users hitting NFS-mounted
+            # HERMES_HOME silently lost /resume, /title, /history, /branch, and
+            # session search without this.  The underlying cause (usually
+            # "locking protocol" from NFS) is now also captured by
+            # hermes_state.get_last_init_error() for slash-command error strings.
+            logger.warning("SQLite session store not available: %s", e)
 
         # Opportunistic state.db maintenance: prune ended sessions older
         # than sessions.retention_days + optional VACUUM. Tracks last-run
@@ -2406,7 +2413,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             if not adapter:
                 return True
 
-            thread_meta = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+            reply_anchor = self._reply_anchor_for_event(event)
+            thread_meta = self._thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, reply_anchor)
             if self._queue_during_drain_enabled():
                 self._queue_or_replace_pending_event(session_key, event)
                 message = f"⏳ Gateway {self._status_action_gerund()} — queued for the next turn after it comes back."
@@ -2416,7 +2424,13 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             await adapter._send_with_retry(
                 chat_id=event.source.chat_id,
                 content=message,
-                reply_to=event.message_id,
+                reply_to=(
+                    reply_anchor
+                    if event.source.platform == Platform.TELEGRAM
+                    and event.source.chat_type == "dm"
+                    and event.source.thread_id
+                    else (None if event.source.platform == Platform.TELEGRAM and event.source.thread_id else event.message_id)
+                ),
                 metadata=thread_meta,
             )
             return True
@@ -2553,12 +2567,19 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         except Exception as _onb_err:
             logger.debug("Failed to apply busy-input onboarding hint: %s", _onb_err)
 
-        thread_meta = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+        reply_anchor = self._reply_anchor_for_event(event)
+        thread_meta = self._thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, reply_anchor)
         try:
             await adapter._send_with_retry(
                 chat_id=event.source.chat_id,
                 content=message,
-                reply_to=event.message_id,
+                reply_to=(
+                    reply_anchor
+                    if event.source.platform == Platform.TELEGRAM
+                    and event.source.chat_type == "dm"
+                    and event.source.thread_id
+                    else (None if event.source.platform == Platform.TELEGRAM and event.source.thread_id else event.message_id)
+                ),
                 metadata=thread_meta,
             )
         except Exception as e:
@@ -5063,7 +5084,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         if config and hasattr(config, "get_notice_delivery"):
             notice_delivery = config.get_notice_delivery(source.platform)
 
-        metadata = {"thread_id": source.thread_id} if getattr(source, "thread_id", None) else None
+        metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source)
         if notice_delivery == "private" and getattr(source, "user_id", None):
             try:
                 result = await adapter.send_private_notice(
@@ -6158,7 +6179,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                 )
                 if any(marker in message_text for marker in _stt_fail_markers):
                     _stt_adapter = self.adapters.get(source.platform)
-                    _stt_meta = {"thread_id": source.thread_id} if source.thread_id else None
+                    _stt_meta = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, self._reply_anchor_for_event(event))
                     if _stt_adapter:
                         try:
                             _stt_msg = (
@@ -6679,7 +6700,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                         f"{_compress_token_threshold:,}",
                     )
 
-                    _hyg_meta = {"thread_id": source.thread_id} if source.thread_id else None
+                    _hyg_meta = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, self._reply_anchor_for_event(event))
 
                     try:
                         from run_agent import AIAgent
@@ -6908,7 +6929,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                 session_id=session_entry.session_id,
                 session_key=session_key,
                 run_generation=run_generation,
-                event_message_id=event.message_id,
+                event_message_id=self._reply_anchor_for_event(event),
                 channel_prompt=event.channel_prompt,
             )
 
@@ -7249,7 +7270,11 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                     try:
                         _foot_adapter = self.adapters.get(source.platform)
                         if _foot_adapter:
-                            await _foot_adapter.send(source.chat_id, _footer_line)
+                            await _foot_adapter.send(
+                                source.chat_id,
+                                _footer_line,
+                                metadata=self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, self._reply_anchor_for_event(event)),
+                            )
                     except Exception as _e:
                         logger.debug("trailing footer send failed: %s", _e)
                 return None
@@ -8264,7 +8289,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                         lines.append("_(session only — use `/model <name> --global` to persist)_")
                         return "\n".join(lines)
 
-                    metadata = {"thread_id": source.thread_id} if source.thread_id else None
+                    metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, self._reply_anchor_for_event(event))
                     result = await adapter.send_model_picker(
                         chat_id=source.chat_id,
                         providers=providers,
@@ -8685,7 +8710,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         try:
             metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source)
         except Exception:
-            metadata = {"thread_id": source.thread_id} if getattr(source, "thread_id", None) else None
+            metadata = None
 
         result = await adapter.send(source.chat_id, message, metadata=metadata)
         if result is not None and not getattr(result, "success", True):
@@ -9250,13 +9275,15 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                     and adapter.is_in_voice_channel(guild_id)):
                 await adapter.play_in_voice_channel(guild_id, actual_path)
             elif adapter and hasattr(adapter, "send_voice"):
+                reply_anchor = self._reply_anchor_for_event(event)
+                thread_meta = self._thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, reply_anchor)
                 send_kwargs: Dict[str, Any] = {
                     "chat_id": event.source.chat_id,
                     "audio_path": actual_path,
-                    "reply_to": event.message_id,
+                    "reply_to": reply_anchor,
                 }
-                if event.source.thread_id:
-                    send_kwargs["metadata"] = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id}
+                if thread_meta:
+                    send_kwargs["metadata"] = thread_meta
                 await adapter.send_voice(**send_kwargs)
         except Exception as e:
             logger.warning("Auto voice reply failed: %s", e, exc_info=True)
@@ -9293,7 +9320,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             _, cleaned = adapter.extract_images(response)
             local_files, _ = adapter.extract_local_files(cleaned)
 
-            _thread_meta = {"thread_id": event.source.thread_id} if event.source.thread_id else None
+            _thread_meta = self._thread_metadata_for_source(event.source, self._reply_anchor_for_event(event))
 
             from gateway.platforms.base import should_send_media_as_audio
 
@@ -9457,9 +9484,16 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         source = event.source
         task_id = f"bg_{datetime.now().strftime('%H%M%S')}_{os.urandom(3).hex()}"
 
+        event_message_id = self._reply_anchor_for_event(event)
+
         # Fire-and-forget the background task
         _task = asyncio.create_task(
-            self._run_background_task(prompt, source, task_id)
+            self._run_background_task(
+                prompt,
+                source,
+                task_id,
+                event_message_id=event_message_id,
+            )
         )
         self._background_tasks.add(_task)
         _task.add_done_callback(self._background_tasks.discard)
@@ -9468,7 +9502,11 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         return f'🔄 Background task started: "{preview}"\nTask ID: {task_id}\nYou can keep chatting — results will appear when done.'
 
     async def _run_background_task(
-        self, prompt: str, source: "SessionSource", task_id: str
+        self,
+        prompt: str,
+        source: "SessionSource",
+        task_id: str,
+        event_message_id: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> None:
         """Execute a background agent task and deliver the result to the chat."""
         from run_agent import AIAgent
@@ -9478,7 +9516,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             logger.warning("No adapter for platform %s in background task %s", source.platform, task_id)
             return
 
-        _thread_metadata = {"thread_id": source.thread_id} if source.thread_id else None
+        _thread_metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, event_message_id)
 
         try:
             user_config = _load_gateway_config()
@@ -10342,7 +10380,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
     def _disable_telegram_topic_mode_for_chat(self, source: SessionSource) -> str:
         """Cleanly disable topic mode for a chat via /topic off."""
         if not self._session_db:
-            return "Session database not available."
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            return format_session_db_unavailable()
         chat_id = str(source.chat_id or "")
         if not chat_id:
             return "Could not determine chat ID."
@@ -10380,7 +10419,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         if source.platform != Platform.TELEGRAM or source.chat_type != "dm":
             return "The /topic command is only available in Telegram private chats."
         if not self._session_db:
-            return "Session database not available."
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            return format_session_db_unavailable()
 
         # Authorization: /topic activates multi-session mode and mutates
         # SQLite side tables. Unauthorized senders (not in allowlist) must
@@ -10594,7 +10634,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         session_id = session_entry.session_id
 
         if not self._session_db:
-            return "Session database not available."
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            return format_session_db_unavailable()
 
         # Ensure session exists in SQLite DB (it may only exist in session_store
         # if this is the first command in a new session)
@@ -10638,7 +10679,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
     async def _handle_resume_command(self, event: MessageEvent) -> str:
         """Handle /resume command — switch to a previously-named session."""
         if not self._session_db:
-            return "Session database not available."
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            return format_session_db_unavailable()
 
         source = event.source
         session_key = self._session_key_for_source(source)
@@ -10725,7 +10767,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         import uuid as _uuid
 
         if not self._session_db:
-            return "Session database not available."
+            from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+            return format_session_db_unavailable()
 
         source = event.source
         session_key = self._session_key_for_source(source)
@@ -11293,7 +11336,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         _slash_confirm_mod.register(session_key, confirm_id, command, handler)
 
         adapter = self.adapters.get(source.platform)
-        metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source)
+        metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, self._reply_anchor_for_event(event))
 
         used_buttons = False
         if adapter is not None:
@@ -11333,12 +11376,30 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         except Exception:
             return {}
 
-    def _thread_metadata_for_source(self, source) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
+    def _thread_metadata_for_source(
+        self,
+        source,
+        reply_to_message_id: Optional[str] = None,
+    ) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
         """Build the metadata dict platforms need for thread-aware replies."""
         thread_id = getattr(source, "thread_id", None)
         if thread_id is None:
             return None
-        return {"thread_id": thread_id}
+        metadata: Dict[str, Any] = {"thread_id": thread_id}
+        if (
+            getattr(source, "platform", None) == Platform.TELEGRAM
+            and getattr(source, "chat_type", None) == "dm"
+        ):
+            metadata["telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback"] = True
+            anchor = reply_to_message_id or getattr(source, "message_id", None)
+            if anchor is not None:
+                metadata["telegram_reply_to_message_id"] = str(anchor)
+        return metadata
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _reply_anchor_for_event(event: MessageEvent) -> Optional[str]:
+        """Return the platform-specific reply anchor for GatewayRunner sends."""
+        return _reply_anchor_for_event(event)
 
 
     # ------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -13131,10 +13192,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             else bool(_plat_streaming)
         )
 
-        if source.thread_id:
-            _thread_metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = {"thread_id": source.thread_id}
-        else:
-            _thread_metadata = None
+        _thread_metadata: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, event_message_id)
 
         if _streaming_enabled:
             try:
@@ -13564,8 +13622,8 @@ class GatewayRunner:
         #
         # Threading metadata is platform-specific:
         # - Slack DM threading needs event_message_id fallback (reply thread)
-        # - Telegram uses message_thread_id only for forum topics; passing a
-        #   normal DM/group message id as thread_id causes send failures
+        # - Telegram forum topics use message_thread_id; Hermes-created private
+        #   DM topic lanes require both thread metadata and a reply anchor
         # - Feishu only honors reply_in_thread when sending a reply, so topic
         #   progress uses the triggering event message as the reply target
         # - Other platforms should use explicit source.thread_id only
@@ -13573,7 +13631,11 @@ class GatewayRunner:
             _progress_thread_id = source.thread_id or event_message_id
         else:
             _progress_thread_id = source.thread_id
-        _progress_metadata = {"thread_id": _progress_thread_id} if _progress_thread_id else None
+        _progress_metadata = (
+            self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, event_message_id)
+            if _progress_thread_id == source.thread_id
+            else {"thread_id": _progress_thread_id}
+        ) if _progress_thread_id else None
         _progress_reply_to = (
             event_message_id
             if source.platform == Platform.FEISHU and source.thread_id and event_message_id
@@ -13833,7 +13895,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                 "reply_to_message_id": event_message_id,
             }
         else:
-            _status_thread_metadata = {"thread_id": _progress_thread_id} if _progress_thread_id else None
+            _status_thread_metadata = self._thread_metadata_for_source(source, event_message_id) if _progress_thread_id else None
 
         def _status_callback_sync(event_type: str, message: str) -> None:
             if not _status_adapter or not _run_still_current():
@@ -15118,7 +15180,7 @@ class GatewayRunner:
                     )
                     if next_message is None:
                         return result
-                    next_message_id = getattr(pending_event, "message_id", None)
+                    next_message_id = self._reply_anchor_for_event(pending_event)
                     next_channel_prompt = getattr(pending_event, "channel_prompt", None)
 
                 # Restart typing indicator so the user sees activity while
diff --git a/hermes_cli/banner.py b/hermes_cli/banner.py
index c8446f04d9..1cfb0d51f7 100644
--- a/hermes_cli/banner.py
+++ b/hermes_cli/banner.py
@@ -206,9 +206,12 @@ def check_for_updates() -> Optional[int]:
     if embedded_rev:
         behind = _check_via_rev(embedded_rev)
     else:
-        repo_dir = hermes_home / "hermes-agent"
+        # Prefer the running code's location over the profile-scoped path.
+        # $HERMES_HOME/hermes-agent/ may be a stale copy from --clone-all;
+        # Path(__file__) always resolves to the actual installed checkout.
+        repo_dir = Path(__file__).parent.parent.resolve()
         if not (repo_dir / ".git").exists():
-            repo_dir = Path(__file__).parent.parent.resolve()
+            repo_dir = hermes_home / "hermes-agent"
         if not (repo_dir / ".git").exists():
             return None
         behind = _check_via_local_git(repo_dir)
@@ -222,11 +225,16 @@ def check_for_updates() -> Optional[int]:
 
 
 def _resolve_repo_dir() -> Optional[Path]:
-    """Return the active Hermes git checkout, or None if this isn't a git install."""
-    hermes_home = get_hermes_home()
-    repo_dir = hermes_home / "hermes-agent"
+    """Return the active Hermes git checkout, or None if this isn't a git install.
+
+    Prefers the running code's location over the profile-scoped path
+    because ``$HERMES_HOME/hermes-agent/`` may be a stale copy carried
+    over by ``--clone-all``.
+    """
+    repo_dir = Path(__file__).parent.parent.resolve()
     if not (repo_dir / ".git").exists():
-        repo_dir = Path(__file__).parent.parent.resolve()
+        hermes_home = get_hermes_home()
+        repo_dir = hermes_home / "hermes-agent"
     return repo_dir if (repo_dir / ".git").exists() else None
 
 
diff --git a/hermes_cli/kanban_db.py b/hermes_cli/kanban_db.py
index 06b4f96ceb..42bc1ed9bd 100644
--- a/hermes_cli/kanban_db.py
+++ b/hermes_cli/kanban_db.py
@@ -917,7 +917,11 @@ def connect(
     needs_init = resolved not in _INITIALIZED_PATHS
     conn = sqlite3.connect(str(path), isolation_level=None, timeout=30)
     conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
-    conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+    # WAL doesn't work on network filesystems (NFS/SMB/FUSE).  Shared helper
+    # falls back to DELETE with one WARNING so kanban stays usable there.
+    # See hermes_state._WAL_INCOMPAT_MARKERS for detection logic.
+    from hermes_state import apply_wal_with_fallback
+    apply_wal_with_fallback(conn, db_label=f"kanban.db ({path.name})")
     conn.execute("PRAGMA synchronous=NORMAL")
     conn.execute("PRAGMA foreign_keys=ON")
     if needs_init:
diff --git a/hermes_cli/profiles.py b/hermes_cli/profiles.py
index 1114821d99..d111159c01 100644
--- a/hermes_cli/profiles.py
+++ b/hermes_cli/profiles.py
@@ -64,13 +64,39 @@ _CLONE_SUBDIR_FILES = [
     "memories/USER.md",
 ]
 
-# Runtime files stripped after --clone-all (shouldn't carry over)
-_CLONE_ALL_STRIP = [
+# Runtime files stripped after --clone-all (shouldn't carry over).
+# Kept as a post-copy step rather than in the ignore filter because they
+# are created dynamically during normal use and may be absent at copy time.
+_CLONE_ALL_STRIP: list[str] = [
     "gateway.pid",
     "gateway_state.json",
     "processes.json",
 ]
 
+# Infrastructure artifacts excluded from --clone-all when the source is the
+# default profile (``~/.hermes``).  Named profiles never contain these
+# directories at root, so the exclusion is gated to avoid silently dropping
+# user data from a named-profile source.
+#
+# Rationale per item:
+#   hermes-agent  — git repo checkout (~84 MB source + ~3 GB venv)
+#   .worktrees    — git worktrees
+#   profiles      — sibling named profiles (recursive copy never intended)
+#   bin           — installed binaries (tirith etc., ~10 MB) shared per-host
+#   node_modules  — npm packages (hundreds of MB)
+#
+# See ``_DEFAULT_EXPORT_EXCLUDE_ROOT`` below for the broader export-side
+# exclusion list (export drops state.db / logs / caches too because the
+# archive is a portable snapshot; clone-all keeps those because the cloned
+# profile is meant to keep working immediately).
+_CLONE_ALL_DEFAULT_EXCLUDE_ROOT: frozenset[str] = frozenset({
+    "hermes-agent",
+    ".worktrees",
+    "profiles",
+    "bin",
+    "node_modules",
+})
+
 # Marker file written by `hermes profile create --no-skills`.  When present in
 # a profile's root, callers of seed_profile_skills() (fresh-create, `hermes
 # update`'s all-profile sync, the web dashboard) skip bundled-skill seeding
@@ -89,23 +115,48 @@ def has_bundled_skills_opt_out(profile_dir: Path) -> bool:
 
 
 def _clone_all_copytree_ignore(source_dir: Path):
-    """Ignore ``profiles/`` at the root of *source_dir* only.
+    """Exclude infrastructure artifacts when cloning a profile via --clone-all.
 
-    ``~/.hermes`` contains ``profiles/<name>/`` for sibling named profiles.
-    ``shutil.copytree`` would otherwise duplicate that entire tree inside the
-    new profile (recursive ``.../profiles/.../profiles/...``). Export already
-    excludes ``profiles`` via ``_DEFAULT_EXPORT_EXCLUDE_ROOT`` — match that
-    behavior for ``--clone-all``.
+    Two categories:
+      1. Root-level entries in ``_CLONE_ALL_DEFAULT_EXCLUDE_ROOT`` — known
+         Hermes infrastructure directories that only the default profile
+         (``~/.hermes``) ever contains.  Gated on ``source_dir`` actually
+         being the default profile so a named-profile source never has its
+         own data silently dropped.
+      2. Universal exclusions at any depth — Python bytecode caches that
+         are stale or regenerable (``__pycache__``, ``*.pyc``, ``*.pyo``)
+         and runtime sockets / temp files (``*.sock``, ``*.tmp``).
+
+    The export-side ignore (``_default_export_ignore``) uses the same
+    two-tier pattern with the broader ``_DEFAULT_EXPORT_EXCLUDE_ROOT`` set
+    because the export archive is a portable snapshot rather than a live
+    clone.
     """
     source_resolved = source_dir.resolve()
+    is_default_source = source_resolved == _get_default_hermes_home().resolve()
 
     def _ignore(directory: str, names: List[str]) -> List[str]:
-        try:
-            if Path(directory).resolve() == source_resolved:
-                return [n for n in names if n == "profiles"]
-        except (OSError, ValueError):
-            pass
-        return []
+        ignored: list[str] = []
+        for entry in names:
+            # Universal exclusions at any depth.
+            if (
+                entry == "__pycache__"
+                or entry.endswith((".pyc", ".pyo", ".sock", ".tmp"))
+            ):
+                ignored.append(entry)
+                continue
+            # Root-level exclusions only apply when cloning the default profile.
+            if is_default_source:
+                try:
+                    if Path(directory).resolve() == source_resolved:
+                        if entry in _CLONE_ALL_DEFAULT_EXCLUDE_ROOT:
+                            ignored.append(entry)
+                except (OSError, ValueError):
+                    # ``resolve()`` can fail on unusual FS layouts (broken
+                    # symlinks, missing parents).  Fail open — better to
+                    # over-copy than silently drop user data.
+                    pass
+        return ignored
 
     return _ignore
 
diff --git a/hermes_cli/web_server.py b/hermes_cli/web_server.py
index 1c8b13f4f7..480daf75a8 100644
--- a/hermes_cli/web_server.py
+++ b/hermes_cli/web_server.py
@@ -579,7 +579,7 @@ async def get_status():
     remote_health_body: dict | None = None
 
     if not gateway_running and _GATEWAY_HEALTH_URL:
-        loop = asyncio.get_event_loop()
+        loop = asyncio.get_running_loop()
         alive, remote_health_body = await loop.run_in_executor(
             None, _probe_gateway_health
         )
@@ -2600,7 +2600,7 @@ async def _start_device_code_flow(provider_id: str) -> Dict[str, Any]:
                     client_id=client_id,
                     scope=scope,
                 )
-        device_data = await asyncio.get_event_loop().run_in_executor(None, _do_nous_device_request)
+        device_data = await asyncio.get_running_loop().run_in_executor(None, _do_nous_device_request)
         sid, sess = _new_oauth_session("nous", "device_code")
         sess["device_code"] = str(device_data["device_code"])
         sess["interval"] = int(device_data["interval"])
@@ -2889,7 +2889,7 @@ async def submit_oauth_code(provider_id: str, body: OAuthSubmitBody, request: Re
     """Submit the auth code for PKCE flows. Token-protected."""
     _require_token(request)
     if provider_id == "anthropic":
-        return await asyncio.get_event_loop().run_in_executor(
+        return await asyncio.get_running_loop().run_in_executor(
             None, _submit_anthropic_pkce, body.session_id, body.code,
         )
     raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail=f"submit not supported for {provider_id}")
diff --git a/hermes_state.py b/hermes_state.py
index 28e9d30eeb..3942571797 100644
--- a/hermes_state.py
+++ b/hermes_state.py
@@ -35,6 +35,153 @@ DEFAULT_DB_PATH = get_hermes_home() / "state.db"
 
 SCHEMA_VERSION = 11
 
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# WAL-compatibility fallback
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# SQLite's WAL mode requires shared-memory (mmap) coordination and fcntl
+# byte-range locks that don't reliably work on network filesystems (NFS,
+# SMB/CIFS, some FUSE mounts, WSL1).  Upstream documents this explicitly:
+# https://www.sqlite.org/wal.html#sometimes_queries_return_sqlite_busy_in_wal_mode
+#
+# On those filesystems ``PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL`` raises
+# ``sqlite3.OperationalError: locking protocol`` (SQLITE_PROTOCOL).  If we
+# propagate that, every feature backed by state.db / kanban.db breaks
+# silently — /resume, /title, /history, /branch, kanban dispatcher, etc.
+#
+# Instead, fall back to ``journal_mode=DELETE`` (the pre-WAL default) which
+# works on NFS.  Concurrency drops — concurrent readers are blocked during
+# a write — but the feature works.
+_WAL_INCOMPAT_MARKERS = (
+    "locking protocol",       # SQLITE_PROTOCOL on NFS/SMB
+    "not authorized",         # Some FUSE mounts block WAL pragma outright
+    "disk i/o error",         # Flaky network FS during WAL setup
+)
+
+# Last SessionDB() init error, per-process.  Surfaced in /resume and
+# related slash-command error strings so users know WHY the DB is
+# unavailable instead of getting a bare "Session database not available."
+# Only SessionDB.__init__ writes to this; kanban_db.connect() failures
+# do not update it (by design — kanban failures are reported via their
+# own caller's error handling, not via /resume-style slash commands).
+_last_init_error: Optional[str] = None
+_last_init_error_lock = threading.Lock()
+
+# Paths for which we've already logged a WAL-fallback WARNING.  Without
+# this, kanban_db.connect() (called on every kanban operation — see
+# hermes_cli/kanban_db.py for ~30 call sites) would re-log the same
+# filesystem-incompat warning on every connection, filling errors.log.
+_wal_fallback_warned_paths: set[str] = set()
+_wal_fallback_warned_lock = threading.Lock()
+
+
+def _set_last_init_error(msg: Optional[str]) -> None:
+    """Record (or clear) the most recent state.db init failure.
+
+    Thread-safe via _last_init_error_lock.  Callers pass a message to
+    record a failure or None to clear.  SessionDB.__init__ only calls
+    this to SET on failure — it deliberately does NOT clear on success,
+    because in a multi-threaded caller (e.g. gateway / web_server per-
+    request SessionDB() instantiation), a concurrent successful open
+    racing past a different thread's failure would erase the cause
+    string that thread's /resume handler is about to format.  Explicit
+    clears (e.g. test fixtures) are still supported by passing None.
+    """
+    global _last_init_error
+    with _last_init_error_lock:
+        _last_init_error = msg
+
+
+def get_last_init_error() -> Optional[str]:
+    """Return the most recent state.db init failure, if any.
+
+    Slash-command handlers (``/resume``, ``/title``, ``/history``, ``/branch``)
+    call this to surface the underlying cause in their error messages when
+    ``_session_db is None``.  Returns ``None`` if SessionDB initialized
+    successfully (or hasn't been attempted).
+    """
+    return _last_init_error
+
+
+def format_session_db_unavailable(prefix: str = "Session database not available") -> str:
+    """Format a user-facing 'session DB unavailable' message with cause.
+
+    When ``SessionDB()`` init fails, callers set ``_session_db = None`` and
+    several slash commands (/resume, /title, /history, /branch) previously
+    responded with a bare ``"Session database not available."`` — no
+    indication of WHY.  This helper includes the captured cause (typically
+    ``"locking protocol"`` from NFS/SMB) and points users at the known
+    culprit so they can fix it themselves.
+
+    Example output:
+        Session database not available: locking protocol (state.db may be
+        on NFS/SMB — see https://www.sqlite.org/wal.html).
+    """
+    cause = get_last_init_error()
+    if not cause:
+        return f"{prefix}."
+    hint = ""
+    if any(marker in cause.lower() for marker in _WAL_INCOMPAT_MARKERS):
+        hint = " (state.db may be on NFS/SMB/FUSE — see https://www.sqlite.org/wal.html)"
+    return f"{prefix}: {cause}{hint}."
+
+
+def apply_wal_with_fallback(
+    conn: sqlite3.Connection,
+    *,
+    db_label: str = "state.db",
+) -> str:
+    """Set ``journal_mode=WAL`` on ``conn``, falling back to DELETE on failure.
+
+    Returns the journal mode actually set (``"wal"`` or ``"delete"``).
+
+    On WAL-incompatible filesystems (NFS, SMB, some FUSE), SQLite raises
+    ``OperationalError("locking protocol")`` when setting WAL.  We fall
+    back to DELETE mode — the pre-WAL default, which works on NFS — and
+    log one WARNING explaining why.
+
+    The WARNING is deduplicated per ``db_label``: repeated connections
+    to the same underlying DB (e.g. kanban_db.connect() which is called
+    on every kanban operation) log once per process, not once per call.
+    Different db_labels log independently, so state.db and kanban.db
+    each get one warning on the same NFS mount.
+
+    Shared by :class:`SessionDB` and ``hermes_cli.kanban_db.connect`` so
+    both databases get identical fallback behavior.
+    """
+    try:
+        conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+        return "wal"
+    except sqlite3.OperationalError as exc:
+        msg = str(exc).lower()
+        if not any(marker in msg for marker in _WAL_INCOMPAT_MARKERS):
+            # Unrelated OperationalError — don't silently swallow.
+            raise
+        _log_wal_fallback_once(db_label, exc)
+        conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=DELETE")
+        return "delete"
+
+
+def _log_wal_fallback_once(db_label: str, exc: Exception) -> None:
+    """Log a single WARNING per (process, db_label) about WAL fallback.
+
+    Without this dedup, NFS users running kanban (which opens a fresh
+    connection on every operation — see hermes_cli/kanban_db.py) would
+    fill errors.log with hundreds of identical warnings per hour.
+    """
+    with _wal_fallback_warned_lock:
+        if db_label in _wal_fallback_warned_paths:
+            return
+        _wal_fallback_warned_paths.add(db_label)
+    logger.warning(
+        "%s: WAL journal_mode unsupported on this filesystem (%s) — "
+        "falling back to journal_mode=DELETE (slower rollback-journal "
+        "mode; reduces concurrency but works on NFS/SMB/FUSE). See "
+        "https://www.sqlite.org/wal.html for details. This warning "
+        "fires once per process per database.",
+        db_label,
+        exc,
+    )
+
 SCHEMA_SQL = """
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS schema_version (
     version INTEGER NOT NULL
@@ -185,23 +332,40 @@ class SessionDB:
 
         self._lock = threading.Lock()
         self._write_count = 0
-        self._conn = sqlite3.connect(
-            str(self.db_path),
-            check_same_thread=False,
-            # Short timeout — application-level retry with random jitter
-            # handles contention instead of sitting in SQLite's internal
-            # busy handler for up to 30s.
-            timeout=1.0,
-            # Autocommit mode: Python's default isolation_level="" auto-starts
-            # transactions on DML, which conflicts with our explicit
-            # BEGIN IMMEDIATE.  None = we manage transactions ourselves.
-            isolation_level=None,
-        )
-        self._conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
-        self._conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
-        self._conn.execute("PRAGMA foreign_keys=ON")
+        try:
+            self._conn = sqlite3.connect(
+                str(self.db_path),
+                check_same_thread=False,
+                # Short timeout — application-level retry with random jitter
+                # handles contention instead of sitting in SQLite's internal
+                # busy handler for up to 30s.
+                timeout=1.0,
+                # Autocommit mode: Python's default isolation_level=""
+                # auto-starts transactions on DML, which conflicts with our
+                # explicit BEGIN IMMEDIATE.  None = we manage transactions
+                # ourselves.
+                isolation_level=None,
+            )
+            self._conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
+            apply_wal_with_fallback(self._conn, db_label="state.db")
+            self._conn.execute("PRAGMA foreign_keys=ON")
 
-        self._init_schema()
+            self._init_schema()
+        except Exception as exc:
+            # Capture the cause so /resume and friends can surface WHY the
+            # session DB is unavailable instead of a bare "Session database
+            # not available."  Callers that catch this exception keep their
+            # existing ``self._session_db = None`` degradation path.
+            #
+            # Note: we deliberately do NOT clear _last_init_error on the
+            # success path (no else branch).  In multi-threaded callers
+            # (gateway, web_server per-request SessionDB()), a concurrent
+            # successful open racing past this failure would erase the
+            # cause that another thread's /resume is about to format.
+            # Tests that need to reset the state can call
+            # ``hermes_state._set_last_init_error(None)`` explicitly.
+            _set_last_init_error(f"{type(exc).__name__}: {exc}")
+            raise
 
     # ── Core write helper ──
 
diff --git a/model_tools.py b/model_tools.py
index 679a0934c4..253cf02fe8 100644
--- a/model_tools.py
+++ b/model_tools.py
@@ -550,6 +550,16 @@ def coerce_tool_args(tool_name: str, args: Dict[str, Any]) -> Dict[str, Any]:
                     # nullable "null" → None).
                     args[key] = coerced
                     continue
+                # If the string looks like a JSON array but _coerce_value
+                # failed to parse it, warn clearly instead of silently wrapping.
+                if value.strip().startswith("["):
+                    logger.warning(
+                        "coerce_tool_args: %s.%s looks like a JSON array string "
+                        "but could not be parsed — model may have emitted a "
+                        "JSON-encoded string instead of a native array. "
+                        "Falling back to single-element list.",
+                        tool_name, key,
+                    )
                 args[key] = [value]
                 logger.info(
                     "coerce_tool_args: wrapped bare string in list for %s.%s",
@@ -637,7 +647,12 @@ def _coerce_json(value: str, expected_python_type: type):
     """
     try:
         parsed = json.loads(value)
-    except (ValueError, TypeError):
+    except (ValueError, TypeError) as exc:
+        logger.warning(
+            "coerce_tool_args: failed to parse string as JSON for expected type %s: %s",
+            expected_python_type.__name__,
+            exc,
+        )
         return value
     if isinstance(parsed, expected_python_type):
         logger.debug(
@@ -645,6 +660,11 @@ def _coerce_json(value: str, expected_python_type: type):
             expected_python_type.__name__,
         )
         return parsed
+    logger.warning(
+        "coerce_tool_args: JSON-parsed value is %s, expected %s — skipping coercion",
+        type(parsed).__name__,
+        expected_python_type.__name__,
+    )
     return value
 
 
diff --git a/plugins/memory/holographic/store.py b/plugins/memory/holographic/store.py
index 3dc66d6864..67628102d8 100644
--- a/plugins/memory/holographic/store.py
+++ b/plugins/memory/holographic/store.py
@@ -127,7 +127,11 @@ class MemoryStore:
 
     def _init_db(self) -> None:
         """Create tables, indexes, and triggers if they do not exist. Enable WAL mode."""
-        self._conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL")
+        # Use the shared WAL-fallback helper so memory_store.db degrades
+        # gracefully on NFS/SMB/FUSE-mounted HERMES_HOME (same issue as
+        # state.db / kanban.db — see hermes_state._WAL_INCOMPAT_MARKERS).
+        from hermes_state import apply_wal_with_fallback
+        apply_wal_with_fallback(self._conn, db_label="memory_store.db (holographic)")
         self._conn.executescript(_SCHEMA)
         # Migrate: add hrr_vector column if missing (safe for existing databases)
         columns = {row[1] for row in self._conn.execute("PRAGMA table_info(facts)").fetchall()}
diff --git a/plugins/memory/openviking/__init__.py b/plugins/memory/openviking/__init__.py
index c9cbfcad4b..6207800086 100644
--- a/plugins/memory/openviking/__init__.py
+++ b/plugins/memory/openviking/__init__.py
@@ -100,18 +100,19 @@ class _VikingClient:
             raise ImportError("httpx is required for OpenViking: pip install httpx")
 
     def _headers(self) -> dict:
-        # Only send tenant headers when the user actually configured them.
-        # Legacy installs had account/user defaulted to the literal string
-        # "default" — treat that as unset so authenticated remote servers
-        # that derive tenancy from the Bearer key aren't overridden by a
-        # bogus tenant value.
+        # Always send tenant headers when account/user are configured.
+        # OpenViking 0.3.x requires X-OpenViking-Account and X-OpenViking-User
+        # for ROOT API key requests to tenant-scoped APIs — omitting them
+        # causes INVALID_ARGUMENT errors even when account="default".
+        # User-level keys can omit them (server derives tenancy from the key),
+        # but ROOT keys must always include them explicitly.
         h = {
             "Content-Type": "application/json",
             "X-OpenViking-Agent": self._agent,
         }
-        if self._account and self._account != "default":
+        if self._account:
             h["X-OpenViking-Account"] = self._account
-        if self._user and self._user != "default":
+        if self._user:
             h["X-OpenViking-User"] = self._user
         if self._api_key:
             h["X-API-Key"] = self._api_key
diff --git a/plugins/platforms/google_chat/adapter.py b/plugins/platforms/google_chat/adapter.py
index bfc63bf9ee..e4c1b5dbee 100644
--- a/plugins/platforms/google_chat/adapter.py
+++ b/plugins/platforms/google_chat/adapter.py
@@ -1010,13 +1010,30 @@ class GoogleChatAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
                 + (sender_email or "unknown").replace("@", "_at_").replace(".", "_")
             )
             text = envelope.get("text", "") or ""
+            # Honor the relay's declared sender_type when present so the
+            # downstream BOT self-filter (sender_type == "BOT") fires for
+            # bot-originated messages forwarded by the relay. Hardcoding
+            # "HUMAN" here meant the bot would re-process its own replies
+            # if the relay forwarded them, and allowed a relay envelope to
+            # impersonate any allowlisted user without ever being marked
+            # as a bot. Default to "HUMAN" for backward compatibility when
+            # the relay does not provide the field.
+            #
+            # Operator contract: the relay MUST forward sender.type from
+            # the upstream Chat event as ``sender_type``. Relays that
+            # forward bot replies as HUMAN (or omit the field) cannot be
+            # distinguished from genuine humans here.
+            sender_type_raw = (envelope.get("sender_type") or "HUMAN")
+            sender_type = str(sender_type_raw).strip().upper() or "HUMAN"
+            if sender_type not in {"HUMAN", "BOT"}:
+                sender_type = "HUMAN"
             msg: Dict[str, Any] = {
                 "name": envelope.get("message_name", "") or "",
                 "sender": {
                     "name": sender_name_surrogate,
                     "email": sender_email,
                     "displayName": sender_display,
-                    "type": "HUMAN",
+                    "type": sender_type,
                 },
                 "text": text,
                 "argumentText": text,
@@ -3019,6 +3036,165 @@ def interactive_setup() -> None:
     print_info("Restart the gateway: hermes gateway restart")
 
 
+# Strict resource-name pattern.  ``spaces/<id>`` and ``users/<id>`` must
+# only contain Google Chat's documented character set; anything else
+# means a tampered chat_id trying to break out of the REST URL path
+# (path traversal, ``?`` query injection, ``#`` fragment truncation).
+_GCHAT_CHAT_ID_RE = re.compile(r"^(?:spaces|users)/[A-Za-z0-9_-]+$")
+
+
+async def _standalone_send(
+    pconfig,
+    chat_id: str,
+    message: str,
+    *,
+    thread_id: Optional[str] = None,
+    media_files: Optional[List[str]] = None,
+    force_document: bool = False,
+) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+    """POST a single Google Chat message via the REST API without the SDK.
+
+    Used by ``tools/send_message_tool._send_via_adapter`` when the gateway
+    runner is not in this process (e.g. ``hermes cron`` running as a
+    separate process from ``hermes gateway``).  Without this hook,
+    ``deliver=google_chat`` cron jobs fail with ``No live adapter for
+    platform``.
+
+    Configuration: requires service-account credentials via
+    ``GOOGLE_CHAT_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON``, ``GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS``,
+    or Application Default Credentials, and a space resource name as
+    ``chat_id`` (e.g. ``spaces/AAAA-BBBB`` or ``users/<id>``).
+
+    Security: ``chat_id`` is validated against the documented Google Chat
+    resource-name character set before substitution into the REST URL so
+    a tampered value cannot path-traverse or query-inject.
+
+    ``media_files`` and ``force_document`` are accepted for signature
+    parity but are not implemented for the standalone path; messages with
+    attachments send as text-only.  The live adapter handles attachments.
+    """
+    if not chat_id:
+        return {"error": "Google Chat standalone send: chat_id (space resource) is required"}
+    if not _GCHAT_CHAT_ID_RE.match(chat_id):
+        return {"error": (
+            f"Google Chat standalone send: chat_id {chat_id!r} must match "
+            f"'spaces/<id>' or 'users/<id>' with only [A-Za-z0-9_-] in the id"
+        )}
+    if thread_id is not None and not re.match(r"^spaces/[A-Za-z0-9_-]+/threads/[A-Za-z0-9_-]+$", thread_id):
+        return {"error": (
+            f"Google Chat standalone send: thread_id {thread_id!r} must match "
+            f"'spaces/<id>/threads/<id>'"
+        )}
+
+    extra = getattr(pconfig, "extra", {}) or {}
+    sa_value = (
+        extra.get("service_account_json")
+        or os.getenv("GOOGLE_CHAT_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON")
+        or os.getenv("GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS")
+    )
+
+    if service_account is None:
+        return {"error": "Google Chat standalone send: google-auth not installed"}
+
+    try:
+        from google.auth.transport.requests import Request as _GoogleAuthRequest
+    except Exception as e:
+        return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send: google-auth import failed: {e}"}
+
+    try:
+        if sa_value:
+            stripped = sa_value.lstrip()
+            if stripped.startswith("{"):
+                try:
+                    info = json.loads(sa_value)
+                except json.JSONDecodeError as exc:
+                    return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send: inline SA JSON is invalid: {exc}"}
+                creds = service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info(info, scopes=_CHAT_SCOPES)
+            else:
+                if not os.path.exists(sa_value):
+                    return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send: SA JSON file not found at {sa_value}"}
+                try:
+                    with open(sa_value, "r", encoding="utf-8") as fh:
+                        info = json.load(fh)
+                except json.JSONDecodeError as exc:
+                    return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send: SA JSON file is invalid: {exc}"}
+                creds = service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info(info, scopes=_CHAT_SCOPES)
+        else:
+            try:
+                import google.auth as _google_auth
+            except ImportError:
+                return {"error": (
+                    "Google Chat standalone send: no SA credentials configured "
+                    "and google-auth is not installed for ADC fallback"
+                )}
+            try:
+                creds, _project = _google_auth.default(scopes=_CHAT_SCOPES)
+            except Exception as exc:
+                return {"error": (
+                    f"Google Chat standalone send: no SA credentials configured "
+                    f"and Application Default Credentials are unavailable: {exc}"
+                )}
+    except asyncio.CancelledError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send: credential load failed: {e}"}
+
+    # Bound the synchronous urllib3-backed token refresh so a hung Google
+    # STS endpoint cannot stall the cron scheduler indefinitely.
+    try:
+        await asyncio.wait_for(
+            asyncio.to_thread(creds.refresh, _GoogleAuthRequest()),
+            timeout=10.0,
+        )
+    except asyncio.TimeoutError:
+        return {"error": "Google Chat standalone send: token refresh timed out"}
+    except asyncio.CancelledError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send: token refresh failed: {e}"}
+
+    token = getattr(creds, "token", None)
+    if not token:
+        return {"error": "Google Chat standalone send: refreshed credentials have no token"}
+
+    body: Dict[str, Any] = {"text": message}
+    if thread_id:
+        body["thread"] = {"name": thread_id}
+
+    url = f"https://chat.googleapis.com/v1/{chat_id}/messages"
+    try:
+        import aiohttp as _aiohttp
+    except ImportError:
+        return {"error": "Google Chat standalone send: aiohttp not installed"}
+
+    try:
+        async with _aiohttp.ClientSession(timeout=_aiohttp.ClientTimeout(total=30.0)) as session:
+            async with session.post(
+                url,
+                json=body,
+                headers={
+                    "Authorization": f"Bearer {token}",
+                    "Content-Type": "application/json",
+                },
+            ) as resp:
+                if resp.status >= 400:
+                    text = await resp.text()
+                    return {"error": (
+                        f"Google Chat standalone send: API returned "
+                        f"{resp.status}: {text[:300]}"
+                    )}
+                payload = await resp.json()
+        return {
+            "success": True,
+            "message_id": payload.get("name"),
+        }
+    except asyncio.CancelledError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.debug("Google Chat standalone send raised", exc_info=True)
+        return {"error": f"Google Chat standalone send failed: {e}"}
+
+
 def register(ctx) -> None:
     """Plugin entry point — called by the Hermes plugin system at startup.
 
@@ -3052,6 +3228,10 @@ def register(ctx) -> None:
         # cron jobs route to the configured home space without editing
         # cron/scheduler.py's hardcoded sets.
         cron_deliver_env_var="GOOGLE_CHAT_HOME_CHANNEL",
+        # Out-of-process cron delivery via the Chat REST API.  Without this
+        # hook, deliver=google_chat cron jobs fail with "No live adapter"
+        # when cron runs separately from the gateway.
+        standalone_sender_fn=_standalone_send,
         # Auth env vars for _is_user_authorized() integration.
         allowed_users_env="GOOGLE_CHAT_ALLOWED_USERS",
         allow_all_env="GOOGLE_CHAT_ALLOW_ALL_USERS",
diff --git a/plugins/platforms/irc/adapter.py b/plugins/platforms/irc/adapter.py
index c328434435..ff10475d4e 100644
--- a/plugins/platforms/irc/adapter.py
+++ b/plugins/platforms/irc/adapter.py
@@ -53,11 +53,6 @@ from gateway.session import SessionSource
 from gateway.config import PlatformConfig, Platform
 
 
-def _ensure_imports():
-    """No-op — kept for backward compatibility with any call sites."""
-    pass
-
-
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # IRC protocol helpers
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -704,8 +699,233 @@ def _env_enablement() -> dict | None:
     return seed
 
 
+def _strip_irc_control_chars(text: str) -> str:
+    """Strip IRC line terminators and the NUL byte from ``text``.
+
+    IRC commands are CRLF-delimited; a bare ``\\r`` or ``\\n`` in user
+    content lets an attacker inject arbitrary IRC commands (CTCP, JOIN,
+    KICK).  ``\\x00`` is a protocol-illegal byte.  Everything else is
+    valid in PRIVMSG payloads.
+    """
+    return text.replace("\r", " ").replace("\n", " ").replace("\x00", "")
+
+
+def _is_irc_channel(target: str) -> bool:
+    return bool(target) and target[0] in "#&+!"
+
+
+async def _standalone_send(
+    pconfig,
+    chat_id: str,
+    message: str,
+    *,
+    thread_id: Optional[str] = None,
+    media_files: Optional[List[str]] = None,
+    force_document: bool = False,
+) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+    """Open an ephemeral IRC connection, send a PRIVMSG, and quit.
+
+    Used by ``tools/send_message_tool._send_via_adapter`` when the gateway
+    runner is not in this process (e.g. ``hermes cron`` running as a
+    separate process from ``hermes gateway``).  Without this hook,
+    ``deliver=irc`` cron jobs fail with ``No live adapter for platform``.
+
+    The standalone client uses a distinct nick suffix (``-cron``) so it
+    does not collide with the long-running gateway adapter that may already
+    be holding the configured nickname on the same network.  When the
+    target is a channel, the client JOINs it before sending PRIVMSG so
+    networks with the default ``+n`` (no external messages) channel mode
+    accept the delivery.
+
+    ``thread_id`` and ``media_files`` are accepted for signature parity but
+    are not meaningful on IRC: IRC has no native thread or attachment
+    primitive.
+    """
+    extra = getattr(pconfig, "extra", {}) or {}
+    server = os.getenv("IRC_SERVER") or extra.get("server", "")
+    channel = os.getenv("IRC_CHANNEL") or extra.get("channel", "")
+    if not server or not channel:
+        return {"error": "IRC standalone send: IRC_SERVER and IRC_CHANNEL must be configured"}
+
+    port_value = os.getenv("IRC_PORT") or extra.get("port", 6697)
+    try:
+        port = int(port_value)
+    except (TypeError, ValueError):
+        return {"error": f"IRC standalone send: invalid port {port_value!r}"}
+
+    nickname = os.getenv("IRC_NICKNAME") or extra.get("nickname", "hermes-bot")
+    use_tls_env = os.getenv("IRC_USE_TLS")
+    if use_tls_env is not None:
+        use_tls = use_tls_env.lower() in ("1", "true", "yes")
+    else:
+        use_tls = bool(extra.get("use_tls", True))
+
+    server_password = os.getenv("IRC_SERVER_PASSWORD") or extra.get("server_password", "")
+    nickserv_password = os.getenv("IRC_NICKSERV_PASSWORD") or extra.get("nickserv_password", "")
+
+    # Reject control characters in chat_id to block IRC command injection.
+    raw_target = chat_id or channel
+    if any(ch in raw_target for ch in ("\r", "\n", "\x00", " ")):
+        return {"error": "IRC standalone send: chat_id contains illegal IRC characters"}
+    target = raw_target
+
+    # Distinct nick prevents NICK collision with a live gateway adapter
+    # that may already be holding the configured nickname.  Cap to 24 chars
+    # so subsequent collision retries do not overflow the 30-char NICKLEN
+    # most networks enforce.
+    nick_base = nickname.rstrip("_0123456789-")[:24] or "hermes-bot"
+    standalone_nick = f"{nick_base}-cron"[:30]
+    plain = IRCAdapter._strip_markdown(message)
+
+    ssl_ctx = ssl.create_default_context() if use_tls else None
+    try:
+        reader, writer = await asyncio.wait_for(
+            asyncio.open_connection(server, port, ssl=ssl_ctx),
+            timeout=15.0,
+        )
+    except asyncio.CancelledError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        return {"error": f"IRC standalone connect failed: {e}"}
+
+    async def _raw(line: str) -> None:
+        writer.write((line + "\r\n").encode("utf-8"))
+        await writer.drain()
+
+    nick_attempts = 0
+    max_nick_attempts = 5
+    try:
+        if server_password:
+            await _raw(f"PASS {_strip_irc_control_chars(server_password)}")
+        await _raw(f"NICK {standalone_nick}")
+        await _raw(f"USER {standalone_nick} 0 * :Hermes Agent (cron)")
+
+        loop = asyncio.get_running_loop()
+        deadline = loop.time() + 15.0
+        registered = False
+        while not registered:
+            remaining = deadline - loop.time()
+            if remaining <= 0:
+                return {"error": "IRC standalone send: registration timeout (no RPL_WELCOME)"}
+            try:
+                raw_line = await asyncio.wait_for(reader.readuntil(b"\r\n"), timeout=remaining)
+            except asyncio.TimeoutError:
+                return {"error": "IRC standalone send: registration timeout (no RPL_WELCOME)"}
+            except asyncio.IncompleteReadError:
+                return {"error": "IRC standalone send: server closed connection during registration"}
+            decoded = raw_line.decode("utf-8", errors="replace").rstrip("\r\n")
+            msg = _parse_irc_message(decoded)
+            cmd = msg["command"]
+            if cmd == "PING":
+                payload = msg["params"][0] if msg["params"] else ""
+                await _raw(f"PONG :{payload}")
+            elif cmd == "001":
+                registered = True
+            elif cmd in ("432", "433"):
+                nick_attempts += 1
+                if nick_attempts > max_nick_attempts:
+                    return {"error": "IRC standalone send: too many nick collisions"}
+                # Build the next nick from the stable base, not the
+                # mutated value, so the suffix stays bounded.
+                standalone_nick = f"{nick_base}-cron-{nick_attempts}"[:30]
+                await _raw(f"NICK {standalone_nick}")
+            elif cmd in ("464", "465"):
+                return {"error": f"IRC standalone send: server rejected client ({cmd})"}
+
+        if nickserv_password:
+            await _raw(f"PRIVMSG NickServ :IDENTIFY {_strip_irc_control_chars(nickserv_password)}")
+            await asyncio.sleep(2)
+
+        # JOIN before PRIVMSG.  IRC channels with the default ``+n`` mode
+        # (no external messages: Libera, OFTC, EFnet, IRCNet, undernet)
+        # silently drop PRIVMSG from non-members.  Do not JOIN bare nicks
+        # (DM target) or server queries.
+        if _is_irc_channel(target):
+            await _raw(f"JOIN {target}")
+            join_deadline = loop.time() + 5.0
+            joined = False
+            while not joined:
+                remaining = join_deadline - loop.time()
+                if remaining <= 0:
+                    # Timed out waiting for a JOIN ack: proceed anyway, the
+                    # server may still deliver the PRIVMSG depending on mode.
+                    break
+                try:
+                    raw_line = await asyncio.wait_for(reader.readuntil(b"\r\n"), timeout=remaining)
+                except (asyncio.TimeoutError, asyncio.IncompleteReadError):
+                    break
+                decoded = raw_line.decode("utf-8", errors="replace").rstrip("\r\n")
+                jmsg = _parse_irc_message(decoded)
+                jcmd = jmsg["command"]
+                if jcmd == "PING":
+                    payload = jmsg["params"][0] if jmsg["params"] else ""
+                    await _raw(f"PONG :{payload}")
+                elif jcmd in ("366", "JOIN"):
+                    joined = True
+                elif jcmd in ("403", "405", "471", "473", "474", "475"):
+                    return {"error": f"IRC standalone send: JOIN {target} rejected ({jcmd})"}
+
+        # Bytes-aware per-line splitting so multi-line plain text never
+        # exceeds the IRC 510-byte protocol limit.  Reuses the same
+        # algorithm as IRCAdapter._split_message, with control-character
+        # stripping per line to block CRLF injection from message content.
+        overhead = len(f"PRIVMSG {target} :".encode("utf-8")) + 2
+        max_bytes = 510 - overhead
+        sent_any = False
+        for paragraph in plain.split("\n"):
+            paragraph = _strip_irc_control_chars(paragraph).rstrip()
+            if not paragraph:
+                continue
+            while paragraph:
+                encoded = paragraph.encode("utf-8")
+                if len(encoded) <= max_bytes:
+                    await _raw(f"PRIVMSG {target} :{paragraph}")
+                    await asyncio.sleep(0.3)
+                    sent_any = True
+                    break
+                # Binary search for largest prefix that fits within max_bytes
+                low, high, best = 1, len(paragraph), 0
+                while low <= high:
+                    mid = (low + high) // 2
+                    if len(paragraph[:mid].encode("utf-8")) <= max_bytes:
+                        best = mid
+                        low = mid + 1
+                    else:
+                        high = mid - 1
+                split_at = best
+                space = paragraph.rfind(" ", 0, split_at)
+                if space > split_at // 3:
+                    split_at = space
+                await _raw(f"PRIVMSG {target} :{paragraph[:split_at].rstrip()}")
+                await asyncio.sleep(0.3)
+                sent_any = True
+                paragraph = paragraph[split_at:].lstrip()
+
+        if not sent_any:
+            return {"error": "IRC standalone send: empty message after stripping"}
+
+        await _raw("QUIT :delivered")
+        try:
+            await asyncio.wait_for(reader.read(1024), timeout=2.0)
+        except asyncio.TimeoutError:
+            pass
+
+        return {"success": True, "message_id": str(int(time.time() * 1000))}
+    except asyncio.CancelledError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.debug("IRC standalone send raised", exc_info=True)
+        return {"error": f"IRC standalone send failed: {e}"}
+    finally:
+        try:
+            writer.close()
+            await asyncio.wait_for(writer.wait_closed(), timeout=5.0)
+        except (asyncio.TimeoutError, Exception):
+            pass
+
+
 def register(ctx):
-    """Plugin entry point — called by the Hermes plugin system."""
+    """Plugin entry point: called by the Hermes plugin system."""
     ctx.register_platform(
         name="irc",
         label="IRC",
@@ -716,7 +936,7 @@ def register(ctx):
         required_env=["IRC_SERVER", "IRC_CHANNEL", "IRC_NICKNAME"],
         install_hint="No extra packages needed (stdlib only)",
         setup_fn=interactive_setup,
-        # Env-driven auto-configuration — seeds PlatformConfig.extra with
+        # Env-driven auto-configuration: seeds PlatformConfig.extra with
         # server/channel/port/tls + home_channel so env-only setups show
         # up in gateway status without instantiating the adapter.
         env_enablement_fn=_env_enablement,
@@ -724,6 +944,10 @@ def register(ctx):
         # IRC_CHANNEL (see _env_enablement), so cron jobs with
         # deliver=irc route to the joined channel by default.
         cron_deliver_env_var="IRC_HOME_CHANNEL",
+        # Out-of-process cron delivery.  Without this hook, deliver=irc
+        # cron jobs fail with "No live adapter" when cron runs separately
+        # from the gateway.
+        standalone_sender_fn=_standalone_send,
         # Auth env vars for _is_user_authorized() integration
         allowed_users_env="IRC_ALLOWED_USERS",
         allow_all_env="IRC_ALLOW_ALL_USERS",
diff --git a/plugins/platforms/teams/adapter.py b/plugins/platforms/teams/adapter.py
index 5c4a2cf0ce..34ebeea175 100644
--- a/plugins/platforms/teams/adapter.py
+++ b/plugins/platforms/teams/adapter.py
@@ -418,6 +418,9 @@ def _env_enablement() -> dict | None:
             seed["port"] = int(port)
         except ValueError:
             pass
+    service_url = os.getenv("TEAMS_SERVICE_URL", "").strip()
+    if service_url:
+        seed["service_url"] = service_url
     home = os.getenv("TEAMS_HOME_CHANNEL", "").strip()
     if home:
         seed["home_channel"] = {
@@ -427,6 +430,173 @@ def _env_enablement() -> dict | None:
     return seed
 
 
+# Bot Framework default service URL for the global Teams endpoint.  Some
+# regional/government tenants need a different host (e.g.
+# ``https://smba.infra.gov.teams.microsoft.us/``) which can be supplied via
+# ``TEAMS_SERVICE_URL`` or ``extra['service_url']``.
+_DEFAULT_TEAMS_SERVICE_URL = "https://smba.trafficmanager.net/teams/"
+
+# Allowlist of Bot Framework service hosts that may receive a freshly
+# minted bearer token.  Operator-supplied URLs are matched against this
+# allowlist to block SSRF / token-exfiltration via a tampered env var.
+_ALLOWED_TEAMS_SERVICE_HOSTS = frozenset({
+    "smba.trafficmanager.net",
+    "smba.infra.gov.teams.microsoft.us",
+})
+
+# Conservative pattern for Bot Framework conversation IDs.  Real values
+# combine digits, colons, hyphens, dots, '@', and the ``thread.skype`` /
+# ``thread.tacv2`` suffixes; reject anything outside this set so a hostile
+# value cannot path-traverse out of ``/v3/conversations/<id>/activities``.
+import re as _re_teams
+_TEAMS_CONV_ID_RE = _re_teams.compile(r"^[A-Za-z0-9:@\-_.]+$")
+
+
+def _validate_teams_service_url(raw: str) -> Optional[str]:
+    """Return a normalized service URL or ``None`` if it is not allowed.
+
+    Requires ``https://`` and a host in ``_ALLOWED_TEAMS_SERVICE_HOSTS``.
+    The trailing slash is added if absent so callers can append
+    ``v3/conversations/...`` without double slashes.
+    """
+    if not raw:
+        return None
+    try:
+        from urllib.parse import urlparse
+
+        parsed = urlparse(raw)
+    except Exception:
+        return None
+    if parsed.scheme != "https":
+        return None
+    if parsed.hostname not in _ALLOWED_TEAMS_SERVICE_HOSTS:
+        return None
+    normalized = raw if raw.endswith("/") else raw + "/"
+    return normalized
+
+
+async def _standalone_send(
+    pconfig,
+    chat_id: str,
+    message: str,
+    *,
+    thread_id: Optional[str] = None,
+    media_files: Optional[list] = None,
+    force_document: bool = False,
+) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+    """Acquire a Bot Framework bearer token and POST a single message activity.
+
+    Used by ``tools/send_message_tool._send_via_adapter`` when the gateway
+    runner is not in this process (e.g. ``hermes cron`` running as a
+    separate process from ``hermes gateway``).  Without this hook,
+    ``deliver=teams`` cron jobs fail with ``No live adapter for platform``.
+
+    Configuration: requires ``TEAMS_CLIENT_ID``, ``TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET``,
+    ``TEAMS_TENANT_ID``, ``TEAMS_HOME_CHANNEL`` (the conversation ID), and
+    optionally ``TEAMS_SERVICE_URL`` (Bot Framework service host; must be
+    a known Bot Framework endpoint, see ``_ALLOWED_TEAMS_SERVICE_HOSTS``).
+
+    Security: ``service_url`` is validated against an allowlist of known
+    Bot Framework hosts to block SSRF / token-exfiltration via a tampered
+    env var.  ``chat_id`` is validated to match the documented Bot
+    Framework ID character set so it cannot escape the URL path.
+
+    ``media_files`` and ``force_document`` are accepted for signature
+    parity but not implemented for the standalone path; messages with
+    attachments will send as text-only.  The live adapter handles
+    attachments via the SDK.
+    """
+    extra = getattr(pconfig, "extra", {}) or {}
+    client_id = os.getenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_ID") or extra.get("client_id", "")
+    client_secret = os.getenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET") or extra.get("client_secret", "")
+    tenant_id = os.getenv("TEAMS_TENANT_ID") or extra.get("tenant_id", "")
+    if not (client_id and client_secret and tenant_id):
+        return {"error": "Teams standalone send: TEAMS_CLIENT_ID, TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET, and TEAMS_TENANT_ID are all required"}
+
+    raw_service_url = (
+        os.getenv("TEAMS_SERVICE_URL")
+        or extra.get("service_url", "")
+        or _DEFAULT_TEAMS_SERVICE_URL
+    )
+    service_url = _validate_teams_service_url(raw_service_url)
+    if service_url is None:
+        return {"error": (
+            f"Teams standalone send: TEAMS_SERVICE_URL host is not on the "
+            f"Bot Framework allowlist; expected one of "
+            f"{sorted(_ALLOWED_TEAMS_SERVICE_HOSTS)}"
+        )}
+
+    # Bot Framework conversation IDs are restricted to a known character
+    # set; anything else means a tampered chat_id trying to break out of
+    # the URL path.
+    if not chat_id:
+        return {"error": "Teams standalone send: chat_id (conversation ID) is required"}
+    if not _TEAMS_CONV_ID_RE.match(chat_id):
+        return {"error": "Teams standalone send: chat_id contains characters outside the Bot Framework conversation ID set"}
+    if not _TEAMS_CONV_ID_RE.match(tenant_id):
+        return {"error": "Teams standalone send: TEAMS_TENANT_ID contains characters outside the expected set"}
+
+    token_url = f"https://login.microsoftonline.com/{tenant_id}/oauth2/v2.0/token"
+    activities_url = f"{service_url}v3/conversations/{chat_id}/activities"
+
+    if not AIOHTTP_AVAILABLE:
+        return {"error": "Teams standalone send: aiohttp not installed"}
+
+    try:
+        import aiohttp as _aiohttp
+
+        # Per-request timeouts so a slow STS endpoint cannot starve the
+        # subsequent activity POST of its budget.
+        per_request_timeout = _aiohttp.ClientTimeout(total=15.0)
+        async with _aiohttp.ClientSession() as session:
+            async with session.post(
+                token_url,
+                data={
+                    "grant_type": "client_credentials",
+                    "client_id": client_id,
+                    "client_secret": client_secret,
+                    "scope": "https://api.botframework.com/.default",
+                },
+                headers={"Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded"},
+                timeout=per_request_timeout,
+            ) as token_resp:
+                if token_resp.status >= 400:
+                    body = await token_resp.text()
+                    return {"error": f"Teams standalone send: token request failed ({token_resp.status}): {body[:300]}"}
+                token_payload = await token_resp.json()
+            access_token = token_payload.get("access_token")
+            if not access_token:
+                return {"error": "Teams standalone send: token response missing access_token"}
+
+            activity = {
+                "type": "message",
+                "text": message,
+                "textFormat": "markdown",
+            }
+            async with session.post(
+                activities_url,
+                json=activity,
+                headers={
+                    "Authorization": f"Bearer {access_token}",
+                    "Content-Type": "application/json",
+                },
+                timeout=per_request_timeout,
+            ) as send_resp:
+                if send_resp.status >= 400:
+                    body = await send_resp.text()
+                    return {"error": f"Teams standalone send: activity post failed ({send_resp.status}): {body[:300]}"}
+                send_payload = await send_resp.json()
+        return {
+            "success": True,
+            "message_id": send_payload.get("id"),
+        }
+    except asyncio.CancelledError:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.debug("Teams standalone send raised", exc_info=True)
+        return {"error": f"Teams standalone send failed: {e}"}
+
+
 # Keep the old name as an alias so existing test imports don't break.
 check_teams_requirements = check_requirements
 
@@ -985,6 +1155,10 @@ def register(ctx) -> None:
         # jobs route to the configured Teams chat/channel without editing
         # cron/scheduler.py's hardcoded sets.
         cron_deliver_env_var="TEAMS_HOME_CHANNEL",
+        # Out-of-process cron delivery via Bot Framework REST.  Without
+        # this hook, deliver=teams cron jobs fail with "No live adapter"
+        # when cron runs separately from the gateway.
+        standalone_sender_fn=_standalone_send,
         # Auth env vars for _is_user_authorized() integration
         allowed_users_env="TEAMS_ALLOWED_USERS",
         allow_all_env="TEAMS_ALLOW_ALL_USERS",
diff --git a/run_agent.py b/run_agent.py
index 255f9a6bd2..801678f371 100644
--- a/run_agent.py
+++ b/run_agent.py
@@ -9869,7 +9869,8 @@ class AIAgent:
             )
         elif function_name == "session_search":
             if not self._session_db:
-                return json.dumps({"success": False, "error": "Session database not available."})
+                from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+                return json.dumps({"success": False, "error": format_session_db_unavailable()})
             from tools.session_search_tool import session_search as _session_search
             return _session_search(
                 query=function_args.get("query", ""),
@@ -10492,7 +10493,8 @@ class AIAgent:
                     self._vprint(f"  {_get_cute_tool_message_impl('todo', function_args, tool_duration, result=function_result)}")
             elif function_name == "session_search":
                 if not self._session_db:
-                    function_result = json.dumps({"success": False, "error": "Session database not available."})
+                    from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+                    function_result = json.dumps({"success": False, "error": format_session_db_unavailable()})
                 else:
                     from tools.session_search_tool import session_search as _session_search
                     function_result = _session_search(
diff --git a/scripts/release.py b/scripts/release.py
index d6051286f3..a9c5af4421 100755
--- a/scripts/release.py
+++ b/scripts/release.py
@@ -64,6 +64,9 @@ AUTHOR_MAP = {
     "ytchen0719@gmail.com": "liquidchen",
     "am@studio1.tailb672fe.ts.net": "subtract0",
     "axmaiqiu@gmail.com": "qWaitCrypto",
+    "egitimviscara@gmail.com": "uzunkuyruk",
+    "zhekinmaksim@gmail.com": "Zhekinmaksim",
+    "obafemiferanmi1999@gmail.com": "KvnGz",
     "159539633+MottledShadow@users.noreply.github.com": "MottledShadow",
     "aludwin+gh@gmail.com": "adamludwin",
     "ngusev@astralinux.ru": "NikolayGusev-astra",
@@ -143,6 +146,7 @@ AUTHOR_MAP = {
     "luwinyang@deepseek.com": "lsdsjy",
     "season.saw@gmail.com": "season179",
     "heathley@Heathley-MacBook-Air.local": "heathley",
+    "maliyldzhn@gmail.com": "heathley",
     "vlad19@gmail.com": "dandaka",
     "adamrummer@gmail.com": "cyclingwithelephants",
     # Temporary tool-progress cleanup salvage (May 2026)
@@ -166,6 +170,8 @@ AUTHOR_MAP = {
     "momowind@gmail.com": "momowind",
     "clockwork-codex@users.noreply.github.com": "misery-hl",
     "207811921+misery-hl@users.noreply.github.com": "misery-hl",
+    "20nik.nosov21@gmail.com": "nik1t7n",
+    "90299797+nik1t7n@users.noreply.github.com": "nik1t7n",
     "suncokret@protonmail.com": "suncokret12",
     "mio.imoto.ai@gmail.com": "mioimotoai-lgtm",
     "aamirjawaid@microsoft.com": "heyitsaamir",
@@ -909,6 +915,8 @@ AUTHOR_MAP = {
     "promptsiren@gmail.com": "firefly",  # PR #18123 salvage of #16660 (ContextVars)
     "wtyopenclaw@gmail.com": "WuTianyi123",  # PR #20275 salvage of #13723 (feishu markdown)
     "zhicheng.han@mathematik.uni-goettingen.de": "hanzckernel",  # PR #20311 (api-server approval events)
+    "agentsmithlaor@gmail.com": "oferlaor",  # PR #22356 salvage (cron origin sender identity)
+    "jhin.lee@unity3d.com": "leehack",  # PR #22053 salvage (telegram DM topic reply fallback)
     # pander: empty email, salvaged via PR #19665 from #16126 by @ms-alan
 }
 
diff --git a/tests/agent/test_auxiliary_config_bridge.py b/tests/agent/test_auxiliary_config_bridge.py
index 66350519b0..11fe9f71c2 100644
--- a/tests/agent/test_auxiliary_config_bridge.py
+++ b/tests/agent/test_auxiliary_config_bridge.py
@@ -200,7 +200,11 @@ class TestGatewayBridgeCodeParity:
     def test_gateway_has_auxiliary_bridge(self):
         """The gateway config bridge must include auxiliary.* bridging."""
         gateway_path = Path(__file__).parent.parent.parent / "gateway" / "run.py"
-        content = gateway_path.read_text()
+        # Pin encoding to UTF-8: source files in this repo are UTF-8, but
+        # Path.read_text() defaults to the system locale — which is cp1252
+        # on most Western Windows installs and crashes as soon as the file
+        # contains any non-ASCII byte (e.g. an em-dash in a comment).
+        content = gateway_path.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
         # Check for key patterns that indicate the bridge is present
         assert "AUXILIARY_VISION_PROVIDER" in content
         assert "AUXILIARY_VISION_MODEL" in content
@@ -214,7 +218,9 @@ class TestGatewayBridgeCodeParity:
     def test_gateway_no_compression_env_bridge(self):
         """Gateway should NOT bridge compression config to env vars (config-only)."""
         gateway_path = Path(__file__).parent.parent.parent / "gateway" / "run.py"
-        content = gateway_path.read_text()
+        # See note in test_gateway_has_auxiliary_bridge — pin UTF-8 so the
+        # test runs on Windows where the default locale is cp1252.
+        content = gateway_path.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
         assert "CONTEXT_COMPRESSION_PROVIDER" not in content
         assert "CONTEXT_COMPRESSION_MODEL" not in content
 
@@ -289,7 +295,9 @@ class TestCLIDefaultsHaveAuxiliaryKeys:
         # So auxiliary config from config.yaml gets merged even though
         # cli.py's defaults dict doesn't define it.
         import cli as _cli_mod
-        source = Path(_cli_mod.__file__).read_text()
+        # See note in test_gateway_has_auxiliary_bridge — pin UTF-8 so the
+        # test runs on Windows where the default locale is cp1252.
+        source = Path(_cli_mod.__file__).read_text(encoding="utf-8")
         assert "auxiliary_config = defaults.get(\"auxiliary\"" in source
         assert "AUXILIARY_VISION_PROVIDER" in source
         assert "AUXILIARY_VISION_MODEL" in source
diff --git a/tests/agent/test_context_compressor.py b/tests/agent/test_context_compressor.py
index 572ebce12f..7817930851 100644
--- a/tests/agent/test_context_compressor.py
+++ b/tests/agent/test_context_compressor.py
@@ -400,6 +400,104 @@ class TestSummaryFallbackToMainModel:
         assert result is None
         assert c._summary_model_fallen_back is True
 
+    def test_json_decode_error_falls_back_to_main_and_succeeds(self):
+        """JSONDecodeError from the OpenAI SDK's ``response.json()`` (raised
+        when a misconfigured proxy returns HTML/plain-text with
+        ``Content-Type: application/json``) should trigger the same
+        retry-on-main path as 404/timeout.  Issue #22244."""
+        import json as _json
+
+        mock_ok = MagicMock()
+        mock_ok.choices = [MagicMock()]
+        mock_ok.choices[0].message.content = "summary via main model"
+
+        # Simulate the SDK raising a raw JSONDecodeError with a realistic
+        # error message ("Expecting value: line X column Y char Z").
+        err_json = _json.JSONDecodeError(
+            "Expecting value", "<!DOCTYPE html><html>...</html>", 0
+        )
+
+        with patch("agent.context_compressor.get_model_context_length", return_value=100000):
+            c = ContextCompressor(
+                model="main-model",
+                summary_model_override="aux-via-broken-proxy",
+                quiet_mode=True,
+            )
+
+        with patch(
+            "agent.context_compressor.call_llm",
+            side_effect=[err_json, mock_ok],
+        ) as mock_call:
+            result = c._generate_summary(self._msgs())
+
+        assert mock_call.call_count == 2
+        assert mock_call.call_args_list[0].kwargs.get("model") == "aux-via-broken-proxy"
+        assert "model" not in mock_call.call_args_list[1].kwargs
+        assert result is not None
+        assert "summary via main model" in result
+        # Aux-model failure recorded so /usage / gateway warnings can surface it
+        assert c._last_aux_model_failure_model == "aux-via-broken-proxy"
+        assert c._last_aux_model_failure_error is not None
+        # The 220-char cap is shared with other fallback branches
+        assert len(c._last_aux_model_failure_error) <= 220
+
+    def test_json_decode_error_substring_match_in_wrapped_exception(self):
+        """When the OpenAI SDK wraps the raw JSONDecodeError inside its own
+        ``APIResponseValidationError`` (or similar), ``isinstance`` no longer
+        matches but the substring "expecting value" still appears in
+        ``str(e)``.  We detect this case by string match and fall back the
+        same way."""
+        mock_ok = MagicMock()
+        mock_ok.choices = [MagicMock()]
+        mock_ok.choices[0].message.content = "summary via main model"
+
+        # A plain Exception with the canonical JSON decode error text — what
+        # the SDK's APIResponseValidationError looks like at str() time.
+        err_wrapped = Exception("Expecting value: line 1 column 1 (char 0)")
+
+        with patch("agent.context_compressor.get_model_context_length", return_value=100000):
+            c = ContextCompressor(
+                model="main-model",
+                summary_model_override="aux-model",
+                quiet_mode=True,
+            )
+
+        with patch(
+            "agent.context_compressor.call_llm",
+            side_effect=[err_wrapped, mock_ok],
+        ) as mock_call:
+            result = c._generate_summary(self._msgs())
+
+        assert mock_call.call_count == 2
+        assert result is not None
+        assert "summary via main model" in result
+
+    def test_json_decode_error_on_main_uses_short_cooldown(self):
+        """When already on the main model (no separate summary_model, or
+        fallback already happened), a JSONDecodeError should set the short
+        30s cooldown, not the default 60s — provider bodies tend to
+        recover quickly when an upstream proxy comes back online."""
+        import json as _json
+
+        err_json = _json.JSONDecodeError("Expecting value", "<html/>", 0)
+
+        with patch("agent.context_compressor.get_model_context_length", return_value=100000):
+            c = ContextCompressor(
+                model="main-model",
+                # No summary_model_override → already on main, no fallback path.
+                quiet_mode=True,
+            )
+
+        with patch(
+            "agent.context_compressor.call_llm",
+            side_effect=err_json,
+        ), patch("agent.context_compressor.time.monotonic", return_value=1000.0):
+            result = c._generate_summary(self._msgs())
+
+        assert result is None
+        # Short JSON-decode cooldown is 30s, not the default 60s.
+        assert c._summary_failure_cooldown_until == 1030.0
+
 
 class TestAuxModelFallbackSurfacedToCallers:
     """When summary_model fails but retry-on-main succeeds, compress() must
diff --git a/tests/agent/test_prompt_builder.py b/tests/agent/test_prompt_builder.py
index b475c591b2..936aff16bf 100644
--- a/tests/agent/test_prompt_builder.py
+++ b/tests/agent/test_prompt_builder.py
@@ -789,6 +789,7 @@ class TestPromptBuilderConstants:
         assert "cron" in PLATFORM_HINTS
         assert "cli" in PLATFORM_HINTS
         assert "api_server" in PLATFORM_HINTS
+        assert "webui" in PLATFORM_HINTS
 
     def test_cli_hint_does_not_suggest_media_tags(self):
         # Regression: MEDIA:/path tags are intercepted only by messaging
@@ -826,6 +827,13 @@ class TestPromptBuilderConstants:
         assert "MEDIA:" in hint
         assert "Markdown" in hint
 
+    def test_platform_hints_webui(self):
+        hint = PLATFORM_HINTS["webui"]
+        assert "WebUI" in hint
+        assert "MEDIA:" in hint
+        assert "Markdown" in hint
+        assert "absolute" in hint
+
 
 # =========================================================================
 # Environment hints
diff --git a/tests/cron/test_jobs.py b/tests/cron/test_jobs.py
index 0405f997b1..af42ca444b 100644
--- a/tests/cron/test_jobs.py
+++ b/tests/cron/test_jobs.py
@@ -207,6 +207,26 @@ class TestJobCRUD:
         jobs = list_jobs()
         assert len(jobs) == 2
 
+    def test_list_jobs_normalizes_partial_legacy_records(self, tmp_cron_dir):
+        save_jobs([
+            {
+                "id": "abc123deadbe",
+                "name": None,
+                "prompt": None,
+                "schedule_display": None,
+                "schedule": {"kind": "interval", "minutes": 60, "display": "every 60m"},
+                "enabled": True,
+            }
+        ])
+
+        jobs = list_jobs()
+
+        assert jobs[0]["id"] == "abc123deadbe"
+        assert jobs[0]["name"] == "abc123deadbe"
+        assert jobs[0]["prompt"] == ""
+        assert jobs[0]["schedule_display"] == "every 60m"
+        assert jobs[0]["state"] == "scheduled"
+
     def test_remove_job(self, tmp_cron_dir):
         job = create_job(prompt="Temp job", schedule="30m")
         assert remove_job(job["id"]) is True
diff --git a/tests/cron/test_scheduler.py b/tests/cron/test_scheduler.py
index ce213a9f39..e0cb1cc155 100644
--- a/tests/cron/test_scheduler.py
+++ b/tests/cron/test_scheduler.py
@@ -1788,6 +1788,11 @@ class TestBuildJobPromptSilentHint:
         result = _build_job_prompt(job)
         assert "[SILENT]" in result
 
+    def test_hint_present_when_legacy_prompt_is_null(self):
+        job = {"id": "abc123deadbe", "name": None, "prompt": None}
+        result = _build_job_prompt(job)
+        assert "[SILENT]" in result
+
     def test_delivery_guidance_present(self):
         """Cron hint tells agents their final response is auto-delivered."""
         job = {"prompt": "Generate a report"}
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_background_command.py b/tests/gateway/test_background_command.py
index 559c04ea79..9c156960c7 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_background_command.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_background_command.py
@@ -108,6 +108,38 @@ class TestHandleBackgroundCommand:
         assert "Summarize the top HN stories" in result
         assert len(created_tasks) == 1  # background task was created
 
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_telegram_dm_topic_passes_trigger_anchor_to_task(self):
+        """Telegram private-topic completion sends need the original command message id."""
+        runner = _make_runner()
+        runner._run_background_task = AsyncMock()
+
+        def capture_task(coro, *args, **kwargs):
+            coro.close()
+            mock_task = MagicMock()
+            return mock_task
+
+        source = SessionSource(
+            platform=Platform.TELEGRAM,
+            user_id="12345",
+            chat_id="67890",
+            chat_type="dm",
+            thread_id="20197",
+        )
+        event = MessageEvent(
+            text="/background summarize",
+            source=source,
+            message_id="463",
+            reply_to_message_id="462",
+        )
+
+        with patch("gateway.run.asyncio.create_task", side_effect=capture_task):
+            result = await runner._handle_background_command(event)
+
+        assert "Background task started" in result
+        runner._run_background_task.assert_called_once()
+        assert runner._run_background_task.call_args.kwargs["event_message_id"] == "463"
+
     @pytest.mark.asyncio
     async def test_prompt_truncated_in_preview(self):
         """Long prompts are truncated to 60 chars in the confirmation message."""
@@ -236,6 +268,57 @@ class TestRunBackgroundTask:
         mock_agent_instance.shutdown_memory_provider.assert_called_once()
         mock_agent_instance.close.assert_called_once()
 
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_telegram_dm_topic_completion_preserves_reply_anchor_metadata(self, monkeypatch):
+        """Background completion metadata must let Telegram send thread id plus reply id."""
+        from gateway import run as gateway_run
+
+        runner = _make_runner()
+        runner._resolve_session_agent_runtime = MagicMock(
+            return_value=("test-model", {"api_key": "test-key"})
+        )
+        runner._resolve_session_reasoning_config = MagicMock(return_value=None)
+        runner._load_service_tier = MagicMock(return_value=None)
+        runner._resolve_turn_agent_config = MagicMock(
+            return_value={
+                "model": "test-model",
+                "runtime": {"api_key": "test-key"},
+                "request_overrides": None,
+            }
+        )
+        runner._run_in_executor_with_context = AsyncMock(
+            return_value={"final_response": "done", "messages": []}
+        )
+        monkeypatch.setattr(gateway_run, "_load_gateway_config", lambda: {})
+
+        mock_adapter = AsyncMock()
+        mock_adapter.send = AsyncMock()
+        mock_adapter.extract_media = MagicMock(return_value=([], "done"))
+        mock_adapter.extract_images = MagicMock(return_value=([], "done"))
+        runner.adapters[Platform.TELEGRAM] = mock_adapter
+
+        source = SessionSource(
+            platform=Platform.TELEGRAM,
+            user_id="12345",
+            chat_id="67890",
+            chat_type="dm",
+            thread_id="20197",
+        )
+
+        await runner._run_background_task(
+            "say hello",
+            source,
+            "bg_test",
+            event_message_id="463",
+        )
+
+        mock_adapter.send.assert_called_once()
+        assert mock_adapter.send.call_args.kwargs["metadata"] == {
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "463",
+        }
+
     @pytest.mark.asyncio
     async def test_agent_cleanup_runs_when_background_agent_raises(self):
         """Temporary background agents must be cleaned up on error paths too."""
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_feishu_approval_buttons.py b/tests/gateway/test_feishu_approval_buttons.py
index 954e9c0610..8af56913c1 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_feishu_approval_buttons.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_feishu_approval_buttons.py
@@ -208,6 +208,101 @@ class TestFeishuExecApproval:
         assert ids[0] != ids[1]
 
 
+# ===========================================================================
+# send_update_prompt — interactive card with buttons
+# ===========================================================================
+
+class TestFeishuUpdatePrompt:
+    """Test send_update_prompt sends an interactive card."""
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_sends_interactive_card(self):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+
+        mock_response = SimpleNamespace(
+            success=lambda: True,
+            data=SimpleNamespace(message_id="msg_up_001"),
+        )
+        with patch.object(
+            adapter, "_feishu_send_with_retry", new_callable=AsyncMock,
+            return_value=mock_response,
+        ) as mock_send:
+            result = await adapter.send_update_prompt(
+                chat_id="oc_12345",
+                prompt="Restore stashed changes after update?",
+                default="y",
+                session_key="agent:main:feishu:group:oc_12345",
+                metadata={"thread_id": "th_1"},
+            )
+
+        assert result.success is True
+        assert result.message_id == "msg_up_001"
+
+        kwargs = mock_send.call_args[1]
+        assert kwargs["chat_id"] == "oc_12345"
+        assert kwargs["msg_type"] == "interactive"
+        assert kwargs["metadata"] == {"thread_id": "th_1"}
+
+        card = json.loads(kwargs["payload"])
+        assert card["header"]["template"] == "orange"
+        assert "Restore stashed changes after update?" in card["elements"][0]["content"]
+        assert "Default: `y`" in card["elements"][0]["content"]
+        actions = card["elements"][1]["actions"]
+        assert [a["value"]["hermes_update_prompt_action"] for a in actions] == ["y", "n"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_stores_prompt_state(self):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+
+        mock_response = SimpleNamespace(
+            success=lambda: True,
+            data=SimpleNamespace(message_id="msg_up_002"),
+        )
+        with patch.object(
+            adapter, "_feishu_send_with_retry", new_callable=AsyncMock,
+            return_value=mock_response,
+        ):
+            await adapter.send_update_prompt(
+                chat_id="oc_12345",
+                prompt="Continue update?",
+                session_key="my-session-key",
+            )
+
+        assert len(adapter._update_prompt_state) == 1
+        prompt_id = list(adapter._update_prompt_state.keys())[0]
+        state = adapter._update_prompt_state[prompt_id]
+        assert state["session_key"] == "my-session-key"
+        assert state["message_id"] == "msg_up_002"
+        assert state["chat_id"] == "oc_12345"
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_not_connected(self):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._client = None
+        result = await adapter.send_update_prompt(
+            chat_id="oc_12345",
+            prompt="Continue update?",
+            session_key="s",
+        )
+        assert result.success is False
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_send_failure_returns_error(self):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        with patch.object(
+            adapter, "_feishu_send_with_retry", new_callable=AsyncMock,
+            side_effect=TimeoutError("timed out"),
+        ):
+            result = await adapter.send_update_prompt(
+                chat_id="oc_12345",
+                prompt="Continue update?",
+                session_key="s",
+            )
+
+        assert result.success is False
+        assert "timed out" in (result.error or "")
+
+
 # ===========================================================================
 # _resolve_approval — approval state pop + gateway resolution
 # ===========================================================================
@@ -442,3 +537,166 @@ class TestCardActionCallbackResponse:
         card = response.card.data
         assert "Old Name" not in card["elements"][0]["content"]
         assert "ou_expired" in card["elements"][0]["content"]
+
+    def test_returns_card_for_update_prompt_yes(self, _patch_callback_card_types):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._loop = MagicMock()
+        adapter._loop.is_closed = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+        adapter._update_prompt_state[1] = {
+            "session_key": "sess-up-1",
+            "message_id": "msg_up_003",
+            "chat_id": "oc_12345",
+        }
+        data = _make_card_action_data(
+            {"hermes_update_prompt_action": "y", "update_prompt_id": 1},
+            open_id="ou_bob",
+        )
+        adapter._sender_name_cache["ou_bob"] = ("Bob", 9999999999)
+
+        with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe", side_effect=_close_submitted_coro):
+            response = adapter._on_card_action_trigger(data)
+
+        assert response is not None
+        assert response.card is not None
+        card = response.card.data
+        assert card["header"]["template"] == "green"
+        assert "answered: Yes" in card["header"]["title"]["content"]
+        assert "Bob" in card["elements"][0]["content"]
+
+    def test_returns_card_for_update_prompt_no(self, _patch_callback_card_types):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._loop = MagicMock()
+        adapter._loop.is_closed = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+        adapter._update_prompt_state[2] = {
+            "session_key": "sess-up-2",
+            "message_id": "msg_up_004",
+            "chat_id": "oc_12345",
+        }
+        data = _make_card_action_data(
+            {"hermes_update_prompt_action": "n", "update_prompt_id": 2},
+        )
+
+        with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe", side_effect=_close_submitted_coro):
+            response = adapter._on_card_action_trigger(data)
+
+        assert response is not None
+        assert response.card is not None
+        card = response.card.data
+        assert card["header"]["template"] == "red"
+        assert "answered: No" in card["header"]["title"]["content"]
+
+    def test_ignores_missing_update_prompt_id(self, _patch_callback_card_types):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._loop = MagicMock()
+        adapter._loop.is_closed = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+        data = _make_card_action_data({"hermes_update_prompt_action": "y"})
+
+        with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe") as mock_submit:
+            response = adapter._on_card_action_trigger(data)
+
+        assert response is not None
+        assert response.card is None
+        mock_submit.assert_not_called()
+
+    def test_already_resolved_update_prompt_returns_no_card(self, _patch_callback_card_types):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._loop = MagicMock()
+        adapter._loop.is_closed = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+        data = _make_card_action_data(
+            {"hermes_update_prompt_action": "y", "update_prompt_id": 99},
+        )
+
+        with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe") as mock_submit:
+            response = adapter._on_card_action_trigger(data)
+
+        assert response is not None
+        assert response.card is None
+        mock_submit.assert_not_called()
+
+    def test_update_prompt_schedule_failure_returns_no_card(self, _patch_callback_card_types):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._loop = MagicMock()
+        adapter._loop.is_closed = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+        adapter._update_prompt_state[1] = {
+            "session_key": "sess-up-1",
+            "message_id": "msg_up_005",
+            "chat_id": "oc_12345",
+        }
+        data = _make_card_action_data(
+            {"hermes_update_prompt_action": "y", "update_prompt_id": 1},
+        )
+
+        with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe", side_effect=RuntimeError("loop closed")):
+            response = adapter._on_card_action_trigger(data)
+
+        assert response is not None
+        assert response.card is None
+
+    def test_update_prompt_unauthorized_operator_returns_no_card(self, _patch_callback_card_types):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        adapter._loop = MagicMock()
+        adapter._loop.is_closed = MagicMock(return_value=False)
+        adapter._update_prompt_state[1] = {
+            "session_key": "sess-up-1",
+            "message_id": "msg_up_006",
+            "chat_id": "oc_12345",
+        }
+        adapter._allowed_group_users = {"ou_allowed"}
+        data = _make_card_action_data(
+            {"hermes_update_prompt_action": "y", "update_prompt_id": 1},
+            open_id="ou_intruder",
+        )
+
+        with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe") as mock_submit:
+            response = adapter._on_card_action_trigger(data)
+
+        assert response is not None
+        assert response.card is None
+        mock_submit.assert_not_called()
+
+
+class TestResolveUpdatePrompt:
+    """Test update prompt resolution persists the response file."""
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_writes_response_file(self, tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        monkeypatch.setenv("HERMES_HOME", str(tmp_path / ".hermes"))
+        (tmp_path / ".hermes").mkdir()
+        adapter._update_prompt_state[1] = {
+            "session_key": "sess-up-1",
+            "message_id": "msg_up_003",
+            "chat_id": "oc_12345",
+        }
+
+        await adapter._resolve_update_prompt(1, "y", "Alice")
+
+        assert (tmp_path / ".hermes" / ".update_response").read_text() == "y"
+        assert 1 not in adapter._update_prompt_state
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_overwrites_existing_response_file(self, tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        monkeypatch.setenv("HERMES_HOME", str(tmp_path / ".hermes"))
+        home = tmp_path / ".hermes"
+        home.mkdir()
+        (home / ".update_response").write_text("n")
+        adapter._update_prompt_state[2] = {
+            "session_key": "sess-up-2",
+            "message_id": "msg_up_004",
+            "chat_id": "oc_12345",
+        }
+
+        await adapter._resolve_update_prompt(2, "y", "Alice")
+
+        assert (home / ".update_response").read_text() == "y"
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_unknown_prompt_id_drops_silently(self, tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+        adapter = _make_adapter()
+        monkeypatch.setenv("HERMES_HOME", str(tmp_path / ".hermes"))
+        (tmp_path / ".hermes").mkdir()
+
+        await adapter._resolve_update_prompt(99, "n", "Nobody")
+
+        assert not (tmp_path / ".hermes" / ".update_response").exists()
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_google_chat.py b/tests/gateway/test_google_chat.py
index a5a1bc0dac..3f093bcea1 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_google_chat.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_google_chat.py
@@ -485,6 +485,49 @@ class TestOnPubsubMessage:
             submit.assert_not_called()
         msg.ack.assert_called_once()
 
+    def test_relay_flat_bot_sender_is_filtered_end_to_end(self, adapter):
+        """Format 3 end-to-end: a relay envelope declaring sender_type=BOT
+        flows through ``_extract_message_payload`` → ``_on_pubsub_message``
+        and is dropped by the BOT self-filter without dispatch. This is
+        the actual security contract (the unit tests on
+        ``_extract_message_payload`` only assert the intermediate dict
+        shape; this test asserts the dispatch is suppressed).
+        """
+        envelope = {
+            "event_type": "MESSAGE",
+            "sender_email": "bot@bots.example.com",
+            "sender_display_name": "HermesBot",
+            "sender_type": "BOT",
+            "text": "reply from bot",
+            "space_name": "spaces/RELAY",
+            "message_name": "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M",
+        }
+        msg = _make_pubsub_message(envelope)
+        with patch.object(adapter, "_submit_on_loop") as submit:
+            adapter._on_pubsub_message(msg)
+            submit.assert_not_called()
+        msg.ack.assert_called_once()
+
+    def test_relay_flat_human_sender_dispatches(self, adapter):
+        """Format 3 negative control: an envelope without sender_type
+        (or with sender_type=HUMAN) still dispatches to the agent loop,
+        confirming the BOT-filter doesn't accidentally drop legitimate
+        human messages from a relay.
+        """
+        envelope = {
+            "event_type": "MESSAGE",
+            "sender_email": "alice@example.com",
+            "sender_display_name": "Alice",
+            "text": "hello agent",
+            "space_name": "spaces/RELAY",
+            "message_name": "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M",
+        }
+        msg = _make_pubsub_message(envelope)
+        with patch.object(adapter, "_submit_on_loop") as submit:
+            adapter._on_pubsub_message(msg)
+            submit.assert_called_once()
+        msg.ack.assert_called_once()
+
     def test_duplicate_message_dropped(self, adapter):
         env = _make_chat_envelope(msg_name="spaces/S/messages/DUP.DUP")
         # Prime dedup
@@ -603,6 +646,74 @@ class TestExtractMessagePayload:
         assert msg["name"] == "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M"
         assert space["name"] == "spaces/RELAY"
 
+    def test_relay_flat_honors_declared_sender_type_bot(self):
+        """Format 3 propagates ``envelope.sender_type`` so the downstream
+        BOT self-filter fires for relay-forwarded bot replies.
+
+        Without this, a relay misconfigured to forward the bot's own
+        replies into the same Pub/Sub topic produced a feedback loop:
+        the adapter would mark the synthesized sender ``HUMAN`` and the
+        ``sender.type == "BOT"`` self-filter would never fire.
+        """
+        envelope = {
+            "event_type": "MESSAGE",
+            "sender_email": "bot@bots.example.com",
+            "sender_display_name": "HermesBot",
+            "sender_type": "BOT",
+            "text": "reply from bot",
+            "space_name": "spaces/RELAY",
+            "message_name": "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M",
+        }
+        result = GoogleChatAdapter._extract_message_payload(envelope)
+        assert result is not None
+        msg, _space, fmt = result
+        assert fmt == "relay_flat"
+        assert msg["sender"]["type"] == "BOT"
+
+    def test_relay_flat_defaults_sender_type_human_when_absent(self):
+        """Backward compatibility: relays that don't declare sender_type
+        continue to flow as HUMAN exactly as before this change."""
+        envelope = {
+            "event_type": "MESSAGE",
+            "sender_email": "alice@example.com",
+            "text": "hi",
+            "space_name": "spaces/RELAY",
+            "message_name": "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M",
+        }
+        result = GoogleChatAdapter._extract_message_payload(envelope)
+        assert result is not None
+        msg, _space, _fmt = result
+        assert msg["sender"]["type"] == "HUMAN"
+
+    def test_relay_flat_coerces_unknown_sender_type_to_human(self):
+        """Defensive coercion: only ``HUMAN`` and ``BOT`` are accepted;
+        any other value (including stray casing on those two) is either
+        normalized or falls back to ``HUMAN`` so a malformed relay can't
+        slip an unrecognized type through to the downstream filter."""
+        # Lower / mixed case is normalized to upper.
+        envelope_lower = {
+            "event_type": "MESSAGE",
+            "sender_email": "bot@example.com",
+            "sender_type": "  bot  ",
+            "text": "hi",
+            "space_name": "spaces/RELAY",
+            "message_name": "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M",
+        }
+        msg, _space, _fmt = GoogleChatAdapter._extract_message_payload(envelope_lower)
+        assert msg["sender"]["type"] == "BOT"
+
+        # Unknown value falls back to HUMAN, not the raw string.
+        envelope_bogus = {
+            "event_type": "MESSAGE",
+            "sender_email": "alice@example.com",
+            "sender_type": "ROBOT",
+            "text": "hi",
+            "space_name": "spaces/RELAY",
+            "message_name": "spaces/RELAY/messages/M.M",
+        }
+        msg, _space, _fmt = GoogleChatAdapter._extract_message_payload(envelope_bogus)
+        assert msg["sender"]["type"] == "HUMAN"
+
     def test_unrecognized_envelope_returns_none(self):
         """Random JSON with no known shape returns None (caller acks)."""
         envelope = {"foo": "bar", "baz": 123}
@@ -2585,3 +2696,173 @@ class TestCronSchedulerRegistry:
         from cron.scheduler import _resolve_home_env_var
 
         assert _resolve_home_env_var("google_chat") == "GOOGLE_CHAT_HOME_CHANNEL"
+
+
+# ── _standalone_send (out-of-process cron delivery) ──────────────────────
+
+
+class _FakeAiohttpResponse:
+    def __init__(self, status: int, payload, text_body: str = ""):
+        self.status = status
+        self._payload = payload
+        self._text = text_body or (str(payload) if payload is not None else "")
+
+    async def json(self):
+        return self._payload
+
+    async def text(self):
+        return self._text
+
+    async def __aenter__(self):
+        return self
+
+    async def __aexit__(self, exc_type, exc, tb):
+        return None
+
+
+class _FakeAiohttpSession:
+    def __init__(self, scripts):
+        self._scripts = list(scripts)
+        self.calls: list[tuple[str, dict]] = []
+
+    async def __aenter__(self):
+        return self
+
+    async def __aexit__(self, exc_type, exc, tb):
+        return None
+
+    def post(self, url, **kwargs):
+        self.calls.append((url, kwargs))
+        if not self._scripts:
+            raise AssertionError(f"No scripted response for POST {url}")
+        return self._scripts.pop(0)
+
+
+def _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session):
+    fake_aiohttp = types.SimpleNamespace(
+        ClientSession=lambda timeout=None: session,
+        ClientTimeout=lambda total=None: None,
+    )
+    monkeypatch.setitem(sys.modules, "aiohttp", fake_aiohttp)
+
+
+def _install_fake_google_auth_transport(monkeypatch):
+    fake_request_module = types.SimpleNamespace(Request=lambda: object())
+    monkeypatch.setitem(sys.modules, "google.auth.transport", types.SimpleNamespace(requests=fake_request_module))
+    monkeypatch.setitem(sys.modules, "google.auth.transport.requests", fake_request_module)
+
+
+class TestGoogleChatStandaloneSend:
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_refreshes_token_and_posts_message(
+        self, monkeypatch, tmp_path
+    ):
+        sa_file = tmp_path / "sa.json"
+        sa_file.write_text(json.dumps({
+            "type": "service_account",
+            "client_email": "bot@example.iam.gserviceaccount.com",
+            "private_key": "fake",
+            "token_uri": "https://example/token",
+        }))
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GOOGLE_CHAT_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON", str(sa_file))
+
+        fake_creds = MagicMock()
+        fake_creds.token = "the-token"
+        fake_creds.refresh = MagicMock(return_value=None)
+
+        original = _gc_mod.service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info
+        _gc_mod.service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info = MagicMock(
+            return_value=fake_creds
+        )
+        try:
+            _install_fake_google_auth_transport(monkeypatch)
+            send_resp = _FakeAiohttpResponse(200, {"name": "spaces/AAA/messages/MMM"})
+            session = _FakeAiohttpSession([send_resp])
+            _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session)
+
+            result = await _gc_mod._standalone_send(
+                PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+                "spaces/AAAA-BBBB",
+                "hello cron",
+            )
+        finally:
+            _gc_mod.service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info = original
+
+        assert result == {
+            "success": True,
+            "message_id": "spaces/AAA/messages/MMM",
+        }
+        fake_creds.refresh.assert_called_once()
+        assert len(session.calls) == 1
+        url, kwargs = session.calls[0]
+        assert url == "https://chat.googleapis.com/v1/spaces/AAAA-BBBB/messages"
+        assert kwargs["headers"]["Authorization"] == "Bearer the-token"
+        assert kwargs["json"] == {"text": "hello cron"}
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_returns_error_on_invalid_chat_id(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.delenv("GOOGLE_CHAT_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON", raising=False)
+        result = await _gc_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "not-a-resource-name",
+            "hi",
+        )
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "spaces/" in result["error"] or "users/" in result["error"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_propagates_api_failure(self, monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+        sa_file = tmp_path / "sa.json"
+        sa_file.write_text(json.dumps({
+            "type": "service_account",
+            "client_email": "bot@example.iam.gserviceaccount.com",
+            "private_key": "fake",
+            "token_uri": "https://example/token",
+        }))
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GOOGLE_CHAT_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON", str(sa_file))
+
+        fake_creds = MagicMock()
+        fake_creds.token = "the-token"
+        fake_creds.refresh = MagicMock(return_value=None)
+
+        original = _gc_mod.service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info
+        _gc_mod.service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info = MagicMock(
+            return_value=fake_creds
+        )
+        try:
+            _install_fake_google_auth_transport(monkeypatch)
+            send_resp = _FakeAiohttpResponse(
+                403,
+                {"error": {"code": 403, "message": "forbidden"}},
+                text_body='{"error":{"code":403,"message":"forbidden"}}',
+            )
+            session = _FakeAiohttpSession([send_resp])
+            _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session)
+
+            result = await _gc_mod._standalone_send(
+                PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+                "spaces/AAAA-BBBB",
+                "hi",
+            )
+        finally:
+            _gc_mod.service_account.Credentials.from_service_account_info = original
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "403" in result["error"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_rejects_chat_id_with_path_traversal(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.delenv("GOOGLE_CHAT_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON", raising=False)
+
+        # Attempt to inject extra path segments after the prefix passes the
+        # startswith check.  The strict regex must reject this.
+        result = await _gc_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "spaces/AAAA/messages?messageReplyOption=REPLY_MESSAGE_FALLBACK_TO_NEW_THREAD",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        # The error names the expected resource shape so plugin authors can self-correct
+        assert "spaces/" in result["error"] or "users/" in result["error"]
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_irc_adapter.py b/tests/gateway/test_irc_adapter.py
index a1718fbdaf..246dbfdf0e 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_irc_adapter.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_irc_adapter.py
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ IRCAdapter = _irc_mod.IRCAdapter
 check_requirements = _irc_mod.check_requirements
 validate_config = _irc_mod.validate_config
 register = _irc_mod.register
+_standalone_send = _irc_mod._standalone_send
 
 
 class TestIRCProtocolHelpers:
@@ -500,3 +501,224 @@ class TestIRCPluginRegistration:
         ctx.register_platform.assert_called_once()
         call_kwargs = ctx.register_platform.call_args
         assert call_kwargs[1]["name"] == "irc" or call_kwargs[0][0] == "irc" if call_kwargs[0] else call_kwargs[1]["name"] == "irc"
+
+
+# ── _standalone_send (out-of-process cron delivery) ──────────────────────
+
+
+class _FakeIRCConnection:
+    """A scripted reader/writer pair used to simulate an IRC server.
+
+    Construct with the lines the server should respond with (already
+    framed by ``\\r\\n``).  Captures every line written by the client so
+    tests can assert NICK/USER/PRIVMSG/QUIT order.
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, scripted_lines):
+        self.writes: list[bytes] = []
+        self._closed = False
+        self._scripted = list(scripted_lines)
+        self._buffer = b""
+
+    # writer side ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    def write(self, data: bytes) -> None:
+        self.writes.append(data)
+
+    async def drain(self) -> None:
+        return None
+
+    def close(self) -> None:
+        self._closed = True
+
+    async def wait_closed(self) -> None:
+        return None
+
+    def is_closing(self) -> bool:
+        return self._closed
+
+    # reader side ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    async def readuntil(self, separator: bytes = b"\r\n") -> bytes:
+        if not self._scripted:
+            raise asyncio.IncompleteReadError(b"", None)
+        line = self._scripted.pop(0)
+        if not line.endswith(b"\r\n"):
+            line = line + b"\r\n"
+        return line
+
+    async def read(self, n: int = -1) -> bytes:
+        return b""
+
+
+class TestIRCStandaloneSend:
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_completes_handshake_and_sends_privmsg(self, monkeypatch):
+        from gateway.config import PlatformConfig
+
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_SERVER", "irc.test.net")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_CHANNEL", "#cron")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_NICKNAME", "hermesbot")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_USE_TLS", "false")
+
+        # Server greets us with 001 RPL_WELCOME, then nothing for QUIT drain.
+        conn = _FakeIRCConnection([b":server 001 hermesbot-cron :Welcome"])
+
+        async def _fake_open(host, port, **kwargs):
+            return conn, conn  # reader and writer share the same fake
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr(_irc_mod.asyncio, "open_connection", _fake_open)
+
+        result = await _standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "#cron",
+            "hello from cron",
+        )
+
+        assert result["success"] is True
+        assert "message_id" in result
+
+        sent_lines = b"".join(conn.writes).decode("utf-8").splitlines()
+        # NICK uses the cron-suffixed identity to avoid colliding with the
+        # long-running gateway adapter that may already hold the nickname.
+        assert any(line.startswith("NICK hermesbot-cron") for line in sent_lines)
+        assert any(line.startswith("USER hermesbot-cron 0 * :Hermes Agent (cron)")
+                   for line in sent_lines)
+        assert any(line == "PRIVMSG #cron :hello from cron" for line in sent_lines)
+        assert any(line.startswith("QUIT ") for line in sent_lines)
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_returns_error_when_unconfigured(self, monkeypatch):
+        from gateway.config import PlatformConfig
+
+        for var in ("IRC_SERVER", "IRC_CHANNEL"):
+            monkeypatch.delenv(var, raising=False)
+
+        result = await _standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "IRC_SERVER" in result["error"] or "IRC_CHANNEL" in result["error"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_returns_error_on_registration_timeout(self, monkeypatch):
+        from gateway.config import PlatformConfig
+
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_SERVER", "irc.test.net")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_CHANNEL", "#cron")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_NICKNAME", "hermesbot")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_USE_TLS", "false")
+
+        # No 001 response: the readuntil call returns IncompleteReadError so
+        # the registration loop times out via the asyncio wait_for inside.
+        conn = _FakeIRCConnection([])
+
+        async def _fake_open(host, port, **kwargs):
+            return conn, conn
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr(_irc_mod.asyncio, "open_connection", _fake_open)
+
+        # Patch wait_for to raise TimeoutError immediately so the test is fast
+        async def _fast_timeout(coro, timeout):
+            try:
+                return await coro
+            except asyncio.IncompleteReadError:
+                raise asyncio.TimeoutError()
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr(_irc_mod.asyncio, "wait_for", _fast_timeout)
+
+        result = await _standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "#cron",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "registration" in result["error"].lower() or "timeout" in result["error"].lower()
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_rejects_crlf_in_chat_id(self, monkeypatch):
+        from gateway.config import PlatformConfig
+
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_SERVER", "irc.test.net")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_CHANNEL", "#cron")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_NICKNAME", "hermesbot")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_USE_TLS", "false")
+
+        # Attempt to inject a second IRC command via CRLF in chat_id
+        result = await _standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "#cron\r\nKICK #cron hermesbot",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "illegal IRC characters" in result["error"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_strips_crlf_from_message_body(self, monkeypatch):
+        from gateway.config import PlatformConfig
+
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_SERVER", "irc.test.net")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_CHANNEL", "#cron")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_NICKNAME", "hermesbot")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_USE_TLS", "false")
+
+        conn = _FakeIRCConnection([b":server 001 hermesbot-cron :Welcome"])
+
+        async def _fake_open(host, port, **kwargs):
+            return conn, conn
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr(_irc_mod.asyncio, "open_connection", _fake_open)
+
+        # A bare \r in message content tries to inject a NICK command.
+        # Our control-char stripper must blank \r so the line stays one PRIVMSG.
+        result = await _standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "#cron",
+            "hello\rNICK eviltwin",
+        )
+
+        sent_lines = b"".join(conn.writes).decode("utf-8").splitlines()
+        # No injected NICK command after the legitimate registration NICK
+        nick_lines = [line for line in sent_lines if line.startswith("NICK ")]
+        # Only the original registration NICK should be present (no injected one)
+        assert all(line.startswith("NICK hermesbot-cron") for line in nick_lines)
+        # The PRIVMSG should contain "hello NICK eviltwin" as one line (with \r blanked)
+        assert any("PRIVMSG #cron :hello NICK eviltwin" in line for line in sent_lines)
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_joins_channel_before_privmsg(self, monkeypatch):
+        from gateway.config import PlatformConfig
+
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_SERVER", "irc.test.net")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_CHANNEL", "#cron")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_NICKNAME", "hermesbot")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("IRC_USE_TLS", "false")
+
+        # Register, then accept JOIN with 366 RPL_ENDOFNAMES, then PRIVMSG.
+        conn = _FakeIRCConnection([
+            b":server 001 hermesbot-cron :Welcome",
+            b":server 366 hermesbot-cron #cron :End of /NAMES list.",
+        ])
+
+        async def _fake_open(host, port, **kwargs):
+            return conn, conn
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr(_irc_mod.asyncio, "open_connection", _fake_open)
+
+        result = await _standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "#cron",
+            "hello",
+        )
+
+        assert result["success"] is True
+        sent_lines = b"".join(conn.writes).decode("utf-8").splitlines()
+        join_idx = next((i for i, line in enumerate(sent_lines) if line.startswith("JOIN #cron")), None)
+        privmsg_idx = next((i for i, line in enumerate(sent_lines) if line.startswith("PRIVMSG #cron")), None)
+        assert join_idx is not None, "JOIN must be sent for channel targets"
+        assert privmsg_idx is not None
+        assert join_idx < privmsg_idx, "JOIN must precede PRIVMSG"
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_teams.py b/tests/gateway/test_teams.py
index c8730f7684..34cd0ca3ee 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_teams.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_teams.py
@@ -703,3 +703,177 @@ class TestTeamsMessageHandling:
         await adapter._on_message(ctx)
 
         assert adapter.handle_message.await_count == 1
+
+
+# ── _standalone_send (out-of-process cron delivery) ──────────────────────
+
+
+class _FakeAiohttpResponse:
+    def __init__(self, status: int, payload, text_body: str = ""):
+        self.status = status
+        self._payload = payload
+        self._text = text_body or (str(payload) if payload is not None else "")
+
+    async def json(self):
+        return self._payload
+
+    async def text(self):
+        return self._text
+
+    async def __aenter__(self):
+        return self
+
+    async def __aexit__(self, exc_type, exc, tb):
+        return None
+
+
+class _FakeAiohttpSession:
+    """Scripted aiohttp.ClientSession with a queue of responses so tests
+    can assert calls in order."""
+
+    def __init__(self, scripts):
+        self._scripts = list(scripts)
+        self.calls: list[tuple[str, dict]] = []
+
+    async def __aenter__(self):
+        return self
+
+    async def __aexit__(self, exc_type, exc, tb):
+        return None
+
+    def post(self, url, **kwargs):
+        self.calls.append((url, kwargs))
+        if not self._scripts:
+            raise AssertionError(f"No scripted response for POST {url}")
+        return self._scripts.pop(0)
+
+
+def _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session):
+    """Replace ``aiohttp`` in ``sys.modules`` so ``import aiohttp as _aiohttp``
+    inside ``_standalone_send`` picks up our fake."""
+    fake_aiohttp = types.SimpleNamespace(
+        ClientSession=lambda timeout=None: session,
+        ClientTimeout=lambda total=None: None,
+    )
+    monkeypatch.setitem(sys.modules, "aiohttp", fake_aiohttp)
+
+
+class TestTeamsStandaloneSend:
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_acquires_token_and_posts_activity(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_ID", "client-id")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET", "secret")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_TENANT_ID", "tenant")
+        monkeypatch.delenv("TEAMS_SERVICE_URL", raising=False)
+
+        token_resp = _FakeAiohttpResponse(200, {"access_token": "the-token"})
+        activity_resp = _FakeAiohttpResponse(200, {"id": "msg-99"})
+        session = _FakeAiohttpSession([token_resp, activity_resp])
+        _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session)
+
+        result = await _teams_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "19:abc@thread.skype",
+            "hello cron",
+        )
+
+        assert result == {"success": True, "message_id": "msg-99"}
+        assert len(session.calls) == 2
+
+        token_url, token_kwargs = session.calls[0]
+        assert "login.microsoftonline.com/tenant/oauth2/v2.0/token" in token_url
+        assert token_kwargs["data"]["client_id"] == "client-id"
+        assert token_kwargs["data"]["client_secret"] == "secret"
+        assert token_kwargs["data"]["scope"] == "https://api.botframework.com/.default"
+
+        activity_url, activity_kwargs = session.calls[1]
+        # Default service URL when TEAMS_SERVICE_URL is unset
+        assert "smba.trafficmanager.net" in activity_url
+        assert "/v3/conversations/19:abc@thread.skype/activities" in activity_url
+        assert activity_kwargs["headers"]["Authorization"] == "Bearer the-token"
+        assert activity_kwargs["json"]["text"] == "hello cron"
+        assert activity_kwargs["json"]["type"] == "message"
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_returns_error_when_unconfigured(self, monkeypatch):
+        for var in ("TEAMS_CLIENT_ID", "TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET", "TEAMS_TENANT_ID"):
+            monkeypatch.delenv(var, raising=False)
+
+        result = await _teams_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "19:abc@thread.skype",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "TEAMS_CLIENT_ID" in result["error"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_propagates_token_failure(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_ID", "client-id")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET", "secret")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_TENANT_ID", "tenant")
+
+        token_resp = _FakeAiohttpResponse(
+            401,
+            {"error": "unauthorized_client"},
+            text_body='{"error":"unauthorized_client"}',
+        )
+        session = _FakeAiohttpSession([token_resp])
+        _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session)
+
+        result = await _teams_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "19:abc@thread.skype",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "401" in result["error"]
+        assert "token" in result["error"].lower()
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_rejects_off_allowlist_service_url(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_ID", "client-id")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET", "secret")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_TENANT_ID", "tenant")
+        # SSRF attempt: point us at an attacker-controlled host
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_SERVICE_URL", "https://attacker.example.com/teams/")
+
+        # If the allowlist check fails to fire, the fake session will assert
+        # because no scripts are queued; a passing test means we returned
+        # before any HTTP call.
+        session = _FakeAiohttpSession([])
+        _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session)
+
+        result = await _teams_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "19:abc@thread.skype",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "allowlist" in result["error"].lower()
+        assert len(session.calls) == 0, "must not call any HTTP endpoint with a tampered service URL"
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_send_rejects_chat_id_with_path_traversal(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_ID", "client-id")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_CLIENT_SECRET", "secret")
+        monkeypatch.setenv("TEAMS_TENANT_ID", "tenant")
+        monkeypatch.delenv("TEAMS_SERVICE_URL", raising=False)
+
+        session = _FakeAiohttpSession([])
+        _install_fake_aiohttp(monkeypatch, session)
+
+        # Attempt to break out of /v3/conversations/<id>/activities via a `/`
+        result = await _teams_mod._standalone_send(
+            PlatformConfig(enabled=True, extra={}),
+            "19:abc/activities/19:other@thread.skype",
+            "hi",
+        )
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "Bot Framework conversation ID" in result["error"]
+        assert len(session.calls) == 0
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_telegram_format.py b/tests/gateway/test_telegram_format.py
index 594e0bd01d..5ca3e21e1a 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_telegram_format.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_telegram_format.py
@@ -716,3 +716,44 @@ async def test_send_escapes_chunk_indicator_for_markdownv2(adapter):
     assert len(sent_texts) > 1
     assert re.search(r" \\\([0-9]+/[0-9]+\\\)$", sent_texts[0])
     assert re.search(r" \\\([0-9]+/[0-9]+\\\)$", sent_texts[-1])
+
+
+# =========================================================================
+# edit_message — streaming Markdown safety
+# =========================================================================
+
+
+class TestEditMessageStreamingSafety:
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_non_final_edit_uses_plain_text_without_markdown(self):
+        adapter = TelegramAdapter(PlatformConfig(enabled=True, token="fake-token"))
+        adapter._bot = MagicMock()
+        adapter._bot.edit_message_text = AsyncMock()
+
+        result = await adapter.edit_message("123", "456", "partial **bold", finalize=False)
+
+        assert result.success is True
+        adapter._bot.edit_message_text.assert_awaited_once_with(
+            chat_id=123,
+            message_id=456,
+            text="partial **bold",
+        )
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_final_edit_uses_markdownv2_with_plain_fallback(self):
+        adapter = TelegramAdapter(PlatformConfig(enabled=True, token="fake-token"))
+        adapter._bot = MagicMock()
+        adapter._bot.edit_message_text = AsyncMock(side_effect=[Exception("bad markdown"), None])
+
+        result = await adapter.edit_message("123", "456", "final **bold**", finalize=True)
+
+        assert result.success is True
+        first_call = adapter._bot.edit_message_text.await_args_list[0].kwargs
+        second_call = adapter._bot.edit_message_text.await_args_list[1].kwargs
+        assert "parse_mode" in first_call
+        assert first_call["text"] == "final *bold*"
+        assert second_call == {
+            "chat_id": 123,
+            "message_id": 456,
+            "text": "final **bold**",
+        }
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_telegram_thread_fallback.py b/tests/gateway/test_telegram_thread_fallback.py
index 7b982e9588..e31753cc2b 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_telegram_thread_fallback.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_telegram_thread_fallback.py
@@ -1,13 +1,11 @@
-"""Tests for Telegram send() thread_id fallback.
+"""Tests for Telegram topic/thread routing fallbacks.
 
-When message_thread_id points to a non-existent thread, Telegram returns
-BadRequest('Message thread not found'). Since BadRequest is a subclass of
-NetworkError in python-telegram-bot, the old retry loop treated this as a
-transient error and retried 3 times before silently failing — killing all
-tool progress messages, streaming responses, and typing indicators.
-
-The fix detects "thread not found" BadRequest errors and retries the send
-WITHOUT message_thread_id so the message still reaches the chat.
+Supergroup forum topics route with ``message_thread_id``. Hermes-created
+private DM topic lanes are different: live Telegram testing showed they only
+stay in the expected lane when sends include both the private topic
+``message_thread_id`` and a ``reply_to_message_id`` anchor to the triggering
+user message. If either anchor is unavailable or rejected, the adapter must
+avoid retrying with a partial topic route that can render outside the lane.
 """
 
 import sys
@@ -17,7 +15,14 @@ from types import SimpleNamespace
 import pytest
 
 from gateway.config import PlatformConfig, Platform
-from gateway.platforms.base import SendResult
+from gateway.platforms.base import (
+    MessageEvent,
+    MessageType,
+    SendResult,
+    _reply_anchor_for_event,
+    _thread_metadata_for_source,
+)
+from gateway.session import build_session_key
 
 
 # ── Fake telegram.error hierarchy ──────────────────────────────────────
@@ -44,23 +49,48 @@ class FakeRetryAfter(Exception):
 
 
 # Build a fake telegram module tree so the adapter's internal imports work
+class _FakeInlineKeyboardButton:
+    def __init__(self, text, callback_data=None, **kwargs):
+        self.text = text
+        self.callback_data = callback_data
+        self.kwargs = kwargs
+
+
+class _FakeInlineKeyboardMarkup:
+    def __init__(self, inline_keyboard):
+        self.inline_keyboard = inline_keyboard
+
+
+class _FakeInputMediaPhoto:
+    def __init__(self, media, caption=None, **kwargs):
+        self.media = media
+        self.caption = caption
+        self.kwargs = kwargs
+
+
 _fake_telegram = types.ModuleType("telegram")
 _fake_telegram.Update = object
 _fake_telegram.Bot = object
 _fake_telegram.Message = object
-_fake_telegram.InlineKeyboardButton = object
-_fake_telegram.InlineKeyboardMarkup = object
+_fake_telegram.InlineKeyboardButton = _FakeInlineKeyboardButton
+_fake_telegram.InlineKeyboardMarkup = _FakeInlineKeyboardMarkup
+_fake_telegram.InputMediaPhoto = _FakeInputMediaPhoto
 _fake_telegram_error = types.ModuleType("telegram.error")
 _fake_telegram_error.NetworkError = FakeNetworkError
 _fake_telegram_error.BadRequest = FakeBadRequest
 _fake_telegram_error.TimedOut = FakeTimedOut
 _fake_telegram.error = _fake_telegram_error
 _fake_telegram_constants = types.ModuleType("telegram.constants")
-_fake_telegram_constants.ParseMode = SimpleNamespace(MARKDOWN_V2="MarkdownV2")
+_fake_telegram_constants.ParseMode = SimpleNamespace(
+    MARKDOWN_V2="MarkdownV2",
+    MARKDOWN="Markdown",
+    HTML="HTML",
+)
 _fake_telegram_constants.ChatType = SimpleNamespace(
     GROUP="group",
     SUPERGROUP="supergroup",
     CHANNEL="channel",
+    PRIVATE="private",
 )
 _fake_telegram.constants = _fake_telegram_constants
 _fake_telegram_ext = types.ModuleType("telegram.ext")
@@ -205,6 +235,36 @@ async def test_send_typing_does_not_fall_back_to_root_for_dm_topic():
     ]
 
 
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_typing_skips_api_call_for_dm_topic_reply_fallback():
+    """Hermes-created DM topic lanes have no working Bot API typing route.
+
+    ``send_chat_action`` only accepts ``message_thread_id``, which Telegram's
+    Bot API 10.0 rejects for these lanes — the call would silently fail and
+    log a "thread not found" warning every typing tick (every 2s). Skipping
+    the call entirely keeps logs clean while preserving the user-visible
+    behavior (no typing indicator either way for these lanes).
+    """
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_chat_action(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_chat_action=mock_send_chat_action)
+
+    await adapter.send_typing(
+        "12345",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert call_log == []
+
+
 @pytest.mark.asyncio
 async def test_send_retries_without_thread_on_thread_not_found():
     """When message_thread_id causes 'thread not found', retry without it."""
@@ -235,6 +295,626 @@ async def test_send_retries_without_thread_on_thread_not_found():
     assert call_log[1]["message_thread_id"] is None
 
 
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_private_dm_topic_uses_direct_messages_topic_id():
+    """Private Telegram topics route sends via direct_messages_topic_id."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=42)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send(
+        chat_id="123",
+        content="test message",
+        metadata={"thread_id": "99999", "direct_messages_topic_id": "99999"},
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] is None
+    assert call_log[0]["direct_messages_topic_id"] == 99999
+
+
+def test_base_gateway_metadata_marks_telegram_dm_topics_as_reply_fallback():
+    source = SimpleNamespace(
+        platform=Platform.TELEGRAM,
+        chat_type="dm",
+        thread_id="20189",
+    )
+
+    metadata = _thread_metadata_for_source(source, "462")
+
+    assert metadata == {
+        "thread_id": "20189",
+        "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+        "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+    }
+
+
+def test_base_gateway_replies_to_triggering_message_for_telegram_dm_topic():
+    """Private DM topic lanes should anchor replies to the active user message."""
+    event = SimpleNamespace(
+        message_id="463",
+        reply_to_message_id="462",
+        source=SimpleNamespace(
+            platform=Platform.TELEGRAM,
+            chat_type="dm",
+            thread_id="20189",
+        ),
+    )
+
+    assert _reply_anchor_for_event(event) == "463"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_gateway_runner_busy_ack_replies_to_triggering_message_for_telegram_dm_topic(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+    """GatewayRunner's duplicate thread metadata must match the base helper."""
+    from gateway import run as gateway_run
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(gateway_run, "_hermes_home", tmp_path)
+    GatewayRunner = gateway_run.GatewayRunner
+
+    class BusyAdapter:
+        def __init__(self):
+            self._pending_messages = {}
+            self.calls = []
+
+        async def _send_with_retry(self, **kwargs):
+            self.calls.append(kwargs)
+            return SendResult(success=True, message_id="ack-1")
+
+    class BusyAgent:
+        def interrupt(self, _text):
+            return None
+
+        def get_activity_summary(self):
+            return {}
+
+    source = SimpleNamespace(
+        platform=Platform.TELEGRAM,
+        chat_id="12345",
+        chat_type="dm",
+        thread_id="20197",
+        user_id="user-1",
+    )
+    event = MessageEvent(
+        text="busy follow-up",
+        message_type=MessageType.TEXT,
+        source=source,
+        message_id="463",
+        reply_to_message_id="462",
+    )
+    session_key = build_session_key(source)
+    adapter = BusyAdapter()
+
+    runner = object.__new__(GatewayRunner)
+    runner.adapters = {Platform.TELEGRAM: adapter}
+    runner._running_agents = {session_key: BusyAgent()}
+    runner._running_agents_ts = {}
+    runner._pending_messages = {}
+    runner._busy_ack_ts = {}
+    runner._draining = False
+    runner._busy_input_mode = "interrupt"
+    runner._is_user_authorized = lambda _source: True
+
+    assert await runner._handle_active_session_busy_message(event, session_key) is True
+
+    assert adapter.calls
+    assert adapter.calls[0]["reply_to"] == "463"
+    assert adapter.calls[0]["metadata"] == {
+        "thread_id": "20197",
+        "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+        "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "463",
+    }
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_uses_reply_fallback_for_hermes_dm_topics():
+    """Hermes-created Telegram DM topics route with thread id plus reply anchor."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(kwargs)
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=777)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send(
+        chat_id="123",
+        content="test message",
+        reply_to="462",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[0]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_uses_metadata_reply_fallback_for_streaming_dm_topics():
+    """Metadata-only sends still stay in Hermes-created Telegram DM topics."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(kwargs)
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=778)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send(
+        chat_id="123",
+        content="streamed text",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[0]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_reply_fallback_applies_to_every_chunk_for_dm_topics():
+    """Long Telegram DM-topic fallback sends must anchor every chunk."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=len(call_log))
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send(
+        chat_id="123",
+        content="A" * 5000,
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert len(call_log) > 1
+    assert all(call["reply_to_message_id"] == 462 for call in call_log)
+    assert all(call["message_thread_id"] == 20197 for call in call_log)
+    assert all("direct_messages_topic_id" not in call for call in call_log)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_model_picker_uses_metadata_reply_fallback_for_dm_topics():
+    """Inline keyboard sends also consume the metadata reply fallback."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    adapter._model_picker_state = {}
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(kwargs)
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=779)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send_model_picker(
+        chat_id="123",
+        providers=[{"name": "OpenAI", "slug": "openai", "models": [], "total_models": 0}],
+        current_model="gpt-test",
+        current_provider="openai",
+        session_key="telegram:123:20197",
+        on_model_selected=lambda *_: None,
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[0]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_dm_topic_fallback_without_anchor_does_not_crash():
+    """DM-topic fallback without an anchor must not use message_thread_id alone."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=780)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send(
+        chat_id="123",
+        content="source-only send",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[0]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[0]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_dm_topic_reply_not_found_retry_drops_thread_id():
+    """If Telegram deletes the reply anchor, private-topic retry must drop thread id too."""
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        if len(call_log) == 1:
+            raise FakeBadRequest("Message to be replied not found")
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=781)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    result = await adapter.send(
+        chat_id="123",
+        content="anchor disappeared",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[1]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[1]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[1]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    ("method_name", "bot_method_name", "path_kw", "filename", "payload"),
+    [
+        ("send_image_file", "send_photo", "image_path", "photo.png", b"png-data"),
+        ("send_document", "send_document", "file_path", "report.txt", b"report-data"),
+        ("send_video", "send_video", "video_path", "clip.mp4", b"video-data"),
+        ("send_voice", "send_voice", "audio_path", "clip.ogg", b"ogg-data"),
+        ("send_voice", "send_audio", "audio_path", "clip.mp3", b"mp3-data"),
+    ],
+)
+async def test_native_media_dm_topic_reply_not_found_retry_drops_thread_id(
+    tmp_path,
+    method_name,
+    bot_method_name,
+    path_kw,
+    filename,
+    payload,
+):
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    media_path = tmp_path / filename
+    media_path.write_bytes(payload)
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_media(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        if len(call_log) == 1:
+            raise FakeBadRequest("Message to be replied not found")
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=782)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(**{bot_method_name: mock_send_media})
+
+    result = await getattr(adapter, method_name)(
+        chat_id="123",
+        **{path_kw: str(media_path)},
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[1]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[1]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[1]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_animation_dm_topic_reply_not_found_retry_drops_thread_id():
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_animation(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        if len(call_log) == 1:
+            raise FakeBadRequest("Message to be replied not found")
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=786)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_animation=mock_send_animation)
+
+    result = await adapter.send_animation(
+        chat_id="123",
+        animation_url="https://example.com/anim.gif",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[1]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[1]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[1]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_media_group_dm_topic_reply_not_found_retry_drops_thread_id(tmp_path):
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    image_path = tmp_path / "photo.png"
+    image_path.write_bytes(b"png-data")
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_media_group(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        if len(call_log) == 1:
+            raise FakeBadRequest("Message to be replied not found")
+        return [SimpleNamespace(message_id=783)]
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_media_group=mock_send_media_group)
+
+    await adapter.send_multiple_images(
+        chat_id="123",
+        images=[(f"file://{image_path}", "caption")],
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[1]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[1]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[1]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_image_url_dm_topic_reply_not_found_retry_drops_thread_id(monkeypatch):
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_photo(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        if len(call_log) == 1:
+            raise FakeBadRequest("Message to be replied not found")
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=784)
+
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_photo=mock_send_photo)
+    import tools.url_safety as url_safety
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(url_safety, "is_safe_url", lambda _url: True)
+
+    result = await adapter.send_image(
+        chat_id="123",
+        image_url="https://example.com/photo.png",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[1]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[1]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[1]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_send_image_upload_dm_topic_reply_not_found_retry_drops_thread_id(monkeypatch):
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_photo(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        if len(call_log) == 1:
+            raise RuntimeError("URL is too large")
+        if len(call_log) == 2:
+            raise FakeBadRequest("Message to be replied not found")
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=785)
+
+    class _FakeResponse:
+        content = b"image-data"
+
+        def raise_for_status(self):
+            return None
+
+    class _FakeAsyncClient:
+        def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
+            pass
+
+        async def __aenter__(self):
+            return self
+
+        async def __aexit__(self, *args):
+            return None
+
+        async def get(self, _url):
+            return _FakeResponse()
+
+    monkeypatch.setitem(
+        sys.modules,
+        "httpx",
+        SimpleNamespace(AsyncClient=_FakeAsyncClient),
+    )
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_photo=mock_send_photo)
+    import tools.url_safety as url_safety
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(url_safety, "is_safe_url", lambda _url: True)
+
+    result = await adapter.send_image(
+        chat_id="123",
+        image_url="https://example.com/photo.png",
+        metadata={
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        },
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[1]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+    assert call_log[1]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[2]["reply_to_message_id"] is None
+    assert "message_thread_id" not in call_log[2]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[2]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_slash_confirm_private_topic_callback_followup_sends_thread_and_reply(monkeypatch):
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    adapter._slash_confirm_state = {"confirm-1": "session-1"}
+    adapter._is_callback_user_authorized = lambda *args, **kwargs: True
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=9001)
+
+    async def resolve(_session_key, _confirm_id, _choice):
+        return "done"
+
+    from tools import slash_confirm
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(slash_confirm, "resolve", resolve)
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    class Query:
+        data = "sc:once:confirm-1"
+        from_user = SimpleNamespace(id=42, first_name="Alice")
+        message = SimpleNamespace(
+            chat_id=12345,
+            chat=SimpleNamespace(type=_fake_telegram_constants.ChatType.PRIVATE),
+            message_thread_id=20197,
+            message_id=462,
+        )
+
+        async def answer(self, **kwargs):
+            return None
+
+        async def edit_message_text(self, **kwargs):
+            return None
+
+    await adapter._handle_callback_query(SimpleNamespace(callback_query=Query()), SimpleNamespace())
+
+    assert call_log
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert call_log[0]["reply_to_message_id"] == 462
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_slash_confirm_forum_callback_followup_keeps_existing_thread_behavior(monkeypatch):
+    adapter = _make_adapter()
+    adapter._slash_confirm_state = {"confirm-1": "session-1"}
+    adapter._is_callback_user_authorized = lambda *args, **kwargs: True
+    call_log = []
+
+    async def mock_send_message(**kwargs):
+        call_log.append(dict(kwargs))
+        return SimpleNamespace(message_id=9001)
+
+    async def resolve(_session_key, _confirm_id, _choice):
+        return "done"
+
+    from tools import slash_confirm
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(slash_confirm, "resolve", resolve)
+    adapter._bot = SimpleNamespace(send_message=mock_send_message)
+
+    class Query:
+        data = "sc:once:confirm-1"
+        from_user = SimpleNamespace(id=42, first_name="Alice")
+        message = SimpleNamespace(
+            chat_id=-100123,
+            chat=SimpleNamespace(type=_fake_telegram_constants.ChatType.SUPERGROUP),
+            message_thread_id=20197,
+            message_id=462,
+        )
+
+        async def answer(self, **kwargs):
+            return None
+
+        async def edit_message_text(self, **kwargs):
+            return None
+
+    await adapter._handle_callback_query(SimpleNamespace(callback_query=Query()), SimpleNamespace())
+
+    assert call_log
+    assert call_log[0]["message_thread_id"] == 20197
+    assert "reply_to_message_id" not in call_log[0]
+    assert "direct_messages_topic_id" not in call_log[0]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_base_send_image_fallback_preserves_metadata():
+    """Base image fallback should pass metadata through instead of referencing kwargs."""
+    from gateway.platforms.base import BasePlatformAdapter
+
+    class _ConcreteBaseAdapter(BasePlatformAdapter):
+        async def connect(self):
+            return True
+
+        async def disconnect(self):
+            return None
+
+        async def send(self, **kwargs):
+            call_log.append(kwargs)
+            return SendResult(success=True, message_id="781")
+
+        async def get_chat_info(self, chat_id):
+            return None
+
+    call_log = []
+    adapter = _ConcreteBaseAdapter(Platform.TELEGRAM, None)
+    metadata = {"thread_id": "20197"}
+
+    result = await adapter.send_image(
+        chat_id="123",
+        image_url="https://example.invalid/image.png",
+        metadata=metadata,
+    )
+
+    assert result.success is True
+    assert call_log[0]["metadata"] is metadata
+
+
 @pytest.mark.asyncio
 async def test_send_raises_on_other_bad_request():
     """Non-thread BadRequest errors should NOT be retried — they fail immediately."""
diff --git a/tests/gateway/test_voice_command.py b/tests/gateway/test_voice_command.py
index 947d4904aa..a877730dce 100644
--- a/tests/gateway/test_voice_command.py
+++ b/tests/gateway/test_voice_command.py
@@ -433,6 +433,37 @@ class TestSendVoiceReply:
         call_args = mock_adapter.send_voice.call_args
         assert call_args.kwargs.get("chat_id") == "123"
 
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_auto_voice_reply_uses_thread_metadata_helper(self, runner):
+        from gateway.config import Platform
+
+        mock_adapter = AsyncMock()
+        mock_adapter.send_voice = AsyncMock()
+        event = _make_event()
+        event.source.platform = Platform.TELEGRAM
+        event.source.chat_type = "dm"
+        event.source.thread_id = "20197"
+        event.message_id = "462"
+        runner.adapters[event.source.platform] = mock_adapter
+
+        tts_result = json.dumps({"success": True, "file_path": "/tmp/test.ogg"})
+
+        with patch("tools.tts_tool.text_to_speech_tool", return_value=tts_result), \
+             patch("tools.tts_tool._strip_markdown_for_tts", side_effect=lambda t: t), \
+             patch("os.path.isfile", return_value=True), \
+             patch("os.unlink"), \
+             patch("os.makedirs"):
+            await runner._send_voice_reply(event, "Hello world")
+
+        mock_adapter.send_voice.assert_called_once()
+        call_kwargs = mock_adapter.send_voice.call_args.kwargs
+        assert call_kwargs["reply_to"] == "462"
+        assert call_kwargs["metadata"] == {
+            "thread_id": "20197",
+            "telegram_dm_topic_reply_fallback": True,
+            "telegram_reply_to_message_id": "462",
+        }
+
     @pytest.mark.asyncio
     async def test_empty_text_after_strip_skips(self, runner):
         event = _make_event()
diff --git a/tests/hermes_cli/test_kanban_db.py b/tests/hermes_cli/test_kanban_db.py
index 2375d6c4bc..758f0be49e 100644
--- a/tests/hermes_cli/test_kanban_db.py
+++ b/tests/hermes_cli/test_kanban_db.py
@@ -914,3 +914,55 @@ def test_latest_summaries_batch_omits_tasks_without_summary(kanban_home):
         assert out == {t1: "alpha", t3: "charlie"}
         # Empty input → empty dict, no SQL syntax error from "IN ()".
         assert kb.latest_summaries(conn, []) == {}
+
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# NFS / network-filesystem fallback (see hermes_state.apply_wal_with_fallback)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def test_connect_falls_back_to_delete_on_locking_protocol(kanban_home, caplog):
+    """kanban_db.connect() must handle ``locking protocol`` on NFS/SMB.
+
+    Without this fallback, the gateway's kanban dispatcher crashes every
+    60s and the kanban migration (``consecutive_failures`` ADD COLUMN) is
+    retried forever — which is what the real-world user report shows
+    (see hermes-agent issue #22032).
+    """
+    import sqlite3 as _sqlite3
+    from unittest.mock import patch as _patch
+
+    # Clear module cache so a fresh connect() is attempted
+    kb._INITIALIZED_PATHS.clear()
+
+    real_connect = _sqlite3.connect
+
+    class _WalBlockingConnection(_sqlite3.Connection):
+        def execute(self, sql, *args, **kwargs):  # type: ignore[override]
+            if "journal_mode=wal" in sql.lower().replace(" ", ""):
+                raise _sqlite3.OperationalError("locking protocol")
+            return super().execute(sql, *args, **kwargs)
+
+    def wal_blocking_connect(*args, **kwargs):
+        return real_connect(
+            *args, factory=_WalBlockingConnection, **kwargs
+        )
+
+    with _patch("hermes_cli.kanban_db.sqlite3.connect", side_effect=wal_blocking_connect):
+        with caplog.at_level("WARNING", logger="hermes_state"):
+            conn = kb.connect()
+
+    # One fallback warning, naming kanban.db
+    warnings = [
+        r for r in caplog.records
+        if r.levelname == "WARNING" and "kanban.db" in r.getMessage()
+    ]
+    assert len(warnings) >= 1, (
+        f"Expected a kanban.db WARNING, got: {[r.getMessage() for r in caplog.records]}"
+    )
+
+    # DB still usable end-to-end — create + list a task
+    t = kb.create_task(conn, title="post-fallback task")
+    tasks = kb.list_tasks(conn)
+    assert any(row.id == t for row in tasks)
+    conn.close()
diff --git a/tests/hermes_cli/test_profiles.py b/tests/hermes_cli/test_profiles.py
index 88bc09b694..f4c8a4d1ff 100644
--- a/tests/hermes_cli/test_profiles.py
+++ b/tests/hermes_cli/test_profiles.py
@@ -244,6 +244,64 @@ class TestCreateProfile:
         assert (profile_dir / "memories" / "note.md").read_text() == "remember this"
         assert not (profile_dir / "profiles").exists()
 
+    def test_clone_all_excludes_default_infrastructure(self, profile_env):
+        """--clone-all from default profile excludes hermes-agent, .worktrees,
+        bin, node_modules at root, plus __pycache__/*.pyc/*.pyo/*.sock/*.tmp
+        at any depth.  Profile data (config, env, skills, sessions, logs,
+        state.db) must be preserved — clone-all means "complete snapshot
+        minus infrastructure."
+        """
+        tmp_path = profile_env
+        default_home = tmp_path / ".hermes"
+        # Simulate infrastructure dirs that only the default profile has
+        (default_home / "hermes-agent" / ".git").mkdir(parents=True)
+        (default_home / "hermes-agent" / "venv" / "bin").mkdir(parents=True)
+        (default_home / "hermes-agent" / "README.md").write_text("repo")
+        (default_home / ".worktrees" / "some-tree").mkdir(parents=True)
+        (default_home / "profiles" / "other").mkdir(parents=True)
+        (default_home / "profiles" / "other" / "config.yaml").write_text("x")
+        (default_home / "bin").mkdir(exist_ok=True)
+        (default_home / "bin" / "tool").write_text("binary")
+        (default_home / "node_modules" / ".package-lock.json").mkdir(parents=True)
+        # Bytecode + temp files at nested depth (universal exclusion)
+        (default_home / "skills" / "my-skill" / "__pycache__").mkdir(parents=True)
+        (default_home / "skills" / "my-skill" / "__pycache__" / "module.cpython-311.pyc").write_text("stale")
+        (default_home / "skills" / "my-skill" / "module.pyc").write_text("stale")
+        (default_home / "skills" / "my-skill" / "module.pyo").write_text("stale")
+        (default_home / "data.sock").write_text("socket")
+        (default_home / "data.tmp").write_text("tmp")
+        # Profile data that SHOULD be copied
+        (default_home / "skills" / "my-skill").mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        (default_home / "skills" / "my-skill" / "SKILL.md").write_text("skill")
+        (default_home / "config.yaml").write_text("model: gpt-4")
+        (default_home / ".env").write_text("KEY=val")
+        (default_home / "state.db").write_text("sessions-data")
+        (default_home / "sessions").mkdir(exist_ok=True)
+        (default_home / "logs").mkdir(exist_ok=True)
+        (default_home / "logs" / "gateway.log").write_text("log")
+
+        profile_dir = create_profile("cloned", clone_all=True, no_alias=True)
+
+        # Infrastructure must be excluded
+        assert not (profile_dir / "hermes-agent").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / ".worktrees").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "profiles").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "bin").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "node_modules").exists()
+        # Universal exclusions at any depth
+        assert not (profile_dir / "data.sock").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "data.tmp").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "skills" / "my-skill" / "__pycache__").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "skills" / "my-skill" / "module.pyc").exists()
+        assert not (profile_dir / "skills" / "my-skill" / "module.pyo").exists()
+        # All profile data must be present
+        assert (profile_dir / "skills" / "my-skill" / "SKILL.md").read_text() == "skill"
+        assert (profile_dir / "config.yaml").read_text() == "model: gpt-4"
+        assert (profile_dir / ".env").read_text() == "KEY=val"
+        assert (profile_dir / "state.db").read_text() == "sessions-data"
+        assert (profile_dir / "sessions").exists()
+        assert (profile_dir / "logs" / "gateway.log").read_text() == "log"
+
     def test_clone_config_missing_files_skipped(self, profile_env):
         """Clone config gracefully skips files that don't exist in source."""
         profile_dir = create_profile("coder", clone_config=True, no_alias=True)
diff --git a/tests/plugins/memory/test_openviking_provider.py b/tests/plugins/memory/test_openviking_provider.py
index 76d69224e3..127528205b 100644
--- a/tests/plugins/memory/test_openviking_provider.py
+++ b/tests/plugins/memory/test_openviking_provider.py
@@ -314,10 +314,11 @@ def test_viking_client_headers_include_bearer_when_api_key_set():
     assert headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer test-key"
 
 
-def test_viking_client_headers_omit_tenant_when_legacy_default():
-    # Existing installs have account/user set to the literal string "default".
-    # Those should NOT be sent as headers — the server would interpret that
-    # as a real tenant override and reject/misroute requests.
+def test_viking_client_headers_send_tenant_when_default():
+    # account/user set to the literal string "default". OpenViking 0.3.x
+    # requires X-OpenViking-Account and X-OpenViking-User for ROOT API key
+    # requests to tenant-scoped APIs — omitting them causes
+    # INVALID_ARGUMENT errors even when account="default".
     client = _VikingClient(
         "https://example.com",
         api_key="test-key",
@@ -326,13 +327,15 @@ def test_viking_client_headers_omit_tenant_when_legacy_default():
         agent="hermes",
     )
     headers = client._headers()
-    assert "X-OpenViking-Account" not in headers
-    assert "X-OpenViking-User" not in headers
+    assert headers["X-OpenViking-Account"] == "default"
+    assert headers["X-OpenViking-User"] == "default"
     assert headers["X-OpenViking-Agent"] == "hermes"
     assert headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer test-key"
 
 
-def test_viking_client_headers_omit_tenant_when_empty():
+def test_viking_client_headers_send_tenant_when_empty_falls_back_to_default():
+    # Empty account/user strings fall back to "default" via the constructor.
+    # Headers are sent even for the default value — ROOT API keys need them.
     client = _VikingClient(
         "https://example.com",
         api_key="",
@@ -341,8 +344,8 @@ def test_viking_client_headers_omit_tenant_when_empty():
         agent="hermes",
     )
     headers = client._headers()
-    assert "X-OpenViking-Account" not in headers
-    assert "X-OpenViking-User" not in headers
+    assert headers["X-OpenViking-Account"] == "default"
+    assert headers["X-OpenViking-User"] == "default"
     assert "Authorization" not in headers
     assert "X-API-Key" not in headers
 
diff --git a/tests/test_hermes_state_wal_fallback.py b/tests/test_hermes_state_wal_fallback.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..05cee85012
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_hermes_state_wal_fallback.py
@@ -0,0 +1,305 @@
+"""Tests for the WAL→DELETE journal-mode fallback on NFS / SMB / FUSE.
+
+When ``PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL`` raises ``OperationalError("locking protocol")``
+(SQLITE_PROTOCOL — typical on NFS/SMB), Hermes must fall back to
+``journal_mode=DELETE`` so ``state.db`` / ``kanban.db`` remain usable.
+
+Without this fallback, users on NFS-mounted ``HERMES_HOME`` silently lose
+``/resume``, ``/title``, ``/history``, ``/branch``, session search, and the
+kanban dispatcher — because ``SessionDB()`` init propagates the error and
+every caller swallows it, leaving ``_session_db = None``.
+
+See: https://www.sqlite.org/wal.html — "WAL does not work over a network
+filesystem".
+"""
+
+import sqlite3
+from unittest.mock import patch
+
+import pytest
+
+import hermes_state
+from hermes_state import (
+    SessionDB,
+    apply_wal_with_fallback,
+    format_session_db_unavailable,
+    get_last_init_error,
+)
+
+
+# ``sqlite3.Connection.execute`` is a C-level slot and can't be monkeypatched
+# directly (``'sqlite3.Connection' object attribute 'execute' is read-only``).
+# A factory-built subclass lets us intercept journal_mode=WAL per-test with
+# its own mutable counter, avoiding the xdist-parallel class-state race.
+def _make_blocking_factory(reason: str, attempt_counter: list):
+    """Return a sqlite3.Connection subclass that raises on PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL."""
+
+    class _WalBlockingConnection(sqlite3.Connection):
+        def execute(self, sql, *args, **kwargs):  # type: ignore[override]
+            if "journal_mode=wal" in sql.lower().replace(" ", ""):
+                attempt_counter[0] += 1
+                raise sqlite3.OperationalError(reason)
+            return super().execute(sql, *args, **kwargs)
+
+    return _WalBlockingConnection
+
+
+def _open_blocking(path, reason="locking protocol", **kwargs):
+    """Open a connection whose WAL pragma raises ``reason``.
+
+    Returns ``(conn, attempt_counter_list)`` so callers can assert how many
+    times WAL was attempted.
+    """
+    attempts = [0]
+    factory = _make_blocking_factory(reason, attempts)
+    return sqlite3.connect(str(path), factory=factory, **kwargs), attempts
+
+
+@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
+def _reset_last_init_error():
+    """Reset the module-global last-error before and after each test."""
+    hermes_state._set_last_init_error(None)
+    yield
+    hermes_state._set_last_init_error(None)
+
+
+@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
+def _reset_wal_fallback_warned_paths():
+    """Reset the WAL-fallback warned-paths set so dedup doesn't leak between tests."""
+    hermes_state._wal_fallback_warned_paths.clear()
+    yield
+    hermes_state._wal_fallback_warned_paths.clear()
+
+
+class TestApplyWalWithFallback:
+    def test_succeeds_on_local_fs(self, tmp_path):
+        """Happy path: WAL works on a normal filesystem."""
+        conn = sqlite3.connect(str(tmp_path / "ok.db"), isolation_level=None)
+        mode = apply_wal_with_fallback(conn)
+        assert mode == "wal"
+        cur = conn.execute("PRAGMA journal_mode")
+        assert cur.fetchone()[0].lower() == "wal"
+        conn.close()
+
+    def test_falls_back_to_delete_on_locking_protocol(self, tmp_path, caplog):
+        """NFS-style ``locking protocol`` error → DELETE mode + one WARNING."""
+        conn, _ = _open_blocking(tmp_path / "nfs.db", isolation_level=None)
+        with caplog.at_level("WARNING", logger="hermes_state"):
+            mode = apply_wal_with_fallback(conn, db_label="test.db")
+
+        assert mode == "delete"
+        warnings = [r for r in caplog.records if r.levelname == "WARNING"]
+        assert len(warnings) == 1
+        msg = warnings[0].getMessage()
+        assert "test.db" in msg
+        assert "journal_mode=DELETE" in msg
+        assert "locking protocol" in msg
+
+        # Post-fallback the DB is still usable for real writes
+        conn.execute("CREATE TABLE t (x INTEGER)")
+        conn.execute("INSERT INTO t VALUES (1)")
+        assert list(conn.execute("SELECT x FROM t"))[0][0] == 1
+        conn.close()
+
+    def test_falls_back_on_not_authorized(self, tmp_path):
+        """Some FUSE mounts block WAL pragma outright ('not authorized')."""
+        conn, _ = _open_blocking(
+            tmp_path / "fuse.db", reason="not authorized", isolation_level=None
+        )
+        mode = apply_wal_with_fallback(conn)
+        assert mode == "delete"
+        conn.close()
+
+    def test_falls_back_on_disk_io_error(self, tmp_path):
+        """Flaky network FS → disk I/O error → still fall back."""
+        conn, _ = _open_blocking(
+            tmp_path / "flaky.db", reason="disk I/O error", isolation_level=None
+        )
+        mode = apply_wal_with_fallback(conn)
+        assert mode == "delete"
+        conn.close()
+
+    def test_reraises_unrelated_operational_error(self, tmp_path):
+        """Non-WAL-compat errors must NOT be silently swallowed by the fallback."""
+        conn, _ = _open_blocking(
+            tmp_path / "other.db",
+            reason="no such table: nope",
+            isolation_level=None,
+        )
+        with pytest.raises(sqlite3.OperationalError, match="no such table"):
+            apply_wal_with_fallback(conn)
+        conn.close()
+
+    def test_warning_deduplicated_per_db_label(self, tmp_path, caplog):
+        """Repeated calls with the same db_label log exactly ONE warning.
+
+        Prevents log spam when NFS users run kanban (which opens a fresh
+        connection on every operation — see hermes_cli/kanban_db.py).
+        Regression guard: the fix for #22032 ran apply_wal_with_fallback()
+        on every kb.connect() call; without dedup, errors.log fills with
+        hundreds of identical warnings per hour.
+        """
+        with caplog.at_level("WARNING", logger="hermes_state"):
+            # Three separate connections to "the same DB" via the same label
+            for i in range(3):
+                conn, _ = _open_blocking(
+                    tmp_path / f"dup-{i}.db", isolation_level=None
+                )
+                mode = apply_wal_with_fallback(conn, db_label="shared.db")
+                assert mode == "delete"
+                conn.close()
+
+        # Exactly one warning across all three calls
+        warnings = [
+            r for r in caplog.records
+            if r.levelname == "WARNING" and "shared.db" in r.getMessage()
+        ]
+        assert len(warnings) == 1, (
+            f"Expected 1 deduplicated warning, got {len(warnings)}: "
+            f"{[r.getMessage() for r in warnings]}"
+        )
+
+    def test_warning_fires_independently_per_db_label(self, tmp_path, caplog):
+        """Different db_labels each get their own one warning (not globally dedup'd)."""
+        with caplog.at_level("WARNING", logger="hermes_state"):
+            conn1, _ = _open_blocking(tmp_path / "a.db", isolation_level=None)
+            apply_wal_with_fallback(conn1, db_label="state.db")
+            conn1.close()
+
+            conn2, _ = _open_blocking(tmp_path / "b.db", isolation_level=None)
+            apply_wal_with_fallback(conn2, db_label="kanban.db")
+            conn2.close()
+
+        warnings = [r for r in caplog.records if r.levelname == "WARNING"]
+        labels_warned = {
+            lbl for r in warnings for lbl in ("state.db", "kanban.db")
+            if lbl in r.getMessage()
+        }
+        assert labels_warned == {"state.db", "kanban.db"}, (
+            f"Each db_label should warn once; got {labels_warned}"
+        )
+
+
+class TestGetLastInitError:
+    def test_none_on_successful_init(self, tmp_path):
+        """Happy-path SessionDB init does NOT clear a stale error from a prior thread.
+
+        We deliberately don't clear on success so that in multi-threaded
+        callers (gateway / web_server per-request SessionDB()), a concurrent
+        successful open racing past a different thread's failure won't
+        erase the cause string the failing thread's /resume is about to
+        format.  The caller or test fixture is responsible for explicitly
+        calling _set_last_init_error(None) to reset.
+        """
+        # Autouse fixture starts at None — success-path leaves it None
+        db = SessionDB(db_path=tmp_path / "ok.db")
+        try:
+            assert get_last_init_error() is None
+        finally:
+            db.close()
+
+    def test_success_does_not_clear_prior_error(self, tmp_path):
+        """Thread-safety guard: a successful init must not erase a pre-existing error.
+
+        Simulates the multi-threaded race: thread A fails, records cause;
+        thread B succeeds concurrently.  thread A's /resume handler must
+        still see A's cause — not B's None.
+        """
+        hermes_state._set_last_init_error("OperationalError: locking protocol")
+        # Now a "successful" init happens on another path — must NOT clear
+        db = SessionDB(db_path=tmp_path / "ok2.db")
+        try:
+            assert get_last_init_error() == "OperationalError: locking protocol"
+        finally:
+            db.close()
+
+    def test_captures_cause_on_failed_init(self, tmp_path):
+        """When SessionDB() raises, the cause is preserved for slash commands.
+
+        Simulates a filesystem where BOTH WAL and DELETE journal modes fail —
+        e.g. a read-only mount where no ``PRAGMA journal_mode=X`` works.  The
+        fallback tries DELETE and also gets rejected; the exception bubbles
+        out of ``SessionDB.__init__`` and the cause is captured.
+        """
+        target = tmp_path / "broken.db"
+        real_connect = sqlite3.connect
+
+        class _BothPragmasFailConnection(sqlite3.Connection):
+            def execute(self, sql, *args, **kwargs):  # type: ignore[override]
+                if "journal_mode" in sql.lower():
+                    raise sqlite3.OperationalError(
+                        "locking protocol: read-only filesystem"
+                    )
+                return super().execute(sql, *args, **kwargs)
+
+        def gated_connect(*args, **kwargs):
+            return real_connect(str(target), factory=_BothPragmasFailConnection, **kwargs)
+
+        with patch("hermes_state.sqlite3.connect", side_effect=gated_connect):
+            with pytest.raises(sqlite3.OperationalError):
+                SessionDB(db_path=target)
+
+        cause = get_last_init_error()
+        assert cause is not None
+        assert "OperationalError" in cause
+        assert "locking protocol" in cause
+
+
+class TestFormatSessionDbUnavailable:
+    def test_bare_message_when_no_cause(self):
+        """No init error recorded → generic message."""
+        hermes_state._set_last_init_error(None)
+        assert format_session_db_unavailable() == "Session database not available."
+
+    def test_includes_cause(self):
+        """Cause is surfaced for slash-command error strings."""
+        hermes_state._set_last_init_error("OperationalError: generic SQLite error")
+        msg = format_session_db_unavailable()
+        assert "generic SQLite error" in msg
+        assert msg.startswith("Session database not available:")
+        assert msg.endswith(".")
+
+    def test_adds_nfs_hint_for_locking_protocol(self):
+        """Locking-protocol cause gets an NFS/SMB pointer for the user."""
+        hermes_state._set_last_init_error("OperationalError: locking protocol")
+        msg = format_session_db_unavailable()
+        assert "locking protocol" in msg
+        assert "NFS/SMB" in msg
+        assert "sqlite.org/wal.html" in msg
+
+    def test_custom_prefix(self):
+        """Callers can customize the prefix for context-specific messages."""
+        hermes_state._set_last_init_error("OperationalError: locking protocol")
+        msg = format_session_db_unavailable(prefix="Cannot /resume")
+        assert msg.startswith("Cannot /resume:")
+
+
+class TestSessionDbUsesWalFallback:
+    def test_sessiondb_works_when_wal_unavailable(self, tmp_path):
+        """E2E: SessionDB initializes and performs a write on a WAL-blocked FS."""
+        target = tmp_path / "nfs_style.db"
+
+        real_connect = sqlite3.connect
+        attempts = [0]
+        factory = _make_blocking_factory("locking protocol", attempts)
+
+        def gated_connect(*args, **kwargs):
+            return real_connect(str(target), factory=factory, **kwargs)
+
+        with patch("hermes_state.sqlite3.connect", side_effect=gated_connect):
+            db = SessionDB(db_path=target)
+
+        try:
+            # WAL was attempted and rejected — fallback kicked in
+            assert attempts[0] >= 1, (
+                "WAL pragma was never executed — check the patch target"
+            )
+            # SessionDB is usable end-to-end: create a session, read it back
+            db.create_session(session_id="s1", source="cli", model="test")
+            sess = db.get_session("s1")
+            assert sess is not None
+            assert sess["source"] == "cli"
+            # No init error was recorded since init succeeded via the fallback
+            assert get_last_init_error() is None
+        finally:
+            db.close()
diff --git a/tests/tools/test_cronjob_tools.py b/tests/tools/test_cronjob_tools.py
index ab6f8eef08..ccb01edc56 100644
--- a/tests/tools/test_cronjob_tools.py
+++ b/tests/tools/test_cronjob_tools.py
@@ -122,6 +122,28 @@ class TestUnifiedCronjobTool:
         assert listing["jobs"][0]["name"] == "Server Check"
         assert listing["jobs"][0]["state"] == "scheduled"
 
+    def test_list_handles_partial_legacy_job_records(self):
+        from cron.jobs import save_jobs
+
+        save_jobs([
+            {
+                "id": "abc123deadbe",
+                "name": None,
+                "prompt": None,
+                "schedule_display": None,
+                "schedule": {"kind": "interval", "minutes": 60, "display": "every 60m"},
+                "repeat": {"times": None, "completed": 0},
+                "enabled": True,
+            }
+        ])
+
+        listing = json.loads(cronjob(action="list"))
+
+        assert listing["success"] is True
+        assert listing["jobs"][0]["name"] == "abc123deadbe"
+        assert listing["jobs"][0]["prompt_preview"] == ""
+        assert listing["jobs"][0]["schedule"] == "every 60m"
+
     def test_pause_and_resume(self):
         created = json.loads(cronjob(action="create", prompt="Check", schedule="every 1h"))
         job_id = created["job_id"]
diff --git a/tests/tools/test_delegate.py b/tests/tools/test_delegate.py
index 3a6df2bcf4..8a3efe8eee 100644
--- a/tests/tools/test_delegate.py
+++ b/tests/tools/test_delegate.py
@@ -167,6 +167,63 @@ class TestDelegateTask(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertEqual(result["results"][1]["summary"], "Result B")
         self.assertIn("total_duration_seconds", result)
 
+    @patch("tools.delegate_tool._run_single_child")
+    def test_batch_mode_accepts_json_string_tasks(self, mock_run):
+        mock_run.side_effect = [
+            {
+                "task_index": 0,
+                "status": "completed",
+                "summary": "Result A",
+                "api_calls": 2,
+                "duration_seconds": 3.0,
+            },
+            {
+                "task_index": 1,
+                "status": "completed",
+                "summary": "Result B",
+                "api_calls": 4,
+                "duration_seconds": 6.0,
+            },
+        ]
+        parent = _make_mock_parent()
+        tasks = json.dumps(
+            [
+                {"goal": "Research topic A"},
+                {"goal": "Research topic B"},
+            ]
+        )
+
+        result = json.loads(delegate_task(tasks=tasks, parent_agent=parent))
+
+        self.assertIn("results", result)
+        self.assertEqual(len(result["results"]), 2)
+        self.assertEqual(result["results"][0]["summary"], "Result A")
+        self.assertEqual(result["results"][1]["summary"], "Result B")
+
+    @patch("tools.delegate_tool._run_single_child")
+    def test_batch_mode_rejects_non_object_tasks(self, mock_run):
+        parent = _make_mock_parent()
+
+        result = json.loads(
+            delegate_task(tasks=["not a task object"], parent_agent=parent)
+        )
+
+        self.assertIn("error", result)
+        self.assertIn("Task 0 must be an object", result["error"])
+        mock_run.assert_not_called()
+
+    @patch("tools.delegate_tool._run_single_child")
+    def test_batch_mode_rejects_malformed_json_string_tasks(self, mock_run):
+        parent = _make_mock_parent()
+
+        result = json.loads(
+            delegate_task(tasks='[{"goal": "bad}', parent_agent=parent)
+        )
+
+        self.assertIn("error", result)
+        self.assertIn("could not be parsed as JSON", result["error"])
+        mock_run.assert_not_called()
+
     @patch("tools.delegate_tool._run_single_child")
     def test_batch_capped_at_3(self, mock_run):
         mock_run.return_value = {
diff --git a/tests/tools/test_kanban_tools.py b/tests/tools/test_kanban_tools.py
index aa7168da6c..f5c7094ee4 100644
--- a/tests/tools/test_kanban_tools.py
+++ b/tests/tools/test_kanban_tools.py
@@ -296,21 +296,40 @@ def test_comment_rejects_empty_body(worker_env):
     assert json.loads(out).get("error")
 
 
-def test_comment_custom_author(worker_env):
+def test_comment_ignores_caller_supplied_author(worker_env):
+    """``args["author"]`` is no longer honored — the author is always
+    derived from ``HERMES_PROFILE`` so a worker can't forge a comment
+    under an authoritative-looking name like ``hermes-system`` and
+    poison the next worker's prompt context. Cross-task commenting
+    itself remains unrestricted (see #19713); only the author override
+    is removed.
+    """
     from tools import kanban_tools as kt
     out = kt._handle_comment({
-        "task_id": worker_env, "body": "hi", "author": "custom-bot",
+        "task_id": worker_env, "body": "hi", "author": "hermes-system",
     })
     assert json.loads(out)["ok"]
     from hermes_cli import kanban_db as kb
     conn = kb.connect()
     try:
         comments = kb.list_comments(conn, worker_env)
-        assert comments[0].author == "custom-bot"
+        # Author comes from HERMES_PROFILE in the fixture, not the
+        # caller-supplied "hermes-system" override.
+        assert comments[0].author == "test-worker"
     finally:
         conn.close()
 
 
+def test_comment_schema_omits_author_override():
+    """The ``author`` property must not appear on KANBAN_COMMENT_SCHEMA;
+    exposing it to the LLM would re-introduce the forgery surface this
+    handler is hardened against.
+    """
+    from tools.kanban_tools import KANBAN_COMMENT_SCHEMA
+    props = KANBAN_COMMENT_SCHEMA["parameters"]["properties"]
+    assert "author" not in props
+
+
 def test_create_happy_path(worker_env):
     from tools import kanban_tools as kt
     out = kt._handle_create({
@@ -657,6 +676,42 @@ def test_worker_heartbeat_rejects_foreign_task_id(worker_env):
     assert "refusing to mutate" in d.get("error", "")
 
 
+def test_worker_can_comment_on_foreign_task(worker_env):
+    """Cross-task commenting must remain unrestricted (#19713 policy).
+
+    The author-forgery hardening removed args['author'] but deliberately
+    did NOT add an ownership gate to kanban_comment — comments are the
+    documented handoff channel between tasks. This test pins that policy
+    so a future change accidentally adding ``_enforce_worker_task_ownership``
+    to ``_handle_comment`` would fail CI immediately.
+    """
+    from hermes_cli import kanban_db as kb
+    conn = kb.connect()
+    try:
+        other = kb.create_task(conn, title="sibling")
+    finally:
+        conn.close()
+
+    from tools import kanban_tools as kt
+    out = kt._handle_comment({
+        "task_id": other,
+        "body": "handoff: see prior findings before starting",
+    })
+    d = json.loads(out)
+    assert d.get("ok") is True, f"cross-task comment must succeed: {d}"
+
+    # The comment lands on the foreign task, attributed to the worker's
+    # HERMES_PROFILE — never to a caller-controlled string.
+    conn = kb.connect()
+    try:
+        comments = kb.list_comments(conn, other)
+        assert len(comments) == 1
+        assert comments[0].author == "test-worker"
+        assert comments[0].body.startswith("handoff:")
+    finally:
+        conn.close()
+
+
 def test_worker_complete_own_task_still_works(worker_env):
     """The ownership check doesn't break the normal own-task happy path."""
     from tools import kanban_tools as kt
diff --git a/tests/tools/test_send_message_tool.py b/tests/tools/test_send_message_tool.py
index 3b2c089915..024cf43f94 100644
--- a/tests/tools/test_send_message_tool.py
+++ b/tests/tools/test_send_message_tool.py
@@ -742,6 +742,64 @@ class TestSendTelegramHtmlDetection:
         sleep_mock.assert_awaited_once()
 
 
+class TestSendTelegramThreadIdMapping:
+    """General-topic mapping in _send_telegram (issue #22267).
+
+    Telegram forum supergroups address the General topic as
+    ``message_thread_id="1"`` on incoming updates, but the Bot API rejects
+    sends with ``message_thread_id=1`` ("Message thread not found"). The
+    gateway adapter's ``_message_thread_id_for_send`` helper maps "1" to
+    ``None`` for that reason; the standalone ``_send_telegram`` helper used
+    by the ``send_message`` tool needs the same mapping.
+    """
+
+    def _make_bot(self):
+        bot = MagicMock()
+        bot.send_message = AsyncMock(return_value=SimpleNamespace(message_id=1))
+        return bot
+
+    def test_general_topic_thread_id_omitted(self, monkeypatch):
+        """thread_id="1" must be dropped before calling the Bot API."""
+        bot = self._make_bot()
+        _install_telegram_mock(monkeypatch, bot)
+
+        asyncio.run(_send_telegram("tok", "-1001234567890", "hello", thread_id="1"))
+
+        bot.send_message.assert_awaited_once()
+        kwargs = bot.send_message.await_args.kwargs
+        assert "message_thread_id" not in kwargs
+
+    def test_non_general_topic_thread_id_preserved(self, monkeypatch):
+        """Real forum-topic thread ids (>1) still pass through as ints."""
+        bot = self._make_bot()
+        _install_telegram_mock(monkeypatch, bot)
+
+        asyncio.run(_send_telegram("tok", "-1001234567890", "hello", thread_id="17585"))
+
+        kwargs = bot.send_message.await_args.kwargs
+        assert kwargs["message_thread_id"] == 17585
+
+    def test_no_thread_id_no_kwarg(self, monkeypatch):
+        """With no thread_id, message_thread_id must not appear in kwargs."""
+        bot = self._make_bot()
+        _install_telegram_mock(monkeypatch, bot)
+
+        asyncio.run(_send_telegram("tok", "-1001234567890", "hello"))
+
+        kwargs = bot.send_message.await_args.kwargs
+        assert "message_thread_id" not in kwargs
+
+    def test_general_topic_thread_id_int_input_also_dropped(self, monkeypatch):
+        """thread_id passed as the int 1 (not str) must still be dropped."""
+        bot = self._make_bot()
+        _install_telegram_mock(monkeypatch, bot)
+
+        asyncio.run(_send_telegram("tok", "-1001234567890", "hello", thread_id=1))
+
+        kwargs = bot.send_message.await_args.kwargs
+        assert "message_thread_id" not in kwargs
+
+
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # Tests for Discord thread_id support
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1994,3 +2052,180 @@ class TestSendSignalChunking:
         # Only the existing file made it into the RPC
         params = fake.calls[0]["payload"]["params"]
         assert len(params["attachments"]) == 1
+
+
+# ── _send_via_adapter standalone fallback ────────────────────────────────
+
+
+class _FakePlatform:
+    """Stand-in for the gateway.config.Platform enum.  Holds the .value
+    attribute consulted by ``_send_via_adapter`` for registry lookups."""
+
+    def __init__(self, value):
+        self.value = value
+
+
+class TestSendViaAdapterStandaloneFallback:
+    """Coverage for the out-of-process plugin-platform send path.
+
+    When the gateway runner is not in this process (e.g. ``hermes cron``
+    runs separately from ``hermes gateway``), ``_send_via_adapter`` should
+    fall through to the plugin's ``standalone_sender_fn`` registered on
+    its ``PlatformEntry``.  Without the hook, the existing error string
+    is returned (with a more helpful tail).
+    """
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _make_entry(send_fn):
+        from gateway.platform_registry import PlatformEntry
+
+        return PlatformEntry(
+            name="fakeplatform",
+            label="Fake",
+            adapter_factory=lambda cfg: None,
+            check_fn=lambda: True,
+            standalone_sender_fn=send_fn,
+        )
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_sender_fn_called_when_no_adapter(self, monkeypatch):
+        """Registry has hook, runner ref returns None: the hook is awaited."""
+        from tools.send_message_tool import _send_via_adapter
+        from gateway.platform_registry import platform_registry
+
+        recorded = {}
+
+        async def fake_send(pconfig, chat_id, message, **kwargs):
+            recorded["pconfig"] = pconfig
+            recorded["chat_id"] = chat_id
+            recorded["message"] = message
+            recorded["kwargs"] = kwargs
+            return {"success": True, "message_id": "msg-42"}
+
+        platform_registry.register(self._make_entry(fake_send))
+        try:
+            monkeypatch.setattr("gateway.run._gateway_runner_ref", lambda: None)
+
+            pconfig = SimpleNamespace(extra={})
+            result = await _send_via_adapter(
+                _FakePlatform("fakeplatform"),
+                pconfig,
+                "room/123",
+                "hello cron",
+            )
+        finally:
+            platform_registry.unregister("fakeplatform")
+
+        assert result == {"success": True, "message_id": "msg-42"}
+        assert recorded["chat_id"] == "room/123"
+        assert recorded["message"] == "hello cron"
+        assert recorded["pconfig"] is pconfig
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_sender_fn_kwargs_forwarded(self, monkeypatch):
+        """thread_id, media_files, and force_document all reach the hook."""
+        from tools.send_message_tool import _send_via_adapter
+        from gateway.platform_registry import platform_registry
+
+        recorded = {}
+
+        async def fake_send(pconfig, chat_id, message, *, thread_id=None,
+                            media_files=None, force_document=False):
+            recorded["thread_id"] = thread_id
+            recorded["media_files"] = media_files
+            recorded["force_document"] = force_document
+            return {"success": True, "message_id": "x"}
+
+        platform_registry.register(self._make_entry(fake_send))
+        try:
+            monkeypatch.setattr("gateway.run._gateway_runner_ref", lambda: None)
+
+            await _send_via_adapter(
+                _FakePlatform("fakeplatform"),
+                SimpleNamespace(extra={}),
+                "chat-1",
+                "hi",
+                thread_id="thread-7",
+                media_files=["/tmp/a.png"],
+                force_document=True,
+            )
+        finally:
+            platform_registry.unregister("fakeplatform")
+
+        assert recorded["thread_id"] == "thread-7"
+        assert recorded["media_files"] == ["/tmp/a.png"]
+        assert recorded["force_document"] is True
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_sender_fn_absent_returns_helpful_error(self, monkeypatch):
+        """Registry entry has no hook: the fall-through error explains both
+        options (gateway-running and standalone hook)."""
+        from tools.send_message_tool import _send_via_adapter
+        from gateway.platform_registry import platform_registry
+
+        platform_registry.register(self._make_entry(None))
+        try:
+            monkeypatch.setattr("gateway.run._gateway_runner_ref", lambda: None)
+
+            result = await _send_via_adapter(
+                _FakePlatform("fakeplatform"),
+                SimpleNamespace(extra={}),
+                "chat-1",
+                "hi",
+            )
+        finally:
+            platform_registry.unregister("fakeplatform")
+
+        assert "error" in result
+        assert "fakeplatform" in result["error"]
+        assert "standalone_sender_fn" in result["error"]
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_sender_fn_raises_is_caught_and_formatted(self, monkeypatch):
+        """Hook raises: error dict has 'Plugin standalone send failed: ...'"""
+        from tools.send_message_tool import _send_via_adapter
+        from gateway.platform_registry import platform_registry
+
+        async def boom(pconfig, chat_id, message, **kwargs):
+            raise ValueError("boom!")
+
+        platform_registry.register(self._make_entry(boom))
+        try:
+            monkeypatch.setattr("gateway.run._gateway_runner_ref", lambda: None)
+
+            result = await _send_via_adapter(
+                _FakePlatform("fakeplatform"),
+                SimpleNamespace(extra={}),
+                "chat-1",
+                "hi",
+            )
+        finally:
+            platform_registry.unregister("fakeplatform")
+
+        assert result == {"error": "Plugin standalone send failed: boom!"}
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_standalone_sender_fn_return_shape_passed_through(self, monkeypatch):
+        """Hook returns success dict: passed through unchanged."""
+        from tools.send_message_tool import _send_via_adapter
+        from gateway.platform_registry import platform_registry
+
+        async def fake_send(pconfig, chat_id, message, **kwargs):
+            return {"success": True, "message_id": "abc-123", "extra_field": "preserved"}
+
+        platform_registry.register(self._make_entry(fake_send))
+        try:
+            monkeypatch.setattr("gateway.run._gateway_runner_ref", lambda: None)
+
+            result = await _send_via_adapter(
+                _FakePlatform("fakeplatform"),
+                SimpleNamespace(extra={}),
+                "chat-1",
+                "hi",
+            )
+        finally:
+            platform_registry.unregister("fakeplatform")
+
+        assert result["success"] is True
+        assert result["message_id"] == "abc-123"
+        assert result["extra_field"] == "preserved"
diff --git a/tools/browser_cdp_tool.py b/tools/browser_cdp_tool.py
index d43d200b4a..8e829556a5 100644
--- a/tools/browser_cdp_tool.py
+++ b/tools/browser_cdp_tool.py
@@ -132,9 +132,9 @@ async def _cdp_call(
                     }
                 )
             )
-            deadline = asyncio.get_event_loop().time() + timeout
+            deadline = asyncio.get_running_loop().time() + timeout
             while True:
-                remaining = deadline - asyncio.get_event_loop().time()
+                remaining = deadline - asyncio.get_running_loop().time()
                 if remaining <= 0:
                     raise TimeoutError(
                         f"Timed out attaching to target {target_id}"
@@ -166,9 +166,9 @@ async def _cdp_call(
             req["sessionId"] = session_id
         await ws.send(json.dumps(req))
 
-        deadline = asyncio.get_event_loop().time() + timeout
+        deadline = asyncio.get_running_loop().time() + timeout
         while True:
-            remaining = deadline - asyncio.get_event_loop().time()
+            remaining = deadline - asyncio.get_running_loop().time()
             if remaining <= 0:
                 raise TimeoutError(
                     f"Timed out waiting for response to {method}"
diff --git a/tools/cronjob_tools.py b/tools/cronjob_tools.py
index b4cc4f69ec..c9d0e9ade7 100644
--- a/tools/cronjob_tools.py
+++ b/tools/cronjob_tools.py
@@ -220,18 +220,20 @@ def _validate_cron_script_path(script: Optional[str]) -> Optional[str]:
 
 
 def _format_job(job: Dict[str, Any]) -> Dict[str, Any]:
-    prompt = job.get("prompt", "")
+    prompt = str(job.get("prompt") or "")
     skills = _canonical_skills(job.get("skill"), job.get("skills"))
+    job_id = str(job.get("id") or "unknown")
+    name = str(job.get("name") or prompt[:50] or (skills[0] if skills else "") or job_id or "cron job")
     result = {
-        "job_id": job["id"],
-        "name": job["name"],
+        "job_id": job_id,
+        "name": name,
         "skill": skills[0] if skills else None,
         "skills": skills,
         "prompt_preview": prompt[:100] + "..." if len(prompt) > 100 else prompt,
         "model": job.get("model"),
         "provider": job.get("provider"),
         "base_url": job.get("base_url"),
-        "schedule": job.get("schedule_display"),
+        "schedule": job.get("schedule_display") or "?",
         "repeat": _repeat_display(job),
         "deliver": job.get("deliver", "local"),
         "next_run_at": job.get("next_run_at"),
diff --git a/tools/delegate_tool.py b/tools/delegate_tool.py
index 5a1ec534f8..3856ce7766 100644
--- a/tools/delegate_tool.py
+++ b/tools/delegate_tool.py
@@ -1867,6 +1867,29 @@ def _run_single_child(
             logger.debug("Failed to close child agent after delegation")
 
 
+def _recover_tasks_from_json_string(
+    tasks: Any,
+) -> tuple[Optional[List[Dict[str, Any]]], Optional[str]]:
+    if not isinstance(tasks, str):
+        return None, None
+    raw = tasks.strip()
+    if not raw:
+        return None, "Provide either 'goal' (single task) or 'tasks' (batch)."
+    try:
+        parsed = json.loads(raw)
+    except json.JSONDecodeError as exc:
+        return None, (
+            "tasks must be a JSON array of task objects; received a string "
+            f"that could not be parsed as JSON ({exc.msg})."
+        )
+    if not isinstance(parsed, list):
+        return None, (
+            f"tasks must be a JSON array of task objects; parsed "
+            f"{type(parsed).__name__} instead."
+        )
+    return parsed, None
+
+
 def delegate_task(
     goal: Optional[str] = None,
     context: Optional[str] = None,
@@ -1951,6 +1974,12 @@ def delegate_task(
 
     # Normalize to task list
     max_children = _get_max_concurrent_children()
+    recovered_tasks, tasks_error = _recover_tasks_from_json_string(tasks)
+    if tasks_error:
+        return tool_error(tasks_error)
+    if recovered_tasks is not None:
+        tasks = recovered_tasks
+
     if tasks and isinstance(tasks, list):
         if len(tasks) > max_children:
             return tool_error(
@@ -1973,6 +2002,10 @@ def delegate_task(
 
     # Validate each task has a goal
     for i, task in enumerate(task_list):
+        if not isinstance(task, dict):
+            return tool_error(
+                f"Task {i} must be an object, got {type(task).__name__}."
+            )
         if not task.get("goal", "").strip():
             return tool_error(f"Task {i} is missing a 'goal'.")
 
diff --git a/tools/kanban_tools.py b/tools/kanban_tools.py
index 2326895554..366252e385 100644
--- a/tools/kanban_tools.py
+++ b/tools/kanban_tools.py
@@ -373,7 +373,16 @@ def _handle_comment(args: dict, **kw) -> str:
     body = args.get("body")
     if not body or not str(body).strip():
         return tool_error("body is required")
-    author = args.get("author") or os.environ.get("HERMES_PROFILE") or "worker"
+    # Author is intentionally derived from the worker's own runtime
+    # identity, NOT from caller-supplied args. Comments are injected
+    # into the next worker's system prompt by ``build_worker_context``
+    # as ``**{author}** (timestamp): {body}`` — accepting an
+    # ``args["author"]`` override let a worker forge a comment from
+    # an authoritative-looking name like ``hermes-system`` and poison
+    # the future-worker context with what reads as a system directive.
+    # Cross-task commenting itself remains unrestricted (see #19713) —
+    # comments are the deliberate handoff channel between tasks.
+    author = os.environ.get("HERMES_PROFILE") or "worker"
     try:
         kb, conn = _connect()
         try:
@@ -656,13 +665,6 @@ KANBAN_COMMENT_SCHEMA = {
                 "type": "string",
                 "description": "Markdown-supported comment body.",
             },
-            "author": {
-                "type": "string",
-                "description": (
-                    "Override author name. Defaults to the current "
-                    "profile (HERMES_PROFILE env)."
-                ),
-            },
         },
         "required": ["task_id", "body"],
     },
diff --git a/tools/send_message_tool.py b/tools/send_message_tool.py
index 380208d429..785b42a3d9 100644
--- a/tools/send_message_tool.py
+++ b/tools/send_message_tool.py
@@ -423,25 +423,92 @@ def _maybe_skip_cron_duplicate_send(platform_name: str, chat_id: str, thread_id:
     }
 
 
-async def _send_via_adapter(platform, pconfig, chat_id, chunk):
-    """Send a message via a live gateway adapter (for plugin platforms).
+async def _send_via_adapter(
+    platform,
+    pconfig,
+    chat_id,
+    chunk,
+    *,
+    thread_id=None,
+    media_files=None,
+    force_document=False,
+):
+    """Send a message via a live gateway adapter, with a standalone fallback
+    for out-of-process callers (e.g. cron running separately from the gateway).
 
-    Falls back to error if no adapter is connected for this platform.
+    Order of attempts:
+      1. Live in-process adapter via ``_gateway_runner_ref()`` (the path that
+         existed before this change).
+      2. The plugin's ``standalone_sender_fn`` registered on its
+         ``PlatformEntry`` (used when the gateway is not in this process, so
+         the runner weakref is ``None``).
+      3. A descriptive error explaining both options.
     """
+    runner = None
     try:
         from gateway.run import _gateway_runner_ref
         runner = _gateway_runner_ref()
-        if runner:
+    except Exception:
+        runner = None
+
+    if runner is not None:
+        try:
             adapter = runner.adapters.get(platform)
-            if adapter:
-                from gateway.platforms.base import SendResult
+        except Exception:
+            adapter = None
+        if adapter is not None:
+            try:
                 result = await adapter.send(chat_id=chat_id, content=chunk)
-                if result.success:
-                    return {"success": True, "message_id": result.message_id}
-                return {"error": f"Adapter send failed: {result.error}"}
-    except Exception as e:
-        return {"error": f"Plugin platform send failed: {e}"}
-    return {"error": f"No live adapter for platform '{platform.value}'. Is the gateway running with this platform connected?"}
+            except asyncio.CancelledError:
+                raise
+            except Exception as e:
+                return {"error": f"Plugin platform send failed: {e}"}
+            if result.success:
+                return {"success": True, "message_id": result.message_id}
+            return {"error": f"Adapter send failed: {result.error}"}
+
+    platform_name = platform.value if hasattr(platform, "value") else str(platform)
+    entry = None
+    try:
+        from gateway.platform_registry import platform_registry
+        entry = platform_registry.get(platform_name)
+    except Exception:
+        entry = None
+
+    if entry is not None and entry.standalone_sender_fn is not None:
+        try:
+            result = await entry.standalone_sender_fn(
+                pconfig,
+                chat_id,
+                chunk,
+                thread_id=thread_id,
+                media_files=media_files,
+                force_document=force_document,
+            )
+        except asyncio.CancelledError:
+            raise
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.debug("Plugin standalone send for %s raised", platform_name, exc_info=True)
+            return {"error": f"Plugin standalone send failed: {e}"}
+
+        if isinstance(result, dict) and (result.get("success") or result.get("error")):
+            return result
+        return {
+            "error": (
+                f"Plugin standalone send for '{platform_name}' returned an "
+                f"invalid result: expected a dict with 'success' or 'error' "
+                f"keys, got {type(result).__name__}"
+            )
+        }
+
+    return {
+        "error": (
+            f"No live adapter for platform '{platform_name}'. Is the gateway "
+            f"running with this platform connected? For out-of-process delivery "
+            f"(e.g. cron in a separate process), the platform plugin must "
+            f"register a standalone_sender_fn on its PlatformEntry."
+        )
+    }
 
 
 async def _send_to_platform(platform, pconfig, chat_id, message, thread_id=None, media_files=None, force_document=False):
@@ -660,9 +727,17 @@ async def _send_to_platform(platform, pconfig, chat_id, message, thread_id=None,
         elif platform == Platform.YUANBAO:
             result = await _send_yuanbao(chat_id, chunk)
         else:
-            # Plugin platform — route through the gateway's live adapter
-            # if available, otherwise report the error.
-            result = await _send_via_adapter(platform, pconfig, chat_id, chunk)
+            # Plugin platform: route through the gateway's live adapter if
+            # available, otherwise the plugin's standalone_sender_fn.
+            result = await _send_via_adapter(
+                platform,
+                pconfig,
+                chat_id,
+                chunk,
+                thread_id=thread_id,
+                media_files=media_files,
+                force_document=force_document,
+            )
 
         if isinstance(result, dict) and result.get("error"):
             return result
@@ -710,7 +785,27 @@ async def _send_telegram(token, chat_id, message, media_files=None, thread_id=No
         media_files = media_files or []
         thread_kwargs = {}
         if thread_id is not None:
-            thread_kwargs["message_thread_id"] = int(thread_id)
+            # Reuse the gateway adapter's General-topic mapping: in Telegram
+            # forum supergroups, the General topic is addressed as
+            # message_thread_id="1" on incoming updates, but Bot API
+            # sendMessage rejects message_thread_id=1 with "Message thread
+            # not found". The adapter's helper maps "1" to None for that
+            # reason; the send_message tool needs the same mapping or a
+            # send to a forum group's General topic always errors out
+            # (see issue #22267).
+            try:
+                from gateway.platforms.telegram import TelegramAdapter
+                effective_thread_id = TelegramAdapter._message_thread_id_for_send(
+                    str(thread_id)
+                )
+            except Exception:
+                # Fallback: explicit mapping in case the adapter import
+                # fails (e.g. python-telegram-bot missing in this venv).
+                effective_thread_id = (
+                    None if str(thread_id) == "1" else int(thread_id)
+                )
+            if effective_thread_id is not None:
+                thread_kwargs["message_thread_id"] = effective_thread_id
         if disable_link_previews:
             thread_kwargs["disable_web_page_preview"] = True
 
diff --git a/tools/session_search_tool.py b/tools/session_search_tool.py
index efc450b322..2237a0cda9 100644
--- a/tools/session_search_tool.py
+++ b/tools/session_search_tool.py
@@ -337,7 +337,8 @@ def session_search(
     The current session is excluded from results since the agent already has that context.
     """
     if db is None:
-        return tool_error("Session database not available.", success=False)
+        from hermes_state import format_session_db_unavailable
+        return tool_error(format_session_db_unavailable(), success=False)
 
     # Defensive: models (especially open-source) may send non-int limit values
     # (None when JSON null, string "int", or even a type object).  Coerce to a
diff --git a/website/docs/developer-guide/adding-platform-adapters.md b/website/docs/developer-guide/adding-platform-adapters.md
index 763f9e6d1f..1ba4b9a34c 100644
--- a/website/docs/developer-guide/adding-platform-adapters.md
+++ b/website/docs/developer-guide/adding-platform-adapters.md
@@ -253,6 +253,37 @@ ctx.register_platform(
 
 The scheduler reads this env var when resolving the home target for `deliver=my_platform` jobs, and also treats the platform as a valid cron target in `_KNOWN_DELIVERY_PLATFORMS`-style checks. If your `env_enablement_fn` seeds a `home_channel` dict (see above), that takes precedence — `cron_deliver_env_var` is the fallback for cron jobs that run before env seeding.
 
+### Out-of-process cron delivery
+
+`cron_deliver_env_var` makes your platform a recognized `deliver=` target. To make the actual send succeed when the cron job runs in a separate process from the gateway (i.e., `hermes cron run` separate from `hermes gateway`), register a `standalone_sender_fn`:
+
+```python
+async def _standalone_send(
+    pconfig,
+    chat_id,
+    message,
+    *,
+    thread_id=None,
+    media_files=None,
+    force_document=False,
+):
+    """Open an ephemeral connection / acquire a fresh token, send, and close."""
+    # ... open connection, send message, return result ...
+    return {"success": True, "message_id": "..."}
+    # or {"error": "..."}
+
+ctx.register_platform(
+    name="my_platform",
+    ...
+    cron_deliver_env_var="MY_PLATFORM_HOME_CHANNEL",
+    standalone_sender_fn=_standalone_send,
+)
+```
+
+Why this hook is necessary: built-in platforms (Telegram, Discord, Slack, etc.) ship direct REST helpers in `tools/send_message_tool.py` so cron can deliver without holding the gateway in the same process. Plugin platforms historically depended on `_gateway_runner_ref()`, which returns `None` outside the gateway process, so without `standalone_sender_fn` the cron-side send fails with `No live adapter for platform '<name>'`.
+
+The function receives the same `pconfig` and `chat_id` that the live adapter would, plus optional `thread_id`, `media_files`, and `force_document` keyword arguments. Returning `{"success": True, "message_id": ...}` is treated as a successful delivery; returning `{"error": "..."}` surfaces the message in cron's `delivery_errors`. Exceptions raised inside the function are caught by the dispatcher and reported as `Plugin standalone send failed: <reason>`. Reference implementations live in `plugins/platforms/{irc,teams,google_chat}/adapter.py`.
+
 ## Surfacing Env Vars in `hermes config`
 
 `hermes_cli/config.py` scans `plugins/platforms/*/plugin.yaml` at import time and auto-populates `OPTIONAL_ENV_VARS` from `requires_env` and (optional) `optional_env` blocks. Use the rich-dict form to contribute proper descriptions, prompts, password flags, and URLs — the CLI setup UI picks them up for free.
diff --git a/website/docs/user-guide/messaging/feishu.md b/website/docs/user-guide/messaging/feishu.md
index 879964c80f..d5a84afc0e 100644
--- a/website/docs/user-guide/messaging/feishu.md
+++ b/website/docs/user-guide/messaging/feishu.md
@@ -249,6 +249,8 @@ When users click buttons or interact with interactive cards sent by the bot, the
 - The action's `value` payload from the card definition is included as JSON.
 - Card actions are deduplicated with a 15-minute window to prevent double processing.
 
+Gateway-driven update prompts use a native Feishu `Yes` / `No` card instead of falling back to plain text replies. When `hermes update --gateway` needs confirmation, the adapter records the selected answer in Hermes's `.update_response` file and replaces the card inline with a resolved state.
+
 Card action events are dispatched with `MessageType.COMMAND`, so they flow through the normal command processing pipeline.
 
 This is also how **command approval** works — when the agent needs to run a dangerous command, it sends an interactive card with Allow Once / Session / Always / Deny buttons. The user clicks a button, and the card action callback delivers the approval decision back to the agent.