tests: pin ink engine in _make_tui_argv npm-bootstrap tests (post-merge semantic fix)

Main's rewritten test_tui_npm_install.py tests call _make_tui_argv expecting
the Ink/npm flow unconditionally; with the dual-engine dispatch merged in,
_resolve_tui_engine() auto-selects opentui whenever ui-opentui/dist is built
in the repo, routing the call away from the path under test (first subprocess
became 'node --version' instead of 'npm run build'). Pin the engine to ink
via an autouse fixture, mirroring the existing pinning precedent in
test_tui_resume_flow.py.

apps/desktop/electron/bootstrap-runner.cjs

@@ -40,6 +40,15 @@ const path = require('node:path')
 const https = require('node:https')
 const { spawn } = require('node:child_process')
 
+const IS_WINDOWS = process.platform === 'win32'
+
+function hiddenWindowsChildOptions(options = {}) {
+  if (!IS_WINDOWS || Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(options, 'windowsHide')) {
+    return options
+  }
+  return { ...options, windowsHide: true }
+}
+
 const STAMP_COMMIT_RE = /^[0-9a-f]{7,40}$/i
 
 // Stages flagged needs_user_input=true in the manifest are skipped by the
@@ -284,7 +293,7 @@ function spawnPowerShell(scriptPath, args, { emit, stageName, abortSignal, herme
     const ps = process.platform === 'win32' ? resolveWindowsPowerShell() : 'pwsh'
     const fullArgs = ['-NoProfile', '-ExecutionPolicy', 'Bypass', '-File', scriptPath, ...args]
 
-    const child = spawn(ps, fullArgs, {
+    const child = spawn(ps, fullArgs, hiddenWindowsChildOptions({
       stdio: ['ignore', 'pipe', 'pipe'],
       env: {
         ...process.env,
@@ -292,7 +301,7 @@ function spawnPowerShell(scriptPath, args, { emit, stageName, abortSignal, herme
         // choice rather than re-computing the default.
         HERMES_HOME: hermesHome || process.env.HERMES_HOME || ''
       }
-    })
+    }))
 
     let stdout = ''
     let stderr = ''

apps/desktop/electron/dashboard-token.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+/**
+ * Helpers for local dashboard session-token discovery.
+ *
+ * The desktop main process can pass HERMES_DASHBOARD_SESSION_TOKEN when it
+ * spawns the local dashboard, but the dashboard is the source of truth for the
+ * token it actually serves to the renderer. If those drift, HTTP readiness
+ * probes still pass while /api/ws rejects the renderer's token.
+ */
+
+const DEFAULT_TOKEN_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS = 3_000
+
+async function fetchPublicText(url, options = {}) {
+  const { protocol } = new URL(url)
+  if (protocol !== 'http:' && protocol !== 'https:') {
+    throw new Error(`Unsupported Hermes backend URL protocol: ${protocol}`)
+  }
+
+  const timeoutMs = options.timeoutMs ?? DEFAULT_TOKEN_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS
+  const res = await fetch(url, { signal: AbortSignal.timeout(timeoutMs) }).catch(error => {
+    if (error.name === 'TimeoutError') {
+      throw new Error(`Timed out connecting to Hermes backend after ${timeoutMs}ms`)
+    }
+    throw error
+  })
+  const text = await res.text()
+
+  if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`${res.status}: ${text || res.statusText}`)
+
+  return text
+}
+
+function extractInjectedDashboardToken(html) {
+  const match = /window\.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__\s*=\s*("(?:\\.|[^"\\])*")/.exec(String(html || ''))
+  if (!match) return null
+  try {
+    return JSON.parse(match[1])
+  } catch {
+    return null
+  }
+}
+
+function dashboardIndexUrl(baseUrl) {
+  return `${String(baseUrl || '').replace(/\/+$/, '')}/`
+}
+
+async function resolveServedDashboardToken(baseUrl, fallbackToken, options = {}) {
+  const fetchText = options.fetchText || fetchPublicText
+  const html = await fetchText(dashboardIndexUrl(baseUrl), {
+    timeoutMs: options.timeoutMs ?? DEFAULT_TOKEN_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS
+  })
+  const servedToken = extractInjectedDashboardToken(html)
+
+  if (servedToken && servedToken !== fallbackToken && typeof options.rememberLog === 'function') {
+    options.rememberLog('[boot] dashboard served a different session token; using served token for WebSocket auth')
+  }
+
+  return servedToken || fallbackToken
+}
+
+/**
+ * A served token that differs from our spawn token while our child is DEAD
+ * came from a process we did not spawn (orphan/port squatter that satisfied
+ * the public /api/status readiness probe). With a live child the mismatch is
+ * benign: our own backend regenerated the token because the env pin did not
+ * survive the spawn.
+ */
+function isForeignBackendToken({ servedToken, spawnToken, childAlive }) {
+  return Boolean(servedToken) && servedToken !== spawnToken && !childAlive
+}
+
+/**
+ * Resolve the token the backend actually serves, adopting benign drift and
+ * failing loudly on a foreign backend. `childAlive` is a thunk so liveness is
+ * sampled after the fetch, not before.
+ */
+async function adoptServedDashboardToken(baseUrl, spawnToken, { childAlive, label = 'Hermes backend', ...options }) {
+  const servedToken = await resolveServedDashboardToken(baseUrl, spawnToken, options).catch(error => {
+    options.rememberLog?.(`[boot] could not read served dashboard token (${label}): ${error.message}`)
+    return spawnToken
+  })
+
+  if (isForeignBackendToken({ servedToken, spawnToken, childAlive: childAlive() })) {
+    throw new Error(
+      `${label} exited and ${dashboardIndexUrl(baseUrl)} is served by a process we did not spawn; refusing its session token.`
+    )
+  }
+
+  return servedToken
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  DEFAULT_TOKEN_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS,
+  adoptServedDashboardToken,
+  dashboardIndexUrl,
+  extractInjectedDashboardToken,
+  fetchPublicText,
+  isForeignBackendToken,
+  resolveServedDashboardToken
+}

apps/desktop/electron/dashboard-token.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,142 @@
+/**
+ * Tests for electron/dashboard-token.cjs.
+ *
+ * Run with: node --test electron/dashboard-token.test.cjs
+ * (Wired into npm test:desktop:platforms in package.json.)
+ */
+
+const test = require('node:test')
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+
+const {
+  adoptServedDashboardToken,
+  dashboardIndexUrl,
+  extractInjectedDashboardToken,
+  fetchPublicText,
+  isForeignBackendToken,
+  resolveServedDashboardToken
+} = require('./dashboard-token.cjs')
+
+test('extractInjectedDashboardToken reads the JSON-encoded dashboard token', () => {
+  const html = '<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__="served-token";window.__HERMES_BASE_PATH__=""</script>'
+  assert.equal(extractInjectedDashboardToken(html), 'served-token')
+})
+
+test('extractInjectedDashboardToken handles escaped token strings', () => {
+  const html = '<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__="served\\\\token\\"quoted";</script>'
+  assert.equal(extractInjectedDashboardToken(html), 'served\\token"quoted')
+})
+
+test('extractInjectedDashboardToken returns null for missing or malformed values', () => {
+  assert.equal(extractInjectedDashboardToken('<html></html>'), null)
+  assert.equal(extractInjectedDashboardToken('<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__={bad}</script>'), null)
+})
+
+test('dashboardIndexUrl preserves dashboard path prefixes', () => {
+  assert.equal(dashboardIndexUrl('http://127.0.0.1:9120'), 'http://127.0.0.1:9120/')
+  assert.equal(dashboardIndexUrl('https://host.example/hermes/'), 'https://host.example/hermes/')
+})
+
+test('resolveServedDashboardToken uses the served token and logs when it differs', async () => {
+  const logs = []
+  const token = await resolveServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'spawn-token', {
+    fetchText: async url => {
+      assert.equal(url, 'http://127.0.0.1:9120/')
+      return '<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__="served-token";</script>'
+    },
+    rememberLog: line => logs.push(line)
+  })
+
+  assert.equal(token, 'served-token')
+  assert.equal(logs.length, 1)
+  assert.match(logs[0], /served a different session token/)
+})
+
+test('resolveServedDashboardToken falls back when the served HTML has no token', async () => {
+  const token = await resolveServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'spawn-token', {
+    fetchText: async () => '<html></html>',
+    rememberLog: () => {
+      throw new Error('should not log when no served token is present')
+    }
+  })
+
+  assert.equal(token, 'spawn-token')
+})
+
+test('resolveServedDashboardToken does not log when served token matches fallback', async () => {
+  const token = await resolveServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'same-token', {
+    fetchText: async () => '<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__="same-token";</script>',
+    rememberLog: () => {
+      throw new Error('should not log when token already matches')
+    }
+  })
+
+  assert.equal(token, 'same-token')
+})
+
+test('resolveServedDashboardToken propagates fetch errors so callers can fall back explicitly', async () => {
+  await assert.rejects(
+    () =>
+      resolveServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'spawn-token', {
+        fetchText: async () => {
+          throw new Error('boom')
+        }
+      }),
+    /boom/
+  )
+})
+
+test('fetchPublicText rejects unsupported protocols', async () => {
+  await assert.rejects(() => fetchPublicText('file:///tmp/index.html'), /Unsupported Hermes backend URL protocol/)
+})
+
+test('isForeignBackendToken only flags a mismatched token from a dead child', () => {
+  const cases = [
+    [{ servedToken: 'other', spawnToken: 'mine', childAlive: false }, true],
+    // Live child + drift = our backend regenerated the token (env pin lost).
+    [{ servedToken: 'other', spawnToken: 'mine', childAlive: true }, false],
+    [{ servedToken: 'mine', spawnToken: 'mine', childAlive: false }, false],
+    [{ servedToken: 'mine', spawnToken: 'mine', childAlive: true }, false],
+    [{ servedToken: null, spawnToken: 'mine', childAlive: false }, false],
+    [{ servedToken: '', spawnToken: 'mine', childAlive: false }, false]
+  ]
+  for (const [input, expected] of cases) {
+    assert.equal(isForeignBackendToken(input), expected, JSON.stringify(input))
+  }
+})
+
+test('adoptServedDashboardToken adopts drift from a live child', async () => {
+  const token = await adoptServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'spawn-token', {
+    childAlive: () => true,
+    fetchText: async () => '<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__="served-token";</script>'
+  })
+
+  assert.equal(token, 'served-token')
+})
+
+test('adoptServedDashboardToken refuses a foreign token when our child is dead', async () => {
+  await assert.rejects(
+    () =>
+      adoptServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'spawn-token', {
+        childAlive: () => false,
+        fetchText: async () => '<script>window.__HERMES_SESSION_TOKEN__="squatter-token";</script>',
+        label: 'Hermes backend for profile "work"'
+      }),
+    /profile "work".*process we did not spawn/
+  )
+})
+
+test('adoptServedDashboardToken falls back to the spawn token when the fetch fails', async () => {
+  const logs = []
+  const token = await adoptServedDashboardToken('http://127.0.0.1:9120', 'spawn-token', {
+    childAlive: () => true,
+    fetchText: async () => {
+      throw new Error('boom')
+    },
+    rememberLog: line => logs.push(line)
+  })
+
+  assert.equal(token, 'spawn-token')
+  assert.equal(logs.length, 1)
+  assert.match(logs[0], /could not read served dashboard token \(Hermes backend\): boom/)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/fs-read-dir.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,109 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const fs = require('node:fs')
+const path = require('node:path')
+const { resolveDirectoryForIpc } = require('./hardening.cjs')
+
+const FS_READDIR_STAT_CONCURRENCY = 16
+
+// Always-hidden noise (covers non-git projects too; gitignore catches many of
+// these, but the project tree should keep the same hygiene without one).
+const FS_READDIR_HIDDEN = new Set([
+  '.git',
+  '.hg',
+  '.svn',
+  '.cache',
+  '.next',
+  '.turbo',
+  '.venv',
+  '__pycache__',
+  'build',
+  'dist',
+  'node_modules',
+  'target',
+  'venv'
+])
+
+function direntIsDirectory(dirent) {
+  return typeof dirent.isDirectory === 'function' && dirent.isDirectory()
+}
+
+function direntIsFile(dirent) {
+  return typeof dirent.isFile === 'function' && dirent.isFile()
+}
+
+function direntIsSymbolicLink(dirent) {
+  return typeof dirent.isSymbolicLink === 'function' && dirent.isSymbolicLink()
+}
+
+function shouldStatDirent(dirent) {
+  if (direntIsDirectory(dirent)) return false
+
+  return direntIsSymbolicLink(dirent) || !direntIsFile(dirent)
+}
+
+async function entryForDirent(dirent, resolved, fsImpl) {
+  const fullPath = path.join(resolved, dirent.name)
+  let isDirectory = direntIsDirectory(dirent)
+
+  if (!isDirectory && shouldStatDirent(dirent)) {
+    try {
+      isDirectory = (await fsImpl.promises.stat(fullPath)).isDirectory()
+    } catch {
+      isDirectory = false
+    }
+  }
+
+  return { name: dirent.name, path: fullPath, isDirectory }
+}
+
+async function mapWithStatConcurrency(items, mapper) {
+  const results = new Array(items.length)
+  let nextIndex = 0
+
+  async function runWorker() {
+    while (nextIndex < items.length) {
+      const index = nextIndex
+      nextIndex += 1
+      results[index] = await mapper(items[index])
+    }
+  }
+
+  const workerCount = Math.min(FS_READDIR_STAT_CONCURRENCY, items.length)
+  const workers = Array.from({ length: workerCount }, () => runWorker())
+  await Promise.all(workers)
+
+  return results
+}
+
+async function readDirForIpc(dirPath, options = {}) {
+  const fsImpl = options.fs || fs
+  let resolved
+
+  try {
+    ;({ resolvedPath: resolved } = await resolveDirectoryForIpc(dirPath, {
+      fs: fsImpl,
+      purpose: 'Directory read'
+    }))
+  } catch (error) {
+    return { entries: [], error: error?.code || 'read-error' }
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const dirents = await fsImpl.promises.readdir(resolved, { withFileTypes: true })
+    const visibleDirents = dirents.filter(dirent => !FS_READDIR_HIDDEN.has(dirent.name))
+    const entries = await mapWithStatConcurrency(visibleDirents, dirent =>
+      entryForDirent(dirent, resolved, fsImpl)
+    )
+
+    entries.sort((a, b) => Number(b.isDirectory) - Number(a.isDirectory) || a.name.localeCompare(b.name))
+
+    return { entries }
+  } catch (error) {
+    return { entries: [], error: error?.code || 'read-error' }
+  }
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  readDirForIpc
+}

apps/desktop/electron/fs-read-dir.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,364 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+const fs = require('node:fs')
+const os = require('node:os')
+const path = require('node:path')
+const test = require('node:test')
+const { pathToFileURL } = require('node:url')
+
+const { readDirForIpc } = require('./fs-read-dir.cjs')
+
+function mkTmpDir() {
+  return fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-fs-read-dir-'))
+}
+
+function fakeDirent(name, flags = {}) {
+  return {
+    name,
+    isDirectory: () => Boolean(flags.directory),
+    isFile: () => Boolean(flags.file),
+    isSymbolicLink: () => Boolean(flags.symlink)
+  }
+}
+
+test('readDirForIpc hides noisy directories and files from the project tree', async () => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'node_modules'))
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'src'))
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(root, 'target'), 'hidden file')
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(root, 'README.md'), 'visible file')
+
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(root)
+
+    assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+    assert.deepEqual(
+      result.entries.map(entry => entry.name),
+      ['src', 'README.md']
+    )
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc filters a hidden basename whether it is a file or directory', async () => {
+  const dirRoot = mkTmpDir()
+  const fileRoot = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(dirRoot, 'node_modules'))
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(dirRoot, 'visible.txt'), 'visible')
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(fileRoot, 'node_modules'), 'hidden file')
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(fileRoot, 'visible.txt'), 'visible')
+
+    assert.deepEqual(
+      (await readDirForIpc(dirRoot)).entries.map(entry => entry.name),
+      ['visible.txt']
+    )
+    assert.deepEqual(
+      (await readDirForIpc(fileRoot)).entries.map(entry => entry.name),
+      ['visible.txt']
+    )
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(dirRoot, { recursive: true, force: true })
+    fs.rmSync(fileRoot, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc returns directories before files and sorts by name within groups', async () => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(root, 'z.txt'), 'z')
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'src'))
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(root, 'a.txt'), 'a')
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'lib'))
+
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(root)
+
+    assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+    assert.deepEqual(
+      result.entries.map(entry => entry.name),
+      ['lib', 'src', 'a.txt', 'z.txt']
+    )
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc accepts file URLs for directories', async () => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'src'))
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(root, 'README.md'), 'visible file')
+
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(pathToFileURL(root).toString())
+
+    assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+    assert.deepEqual(
+      result.entries.map(entry => entry.name),
+      ['src', 'README.md']
+    )
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc returns invalid-path for blank or non-string input', async () => {
+  let readdirCalls = 0
+  const fsImpl = {
+    promises: {
+      readdir: async () => {
+        readdirCalls += 1
+        return []
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  assert.deepEqual(await readDirForIpc('', { fs: fsImpl }), { entries: [], error: 'invalid-path' })
+  assert.deepEqual(await readDirForIpc('   ', { fs: fsImpl }), { entries: [], error: 'invalid-path' })
+  assert.deepEqual(await readDirForIpc(null, { fs: fsImpl }), { entries: [], error: 'invalid-path' })
+  assert.equal(readdirCalls, 0)
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc rejects Windows device paths before readdir', async () => {
+  let readdirCalls = 0
+  const fsImpl = {
+    promises: {
+      readdir: async () => {
+        readdirCalls += 1
+        return []
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  assert.deepEqual(await readDirForIpc('\\\\?\\C:\\secret', { fs: fsImpl }), {
+    entries: [],
+    error: 'device-path'
+  })
+  assert.equal(readdirCalls, 0)
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc returns filesystem error codes instead of throwing', async () => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(path.join(root, 'missing'))
+
+    assert.deepEqual(result, { entries: [], error: 'ENOENT' })
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc marks a symlink to a directory as a directory', async t => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'actual-dir'))
+
+    try {
+      fs.symlinkSync(path.join(root, 'actual-dir'), path.join(root, 'linked-dir'), 'dir')
+    } catch (error) {
+      if (error?.code === 'EPERM' || error?.code === 'EACCES') {
+        t.skip(`symlink creation is not permitted on this platform (${error.code})`)
+
+        return
+      }
+
+      throw error
+    }
+
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(root)
+    const linked = result.entries.find(entry => entry.name === 'linked-dir')
+
+    assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+    assert.equal(linked?.isDirectory, true)
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc marks a Windows junction to a directory as a directory', async t => {
+  if (process.platform !== 'win32') {
+    t.skip('junctions are a Windows-specific symlink type')
+
+    return
+  }
+
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'actual-dir'))
+
+    try {
+      fs.symlinkSync(path.join(root, 'actual-dir'), path.join(root, 'junction-dir'), 'junction')
+    } catch (error) {
+      if (error?.code === 'EPERM' || error?.code === 'EACCES') {
+        t.skip(`junction creation is not permitted on this platform (${error.code})`)
+
+        return
+      }
+
+      throw error
+    }
+
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(root)
+    const junction = result.entries.find(entry => entry.name === 'junction-dir')
+
+    assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+    assert.equal(junction?.isDirectory, true)
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc allows expanding symlink or junction directories outside the project root', async t => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+  const outside = mkTmpDir()
+
+  try {
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(outside, 'outside.txt'), 'ok')
+
+    const linkPath = path.join(root, 'outside-link')
+    try {
+      fs.symlinkSync(outside, linkPath, process.platform === 'win32' ? 'junction' : 'dir')
+    } catch (error) {
+      if (error?.code === 'EPERM' || error?.code === 'EACCES') {
+        t.skip(`directory symlink creation is not permitted on this platform (${error.code})`)
+
+        return
+      }
+
+      throw error
+    }
+
+    const result = await readDirForIpc(linkPath)
+
+    assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+    assert.deepEqual(result.entries, [
+      { name: 'outside.txt', path: path.join(linkPath, 'outside.txt'), isDirectory: false }
+    ])
+  } finally {
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true })
+    fs.rmSync(outside, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc stats symbolic links and unknown entries without dropping the whole listing', async () => {
+  const input = path.join('virtual-root')
+  const resolved = path.resolve(input)
+  const statCalls = []
+  const fsImpl = {
+    promises: {
+      readdir: async () => [
+        fakeDirent('unknown-entry'),
+        fakeDirent('linked-dir', { symlink: true }),
+        fakeDirent('broken-link', { symlink: true }),
+        fakeDirent('plain.txt', { file: true })
+      ],
+      stat: async fullPath => {
+        if (fullPath === resolved) {
+          return { isDirectory: () => true }
+        }
+
+        statCalls.push(fullPath)
+        if (fullPath.endsWith(`${path.sep}linked-dir`)) {
+          return { isDirectory: () => true }
+        }
+        throw Object.assign(new Error('gone'), { code: 'ENOENT' })
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  const result = await readDirForIpc(input, { fs: fsImpl })
+
+  assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+  assert.deepEqual(
+    statCalls.sort(),
+    [path.join(resolved, 'broken-link'), path.join(resolved, 'linked-dir'), path.join(resolved, 'unknown-entry')].sort()
+  )
+  assert.deepEqual(result.entries, [
+    { name: 'linked-dir', path: path.join(resolved, 'linked-dir'), isDirectory: true },
+    { name: 'broken-link', path: path.join(resolved, 'broken-link'), isDirectory: false },
+    { name: 'plain.txt', path: path.join(resolved, 'plain.txt'), isDirectory: false },
+    { name: 'unknown-entry', path: path.join(resolved, 'unknown-entry'), isDirectory: false }
+  ])
+})
+
+test('readDirForIpc bounds concurrent stats while preserving complete sorted output', async () => {
+  const input = path.join('virtual-root')
+  const resolved = path.resolve(input)
+  const names = Array.from({ length: 105 }, (_, index) => `entry-${String(104 - index).padStart(3, '0')}`)
+  const failedName = 'entry-100'
+  const directoryNames = new Set(names.filter((_, index) => index % 10 === 4))
+  const successfulDirectoryNames = new Set([...directoryNames].filter(name => name !== failedName))
+  const statCalls = []
+  let active = 0
+  let peak = 0
+  let releaseStats
+  let markFirstStatStarted
+  const statsReleased = new Promise(resolve => {
+    releaseStats = resolve
+  })
+  const firstStatStarted = new Promise(resolve => {
+    markFirstStatStarted = resolve
+  })
+  const fsImpl = {
+    promises: {
+      readdir: async () => [
+        fakeDirent('node_modules', { symlink: true }),
+        ...names.map((name, index) => fakeDirent(name, { symlink: index % 2 === 0 }))
+      ],
+      stat: async fullPath => {
+        if (fullPath === resolved) {
+          return { isDirectory: () => true }
+        }
+
+        statCalls.push(fullPath)
+        active += 1
+        peak = Math.max(peak, active)
+        markFirstStatStarted()
+        await statsReleased
+        active -= 1
+
+        const name = path.basename(fullPath)
+        if (name === failedName) {
+          throw Object.assign(new Error('gone'), { code: 'ENOENT' })
+        }
+
+        return { isDirectory: () => successfulDirectoryNames.has(name) }
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  const resultPromise = readDirForIpc(input, { fs: fsImpl })
+  await firstStatStarted
+  await new Promise(resolve => setImmediate(resolve))
+  releaseStats()
+  const result = await resultPromise
+
+  const expectedNames = [
+    ...names.filter(name => successfulDirectoryNames.has(name)).sort(),
+    ...names.filter(name => !successfulDirectoryNames.has(name)).sort()
+  ]
+
+  assert.equal(result.error, undefined)
+  assert.equal(result.entries.length, names.length)
+  assert.equal(statCalls.length, names.length)
+  assert.equal(statCalls.some(fullPath => fullPath.endsWith(`${path.sep}node_modules`)), false)
+  assert.ok(peak > 1, `expected concurrent stats, observed peak ${peak}`)
+  assert.ok(peak <= 16, `expected at most 16 concurrent stats, observed peak ${peak}`)
+  assert.deepEqual(
+    result.entries.map(entry => entry.name),
+    expectedNames
+  )
+  assert.equal(result.entries.find(entry => entry.name === failedName)?.isDirectory, false)
+  assert.equal(
+    result.entries.filter(entry => entry.isDirectory).length,
+    successfulDirectoryNames.size
+  )
+})

apps/desktop/electron/git-root.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const fs = require('node:fs')
+const path = require('node:path')
+const { resolveRequestedPathForIpc } = require('./hardening.cjs')
+
+function findGitRoot(start, fsImpl = fs) {
+  let dir = start
+
+  for (let i = 0; i < 50; i += 1) {
+    try {
+      if (fsImpl.existsSync(path.join(dir, '.git'))) {
+        return dir
+      }
+    } catch {
+      return null
+    }
+
+    const parent = path.dirname(dir)
+
+    if (parent === dir) {
+      return null
+    }
+
+    dir = parent
+  }
+
+  return null
+}
+
+async function gitRootForIpc(startPath, options = {}) {
+  const fsImpl = options.fs || fs
+  let resolved
+
+  try {
+    resolved = resolveRequestedPathForIpc(startPath, { purpose: 'Git root' })
+  } catch {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const stat = await fsImpl.promises.stat(resolved)
+    const start = stat.isDirectory() ? resolved : path.dirname(resolved)
+
+    return findGitRoot(start, fsImpl)
+  } catch {
+    return findGitRoot(resolved, fsImpl)
+  }
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  findGitRoot,
+  gitRootForIpc
+}

apps/desktop/electron/git-root.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+const fs = require('node:fs')
+const os = require('node:os')
+const path = require('node:path')
+const test = require('node:test')
+const { pathToFileURL } = require('node:url')
+
+const { gitRootForIpc } = require('./git-root.cjs')
+
+function mkTmpDir() {
+  return fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-git-root-'))
+}
+
+test('gitRootForIpc returns null for invalid and device paths', async () => {
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(''), null)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc('   '), null)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(null), null)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc('\\\\?\\C:\\secret'), null)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc('file:///%E0%A4%A'), null)
+})
+
+test('gitRootForIpc resolves directories files missing descendants and file URLs', async t => {
+  const root = mkTmpDir()
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+
+  const gitDir = path.join(root, '.git')
+  const srcDir = path.join(root, 'src')
+  const filePath = path.join(srcDir, 'index.ts')
+  fs.mkdirSync(gitDir)
+  fs.mkdirSync(srcDir)
+  fs.writeFileSync(filePath, 'export {}\n', 'utf8')
+
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(root), root)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(srcDir), root)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(filePath), root)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(pathToFileURL(filePath).toString()), root)
+  assert.equal(await gitRootForIpc(path.join(srcDir, 'missing.ts')), root)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/hardening.cjs

@@ -106,71 +106,155 @@ function sensitiveFileBlockReason(filePath) {
   return null
 }
 
-function resolveRequestedFilePath(filePath, baseDir = process.cwd(), purpose = 'File read') {
-  const raw = String(filePath || '').trim()
+function ipcPathError(code, message) {
+  const error = new Error(message)
+  error.code = code
+  return error
+}
+
+function rejectUnsafePathSyntax(filePath, purpose = 'File read') {
+  if (typeof filePath !== 'string') {
+    throw ipcPathError('invalid-path', `${purpose} failed: file path is required.`)
+  }
+
+  const raw = filePath.trim()
 
   if (!raw) {
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: file path is required.`)
+    throw ipcPathError('invalid-path', `${purpose} failed: file path is required.`)
   }
 
   if (raw.includes('\0')) {
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: file path is invalid.`)
+    throw ipcPathError('invalid-path', `${purpose} failed: file path is invalid.`)
   }
 
+  const normalized = raw.replace(/\\/g, '/').toLowerCase()
+  if (
+    normalized.startsWith('//?/') ||
+    normalized.startsWith('//./') ||
+    normalized.startsWith('globalroot/device/') ||
+    normalized.includes('/globalroot/device/')
+  ) {
+    throw ipcPathError('device-path', `${purpose} blocked: Windows device paths are not allowed.`)
+  }
+
+  return raw
+}
+
+function resolveRequestedPathForIpc(filePath, options = {}) {
+  const purpose = String(options.purpose || 'File read')
+  const raw = rejectUnsafePathSyntax(filePath, purpose)
+
   if (/^file:/i.test(raw)) {
+    let resolvedPath
     try {
-      return fileURLToPath(raw)
+      const parsed = new URL(raw)
+      if (parsed.protocol !== 'file:') {
+        throw new Error('not a file URL')
+      }
+      resolvedPath = fileURLToPath(parsed)
     } catch {
-      throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: file URL is invalid.`)
+      throw ipcPathError('invalid-path', `${purpose} failed: file URL is invalid.`)
     }
+
+    rejectUnsafePathSyntax(resolvedPath, purpose)
+    return path.resolve(resolvedPath)
   }
 
-  const resolvedBase = path.resolve(String(baseDir || process.cwd()))
-  return path.resolve(resolvedBase, raw)
+  const baseInput = typeof options.baseDir === 'string' && options.baseDir.trim() ? options.baseDir : process.cwd()
+  const safeBaseInput = rejectUnsafePathSyntax(baseInput, purpose)
+  const resolvedBase = path.resolve(safeBaseInput)
+  rejectUnsafePathSyntax(resolvedBase, purpose)
+  const resolvedPath = path.resolve(resolvedBase, raw)
+  rejectUnsafePathSyntax(resolvedPath, purpose)
+
+  return resolvedPath
+}
+
+async function statForIpc(fsImpl, resolvedPath, purpose, typeLabel) {
+  try {
+    return await fsImpl.promises.stat(resolvedPath)
+  } catch (error) {
+    const code = error && typeof error === 'object' ? error.code : ''
+    if (code === 'ENOENT' || code === 'ENOTDIR') {
+      throw ipcPathError(code || 'ENOENT', `${purpose} failed: ${typeLabel} does not exist.`)
+    }
+    throw ipcPathError(code || 'read-error', `${purpose} failed: ${error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)}`)
+  }
+}
+
+async function realpathForIpc(fsImpl, resolvedPath, purpose) {
+  if (typeof fsImpl.promises.realpath !== 'function') {
+    return resolvedPath
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const realPath = await fsImpl.promises.realpath(resolvedPath)
+    rejectUnsafePathSyntax(realPath, purpose)
+    return realPath
+  } catch (error) {
+    const code = error && typeof error === 'object' ? error.code : ''
+    throw ipcPathError(code || 'read-error', `${purpose} failed: ${error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)}`)
+  }
+}
+
+function rejectSensitiveFilePath(filePath, purpose) {
+  const blockReason = sensitiveFileBlockReason(filePath)
+  if (blockReason) {
+    throw ipcPathError('sensitive-file', `${purpose} blocked for sensitive file: ${blockReason}`)
+  }
+}
+
+async function resolveDirectoryForIpc(dirPath, options = {}) {
+  const purpose = String(options.purpose || 'Directory read')
+  const fsImpl = options.fs || fs
+  const resolvedPath = resolveRequestedPathForIpc(dirPath, { baseDir: options.baseDir, purpose })
+  const stat = await statForIpc(fsImpl, resolvedPath, purpose, 'directory')
+
+  if (!stat.isDirectory()) {
+    throw ipcPathError('ENOTDIR', `${purpose} failed: path is not a directory.`)
+  }
+
+  const realPath = await realpathForIpc(fsImpl, resolvedPath, purpose)
+
+  return { realPath, resolvedPath, stat }
 }
 
 async function resolveReadableFileForIpc(filePath, options = {}) {
   const purpose = String(options.purpose || 'File read')
-  const resolvedPath = resolveRequestedFilePath(filePath, options.baseDir, purpose)
+  const fsImpl = options.fs || fs
+  const resolvedPath = resolveRequestedPathForIpc(filePath, { baseDir: options.baseDir, purpose })
 
   if (options.blockSensitive !== false) {
-    const blockReason = sensitiveFileBlockReason(resolvedPath)
-    if (blockReason) {
-      throw new Error(`${purpose} blocked for sensitive file: ${blockReason}`)
-    }
+    rejectSensitiveFilePath(resolvedPath, purpose)
   }
 
-  let stat
-  try {
-    stat = await fs.promises.stat(resolvedPath)
-  } catch (error) {
-    const code = error && typeof error === 'object' ? error.code : ''
-    if (code === 'ENOENT' || code === 'ENOTDIR') {
-      throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: file does not exist.`)
-    }
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: ${error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)}`)
-  }
+  const stat = await statForIpc(fsImpl, resolvedPath, purpose, 'file')
 
   if (stat.isDirectory()) {
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: path points to a directory.`)
+    throw ipcPathError('EISDIR', `${purpose} failed: path points to a directory.`)
   }
 
   if (!stat.isFile()) {
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: only regular files can be read.`)
+    throw ipcPathError('EINVAL', `${purpose} failed: only regular files can be read.`)
+  }
+
+  const realPath = await realpathForIpc(fsImpl, resolvedPath, purpose)
+  if (options.blockSensitive !== false) {
+    rejectSensitiveFilePath(realPath, purpose)
   }
 
   const maxBytes = Number.isFinite(options.maxBytes) && Number(options.maxBytes) > 0 ? Number(options.maxBytes) : null
   if (maxBytes && stat.size > maxBytes) {
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: file is too large (${stat.size} bytes; limit ${maxBytes} bytes).`)
+    throw ipcPathError('EFBIG', `${purpose} failed: file is too large (${stat.size} bytes; limit ${maxBytes} bytes).`)
   }
 
   try {
-    await fs.promises.access(resolvedPath, fs.constants.R_OK)
+    await fsImpl.promises.access(resolvedPath, fs.constants.R_OK)
   } catch {
-    throw new Error(`${purpose} failed: file is not readable.`)
+    throw ipcPathError('EACCES', `${purpose} failed: file is not readable.`)
   }
 
-  return { resolvedPath, stat }
+  return { realPath, resolvedPath, stat }
 }
 
 module.exports = {
@@ -178,7 +262,10 @@ module.exports = {
   DEFAULT_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS,
   TEXT_PREVIEW_SOURCE_MAX_BYTES,
   encryptDesktopSecret,
+  rejectUnsafePathSyntax,
+  resolveDirectoryForIpc,
   resolveReadableFileForIpc,
+  resolveRequestedPathForIpc,
   resolveTimeoutMs,
   sensitiveFileBlockReason
 }

apps/desktop/electron/hardening.test.cjs

@@ -8,11 +8,20 @@ const { pathToFileURL } = require('node:url')
 const {
   DEFAULT_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS,
   encryptDesktopSecret,
+  resolveDirectoryForIpc,
   resolveReadableFileForIpc,
+  resolveRequestedPathForIpc,
   resolveTimeoutMs,
   sensitiveFileBlockReason
 } = require('./hardening.cjs')
 
+async function rejectsWithCode(promise, code) {
+  await assert.rejects(promise, error => {
+    assert.equal(error?.code, code)
+    return true
+  })
+}
+
 test('resolveTimeoutMs falls back to defaults and accepts overrides', () => {
   assert.equal(resolveTimeoutMs(undefined), DEFAULT_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS)
   assert.equal(resolveTimeoutMs(0), DEFAULT_FETCH_TIMEOUT_MS)
@@ -51,6 +60,52 @@ test('sensitiveFileBlockReason blocks obvious secret file patterns', () => {
   assert.match(String(sensitiveFileBlockReason('/tmp/server-cert.pem')), /\.pem/)
 })
 
+test('path helpers reject blank non-string NUL and Windows device syntax', async () => {
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc('', { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'invalid-path')
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc('   ', { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'invalid-path')
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc(null, { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'invalid-path')
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc(`safe${String.fromCharCode(0)}name.txt`), 'invalid-path')
+
+  const devicePaths = [
+    '\\\\?\\C:\\secret.txt',
+    '\\\\.\\C:\\secret.txt',
+    '\\\\?\\UNC\\server\\share\\secret.txt',
+    'GLOBALROOT/Device/HarddiskVolumeShadowCopy1/secret.txt'
+  ]
+
+  for (const devicePath of devicePaths) {
+    assert.throws(
+      () => resolveRequestedPathForIpc(devicePath, { purpose: 'File preview' }),
+      error => {
+        assert.equal(error?.code, 'device-path')
+        return true
+      }
+    )
+    await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc(devicePath, { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'device-path')
+  }
+
+  assert.throws(
+    () => resolveRequestedPathForIpc('file:///%E0%A4%A', { purpose: 'File preview' }),
+    error => {
+      assert.equal(error?.code, 'invalid-path')
+      return true
+    }
+  )
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc('file:///%E0%A4%A', { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'invalid-path')
+})
+
+test('resolveRequestedPathForIpc resolves relative paths from the trimmed base directory', () => {
+  const baseDir = path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-desktop-base')
+
+  assert.equal(
+    resolveRequestedPathForIpc('notes.txt', {
+      baseDir: `  ${baseDir}  `,
+      purpose: 'File preview'
+    }),
+    path.resolve(baseDir, 'notes.txt')
+  )
+})
+
 test('resolveReadableFileForIpc validates existence type size and sensitivity', async t => {
   const tempDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-desktop-hardening-'))
   t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
@@ -71,6 +126,13 @@ test('resolveReadableFileForIpc validates existence type size and sensitivity',
   })
   assert.equal(fromFileUrl.resolvedPath, textPath)
 
+  const spacedPath = path.join(tempDir, 'notes with spaces.txt')
+  fs.writeFileSync(spacedPath, 'space ok', 'utf8')
+  const fromSpacedFileUrl = await resolveReadableFileForIpc(pathToFileURL(spacedPath).toString(), {
+    purpose: 'File preview'
+  })
+  assert.equal(fromSpacedFileUrl.resolvedPath, spacedPath)
+
   await assert.rejects(
     resolveReadableFileForIpc('missing.txt', {
       baseDir: tempDir,
@@ -114,3 +176,91 @@ test('resolveReadableFileForIpc validates existence type size and sensitivity',
   })
   assert.equal(envTemplate.resolvedPath, envTemplatePath)
 })
+
+test('resolveReadableFileForIpc blocks common sensitive files', async t => {
+  const tempDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-desktop-sensitive-'))
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+
+  const sshDir = path.join(tempDir, '.ssh')
+  fs.mkdirSync(sshDir)
+
+  const blockedFiles = [
+    path.join(tempDir, '.env'),
+    path.join(tempDir, '.npmrc'),
+    path.join(sshDir, 'id_ed25519'),
+    path.join(tempDir, 'cert.pem'),
+    path.join(tempDir, 'cert.p12'),
+    path.join(tempDir, 'cert.pfx')
+  ]
+
+  for (const filePath of blockedFiles) {
+    fs.writeFileSync(filePath, 'secret', 'utf8')
+    await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc(filePath, { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'sensitive-file')
+  }
+
+  const allowed = path.join(tempDir, '.env.example')
+  fs.writeFileSync(allowed, 'EXAMPLE_TOKEN=value', 'utf8')
+  assert.equal((await resolveReadableFileForIpc(allowed, { purpose: 'File preview' })).resolvedPath, allowed)
+})
+
+test('resolveReadableFileForIpc blocks symlinks whose realpath is sensitive', async t => {
+  const tempDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-desktop-realpath-'))
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+
+  const envPath = path.join(tempDir, '.env')
+  const linkPath = path.join(tempDir, 'safe-name.txt')
+  fs.writeFileSync(envPath, 'SECRET_TOKEN=123', 'utf8')
+
+  try {
+    fs.symlinkSync(envPath, linkPath, 'file')
+  } catch (error) {
+    if (error?.code === 'EPERM' || error?.code === 'EACCES') {
+      t.skip(`symlink creation is not permitted on this platform (${error.code})`)
+      return
+    }
+    throw error
+  }
+
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveReadableFileForIpc(linkPath, { purpose: 'File preview' }), 'sensitive-file')
+})
+
+test('resolveDirectoryForIpc accepts directories and rejects invalid directory targets', async t => {
+  const tempDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-desktop-dir-'))
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+
+  const directory = path.join(tempDir, 'project')
+  const filePath = path.join(tempDir, 'file.txt')
+  fs.mkdirSync(directory)
+  fs.writeFileSync(filePath, 'not a directory', 'utf8')
+
+  const resolved = await resolveDirectoryForIpc(directory)
+  assert.equal(resolved.resolvedPath, directory)
+  assert.equal(resolved.stat.isDirectory(), true)
+
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveDirectoryForIpc(filePath), 'ENOTDIR')
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveDirectoryForIpc(path.join(tempDir, 'missing')), 'ENOENT')
+  await rejectsWithCode(resolveDirectoryForIpc('\\\\?\\C:\\secret'), 'device-path')
+})
+
+test('resolveDirectoryForIpc accepts directory symlinks or junctions', async t => {
+  const tempDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'hermes-desktop-dir-link-'))
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+
+  const directory = path.join(tempDir, 'actual-project')
+  const linkPath = path.join(tempDir, 'linked-project')
+  fs.mkdirSync(directory)
+
+  try {
+    fs.symlinkSync(directory, linkPath, process.platform === 'win32' ? 'junction' : 'dir')
+  } catch (error) {
+    if (error?.code === 'EPERM' || error?.code === 'EACCES') {
+      t.skip(`directory symlink creation is not permitted on this platform (${error.code})`)
+      return
+    }
+    throw error
+  }
+
+  const resolved = await resolveDirectoryForIpc(linkPath)
+  assert.equal(resolved.resolvedPath, linkPath)
+  assert.equal(resolved.stat.isDirectory(), true)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/port-pool.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+'use strict'
+
+/**
+ * In-process port reservation pool for the desktop backend launcher.
+ *
+ * pickPort() probes a localhost port with a throwaway server and closes it
+ * before the real bind happens in a separate Python child. Between that probe
+ * and the child's bind there is a TOCTOU window: a second concurrent spawn
+ * (the primary backend racing a pool backend) can be handed the SAME port, and
+ * one then dies with EADDRINUSE ("address already in use" -> "Object has been
+ * destroyed" boot loop). Reserving the chosen port in THIS process until the
+ * child exits closes that window.
+ *
+ * The OS bind remains the source of truth; this only deconflicts racers inside
+ * this process — it can't stop a foreign squatter, which the probe + the
+ * EADDRINUSE self-heal still cover.
+ *
+ * The pool is dependency-injected (the availability probe is passed in) and
+ * free of Electron/Node socket I/O, so it is unit-tested without real sockets
+ * (see port-pool.test.cjs).
+ */
+class PortPool {
+  /**
+   * @param {number} floor   inclusive lowest port to hand out
+   * @param {number} ceiling inclusive highest port to hand out
+   */
+  constructor(floor, ceiling) {
+    this.floor = floor
+    this.ceiling = ceiling
+    this._reserved = new Set()
+  }
+
+  /** @returns {boolean} whether `port` is currently reserved in-process. */
+  has(port) {
+    return this._reserved.has(port)
+  }
+
+  /** Release a previously reserved port. No-op if it was not reserved. */
+  release(port) {
+    this._reserved.delete(port)
+  }
+
+  /** Drop all reservations. */
+  clear() {
+    this._reserved.clear()
+  }
+
+  /** @returns {number} count of currently reserved ports. */
+  get size() {
+    return this._reserved.size
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Reserve and return the lowest port in [floor, ceiling] that is neither
+   * already reserved in-process nor rejected by `isAvailable(port)`, or null
+   * if every port is taken. `isAvailable` may be sync (boolean) or async
+   * (Promise<boolean>); it is awaited either way.
+   *
+   * @param {(port: number) => boolean | Promise<boolean>} isAvailable
+   * @returns {Promise<number|null>}
+   */
+  async reserve(isAvailable) {
+    for (let port = this.floor; port <= this.ceiling; port += 1) {
+      if (this._reserved.has(port)) continue
+      if (!(await isAvailable(port))) continue
+      this._reserved.add(port)
+      return port
+    }
+    return null
+  }
+}
+
+module.exports = { PortPool }

apps/desktop/electron/port-pool.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+/**
+ * Tests for electron/port-pool.cjs.
+ *
+ * Run with: node --test electron/port-pool.test.cjs
+ *
+ * PortPool is the in-process reservation that closes the pickPort() TOCTOU
+ * window. These cover selection order, skipping reserved/unavailable ports,
+ * release/reuse, exhaustion, and async probes — without real sockets.
+ */
+
+const test = require('node:test')
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+
+const { PortPool } = require('./port-pool.cjs')
+
+const allFree = () => true
+
+test('reserve returns the lowest free port and reserves it', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9199)
+  const port = await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  assert.equal(port, 9120)
+  assert.ok(pool.has(9120))
+  assert.equal(pool.size, 1)
+})
+
+test('reserve skips ports already reserved in-process', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9199)
+  const first = await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  const second = await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  assert.equal(first, 9120)
+  assert.equal(second, 9121)
+})
+
+test('reserve skips ports the probe rejects', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9199)
+  const busy = new Set([9120, 9121])
+  const port = await pool.reserve(p => !busy.has(p))
+  assert.equal(port, 9122)
+})
+
+test('reserve returns null when every port is taken', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9121)
+  await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  assert.equal(await pool.reserve(allFree), null)
+})
+
+test('release frees a reserved port for reuse', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9120)
+  assert.equal(await pool.reserve(allFree), 9120)
+  assert.equal(await pool.reserve(allFree), null) // exhausted
+  pool.release(9120)
+  assert.ok(!pool.has(9120))
+  assert.equal(await pool.reserve(allFree), 9120) // reusable
+})
+
+test('release is a no-op for an unreserved port', () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9199)
+  pool.release(9120)
+  assert.equal(pool.size, 0)
+})
+
+test('reserve awaits an async probe', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9199)
+  const busy = new Set([9120])
+  const port = await pool.reserve(p => Promise.resolve(!busy.has(p)))
+  assert.equal(port, 9121)
+})
+
+test('clear drops all reservations', async () => {
+  const pool = new PortPool(9120, 9199)
+  await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  await pool.reserve(allFree)
+  assert.equal(pool.size, 2)
+  pool.clear()
+  assert.equal(pool.size, 0)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/preload.cjs

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ contextBridge.exposeInMainWorld('hermesDesktop', {
   revalidateConnection: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:connection:revalidate'),
   touchBackend: profile => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:backend:touch', profile),
   getGatewayWsUrl: profile => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:gateway:ws-url', profile),
+  openSessionWindow: sessionId => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:window:openSession', sessionId),
   getBootProgress: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:boot-progress:get'),
   getConnectionConfig: profile => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:connection-config:get', profile),
   saveConnectionConfig: payload => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:connection-config:save', payload),
@@ -41,6 +42,7 @@ contextBridge.exposeInMainWorld('hermesDesktop', {
   setPreviewShortcutActive: active => ipcRenderer.send('hermes:previewShortcutActive', Boolean(active)),
   openExternal: url => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:openExternal', url),
   fetchLinkTitle: url => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:fetchLinkTitle', url),
+  sanitizeWorkspaceCwd: cwd => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:workspace:sanitize', cwd),
   settings: {
     getDefaultProjectDir: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:setting:defaultProjectDir:get'),
     setDefaultProjectDir: dir => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:setting:defaultProjectDir:set', dir),
@@ -78,6 +80,12 @@ contextBridge.exposeInMainWorld('hermesDesktop', {
     ipcRenderer.on('hermes:open-updates', listener)
     return () => ipcRenderer.removeListener('hermes:open-updates', listener)
   },
+  onDeepLink: callback => {
+    const listener = (_event, payload) => callback(payload)
+    ipcRenderer.on('hermes:deep-link', listener)
+    return () => ipcRenderer.removeListener('hermes:deep-link', listener)
+  },
+  signalDeepLinkReady: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:deep-link-ready'),
   onWindowStateChanged: callback => {
     const listener = (_event, payload) => callback(payload)
     ipcRenderer.on('hermes:window-state-changed', listener)
@@ -132,5 +140,9 @@ contextBridge.exposeInMainWorld('hermesDesktop', {
       ipcRenderer.on('hermes:updates:progress', listener)
       return () => ipcRenderer.removeListener('hermes:updates:progress', listener)
     }
+  },
+  themes: {
+    fetchMarketplace: id => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:vscode-theme:fetch', id),
+    searchMarketplace: query => ipcRenderer.invoke('hermes:vscode-theme:search', query)
   }
 })

apps/desktop/electron/session-windows.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+// Secondary "session windows" — one extra OS window per chat so a user can
+// work with multiple chats side by side. The pure, Electron-free pieces live
+// here so they can be unit-tested with node --test (mirroring how the rest of
+// electron/*.cjs splits testable logic out of the main.cjs monolith).
+
+const { pathToFileURL } = require('node:url')
+
+// Build the renderer URL for a secondary window. The renderer uses a
+// HashRouter, so the session route lives after the '#'. The `?win=secondary`
+// flag MUST sit in the query string BEFORE the '#': anything after the '#' is
+// treated as the route by HashRouter and would break routeSessionId(). The
+// renderer reads the flag from window.location.search to suppress the install /
+// onboarding overlays and the global session sidebar.
+function buildSessionWindowUrl(sessionId, { devServer, rendererIndexPath } = {}) {
+  const route = `#/${encodeURIComponent(sessionId)}`
+
+  if (devServer) {
+    const base = devServer.endsWith('/') ? devServer.slice(0, -1) : devServer
+
+    return `${base}/?win=secondary${route}`
+  }
+
+  return `${pathToFileURL(rendererIndexPath).toString()}?win=secondary${route}`
+}
+
+// A small registry keyed by sessionId that guarantees one window per chat:
+// opening a session that already has a live window focuses it instead of
+// spawning a duplicate, and a window removes itself from the registry when it
+// closes. The actual BrowserWindow construction is injected (the `factory`) so
+// this module stays free of Electron and is unit-testable.
+function createSessionWindowRegistry() {
+  const windows = new Map()
+
+  function openOrFocus(sessionId, factory) {
+    const key = typeof sessionId === 'string' ? sessionId.trim() : ''
+
+    if (!key) {
+      return null
+    }
+
+    const existing = windows.get(key)
+
+    if (existing && !existing.isDestroyed()) {
+      // Focus-or-create: never duplicate a window for the same chat.
+      if (typeof existing.isMinimized === 'function' && existing.isMinimized()) {
+        existing.restore?.()
+      }
+
+      if (typeof existing.isVisible === 'function' && !existing.isVisible()) {
+        existing.show?.()
+      }
+
+      existing.focus?.()
+
+      return existing
+    }
+
+    const win = factory(key)
+
+    if (!win) {
+      return null
+    }
+
+    windows.set(key, win)
+
+    // Self-cleanup on close so the registry never holds a destroyed window.
+    win.on?.('closed', () => {
+      if (windows.get(key) === win) {
+        windows.delete(key)
+      }
+    })
+
+    return win
+  }
+
+  return {
+    openOrFocus,
+    get: key => windows.get(key),
+    has: key => windows.has(key),
+    get size() {
+      return windows.size
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+module.exports = { buildSessionWindowUrl, createSessionWindowRegistry }

apps/desktop/electron/session-windows.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,165 @@
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+const test = require('node:test')
+
+const { buildSessionWindowUrl, createSessionWindowRegistry } = require('./session-windows.cjs')
+
+// A minimal fake BrowserWindow: tracks listeners + destroyed state and lets a
+// test fire the 'closed' event, mirroring the slice of the Electron API the
+// registry actually touches.
+function makeFakeWindow() {
+  const listeners = {}
+  const calls = { focus: 0, show: 0, restore: 0 }
+  let destroyed = false
+  let minimized = false
+  let visible = true
+
+  return {
+    on(event, handler) {
+      listeners[event] = handler
+
+      return this
+    },
+    emit(event) {
+      listeners[event]?.()
+    },
+    isDestroyed: () => destroyed,
+    destroy() {
+      destroyed = true
+    },
+    isMinimized: () => minimized,
+    setMinimized(value) {
+      minimized = value
+    },
+    isVisible: () => visible,
+    setVisible(value) {
+      visible = value
+    },
+    restore() {
+      calls.restore += 1
+      minimized = false
+    },
+    show() {
+      calls.show += 1
+      visible = true
+    },
+    focus() {
+      calls.focus += 1
+    },
+    calls
+  }
+}
+
+test('buildSessionWindowUrl puts the secondary flag before the hash route (dev server)', () => {
+  const url = buildSessionWindowUrl('abc123', { devServer: 'http://localhost:5173' })
+
+  assert.equal(url, 'http://localhost:5173/?win=secondary#/abc123')
+})
+
+test('buildSessionWindowUrl avoids a double slash when the dev server has a trailing slash', () => {
+  const url = buildSessionWindowUrl('abc123', { devServer: 'http://localhost:5173/' })
+
+  assert.equal(url, 'http://localhost:5173/?win=secondary#/abc123')
+})
+
+test('buildSessionWindowUrl encodes the session id in the hash route', () => {
+  const url = buildSessionWindowUrl('a b/c', { devServer: 'http://localhost:5173' })
+
+  // The query flag must precede the '#' or HashRouter would swallow it as the
+  // route; the id is URL-encoded so slashes/spaces survive routeSessionId().
+  assert.equal(url, 'http://localhost:5173/?win=secondary#/a%20b%2Fc')
+  assert.ok(url.indexOf('?win=secondary') < url.indexOf('#'))
+})
+
+test('buildSessionWindowUrl builds a packaged file URL with the flag before the hash', () => {
+  const url = buildSessionWindowUrl('abc', { rendererIndexPath: '/opt/app/index.html' })
+
+  assert.match(url, /^file:\/\/.*index\.html\?win=secondary#\/abc$/)
+})
+
+test('registry opens one window per session and focuses on re-open', () => {
+  const registry = createSessionWindowRegistry()
+  let built = 0
+  const win = makeFakeWindow()
+  const factory = () => {
+    built += 1
+
+    return win
+  }
+
+  const first = registry.openOrFocus('s1', factory)
+  const second = registry.openOrFocus('s1', factory)
+
+  assert.equal(built, 1, 'factory runs once for the same session')
+  assert.equal(first, second)
+  assert.equal(registry.size, 1)
+  assert.equal(win.calls.focus, 1, 'second open focuses the existing window')
+})
+
+test('registry restores + shows a minimized/hidden window on re-open', () => {
+  const registry = createSessionWindowRegistry()
+  const win = makeFakeWindow()
+  registry.openOrFocus('s1', () => win)
+
+  win.setMinimized(true)
+  win.setVisible(false)
+  registry.openOrFocus('s1', () => win)
+
+  assert.equal(win.calls.restore, 1)
+  assert.equal(win.calls.show, 1)
+  assert.equal(win.calls.focus, 1)
+})
+
+test('registry drops the entry when the window closes', () => {
+  const registry = createSessionWindowRegistry()
+  const win = makeFakeWindow()
+  registry.openOrFocus('s1', () => win)
+  assert.equal(registry.size, 1)
+
+  win.emit('closed')
+
+  assert.equal(registry.size, 0)
+  assert.equal(registry.has('s1'), false)
+})
+
+test('registry rebuilds a fresh window after the previous one was destroyed', () => {
+  const registry = createSessionWindowRegistry()
+  const first = makeFakeWindow()
+  registry.openOrFocus('s1', () => first)
+  first.destroy()
+
+  let built = 0
+  const second = makeFakeWindow()
+  const result = registry.openOrFocus('s1', () => {
+    built += 1
+
+    return second
+  })
+
+  assert.equal(built, 1, 'a destroyed window is replaced, not focused')
+  assert.equal(result, second)
+})
+
+test('registry ignores empty / non-string session ids', () => {
+  const registry = createSessionWindowRegistry()
+  let built = 0
+  const factory = () => {
+    built += 1
+
+    return makeFakeWindow()
+  }
+
+  assert.equal(registry.openOrFocus('', factory), null)
+  assert.equal(registry.openOrFocus('   ', factory), null)
+  assert.equal(registry.openOrFocus(null, factory), null)
+  assert.equal(registry.openOrFocus(42, factory), null)
+  assert.equal(built, 0)
+  assert.equal(registry.size, 0)
+})
+
+test('registry trims the session id before keying', () => {
+  const registry = createSessionWindowRegistry()
+  const win = makeFakeWindow()
+  registry.openOrFocus('  s1  ', () => win)
+
+  assert.equal(registry.has('s1'), true)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/update-remote.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+/**
+ * Pure helpers for choosing a remote URL during passive update checks.
+ *
+ * A public install can end up with `origin=git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent.git`.
+ * If the user's GitHub SSH key is FIDO2/passkey-backed, a background `git fetch
+ * origin` triggers an unexplained hardware-touch prompt. For passive checks
+ * against the official repo we substitute the public HTTPS `ls-remote` path,
+ * which needs no auth and cannot prompt. Active update/apply flows are left
+ * unchanged.
+ *
+ * Extracted from main.cjs so the security-critical remote detection is unit
+ * testable without booting Electron (main.cjs requires('electron') at load).
+ */
+
+const OFFICIAL_REPO_HTTPS_URL = 'https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'
+const OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL = 'github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent'
+
+// Normalize common GitHub remote URL forms to `host/owner/repo` (lowercased,
+// no trailing slash, no .git suffix) so SSH and HTTPS forms of the same repo
+// compare equal.
+function canonicalGitHubRemote(url) {
+  if (!url) return ''
+  let value = String(url).trim()
+  if (value.startsWith('git@github.com:')) {
+    value = `github.com/${value.slice('git@github.com:'.length)}`
+  } else if (value.startsWith('ssh://git@github.com/')) {
+    value = `github.com/${value.slice('ssh://git@github.com/'.length)}`
+  } else {
+    try {
+      const parsed = new URL(value)
+      if (parsed.hostname && parsed.pathname) value = `${parsed.hostname}${parsed.pathname}`
+    } catch {
+      // Leave non-URL forms unchanged.
+    }
+  }
+  value = value.trim().replace(/\/+$/, '')
+  if (value.endsWith('.git')) value = value.slice(0, -4)
+  return value.toLowerCase()
+}
+
+function isSshRemote(url) {
+  const value = String(url || '').trim().toLowerCase()
+  return value.startsWith('git@') || value.startsWith('ssh://')
+}
+
+function isOfficialSshRemote(url) {
+  return isSshRemote(url) && canonicalGitHubRemote(url) === OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  OFFICIAL_REPO_HTTPS_URL,
+  OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL,
+  canonicalGitHubRemote,
+  isSshRemote,
+  isOfficialSshRemote
+}

apps/desktop/electron/update-remote.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+/**
+ * Tests for electron/update-remote.cjs — the remote-detection helpers that
+ * keep passive update checks off the SSH origin for official installs.
+ *
+ * Run with: node --test electron/update-remote.test.cjs
+ * (Wired into npm test:desktop:platforms in package.json.)
+ *
+ * Why this matters: a public install can carry
+ * origin=git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent.git. A background
+ * `git fetch origin` then authenticates over SSH and, with a FIDO2/passkey
+ * key, triggers an unexplained hardware-touch prompt. isOfficialSshRemote
+ * must reliably recognize the official SSH remote (in every URL form,
+ * case-insensitively) so the caller can swap in the anonymous HTTPS path —
+ * while NOT misclassifying forks, other hosts, or the HTTPS remote (which
+ * never prompts and should keep the normal fetch path).
+ */
+
+const test = require('node:test')
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+
+const {
+  OFFICIAL_REPO_HTTPS_URL,
+  OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL,
+  canonicalGitHubRemote,
+  isSshRemote,
+  isOfficialSshRemote
+} = require('./update-remote.cjs')
+
+test('canonicalGitHubRemote normalizes SSH and HTTPS forms to the same value', () => {
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote('git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote('git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent'), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote('ssh://git@github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote('https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+  // Case-insensitive: an uppercased owner still canonicalizes to the same repo.
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote('git@github.com:nousresearch/hermes-agent.git'), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+  // Trailing slashes are stripped.
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote('https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/'), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+})
+
+test('canonicalGitHubRemote is empty for falsy input', () => {
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote(''), '')
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote(null), '')
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote(undefined), '')
+})
+
+test('isSshRemote detects scp-like and ssh:// forms only', () => {
+  assert.equal(isSshRemote('git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), true)
+  assert.equal(isSshRemote('ssh://git@github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), true)
+  assert.equal(isSshRemote('https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), false)
+  assert.equal(isSshRemote(''), false)
+  assert.equal(isSshRemote(null), false)
+})
+
+test('isOfficialSshRemote is true only for the official repo over SSH', () => {
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), true)
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('git@github.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent'), true)
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('ssh://git@github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), true)
+  // Case-insensitive owner/repo match.
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('git@github.com:nousresearch/hermes-agent.git'), true)
+})
+
+test('isOfficialSshRemote does NOT match forks, other hosts, or HTTPS', () => {
+  // A fork over SSH belongs to the user — fetching it is their own remote,
+  // not the official upstream, so the SSH-avoidance swap must not apply.
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('git@github.com:someuser/hermes-agent.git'), false)
+  // Same repo name on a different host is not the official repo.
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('git@gitlab.com:NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), false)
+  // HTTPS to the official repo never prompts for SSH/FIDO2, so it keeps the
+  // normal fetch path — must not be flagged as an official SSH remote.
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote('https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent.git'), false)
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote(''), false)
+  assert.equal(isOfficialSshRemote(null), false)
+})
+
+test('OFFICIAL_REPO_HTTPS_URL canonicalizes to OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL', () => {
+  // Invariant: the URL we substitute in must be the same repo we detect.
+  assert.equal(canonicalGitHubRemote(OFFICIAL_REPO_HTTPS_URL), OFFICIAL_REPO_CANONICAL)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/vscode-marketplace.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,331 @@
+'use strict'
+
+/**
+ * VS Code Marketplace color-theme fetcher (main process).
+ *
+ * Resolves an extension's latest version via the (undocumented but stable)
+ * gallery ExtensionQuery API, downloads the `.vsix` (a zip), and extracts the
+ * color-theme JSON files it contributes. No theme code is ever executed — we
+ * only read `package.json` + the referenced `*.json` theme files out of the
+ * archive and hand their text back to the renderer to convert.
+ *
+ * Dependency-free on purpose: a `.vsix` is a plain zip, so we parse the central
+ * directory and inflate just the entries we need with `zlib`. Avoids pulling a
+ * zip library into the desktop bundle for a feature this small.
+ */
+
+const https = require('node:https')
+const zlib = require('node:zlib')
+
+const GALLERY_QUERY_URL = 'https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/_apis/public/gallery/extensionquery'
+const VSIX_ASSET_TYPE = 'Microsoft.VisualStudio.Services.VSIXPackage'
+const MAX_VSIX_BYTES = 40 * 1024 * 1024 // 40 MB — themes are tiny; this is paranoia.
+const MAX_REDIRECTS = 5
+const REQUEST_TIMEOUT_MS = 20_000
+
+const ID_RE = /^[\w-]+\.[\w-]+$/
+
+/** Minimal HTTPS helper with redirect-following, timeout, and a size cap. */
+function request(url, { method = 'GET', headers = {}, body = null, maxBytes = MAX_VSIX_BYTES } = {}, redirectsLeft = MAX_REDIRECTS) {
+  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+    const req = https.request(url, { method, headers }, res => {
+      const status = res.statusCode ?? 0
+
+      if (status >= 300 && status < 400 && res.headers.location) {
+        if (redirectsLeft <= 0) {
+          res.resume()
+          reject(new Error('Too many redirects.'))
+
+          return
+        }
+
+        const next = new URL(res.headers.location, url).toString()
+        res.resume()
+        // Redirects to the CDN are plain GETs (drop the POST body).
+        resolve(request(next, { method: 'GET', headers: { 'User-Agent': headers['User-Agent'] }, maxBytes }, redirectsLeft - 1))
+
+        return
+      }
+
+      if (status < 200 || status >= 300) {
+        res.resume()
+        reject(new Error(`Request failed (${status}) for ${url}`))
+
+        return
+      }
+
+      const chunks = []
+      let total = 0
+
+      res.on('data', chunk => {
+        total += chunk.length
+
+        if (total > maxBytes) {
+          req.destroy()
+          reject(new Error('Response exceeded the size limit.'))
+
+          return
+        }
+
+        chunks.push(chunk)
+      })
+      res.on('end', () => resolve(Buffer.concat(chunks)))
+    })
+
+    req.on('error', reject)
+    req.setTimeout(REQUEST_TIMEOUT_MS, () => req.destroy(new Error('Request timed out.')))
+
+    if (body) {
+      req.write(body)
+    }
+
+    req.end()
+  })
+}
+
+/** Resolve `{ displayName, vsixUrl }` for the latest version of `id`. */
+async function resolveExtension(id) {
+  const json = await queryGallery({
+    // FilterType 7 = ExtensionName (the full publisher.extension id).
+    filters: [{ criteria: [{ filterType: 7, value: id }], pageNumber: 1, pageSize: 1 }],
+    // Flags: IncludeFiles | IncludeVersionProperties | IncludeAssetUri |
+    // IncludeCategoryAndTags | IncludeLatestVersionOnly = 914.
+    flags: 914
+  })
+  const extension = json?.results?.[0]?.extensions?.[0]
+
+  if (!extension) {
+    throw new Error(`Extension "${id}" was not found on the Marketplace.`)
+  }
+
+  const version = extension.versions?.[0]
+
+  if (!version) {
+    throw new Error(`Extension "${id}" has no published versions.`)
+  }
+
+  const asset = (version.files ?? []).find(file => file.assetType === VSIX_ASSET_TYPE)
+  const vsixUrl = asset?.source
+
+  if (!vsixUrl) {
+    throw new Error(`Could not find a downloadable package for "${id}".`)
+  }
+
+  return { displayName: extension.displayName || id, vsixUrl }
+}
+
+/** POST an ExtensionQuery payload and return the parsed gallery response. */
+async function queryGallery(payload, { maxBytes = 4 * 1024 * 1024 } = {}) {
+  const body = JSON.stringify(payload)
+  const raw = await request(GALLERY_QUERY_URL, {
+    method: 'POST',
+    headers: {
+      Accept: 'application/json;api-version=3.0-preview.1',
+      'Content-Type': 'application/json',
+      'Content-Length': Buffer.byteLength(body),
+      'User-Agent': 'Hermes-Desktop'
+    },
+    body,
+    maxBytes
+  })
+
+  return JSON.parse(raw.toString('utf8'))
+}
+
+/**
+ * Search the Marketplace for color-theme extensions. With an empty query this
+ * returns the most-installed themes; with a query it's a full-text search
+ * scoped to the Themes category. Returns lightweight cards (no download).
+ */
+/**
+ * The "Themes" category also contains file-icon and product-icon themes (the
+ * gallery has no color-only category). We can't see an extension's actual
+ * contributions without downloading it, so filter the obvious icon packs out by
+ * tag + name/description. Color themes that also ship icons are rare; worst case
+ * a user installs them by exact id from settings.
+ */
+function looksLikeIconTheme(extension) {
+  const tags = (extension.tags ?? []).map(tag => String(tag).toLowerCase())
+
+  if (tags.includes('icon-theme') || tags.includes('product-icon-theme')) {
+    return true
+  }
+
+  const text = `${extension.displayName ?? ''} ${extension.shortDescription ?? ''}`.toLowerCase()
+
+  return /\b(icon theme|file icons?|product icons?|icon pack|fileicons)\b/.test(text)
+}
+
+async function searchMarketplaceThemes(query, limit = 20) {
+  const text = String(query || '').trim()
+  const pageSize = Math.min(Math.max(Number(limit) || 20, 1), 50)
+
+  // FilterType: 8=Target, 5=Category, 10=SearchText, 12=ExcludeWithFlags.
+  const criteria = [
+    { filterType: 8, value: 'Microsoft.VisualStudio.Code' },
+    { filterType: 5, value: 'Themes' },
+    { filterType: 12, value: '4096' } // Exclude unpublished (Unpublished = 0x1000).
+  ]
+
+  if (text) {
+    criteria.push({ filterType: 10, value: text })
+  }
+
+  const json = await queryGallery({
+    // Over-fetch so the icon-theme filter below still leaves a full page.
+    filters: [{ criteria, pageNumber: 1, pageSize: Math.min(pageSize * 2, 50), sortBy: 4, sortOrder: 0 }],
+    // IncludeStatistics (0x100) | IncludeLatestVersionOnly (0x200) | IncludeCategoryAndTags (0x4).
+    flags: 772
+  })
+
+  const extensions = json?.results?.[0]?.extensions ?? []
+
+  return extensions
+    .filter(extension => !looksLikeIconTheme(extension))
+    .slice(0, pageSize)
+    .map(extension => {
+      const publisherName = extension.publisher?.publisherName ?? ''
+      const installStat = (extension.statistics ?? []).find(stat => stat.statisticName === 'install')
+
+      return {
+        extensionId: `${publisherName}.${extension.extensionName}`,
+        displayName: extension.displayName || extension.extensionName,
+        publisher: extension.publisher?.displayName || publisherName,
+        description: extension.shortDescription || '',
+        installs: Math.round(installStat?.value ?? 0)
+      }
+    })
+}
+
+// ─── Minimal zip reader ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+function findEndOfCentralDirectory(buf) {
+  // EOCD signature 0x06054b50, scanning back from the end (comment is rare).
+  for (let i = buf.length - 22; i >= 0; i--) {
+    if (buf.readUInt32LE(i) === 0x06054b50) {
+      return i
+    }
+  }
+
+  throw new Error('Not a valid zip archive (no end-of-central-directory).')
+}
+
+/** Parse the central directory into a name → record map. */
+function readCentralDirectory(buf) {
+  const eocd = findEndOfCentralDirectory(buf)
+  const count = buf.readUInt16LE(eocd + 10)
+  let offset = buf.readUInt32LE(eocd + 16)
+  const records = new Map()
+
+  for (let i = 0; i < count; i++) {
+    if (buf.readUInt32LE(offset) !== 0x02014b50) {
+      break
+    }
+
+    const method = buf.readUInt16LE(offset + 10)
+    const compressedSize = buf.readUInt32LE(offset + 20)
+    const nameLen = buf.readUInt16LE(offset + 28)
+    const extraLen = buf.readUInt16LE(offset + 30)
+    const commentLen = buf.readUInt16LE(offset + 32)
+    const localOffset = buf.readUInt32LE(offset + 42)
+    const name = buf.toString('utf8', offset + 46, offset + 46 + nameLen)
+
+    records.set(name, { method, compressedSize, localOffset })
+    offset += 46 + nameLen + extraLen + commentLen
+  }
+
+  return records
+}
+
+/** Inflate a single entry to a string. */
+function extractEntry(buf, record) {
+  // The local header's name/extra lengths can differ from the central record,
+  // so re-read them here to locate the compressed payload.
+  if (buf.readUInt32LE(record.localOffset) !== 0x04034b50) {
+    throw new Error('Corrupt zip: bad local file header.')
+  }
+
+  const nameLen = buf.readUInt16LE(record.localOffset + 26)
+  const extraLen = buf.readUInt16LE(record.localOffset + 28)
+  const dataStart = record.localOffset + 30 + nameLen + extraLen
+  const data = buf.subarray(dataStart, dataStart + record.compressedSize)
+
+  // 0 = stored, 8 = deflate. Theme files are one or the other.
+  return record.method === 0 ? data.toString('utf8') : zlib.inflateRawSync(data).toString('utf8')
+}
+
+/** Normalize a package.json theme path to its zip entry name. */
+function themeEntryName(themePath) {
+  const clean = String(themePath).replace(/^\.\//, '').replace(/^\//, '')
+
+  return `extension/${clean}`
+}
+
+/** Extract every contributed color theme from a `.vsix` buffer. */
+function extractThemes(vsixBuffer) {
+  const records = readCentralDirectory(vsixBuffer)
+  const pkgRecord = records.get('extension/package.json')
+
+  if (!pkgRecord) {
+    throw new Error('Package manifest missing from the extension.')
+  }
+
+  const pkg = JSON.parse(extractEntry(vsixBuffer, pkgRecord))
+  const contributed = pkg?.contributes?.themes
+
+  if (!Array.isArray(contributed) || contributed.length === 0) {
+    return []
+  }
+
+  const themes = []
+
+  for (const entry of contributed) {
+    if (!entry?.path) {
+      continue
+    }
+
+    const record = records.get(themeEntryName(entry.path))
+
+    if (!record) {
+      continue
+    }
+
+    try {
+      themes.push({
+        label: entry.label || entry.id || pkg.displayName || pkg.name || 'VS Code Theme',
+        uiTheme: entry.uiTheme,
+        contents: extractEntry(vsixBuffer, record)
+      })
+    } catch {
+      // Skip an entry we can't inflate rather than failing the whole install.
+    }
+  }
+
+  return themes
+}
+
+/**
+ * Public entry: resolve, download, and extract color themes for `id`
+ * (`publisher.extension`). Returns `{ extensionId, displayName, themes }`.
+ */
+async function fetchMarketplaceThemes(id) {
+  const trimmed = String(id || '').trim()
+
+  if (!ID_RE.test(trimmed)) {
+    throw new Error('Expected a Marketplace id like "publisher.extension".')
+  }
+
+  const { displayName, vsixUrl } = await resolveExtension(trimmed)
+  const vsix = await request(vsixUrl, { headers: { 'User-Agent': 'Hermes-Desktop' } })
+  const themes = extractThemes(vsix)
+
+  return { extensionId: trimmed, displayName, themes }
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  fetchMarketplaceThemes,
+  searchMarketplaceThemes,
+  extractThemes,
+  readCentralDirectory,
+  __testing: { themeEntryName, looksLikeIconTheme }
+}

apps/desktop/electron/vscode-marketplace.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,113 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const assert = require('node:assert')
+const test = require('node:test')
+
+const { __testing, extractThemes, readCentralDirectory } = require('./vscode-marketplace.cjs')
+
+// Build a minimal zip with stored (uncompressed) entries so the test controls
+// the bytes exactly — exercises the central-directory reader + theme extraction
+// without a deflate dependency.
+function makeZip(entries) {
+  const locals = []
+  const centrals = []
+  let offset = 0
+
+  for (const { name, data } of entries) {
+    const nameBuf = Buffer.from(name, 'utf8')
+    const body = Buffer.from(data, 'utf8')
+
+    const local = Buffer.alloc(30 + nameBuf.length)
+    local.writeUInt32LE(0x04034b50, 0)
+    local.writeUInt16LE(0, 8) // method: stored
+    local.writeUInt32LE(body.length, 18) // compressed size
+    local.writeUInt32LE(body.length, 22) // uncompressed size
+    local.writeUInt16LE(nameBuf.length, 26)
+    nameBuf.copy(local, 30)
+
+    locals.push(local, body)
+
+    const central = Buffer.alloc(46 + nameBuf.length)
+    central.writeUInt32LE(0x02014b50, 0)
+    central.writeUInt16LE(0, 10) // method: stored
+    central.writeUInt32LE(body.length, 20)
+    central.writeUInt32LE(body.length, 24)
+    central.writeUInt16LE(nameBuf.length, 28)
+    central.writeUInt32LE(offset, 42) // local header offset
+    nameBuf.copy(central, 46)
+
+    centrals.push(central)
+    offset += local.length + body.length
+  }
+
+  const centralStart = offset
+  const centralBuf = Buffer.concat(centrals)
+
+  const eocd = Buffer.alloc(22)
+  eocd.writeUInt32LE(0x06054b50, 0)
+  eocd.writeUInt16LE(entries.length, 8)
+  eocd.writeUInt16LE(entries.length, 10)
+  eocd.writeUInt32LE(centralBuf.length, 12)
+  eocd.writeUInt32LE(centralStart, 16)
+
+  return Buffer.concat([...locals, centralBuf, eocd])
+}
+
+test('readCentralDirectory finds every entry', () => {
+  const zip = makeZip([
+    { name: 'extension/package.json', data: '{}' },
+    { name: 'extension/themes/x.json', data: '{}' }
+  ])
+
+  const records = readCentralDirectory(zip)
+  assert.ok(records.has('extension/package.json'))
+  assert.ok(records.has('extension/themes/x.json'))
+})
+
+test('extractThemes reads contributed color themes (resolving ./ paths)', () => {
+  const pkg = JSON.stringify({
+    name: 'theme-dracula',
+    displayName: 'Dracula',
+    contributes: {
+      themes: [{ label: 'Dracula', uiTheme: 'vs-dark', path: './themes/dracula.json' }]
+    }
+  })
+  const themeJson = JSON.stringify({ name: 'Dracula', type: 'dark', colors: { 'editor.background': '#282a36' } })
+
+  const zip = makeZip([
+    { name: 'extension/package.json', data: pkg },
+    { name: 'extension/themes/dracula.json', data: themeJson }
+  ])
+
+  const themes = extractThemes(zip)
+  assert.strictEqual(themes.length, 1)
+  assert.strictEqual(themes[0].label, 'Dracula')
+  assert.strictEqual(themes[0].uiTheme, 'vs-dark')
+  assert.match(themes[0].contents, /editor\.background/)
+})
+
+test('extractThemes returns empty when the extension contributes no themes', () => {
+  const zip = makeZip([{ name: 'extension/package.json', data: JSON.stringify({ name: 'x', contributes: {} }) }])
+  assert.deepStrictEqual(extractThemes(zip), [])
+})
+
+test('extractThemes throws when the manifest is missing', () => {
+  const zip = makeZip([{ name: 'extension/other.txt', data: 'hi' }])
+  assert.throws(() => extractThemes(zip), /manifest missing/i)
+})
+
+test('looksLikeIconTheme filters icon/product-icon packs out of theme search', () => {
+  const { looksLikeIconTheme } = __testing
+
+  // Tagged contribution points are the strongest signal.
+  assert.strictEqual(looksLikeIconTheme({ tags: ['theme', 'icon-theme'] }), true)
+  assert.strictEqual(looksLikeIconTheme({ tags: ['product-icon-theme'] }), true)
+
+  // Name/description fallback for packs that don't tag themselves.
+  assert.strictEqual(looksLikeIconTheme({ displayName: 'Material Icon Theme' }), true)
+  assert.strictEqual(looksLikeIconTheme({ shortDescription: 'A pack of file icons.' }), true)
+
+  // Real color themes survive.
+  assert.strictEqual(looksLikeIconTheme({ displayName: 'Dracula Official', tags: ['theme', 'color-theme'] }), false)
+  assert.strictEqual(looksLikeIconTheme({ displayName: 'One Dark Pro' }), false)
+})

apps/desktop/electron/windows-child-process.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const test = require('node:test')
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+const fs = require('node:fs')
+const path = require('node:path')
+
+const ELECTRON_DIR = __dirname
+
+function readElectronFile(name) {
+  return fs.readFileSync(path.join(ELECTRON_DIR, name), 'utf8').replace(/\r\n/g, '\n')
+}
+
+function requireHiddenChildOptions(source, needle) {
+  const index = source.indexOf(needle)
+  assert.notEqual(index, -1, `missing call site: ${needle}`)
+  const snippet = source.slice(index, index + 700)
+  assert.match(
+    snippet,
+    /hiddenWindowsChildOptions\(/,
+    `expected ${needle} to wrap child-process options with hiddenWindowsChildOptions`
+  )
+}
+
+test('desktop background child processes opt into hidden Windows consoles', () => {
+  const source = readElectronFile('main.cjs')
+
+  assert.match(source, /function hiddenWindowsChildOptions\(options = \{\}\)/)
+
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, "execFileSync(\n          'reg'")
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, 'execFileSync(pyExe')
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, 'spawn(resolveGitBinary()')
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, "execFileSync('taskkill'")
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, 'spawn(command, args')
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, "spawn('curl'")
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, 'spawn(backend.command, backend.args')
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, 'hermesProcess = spawn(backend.command, backend.args')
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, "spawn(py, ['-m', 'hermes_cli.main', 'uninstall', '--gui-summary']")
+})
+
+test('intentional or interactive desktop child processes stay documented', () => {
+  const source = readElectronFile('main.cjs')
+
+  assert.match(source, /windowsHide: false/)
+  assert.match(source, /nodePty\.spawn\(command, args/)
+  assert.match(source, /spawn\('cmd\.exe', \['\/c', 'start'/)
+})
+
+test('bootstrap PowerShell runner hides Windows console children', () => {
+  const source = readElectronFile('bootstrap-runner.cjs')
+
+  assert.match(source, /function hiddenWindowsChildOptions\(options = \{\}\)/)
+  requireHiddenChildOptions(source, 'spawn(ps, fullArgs')
+})

apps/desktop/electron/workspace-cwd.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+const path = require('node:path')
+
+/** True when `dir` lives inside a packaged app bundle / install tree. */
+function isPackagedInstallPath(dir, { installRoots, isPackaged }) {
+  if (!isPackaged || !dir) {
+    return false
+  }
+
+  let resolved
+
+  try {
+    resolved = path.resolve(String(dir))
+  } catch {
+    return false
+  }
+
+  const roots = new Set(
+    (installRoots ?? [])
+      .filter(Boolean)
+      .map(candidate => path.resolve(String(candidate)))
+  )
+
+  for (const root of roots) {
+    if (resolved === root) {
+      return true
+    }
+
+    const rel = path.relative(root, resolved)
+
+    if (rel && !rel.startsWith('..') && !path.isAbsolute(rel)) {
+      return true
+    }
+  }
+
+  return false
+}
+
+module.exports = { isPackagedInstallPath }

apps/desktop/electron/workspace-cwd.test.cjs

@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+/**
+ * Tests for electron/workspace-cwd.cjs.
+ *
+ * Run with: node --test electron/workspace-cwd.test.cjs
+ */
+
+const test = require('node:test')
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict')
+const path = require('node:path')
+
+const { isPackagedInstallPath } = require('./workspace-cwd.cjs')
+
+const installRoot = path.resolve('/opt/Hermes')
+
+test('isPackagedInstallPath returns false when not packaged', () => {
+  assert.equal(
+    isPackagedInstallPath(installRoot, { isPackaged: false, installRoots: [installRoot] }),
+    false
+  )
+})
+
+test('isPackagedInstallPath flags the install root itself', () => {
+  assert.equal(
+    isPackagedInstallPath(installRoot, { isPackaged: true, installRoots: [installRoot] }),
+    true
+  )
+})
+
+test('isPackagedInstallPath flags paths nested under the install root', () => {
+  const nested = path.join(installRoot, 'resources', 'app.asar')
+
+  assert.equal(
+    isPackagedInstallPath(nested, { isPackaged: true, installRoots: [installRoot] }),
+    true
+  )
+})
+
+test('isPackagedInstallPath ignores paths outside the install root', () => {
+  const homeProject = path.resolve('/home/user/projects/demo')
+
+  assert.equal(
+    isPackagedInstallPath(homeProject, { isPackaged: true, installRoots: [installRoot] }),
+    false
+  )
+})