The Hermes Agent can run multiple independent instances on a single machine, but only if each instance has its own HERMES_HOME. The official documentation is very straightforward: ~/.hermes uses the service name hermes-gateway by default; Other instances automatically generate separate service names with hashes or suffixes.
What does this mean?
- The configuration, memory, session, and log of different instances are isolated.
- You switch to a certain
HERMES_HOMEbefore executing thehermes gateway status, and the command will automatically point to the corresponding service. - Don't mix multiple instances with the same home directory, otherwise you think it's multiple instances, but in fact it's just the same set of data repeatedly overwritten.
What scene is it suitable for
It is common for one instance to run Telegram + personal assistant, another to run Slack + team collaboration, or one instance to use an experimental model and one instance to stabilize production configuration.
In a word: the key to multi-instance is not to open multiple processes, but to truly isolate HERMES_HOME first.
Don't ignore service name changes
The official documentation specifically mentions that the non-default home directory will not continue to share the service name hermes-gateway, but will automatically generate a separate name. Therefore, when you switch instances to troubleshoot, first check the HERMES_HOME in the current shell, and then check the corresponding status and logs.
Official open source address: https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent; Official document entry: https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/.
