Hermes Windows Installer

One-command Windows installer for Hermes Agent.

Quick Install

Open PowerShell and paste one of these:

Option A: Standard install (uses your existing Python)

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/claudlos/hermes-windows-installer/main/scripts/install-windows.ps1 | iex

Option B: Full AF_UNIX bootstrap (builds custom Python + installs Hermes)

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/claudlos/hermes-windows-installer/main/scripts/bootstrap-windows-afunix-hermes.ps1 | iex

This downloads CPython 3.13.12, patches it for AF_UNIX socket support, compiles it, and installs Hermes with that interpreter. First run takes a few minutes. Reruns take seconds (reuses the built Python).

If the custom build fails, Hermes still gets installed with your stock Python.

What you get

• Hermes Agent installed and ready to use
• Desktop shortcut with icon (NousResearch girl by default, or golden Hermes staff)
• hermes command available in any terminal
• Credential storage via Windows Credential Manager
• All Windows-specific fixes included

After install

Open a new terminal and run:

hermes setup
hermes

Desktop icon options

Default is the NousResearch girl. To use the golden Hermes caduceus:

.\scripts\install-windows.ps1 -DesktopIcon staff

To skip the desktop shortcut:

.\scripts\install-windows.ps1 -DesktopIcon none

Requirements

• Windows 10 (build 17134+) or Windows 11
• Python 3.10+ (installer finds it automatically)
• Git for Windows (for the terminal tool)

For the AF_UNIX bootstrap, Visual Studio Build Tools are also needed. The bootstrap installs them automatically if missing.

Troubleshooting

Logs are written to:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\hermes-agent-bootstrap\logs

For detailed Windows documentation, see WINDOWS.md.

What's in this repo

The installer fetches the Hermes Agent code from GitHub at install time. This repo contains the installer scripts, icons, CPython patch, and docs.