How to use this handbook

This is a personal handbook, not official documentation. It summarizes what I learned running Hermes Agent locally and packages it so I (and you) can revisit it quickly.

The learning path

1. Getting Started: what Hermes is and how to install it.
2. Complete offline setup: Ollama + Hermes with zero API cost.
3. Local Models: model choice, context, hardware tuning.
4. Working with Hermes: config, SOUL.md, context files.
5. Memory & Skills: the self-improving loop.
6. Use Cases: real workflows I actually run.

Already set up? Jump to Use Cases or Offline setup.

Conventions

Try it

Copy-paste commands and prompts you can run immediately.

Watch out

Common mistakes and things that broke my setup.

My setup (reference)

This handbook assumes:

• Hermes Agent installed via the official installer
• Ollama running locally as the model backend
• Open-weight model with tool-calling support (Qwen 3.5 via Ollama)
• 64k+ context configured (required for agentic work)
• Everything stored under ~/.hermes/ on my machine

Your hardware will differ. Adjust model size and context accordingly.