better-dsh 0.2.4 → 0.2.5

package/docs/80_upstream-docs-and-skills/hermes-dev-skill/src/docs/user-guide/skills/optional/devops/devops-pinggy-tunnel.md

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+---
+title: "Pinggy Tunnel — Zero-install localhost tunnels over SSH via Pinggy"
+sidebar_label: "Pinggy Tunnel"
+description: "Zero-install localhost tunnels over SSH via Pinggy"
+---
+
+{/* This page is auto-generated from the skill's SKILL.md by website/scripts/generate-skill-docs.py. Edit the source SKILL.md, not this page. */}
+
+# Pinggy Tunnel
+
+Zero-install localhost tunnels over SSH via Pinggy.
+
+## Skill metadata
+
+| | |
+|---|---|
+| Source | Optional — install with `hermes skills install official/devops/pinggy-tunnel` |
+| Path | `optional-skills/devops\pinggy-tunnel` |
+| Version | `0.1.0` |
+| Author | Teknium (teknium1), Hermes Agent |
+| License | MIT |
+| Platforms | linux, macos, windows |
+| Tags | `Pinggy`, `Tunnel`, `Networking`, `SSH`, `Webhook`, `Localhost` |
+
+## Reference: full SKILL.md
+
+:::info
+The following is the complete skill definition that Hermes loads when this skill is triggered. This is what the agent sees as instructions when the skill is active.
+:::
+
+# Pinggy Tunnel Skill
+
+Expose a local service (dev server, webhook receiver, MCP endpoint, demo) to the public internet using a Pinggy SSH reverse tunnel. No daemon to install — the user's stock SSH client connects to `a.pinggy.io:443` and Pinggy hands back a public HTTP/HTTPS URL.
+
+Free tier: 60-minute tunnels, random subdomain, no signup. Pro tier ($3/mo) is an opt-in with a token.
+
+## When to Use
+
+- User asks to "expose this locally", "share my dev server", "make this URL public", "tunnel port N", "get a public URL for a webhook"
+- Need to receive a webhook callback during a local task (Stripe, GitHub, Discord, AgentMail)
+- Sharing a one-off HTTP demo (MCP server, Ollama/vLLM endpoint, dashboard) with a remote party
+- The host has SSH but no `cloudflared` / `ngrok` binary, and installing one would be overkill
+
+If the host already has `cloudflared` configured, prefer the `cloudflared-quick-tunnel` skill — Cloudflare quick tunnels don't expire after 60 minutes.
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+- `ssh` on PATH (`ssh -V`). Default on Linux, macOS, and Windows 10+. No other install.
+- A local service listening on `127.0.0.1:<port>` before the tunnel starts. Pinggy will return URLs but they'll 502 until the local origin is up.
+
+Optional:
+
+- `PINGGY_TOKEN` env var for paid Pro features (persistent subdomain, custom domain, multiple tunnels, no 60-minute cap). Free tier needs no credentials.
+
+## Quick Reference
+
+```bash
+# Plain HTTP/HTTPS tunnel for port 8000 (free tier)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o ServerAliveInterval=30 \
+    -R0:localhost:8000 free@a.pinggy.io
+
+# TCP tunnel (databases, raw SSH, etc.)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:5432 tcp@a.pinggy.io
+
+# TLS tunnel (Pinggy can't decrypt — bring your own certs at origin)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:443 tls@a.pinggy.io
+
+# Basic auth gate (b:user:pass)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:8000 \
+    "b:admin:secret+free@a.pinggy.io"
+
+# Bearer token gate (k:token)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:8000 \
+    "k:mysecrettoken+free@a.pinggy.io"
+
+# IP whitelist (w:CIDR)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:8000 \
+    "w:203.0.113.0/24+free@a.pinggy.io"
+
+# Enable CORS + force HTTPS redirect
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:8000 \
+    "co+x:https+free@a.pinggy.io"
+
+# Pro tier (persistent URL, no 60-min cap)
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -R0:localhost:8000 "$PINGGY_TOKEN+a.pinggy.io"
+```
+
+## Procedure — Start a Tunnel and Get the URL
+
+The model SHOULD use the `terminal` tool. The tunnel must stay alive for the duration of the share, so run it as a background process and parse the public URL from stdout.
+
+### 1. Confirm a local origin is up
+
+```bash
+curl -sI http://127.0.0.1:8000/ | head -1
+# expect HTTP/1.x 200 (or any non-connection-refused response)
+```
+
+If nothing is listening yet, start it first (e.g. `python -m http.server 8000 --bind 127.0.0.1`). Pinggy will happily return a URL pointed at nothing — the user will see 502 until the origin comes up.
+
+### 2. Launch the tunnel as a background process
+
+Use `terminal(background=True)` and capture output to a logfile (Pinggy prints the URLs on stdout, then keeps the connection open):
+
+```bash
+LOG=/tmp/pinggy-8000.log
+nohup ssh -p 443 \
+    -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no \
+    -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null \
+    -o ServerAliveInterval=30 \
+    -o ServerAliveCountMax=3 \
+    -R0:localhost:8000 free@a.pinggy.io \
+    > "$LOG" 2>&1 &
+echo $! > /tmp/pinggy-8000.pid
+```
+
+`StrictHostKeyChecking=no` + `UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null` skips the first-run host-key prompt. `ServerAliveInterval=30` keeps the SSH session from getting torn down by an idle NAT.
+
+### 3. Parse the URL out of the log
+
+```bash
+sleep 4
+grep -oE 'https://[a-z0-9-]+\.[a-z]+\.pinggy\.link' /tmp/pinggy-8000.log | head -1
+```
+
+Expected output looks like:
+
+```
+You are not authenticated.
+Your tunnel will expire in 60 minutes.
+http://yqycl-98-162-69-48.a.free.pinggy.link
+https://yqycl-98-162-69-48.a.free.pinggy.link
+```
+
+Hand the `https://...pinggy.link` URL to the user.
+
+### 4. Verify
+
+```bash
+curl -sI https://<the-url>/ | head -3
+# expect 200/302/whatever the local origin actually returns
+```
+
+If you get `502 Bad Gateway`, the SSH session is up but the local origin isn't listening — fix step 1 first.
+
+### 5. Teardown
+
+```bash
+kill "$(cat /tmp/pinggy-8000.pid)"
+# or, if the pid file got lost:
+pkill -f 'ssh -p 443 .* free@a\.pinggy\.io'
+```
+
+If you have a session_id from `terminal(background=True)`, prefer `process(action='kill', session_id=...)`.
+
+## Access Control via Username Keywords
+
+Pinggy stacks control flags into the SSH username separated by `+`. Always quote the whole `user@host` argument when it contains a `+`:
+
+| Keyword | Effect |
+|---------|--------|
+| `b:user:pass` | HTTP Basic auth gate |
+| `k:token` | Bearer-token header gate (`Authorization: Bearer <token>`) |
+| `w:CIDR` | IP whitelist (single IP or CIDR, repeatable) |
+| `co` | Add `Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *` (CORS) |
+| `x:https` | Force HTTPS — auto-redirect HTTP to HTTPS |
+| `a:Name:Value` | Add request header |
+| `u:Name:Value` | Update request header |
+| `r:Name` | Remove request header |
+| `qr` | Print a QR code of the URL to stdout (handy for mobile sharing) |
+
+Combine freely: `"b:admin:secret+co+x:https+free@a.pinggy.io"`.
+
+## Web Debugger (optional)
+
+Pinggy can mirror the inbound traffic to `localhost:4300` for inspection. Add a local forward to the SSH command:
+
+```bash
+ssh -p 443 -L4300:localhost:4300 -R0:localhost:8000 free@a.pinggy.io
+```
+
+Then open `http://localhost:4300` in a browser to see live request/response pairs.
+
+## Pitfalls
+
+- **60-minute hard cap on the free tier.** The SSH session terminates at the 60-minute mark; the URL goes dead. For longer shares, either use `PINGGY_TOKEN` (Pro) or auto-restart with a shell loop (note that the URL changes on every restart for free-tier).
+- **Free-tier URL is random and changes on restart.** Don't bookmark it, don't paste it into a config file. Re-parse from the log each time.
+- **Concurrent free tunnels are limited to one per source IP.** Starting a second tunnel from the same machine usually kills the first. Pro tier lifts this.
+- **`+` in usernames must be quoted.** Bare `ssh ... b:admin:secret+free@a.pinggy.io` works in bash but breaks under shells that treat `+` specially or when assembled programmatically. Always wrap in double quotes.
+- **Don't tunnel anything sensitive without an access-control flag.** A bare HTTP tunnel is reachable by anyone with the URL. Use `b:`, `k:`, or `w:` for non-public services.
+- **`process(action='log')` may miss SSH banner output.** Pinggy prints the URLs and then the SSH session goes interactive. Always redirect to a logfile and `grep` the file directly — same pattern as `cloudflared-quick-tunnel`.
+- **Host-key prompt on first run.** Default OpenSSH config asks the user to accept Pinggy's host key. Always pass `-o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null` for unattended runs.
+- **TCP and TLS tunnels return a `<subdomain>.a.pinggy.online:<port>` pair, not an https URL.** Parse with a different regex (`tcp://` and a port). Don't assume every Pinggy tunnel is HTTP.
+- **Pro mode requires the token as the username, not a flag.** Use `"$PINGGY_TOKEN+a.pinggy.io"` (no `free@`). With a token you can also add `:persistent` for a stable subdomain — see `pinggy.io/docs/`.
+
+## Recipes
+
+Composite patterns combining a local origin with a Pinggy tunnel. Each recipe is self-contained — start the origin, start the tunnel, parse the URL, hand it back to the user.
+
+### Recipe 1 — Receive a webhook callback
+
+Use this when an external service (Stripe, GitHub, Discord, AgentMail, etc.) needs to POST to a publicly reachable URL during a local task.
+
+```bash
+# 1. Tiny capturing server: every request gets appended to /tmp/webhook-hits.log
+cat >/tmp/webhook-server.py <<'PY'
+import http.server, json, datetime, pathlib
+LOG = pathlib.Path("/tmp/webhook-hits.log")
+class H(http.server.BaseHTTPRequestHandler):
+    def _capture(self):
+        n = int(self.headers.get("content-length") or 0)
+        body = self.rfile.read(n).decode("utf-8", "replace") if n else ""
+        rec = {"t": datetime.datetime.utcnow().isoformat(), "path": self.path,
+               "method": self.command, "headers": dict(self.headers), "body": body}
+        with LOG.open("a") as f: f.write(json.dumps(rec) + "\n")
+        self.send_response(200); self.send_header("content-type","application/json")
+        self.end_headers(); self.wfile.write(b'{"ok":true}\n')
+    def do_GET(self): self._capture()
+    def do_POST(self): self._capture()
+    def log_message(self,*a,**k): pass
+http.server.HTTPServer(("127.0.0.1", 18080), H).serve_forever()
+PY
+nohup python /tmp/webhook-server.py >/tmp/webhook-server.log 2>&1 &
+echo $! >/tmp/webhook-server.pid
+
+# 2. Tunnel — bearer-token-gate so randos can't pollute the capture log
+nohup ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null \
+    -o ServerAliveInterval=30 \
+    -R0:localhost:18080 "k:$(openssl rand -hex 12)+free@a.pinggy.io" \
+    >/tmp/webhook-pinggy.log 2>&1 &
+echo $! >/tmp/webhook-pinggy.pid
+sleep 5
+URL=$(grep -oE 'https://[a-z0-9-]+\.[a-z]+\.pinggy\.link' /tmp/webhook-pinggy.log | head -1)
+echo "Webhook URL: $URL"
+
+# 3. While the agent works, watch hits land
+tail -f /tmp/webhook-hits.log
+```
+
+Hand `$URL` to the service that needs to call you. Teardown: `kill $(cat /tmp/webhook-server.pid) $(cat /tmp/webhook-pinggy.pid)`.
+
+### Recipe 2 — Expose an MCP server over HTTP/SSE
+
+Use when a remote MCP client (Claude Desktop on another machine, a teammate's editor, etc.) needs to reach an MCP server running on the local box. Only works for MCP servers that speak HTTP transport — stdio-mode servers can't be tunneled.
+
+```bash
+# 1. Start the MCP server in HTTP mode (example: a FastMCP server on port 8765)
+nohup python my_mcp_server.py --transport http --port 8765 \
+    >/tmp/mcp-server.log 2>&1 &
+echo $! >/tmp/mcp-server.pid
+
+# 2. Tunnel with a bearer token — MCP traffic should not be open to the internet
+TOKEN=$(openssl rand -hex 16)
+nohup ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null \
+    -o ServerAliveInterval=30 \
+    -R0:localhost:8765 "k:$TOKEN+free@a.pinggy.io" \
+    >/tmp/mcp-pinggy.log 2>&1 &
+echo $! >/tmp/mcp-pinggy.pid
+sleep 5
+URL=$(grep -oE 'https://[a-z0-9-]+\.[a-z]+\.pinggy\.link' /tmp/mcp-pinggy.log | head -1)
+echo "MCP URL: $URL"
+echo "Bearer token: $TOKEN"
+```
+
+The remote client connects to `$URL` with `Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN`. Hermes' own native MCP client config: `{"transport": "http", "url": "<URL>", "headers": {"Authorization": "Bearer <TOKEN>"}}`.
+
+### Recipe 3 — Expose a local LLM endpoint (Ollama / vLLM / llama.cpp)
+
+Share a local model with a remote caller (another agent, a phone, a teammate). Ollama listens on `:11434`, vLLM and llama.cpp typically on `:8000`.
+
+```bash
+# Pre-req: the model server is already running on 127.0.0.1:11434 (Ollama default)
+TOKEN=$(openssl rand -hex 16)
+nohup ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null \
+    -o ServerAliveInterval=30 \
+    -R0:localhost:11434 "k:$TOKEN+co+free@a.pinggy.io" \
+    >/tmp/llm-pinggy.log 2>&1 &
+echo $! >/tmp/llm-pinggy.pid
+sleep 5
+URL=$(grep -oE 'https://[a-z0-9-]+\.[a-z]+\.pinggy\.link' /tmp/llm-pinggy.log | head -1)
+echo "Endpoint: $URL"
+echo "Token:    $TOKEN"
+
+# Verify
+curl -s "$URL/api/tags" -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" | head
+```
+
+`co` enables CORS so a browser caller can hit the endpoint. Drop `co` for backend-only callers. For an OpenAI-compatible vLLM/llama.cpp endpoint, callers use base URL `$URL/v1` with `Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN` — but note Pinggy strips/replaces nothing in the body, so the model server itself sees Pinggy's token; the local server should be configured to ignore auth (it's already on `127.0.0.1`) and let Pinggy do the gating.
+
+### Recipe 4 — Share a dev server with a one-shot password
+
+The fastest "let a teammate poke at my running app" pattern. Random password, prints once, dies when you Ctrl-C.
+
+```bash
+PASS=$(openssl rand -base64 12 | tr -d '+/=' | head -c 12)
+echo "Dev server password: $PASS"
+ssh -p 443 -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null \
+    -o ServerAliveInterval=30 \
+    -R0:localhost:3000 "b:dev:$PASS+co+x:https+free@a.pinggy.io"
+# URL prints to the terminal. Share URL + password. Ctrl-C to tear down.
+```
+
+`b:dev:$PASS` gates the URL with HTTP Basic auth. `x:https` forces TLS. `co` adds CORS for SPA frontends.
+
+## Verification
+
+```bash
+# End-to-end: spin up a trivial origin, tunnel it, hit it, tear down
+python -m http.server 18000 --bind 127.0.0.1 >/tmp/origin.log 2>&1 &
+ORIGIN_PID=$!
+
+nohup ssh -p 443 \
+    -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no \
+    -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null \
+    -R0:localhost:18000 free@a.pinggy.io >/tmp/pinggy-verify.log 2>&1 &
+SSH_PID=$!
+
+sleep 5
+URL=$(grep -oE 'https://[a-z0-9-]+\.[a-z]+\.pinggy\.link' /tmp/pinggy-verify.log | head -1)
+echo "URL: $URL"
+curl -sI "$URL/" | head -1
+
+kill "$SSH_PID" "$ORIGIN_PID"
+```
+
+Expected: a `pinggy.link` URL and `HTTP/2 200` on the curl head.

package/docs/80_upstream-docs-and-skills/hermes-dev-skill/src/docs/user-guide/skills/optional/devops/devops-setup-wizard-generator.md

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+---
+title: "Setup Wizard Generator — Generate a bash wizard guiding a human through manual setup"
+sidebar_label: "Setup Wizard Generator"
+description: "Generate a bash wizard guiding a human through manual setup"
+---
+
+{/* This page is auto-generated from the skill's SKILL.md by website/scripts/generate-skill-docs.py. Edit the source SKILL.md, not this page. */}
+
+# Setup Wizard Generator
+
+Generate a bash wizard guiding a human through manual setup.
+
+## Skill metadata
+
+| | |
+|---|---|
+| Source | Optional — install with `hermes skills install official/devops/setup-wizard-generator` |
+| Path | `optional-skills/devops\setup-wizard-generator` |
+| Version | `1.0.0` |
+| Author | Matt Pocock (mattpocock/skills, wizard) + Hermes Agent |
+| License | MIT |
+| Platforms | linux, macos |
+| Tags | `wizard`, `setup`, `onboarding`, `credentials`, `secrets`, `migration`, `bash`, `human-in-the-loop` |
+
+## Reference: full SKILL.md
+
+:::info
+The following is the complete skill definition that Hermes loads when this skill is triggered. This is what the agent sees as instructions when the skill is active.
+:::
+
+# Setup Wizard Generator
+
+Generates an interactive bash **wizard**: a script that walks a human, step
+by step, through a manual procedure that is tedious to do by hand and tedious
+to re-explain every time. It opens each URL, says exactly what to click and
+copy, captures the values, writes them where they belong (`.env`, GitHub
+secrets), confirms at every stage, and shows how many stages are left.
+
+Ported from mattpocock/skills' MIT-licensed `wizard` skill.
+
+## When to Use
+
+- Provisioning infrastructure or third-party services (Stripe, Supabase,
+  DNS, OAuth apps) where only a human can click through the dashboard
+- Setting up credentials, CI secrets, or repo variables
+- One-off migrations or cutovers with irreversible human-gated steps
+- Any procedure the user will hand to a teammate to run
+
+Do NOT use for steps the agent can perform itself — do those directly.
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+- `bash`; `gh` CLI only if stages write GitHub secrets/variables
+- The library template: `templates/template.sh` in this skill's directory
+
+## Procedure
+
+### 1. Scope the procedure
+
+Work out every manual step the human must take and every value captured
+along the way. Read the repo first, don't ask cold:
+
+- Setup: `.env`, `.env.example`, `README`, `docker-compose*`, framework
+  config, and `.github/workflows/*` (every `secrets.*` / `vars.*` reference
+  is a value the wizard must produce).
+- Migration/cutover: the current state, the target state, and the
+  irreversible actions between them.
+
+Show the user the ordered stage list and the values each produces; they may
+add, drop, or reorder. Done when every stage is named in order and, for each
+captured value, you know (a) where the human gets it, (b) where it's written
+(`.env`, a GitHub secret, both, or nowhere), and (c) whether it's secret
+(hidden entry) or public.
+
+### 2. Map each stage's journey
+
+For each stage, write the precise path a human follows: which URL to open,
+what to do there, where the value is shown — e.g. "Dashboard → Developers →
+API keys → Reveal test key → copy". Where you don't know the current UI or
+exact command, say so and check the docs or ask — never invent steps that
+may not exist.
+
+### 3. Author the wizard
+
+Copy `templates/template.sh` (from this skill's directory) to the target
+path. Replace the example stage with one `stage` per step, in dependency
+order. Set `TOTAL_STAGES` to the number of stages you wrote.
+
+Library helpers: `stage`, `say`/`step`/`note`/`warn`, `open_url`,
+`ask`/`ask_secret`, `write_env`, `set_secret`/`set_var`, `pause`/`confirm`,
+`banner`, `finish`. The library above the `STAGES` marker is identical in
+every wizard — never hand-edit it; that consistency is the point.
+
+Hold the bar the template sets: open the URL before asking for its value,
+`ask_secret` for anything secret, `write_env` every persisted value,
+`set_secret` only what CI actually needs, and `confirm` before anything
+irreversible. Each `stage` clears the screen — keep one focused task per
+stage so nothing the human needs scrolls away.
+
+A wizard is ephemeral by default: save it to a scratch or `scripts/` path,
+delete it when the job's done. Commit it only when the user wants a
+repeatable setup path living in the repo.
+
+### 4. Verify and hand off
+
+- `bash -n <script>`; run `shellcheck` if available; `chmod +x <script>`.
+- Do NOT run it end-to-end yourself: it opens browsers and blocks on human
+  input. Trace it statically: every value from step 1 is captured and lands
+  where step 1 said, and every `set_secret` name exactly matches a
+  `secrets.*` reference in CI.
+- Tell the user how to run it. If it's repeatable, commit it and link it
+  from the README.
+
+## Pitfalls
+
+1. **Editing the library section.** Everything above the `STAGES` marker is
+   the wizard library; author only below it.
+2. **Inventing dashboard paths.** Third-party UIs drift. If unsure of the
+   click path, verify against current docs or flag it as approximate.
+3. **`set_secret` for values CI doesn't use.** Only push to GitHub secrets
+   what a workflow actually references.
+4. **Running the wizard yourself.** It blocks on human input; static tracing
+   plus `bash -n` is the verification.
+5. **One mega-stage.** Screen clearing per stage means a long stage scrolls
+   critical instructions away; split it.
+
+## Verification
+
+- [ ] Stage list confirmed with the user before authoring
+- [ ] `bash -n` passes; script is executable
+- [ ] Every captured value traced to its declared destination
+- [ ] Every `set_secret` name matches a CI `secrets.*` reference
+- [ ] Library section untouched from the template

package/docs/80_upstream-docs-and-skills/hermes-dev-skill/src/docs/user-guide/skills/optional/devops/devops-watchers.md

@@ -0,0 +1,126 @@
+---
+title: "Watchers — Poll RSS, JSON APIs, and GitHub with watermark dedup"
+sidebar_label: "Watchers"
+description: "Poll RSS, JSON APIs, and GitHub with watermark dedup"
+---
+
+{/* This page is auto-generated from the skill's SKILL.md by website/scripts/generate-skill-docs.py. Edit the source SKILL.md, not this page. */}
+
+# Watchers
+
+Poll RSS, JSON APIs, and GitHub with watermark dedup.
+
+## Skill metadata
+
+| | |
+|---|---|
+| Source | Optional — install with `hermes skills install official/devops/watchers` |
+| Path | `optional-skills/devops\watchers` |
+| Version | `1.0.0` |
+| Author | Hermes Agent |
+| License | MIT |
+| Platforms | linux, macos |
+| Tags | `cron`, `polling`, `rss`, `github`, `http`, `automation`, `monitoring` |
+
+## Reference: full SKILL.md
+
+:::info
+The following is the complete skill definition that Hermes loads when this skill is triggered. This is what the agent sees as instructions when the skill is active.
+:::
+
+# Watchers
+
+Poll external sources on an interval and react only to new items. Three ready-made scripts plus a shared watermark helper; wire them into a cron job (or run them ad-hoc from the terminal).
+
+## When to Use
+
+- User wants to watch an RSS/Atom feed and be notified of new entries
+- User wants to watch a GitHub repo's issues / pulls / releases / commits
+- User wants to poll an arbitrary JSON endpoint and get notified on new items
+- User asks for "a watcher for X" or "notify me when X changes"
+
+## Mental model
+
+A watcher is just a script that:
+
+1. Fetches data from the external source
+2. Compares against a watermark file of previously-seen IDs
+3. Writes the new watermark back
+4. Prints new items to stdout (or nothing on no-change)
+
+The scripts below handle all three. The agent runs them via the terminal tool — from a cron job, a webhook, or an interactive chat — and reports what's new.
+
+## Ready-made scripts
+
+All three live in `$HERMES_HOME/skills/devops/watchers/scripts/` once the skill is installed. Each reads `WATCHER_STATE_DIR` (defaults to `$HERMES_HOME/watcher-state/`) for its state file, keyed by the `--name` argument.
+
+| Script | What it watches | Dedup key |
+|---|---|---|
+| `watch_rss.py` | RSS 2.0 or Atom feed URL | `<guid>` / `<id>` |
+| `watch_http_json.py` | Any JSON endpoint returning a list of objects | Configurable id field |
+| `watch_github.py` | GitHub issues / pulls / releases / commits for a repo | `id` / `sha` |
+
+All three:
+
+- First run records a baseline — never replays existing feed
+- Watermark is a bounded ID set (max 500) to cap memory
+- Output format: `## <title>\n<url>\n\n<optional body>` per item
+- Empty stdout on no-new — the caller treats that as silent
+- Non-zero exit on fetch errors
+
+## Usage
+
+Run a watcher directly from the terminal tool:
+
+```bash
+python $HERMES_HOME/skills/devops/watchers/scripts/watch_rss.py \
+  --name hn --url https://news.ycombinator.com/rss --max 5
+```
+
+Watch a GitHub repo (set `GITHUB_TOKEN` in `${HERMES_HOME:-~/.hermes}/.env` to avoid the 60 req/hr anonymous rate limit):
+
+```bash
+python $HERMES_HOME/skills/devops/watchers/scripts/watch_github.py \
+  --name hermes-issues --repo NousResearch/hermes-agent --scope issues
+```
+
+Poll an arbitrary JSON API:
+
+```bash
+python $HERMES_HOME/skills/devops/watchers/scripts/watch_http_json.py \
+  --name api --url https://api.example.com/events \
+  --id-field event_id --items-path data.events
+```
+
+## Wiring into cron
+
+Ask the agent to schedule a cron job with a prompt like:
+
+> Every 15 minutes, run `watch_rss.py --name hn --url https://news.ycombinator.com/rss`. If it prints anything, summarize the headlines and deliver them. If it prints nothing, stay silent.
+
+The agent invokes the script via the terminal tool inside the cron job's agent loop; no changes to cron's built-in `--script` flag are needed.
+
+## State files
+
+Every watcher writes `$HERMES_HOME/watcher-state/<name>.json`. Inspect:
+
+```bash
+cat $HERMES_HOME/watcher-state/hn.json
+```
+
+Force a replay (next run treated as first poll):
+
+```bash
+rm $HERMES_HOME/watcher-state/hn.json
+```
+
+## Writing your own
+
+All three scripts use the same template: load watermark, fetch, diff, save, emit. `scripts/_watermark.py` is the shared helper; import it to get atomic writes + bounded ID set + first-run baseline for free. See any of the three reference scripts for how little boilerplate it takes.
+
+## Common Pitfalls
+
+1. **Printing a "no new items" header every tick.** Callers rely on empty stdout = silent. If you print anything on an empty delta, you spam the channel. The shipped scripts handle this; custom scripts must too.
+2. **Expecting the first run to emit items.** It won't — first run records a baseline. If you need an initial digest, delete the state file after the first run or add a `--prime-with-latest N` flag in your own script.
+3. **Unbounded watermark growth.** The shared helper caps at 500 IDs. Raise it for high-churn feeds; lower it on constrained filesystems.
+4. **Putting the state dir where the agent's sandbox can't write.** `$HERMES_HOME/watcher-state/` is always writable. Docker/Modal backends may not see arbitrary host paths.