How to Set Up Hermes Agent on Saplo (AI Agent for Chat Apps)

Before you begin, one thing upfront: Hermes Agent has no web panel. There is no login screen, no dashboard with charts, and nothing you can open in a browser after entering the domain. The entire configuration, from the language model API key to connecting the bot to Telegram, takes place in the terminal. If you are looking for a ready-made chatbot with a clickable interface, this is not the app for you. In the Saplo app catalog, you will find other tools that are better suited to your needs. Hermes Agent is for someone else: a developer or an agency that wants its own AI agent connected to messaging apps, without writing model API integrations from scratch and without paying a monthly subscription for a SaaS platform that ultimately does the same thing under the hood. If this describes your situation, below is a step-by-step guide to setting up Hermes Agent on Saplo.

Who is Hermes Agent for?

Before you install it, check whether this tool really fits what you want to do:

• you want to build a bot that will answer for you on Telegram, Discord or Slack - Hermes Agent connects to the messenger you choose and talks to users on your behalf, using the language model you specify,
• you don't want to write your own model API integration - handling webhooks, message queuing and maintaining the connection to the messenger is already covered by Docker, you just provide the keys,
• you prefer paying once for Box instead of paying monthly for a SaaS platform - Hermes Agent is open source, there's no separate subscription, you pay only for the Box it runs on,
• configuring it through the terminal doesn't bother you - if you expect a browser-based setup wizard, this app will disappoint you, everything happens through SSH here.

If you're looking for a ready-made customer service chatbot with an admin panel, check out other entries in the App catalog, where you'll find tools with a web interface.

Requirements

To set up Hermes Agent on Saplo, you need:

• a Box L or higher plan, because the initial setup requires SSH access through Terminal Online, which lower plans do not have,
• at least 1.5 GB of free RAM and 8 GB of disk space,
• a domain or subdomain *.saploapp.pl included in the price of each plan, which will host the information site (Hermes is headless, so you'll only see instructions under the domain, not a dashboard),
• an API key for the language model that you'll provide during setup in the terminal, and a bot token for the messenger service that Hermes is to connect to,
• you do NOT need a separate database, the entire configuration and conversation history are stored in a named Docker volume.

Step-by-step installation

1. In the Saplo panel, open App catalog and select Hermes Agent (category: "AI Applications").
2. Select a Box on the Box L plan or higher with at least 1.5 GB of free RAM, and provide a domain or subdomain where the information page will be hosted.
3. Confirm the installation. The engine installs Docker CE if it is not already present on the Box, downloads the official nousresearch/hermes-agent image (around 900 MB), and starts a container without an exposed HTTP port, so all traffic stays inside the container.
4. After startup, the engine checks whether the container is actually running and has not entered a restart loop, instead of simply running docker compose up without any verification.
5. A static page with configuration instructions appears at the selected domain, because Hermes does not expose its own web interface.

Initial setup

1. In the Saplo panel, open Online Terminal for the Box where Hermes Agent is running (requires Box L or higher).
2. Run the setup wizard using docker exec -it hermes-<slug> hermes setup, where <slug> is the name of your installation, as shown in the panel.
3. In the interactive wizard, enter the API key for the language model and the bot token for the selected messenger (Telegram, Discord, or Slack).
4. Once the wizard is complete, the agent connects to the messenger automatically, without restarting the container.
5. You can preview the agent's actions in real time using docker logs -f hermes-<slug> in the same Online Terminal.

Hermes Agent on Saplo vs. alternatives

Frequently asked questions

Does Hermes Agent have a web panel? No, the application is headless. Under the domain you specify during installation, you will see only a static page with setup instructions. The agent itself runs in a Docker container and does not expose any browser interface.

Why does installation require Box L rather than a cheaper plan? Because the initial setup is done through Terminal Online, which provides SSH access to the container, and this is only available with Box L and above. On lower plans, you can deploy the container but cannot configure the agent.

Which language model can Hermes Agent use? You provide your own API key during setup in the hermes setup wizard, so the model you choose depends on which provider you have access to. Saplo does not impose a specific provider or add any charge for model queries.

Where is the agent's conversation history stored? In a named Docker volume on your Box. The same volume survives clearing the app directory, so the configuration and history do not disappear during routine operations on your Box.

Can I connect Hermes Agent to more than one messenger at once? The hermes setup wizard guides you through the messenger configuration step by step, so if you want to use more than one channel, you can run the wizard again and add another connection in the same container.

If you want your own AI agent on Telegram, Discord, or Slack without writing integrations from scratch and without a SaaS subscription, and the terminal does not put you off, you can set up Hermes Agent on Saplo in just a few minutes. Write to us if you need help with the initial setup.