diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/agent/entrypoints/app/agents/agent-harness-types.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/agent/entrypoints/app/agents/agent-harness-types.ts
index 65159d4cc..10ae26485 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/agent/entrypoints/app/agents/agent-harness-types.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/agent/entrypoints/app/agents/agent-harness-types.ts
@@ -131,15 +131,14 @@ export interface CreateHarnessAgentInput {
   modelId?: string
   reasoningEffort?: string
   /**
-   * Hermes-only — provider id from `HERMES_SUPPORTED_PROVIDERS`. When
-   * paired with `apiKey`, the backend writes a per-agent
-   * config.yaml + .env into the agent's HERMES_HOME so the first chat
-   * doesn't depend on the user having run `hermes setup` globally.
+   * Adapter provider id from the user's BrowserOS AI Settings entry.
+   * Provider-backed adapters use this with `apiKey`/`baseUrl` to write
+   * or provision their runtime-specific provider config.
    */
   providerType?: string
-  /** Hermes-only — API key paired with `providerType`. */
+  /** API key paired with `providerType` when the selected adapter needs one. */
   apiKey?: string
-  /** Hermes-only — base URL for the `custom` provider. */
+  /** Base URL for OpenAI-compatible/custom provider entries. */
   baseUrl?: string
 }
 
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.ts
index 58f514b63..714ea49cc 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.ts
@@ -19,13 +19,13 @@ import type {
 } from '../../../lib/agents/agent-store'
 import type { AgentDefinition } from '../../../lib/agents/agent-types'
 import { DbAgentStore } from '../../../lib/agents/db-agent-store'
+import { writeHermesPerAgentProvider } from '../../../lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths'
+import { getHermesProviderMapping } from '../../../lib/agents/hermes/hermes-provider-map'
 import {
   FileMessageQueue,
   type QueuedMessage,
   type QueuedMessageAttachment,
 } from '../../../lib/agents/message-queue'
-import { writeHermesPerAgentProvider } from '../hermes/hermes-paths'
-import { getHermesProviderMapping } from '../hermes/hermes-provider-map'
 
 export {
   MessageQueueFullError,
@@ -202,12 +202,6 @@ export class AgentHarnessService {
   private readonly turnRegistry: TurnRegistry
   private readonly messageQueue: FileMessageQueue
   private readonly turnLifecycleListeners = new Set<TurnLifecycleListener>()
-  /**
-   * Optional override for the BrowserOS dir used by Hermes per-agent
-   * provider config writes. Defaults to the global `getBrowserosDir()`
-   * lookup at write time when undefined; tests can inject a tmp dir.
-   */
-  private readonly browserosDir: string | undefined
   /**
    * Lazy-initialised so tests that swap in a fake `agentStore` don't
    * eagerly hit `getDb()` (which throws when the test harness hasn't
@@ -231,7 +225,6 @@ export class AgentHarnessService {
       agentStore?: AgentStore
       runtime?: AgentRuntime
       browserosServerPort?: number
-      browserosDir?: string
       openclawGateway?: OpenclawGatewayAccessor
       openclawProvisioner?: OpenClawProvisioner
       turnRegistry?: TurnRegistry
@@ -249,7 +242,6 @@ export class AgentHarnessService {
     this.openclawProvisioner = deps.openclawProvisioner ?? null
     this.turnRegistry = deps.turnRegistry ?? new TurnRegistry()
     this.messageQueue = deps.messageQueue ?? new FileMessageQueue()
-    this.browserosDir = deps.browserosDir
     if (deps.producedFilesStore) {
       this.explicitProducedFilesStore = deps.producedFilesStore
     }
@@ -620,7 +612,6 @@ export class AgentHarnessService {
       )
     }
     await writeHermesPerAgentProvider({
-      browserosDir: this.browserosDir,
       agentId,
       providerId: mapping.hermesProvider,
       envVarName: mapping.envVarName,
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.ts
index d10567250..7374d9de6 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@
  */
 
 import { join } from 'node:path'
-import { OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_CONTAINER_PORT } from '@browseros/shared/constants/openclaw'
 import { DEFAULT_PORTS } from '@browseros/shared/constants/ports'
 import {
   type AcpRuntimeEvent,
@@ -32,6 +31,10 @@ import type {
   AgentHistoryEntry,
   AgentHistoryToolCall,
 } from './agent-types'
+import {
+  type OpenclawGatewayAccessor,
+  resolveOpenclawAcpCommand,
+} from './openclaw/acp-command'
 import { getHermesRuntime } from './runtime'
 import type {
   AgentHistoryPage,
@@ -43,24 +46,7 @@ import type {
   AgentStreamEvent,
 } from './types'
 
-/**
- * Live-getter access to the OpenClaw gateway runtime info. Required
- * when spawning the openclaw ACP adapter inside the gateway container.
- *
- * Fields are getters (not snapshot values) so the harness picks up the
- * current VM/container paths at spawn time. The bundled gateway runs
- * with `gateway.auth.mode=none`, so no auth token is plumbed through.
- */
-export interface OpenclawGatewayAccessor {
-  /** Container name e.g. browseros-openclaw-openclaw-gateway-1. */
-  getContainerName(): string
-  /** LIMA_HOME directory containing the browseros-vm instance. */
-  getLimaHomeDir(): string
-  /** Resolved path to the `limactl` binary (bundled or host). */
-  getLimactlPath(): string
-  /** VM name registered in LIMA_HOME (e.g. browseros-vm). */
-  getVmName(): string
-}
+export type { OpenclawGatewayAccessor } from './openclaw/acp-command'
 
 type AcpxRuntimeOptions = {
   cwd?: string
@@ -736,79 +722,6 @@ function createBrowserosAgentRegistry(input: {
   }
 }
 
-/**
- * Builds the command string acpx will spawn for an `openclaw` adapter.
- * Runs `openclaw acp` inside the gateway container via the bundled
- * `limactl shell <vm> -- nerdctl exec -i ...` chain so the binary
- * already installed alongside the gateway is reused; BrowserOS does
- * not require a host-side openclaw install.
- *
- * Auth: BrowserOS configures the bundled gateway with `gateway.auth.mode=none`,
- * so no gateway token flag is needed for the local ACP bridge.
- *
- * Banner output: OPENCLAW_HIDE_BANNER and OPENCLAW_SUPPRESS_NOTES
- * suppress non-JSON-RPC chatter on stdout that would otherwise corrupt
- * the ACP message stream.
- */
-function resolveOpenclawAcpCommand(
-  gateway: OpenclawGatewayAccessor,
-  sessionKey: string | null,
-): string {
-  const limactl = gateway.getLimactlPath()
-  const vm = gateway.getVmName()
-  const container = gateway.getContainerName()
-  const limaHome = gateway.getLimaHomeDir()
-  const gatewayUrlInsideContainer = `ws://127.0.0.1:${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_CONTAINER_PORT}`
-
-  // `--session <key>` routes the bridge's newSession requests to the
-  // matching gateway agent. acpx does not pass sessionKey through ACP
-  // newSession params, so without this CLI flag the bridge falls back
-  // to a synthetic acp:<uuid> session that does not resolve to any
-  // provisioned gateway agent.
-  //
-  // Harness keys are `agent:<harness-id>:main`; the harness id matches
-  // a dual-created gateway agent name, so the bridge resolves directly.
-  // Any legacy non-agent key falls back to the always-provisioned
-  // `main` gateway agent with the original key encoded as a channel
-  // suffix.
-  const bridgeSessionKey = sessionKey
-    ? sessionKey.startsWith('agent:')
-      ? sessionKey
-      : `agent:main:${sessionKey.replace(/[^a-zA-Z0-9-]/g, '-')}`
-    : null
-  //
-  // Prefix `env LIMA_HOME=<path>` so the spawned limactl finds the
-  // BrowserOS-owned VM instance. The BrowserOS server doesn't set
-  // LIMA_HOME on its own process env (it injects per-spawn elsewhere),
-  // so the acpx-spawned subprocess won't inherit it without this hint.
-  const argv = [
-    'env',
-    `LIMA_HOME=${limaHome}`,
-    limactl,
-    'shell',
-    '--workdir',
-    '/',
-    vm,
-    '--',
-    'nerdctl',
-    'exec',
-    '-i',
-    '-e',
-    'OPENCLAW_HIDE_BANNER=1',
-    '-e',
-    'OPENCLAW_SUPPRESS_NOTES=1',
-    container,
-    'openclaw',
-    'acp',
-    '--url',
-    gatewayUrlInsideContainer,
-  ]
-  if (bridgeSessionKey) {
-    argv.push('--session', bridgeSessionKey)
-  }
-  return argv.join(' ')
-}
-
 async function applyRuntimeControls(
   runtime: AcpxCoreRuntime,
   handle: AcpRuntimeHandle,
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/hermes/hermes-paths.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths.ts
similarity index 98%
rename from packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/hermes/hermes-paths.ts
rename to packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths.ts
index d2fd58185..49144771e 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/hermes/hermes-paths.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths.ts
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@
 
 import { mkdir, writeFile } from 'node:fs/promises'
 import { join } from 'node:path'
-import { getVmStateDir } from '../../../lib/browseros-dir'
+import { getVmStateDir } from '../../browseros-dir'
 
 /** Top-level Hermes state directory: `<browserosDir>/vm/hermes`. */
 export function getHermesHostStateDir(browserosDir?: string): string {
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/hermes/hermes-provider-map.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-provider-map.ts
similarity index 100%
rename from packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/api/services/hermes/hermes-provider-map.ts
rename to packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-provider-map.ts
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..800e85da3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright 2025 BrowserOS
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+
+import { OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_CONTAINER_PORT } from '@browseros/shared/constants/openclaw'
+
+/**
+ * Live-getter access to the OpenClaw gateway runtime info. Required
+ * when spawning the OpenClaw ACP adapter inside the gateway container.
+ *
+ * Fields are getters (not snapshot values) so the harness picks up the
+ * current VM/container paths at spawn time. The bundled gateway runs
+ * with `gateway.auth.mode=none`, so no auth token is plumbed through.
+ */
+export interface OpenclawGatewayAccessor {
+  /** Container name e.g. browseros-openclaw-openclaw-gateway-1. */
+  getContainerName(): string
+  /** LIMA_HOME directory containing the browseros-vm instance. */
+  getLimaHomeDir(): string
+  /** Resolved path to the `limactl` binary (bundled or host). */
+  getLimactlPath(): string
+  /** VM name registered in LIMA_HOME (e.g. browseros-vm). */
+  getVmName(): string
+}
+
+/**
+ * Builds the command string acpx will spawn for an `openclaw` adapter.
+ * Runs `openclaw acp` inside the gateway container via the bundled
+ * `limactl shell <vm> -- nerdctl exec -i ...` chain so the binary
+ * already installed alongside the gateway is reused; BrowserOS does
+ * not require a host-side OpenClaw install.
+ *
+ * Auth: BrowserOS configures the bundled gateway with `gateway.auth.mode=none`,
+ * so no gateway token flag is needed for the local ACP bridge.
+ *
+ * Banner output: OPENCLAW_HIDE_BANNER and OPENCLAW_SUPPRESS_NOTES
+ * suppress non-JSON-RPC chatter on stdout that would otherwise corrupt
+ * the ACP message stream.
+ */
+export function resolveOpenclawAcpCommand(
+  gateway: OpenclawGatewayAccessor,
+  sessionKey: string | null,
+): string {
+  const limactl = gateway.getLimactlPath()
+  const vm = gateway.getVmName()
+  const container = gateway.getContainerName()
+  const limaHome = gateway.getLimaHomeDir()
+  const gatewayUrlInsideContainer = `ws://127.0.0.1:${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_CONTAINER_PORT}`
+
+  // `--session <key>` routes the bridge's newSession requests to the
+  // matching gateway agent. acpx does not pass sessionKey through ACP
+  // newSession params, so without this CLI flag the bridge falls back
+  // to a synthetic acp:<uuid> session that does not resolve to any
+  // provisioned gateway agent.
+  //
+  // Harness keys are `agent:<harness-id>:main`; the harness id matches
+  // a dual-created gateway agent name, so the bridge resolves directly.
+  // Any legacy non-agent key falls back to the always-provisioned
+  // `main` gateway agent with the original key encoded as a channel
+  // suffix.
+  const bridgeSessionKey = sessionKey
+    ? sessionKey.startsWith('agent:')
+      ? sessionKey
+      : `agent:main:${sessionKey.replace(/[^a-zA-Z0-9-]/g, '-')}`
+    : null
+
+  // Prefix `env LIMA_HOME=<path>` so the spawned limactl finds the
+  // BrowserOS-owned VM instance. The BrowserOS server doesn't set
+  // LIMA_HOME on its own process env (it injects per-spawn elsewhere),
+  // so the acpx-spawned subprocess won't inherit it without this hint.
+  const argv = [
+    'env',
+    `LIMA_HOME=${limaHome}`,
+    limactl,
+    'shell',
+    '--workdir',
+    '/',
+    vm,
+    '--',
+    'nerdctl',
+    'exec',
+    '-i',
+    '-e',
+    'OPENCLAW_HIDE_BANNER=1',
+    '-e',
+    'OPENCLAW_SUPPRESS_NOTES=1',
+    container,
+    'openclaw',
+    'acp',
+    '--url',
+    gatewayUrlInsideContainer,
+  ]
+  if (bridgeSessionKey) {
+    argv.push('--session', bridgeSessionKey)
+  }
+  return argv.join(' ')
+}
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.ts
index 5f72dea66..d7cafddf8 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.ts
@@ -15,11 +15,6 @@ import {
   HERMES_CONTAINER_NAME,
   HERMES_IMAGE,
 } from '@browseros/shared/constants/hermes'
-import {
-  getHermesAgentHomeHostDir,
-  getHermesHarnessHostDir,
-  getHermesHostStateDir,
-} from '../../../api/services/hermes/hermes-paths'
 import { getBrowserosDir } from '../../browseros-dir'
 import { ContainerCli } from '../../container/container-cli'
 import { ImageLoader } from '../../container/image-loader'
@@ -46,6 +41,11 @@ import {
   finishBrowserosManagedContext,
   prepareBrowserosManagedContext,
 } from '../acpx-agent-common'
+import {
+  getHermesAgentHomeHostDir,
+  getHermesHarnessHostDir,
+  getHermesHostStateDir,
+} from '../hermes/hermes-paths'
 import { ContainerAgentRuntime } from './container-agent-runtime'
 import { getAgentRuntimeRegistry } from './registry'
 import type { ExecSpec } from './types'
@@ -53,8 +53,6 @@ import type { ExecSpec } from './types'
 const HERMES_BINARY = '/opt/hermes/.venv/bin/hermes'
 
 export interface HermesContainerRuntimeConfig {
-  /** BrowserOS state root — used to compute per-agent home paths. */
-  browserosDir: string
   /** Host-side directory where Hermes per-agent home dirs live. */
   hermesHarnessHostDir: string
 }
@@ -150,10 +148,7 @@ export class HermesContainerRuntime extends ContainerAgentRuntime {
   // ── AgentRuntime additions ───────────────────────────────────────
 
   getPerAgentHomeDir(agentId: string): string {
-    return getHermesAgentHomeHostDir({
-      browserosDir: this.hermesConfig.browserosDir,
-      agentId,
-    })
+    return join(this.hermesConfig.hermesHarnessHostDir, agentId, 'home')
   }
 
   /**
@@ -191,9 +186,8 @@ export class HermesContainerRuntime extends ContainerAgentRuntime {
  */
 function translateHermesHomeToContainerPath(
   hostHome: string,
-  browserosDir: string,
+  harnessHostRoot: string,
 ): string {
-  const harnessHostRoot = getHermesHarnessHostDir(browserosDir)
   if (hostHome === harnessHostRoot) return HERMES_CONTAINER_HARNESS_DIR
   if (hostHome.startsWith(`${harnessHostRoot}/`)) {
     return `${HERMES_CONTAINER_HARNESS_DIR}${hostHome.slice(harnessHostRoot.length)}`
@@ -232,7 +226,7 @@ export async function prepareHermesContext(
 
   const hermesAgentHomeInContainer = translateHermesHomeToContainerPath(
     hermesAgentHome,
-    input.browserosDir,
+    getHermesHarnessHostDir(input.browserosDir),
   )
 
   return finishBrowserosManagedContext({
@@ -260,6 +254,16 @@ export interface ConfigureHermesRuntimeOptions {
   browserosDir?: string
 }
 
+export type HermesRuntimeStartupPhase = 'configure' | 'install' | 'start'
+
+export interface StartHermesRuntimeBestEffortOptions
+  extends ConfigureHermesRuntimeOptions {
+  configureRuntime?: (
+    options: ConfigureHermesRuntimeOptions,
+  ) => HermesContainerRuntime | null
+  onError?: (phase: HermesRuntimeStartupPhase, error: unknown) => void
+}
+
 /**
  * Build a `HermesContainerRuntime` with production deps (bundled
  * limactl, BrowserOS state dirs, Lima VM runtime) and register it in
@@ -310,7 +314,7 @@ export function configureHermesRuntime(
       vmName: VM_NAME,
       lockDir: join(hermesStateDir, '.locks'),
     },
-    { browserosDir, hermesHarnessHostDir },
+    { hermesHarnessHostDir },
   )
 
   getAgentRuntimeRegistry().register(runtime)
@@ -318,8 +322,55 @@ export function configureHermesRuntime(
   return runtime
 }
 
+/**
+ * Startup wiring for the Hermes adapter. Kept beside the adapter runtime so
+ * the server entry point does not need to know Hermes' install/start sequence.
+ */
+export function startHermesRuntimeBestEffort(
+  options: StartHermesRuntimeBestEffortOptions = {},
+): HermesContainerRuntime | null {
+  const {
+    configureRuntime = configureHermesRuntime,
+    onError = logHermesStartupError,
+    ...configureOptions
+  } = options
+
+  let runtime: HermesContainerRuntime | null
+  try {
+    runtime = configureRuntime(configureOptions)
+  } catch (err) {
+    onError('configure', err)
+    return null
+  }
+
+  if (!runtime) return null
+
+  void runtime
+    .executeAction({ type: 'install' })
+    .catch((err) => onError('install', err))
+  void runtime
+    .executeAction({ type: 'start' })
+    .catch((err) => onError('start', err))
+  return runtime
+}
+
 /** Convenience getter — returns the registered runtime or null. */
 export function getHermesRuntime(): HermesContainerRuntime | null {
   const r = getAgentRuntimeRegistry().get('hermes')
   return r instanceof HermesContainerRuntime ? r : null
 }
+
+function logHermesStartupError(
+  phase: HermesRuntimeStartupPhase,
+  error: unknown,
+): void {
+  const message =
+    phase === 'configure'
+      ? 'Hermes container configuration failed, continuing without it'
+      : phase === 'install'
+        ? 'Hermes prewarm failed'
+        : 'Hermes container start failed'
+  logger.warn(message, {
+    error: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
+  })
+}
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/index.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/index.ts
index 3392ee4b0..f12d3d748 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/index.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/lib/agents/runtime/index.ts
@@ -30,6 +30,8 @@ export {
   HermesContainerRuntime,
   type HermesContainerRuntimeConfig,
   prepareHermesContext,
+  type StartHermesRuntimeBestEffortOptions,
+  startHermesRuntimeBestEffort,
 } from './hermes-container-runtime'
 export {
   HostProcessAgentRuntime,
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/main.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/main.ts
index c25632141..2ec8e5a65 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/main.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/src/main.ts
@@ -24,8 +24,8 @@ import { INLINED_ENV } from './env'
 import {
   configureClaudeRuntime,
   configureCodexRuntime,
-  configureHermesRuntime,
   getHermesRuntime,
+  startHermesRuntimeBestEffort,
 } from './lib/agents/runtime'
 import {
   cleanOldSessions,
@@ -158,32 +158,7 @@ export class Application {
       })
     }
 
-    // Hermes container is also best-effort — same crash isolation
-    // semantics as OpenClaw above. Image is pulled in the background;
-    // an idle container is brought up so per-turn `nerdctl exec hermes acp`
-    // calls from the harness don't pay container-create latency.
-    try {
-      const hermesRuntime = configureHermesRuntime({ resourcesDir })
-      if (hermesRuntime) {
-        void hermesRuntime.executeAction({ type: 'install' }).catch((err) =>
-          logger.warn('Hermes prewarm failed', {
-            error: err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err),
-          }),
-        )
-        void hermesRuntime.executeAction({ type: 'start' }).catch((err) =>
-          logger.warn('Hermes container start failed', {
-            error: err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err),
-          }),
-        )
-      }
-    } catch (err) {
-      logger.warn(
-        'Hermes container configuration failed, continuing without it',
-        {
-          error: err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err),
-        },
-      )
-    }
+    startHermesRuntimeBestEffort({ resourcesDir })
 
     metrics.log('http_server.started', { version: VERSION })
   }
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.test.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.test.ts
index 83de14abc..6ebcd296d 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.test.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service.test.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 
 import { describe, expect, it } from 'bun:test'
 import { mkdtempSync, readFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { rm } from 'node:fs/promises'
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os'
 import { join } from 'node:path'
 import { AgentHarnessService } from '../../../../src/api/services/agents/agent-harness-service'
@@ -445,205 +446,184 @@ describe('AgentHarnessService', () => {
   })
 
   it('writes a per-agent Hermes config.yaml + .env when adapter=hermes and provider config complete', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    const agent = await service.createAgent({
-      name: 'Hermes bot',
-      adapter: 'hermes',
-      providerType: 'openrouter',
-      apiKey: 'sk-or-v1-test-key',
-      modelId: 'anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5',
-    })
-
-    const homeDir = join(
-      browserosDir,
-      'vm',
-      'hermes',
-      'harness',
-      agent.id,
-      'home',
-    )
-    const yaml = readFileSync(join(homeDir, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')
-    const env = readFileSync(join(homeDir, '.env'), 'utf8')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"openrouter"')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5"')
-    expect(env).toContain('OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-test-key')
-  })
-
-  it('rejects Hermes agent creation when apiKey is missing', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    await expect(
-      service.createAgent({
-        name: 'Hermes bot',
-        adapter: 'hermes',
-        providerType: 'openrouter',
-        modelId: 'anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5',
-      }),
-    ).rejects.toThrow(/apiKey/i)
-    expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
-  })
-
-  it('rejects Hermes agent creation when providerType is missing', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    await expect(
-      service.createAgent({ name: 'Hermes bot', adapter: 'hermes' }),
-    ).rejects.toThrow(/providerType/i)
-    expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
-  })
-
-  it('rejects Hermes agent creation when modelId is missing', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    await expect(
-      service.createAgent({
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ browserosDir, service }) => {
+      const agent = await service.createAgent({
         name: 'Hermes bot',
         adapter: 'hermes',
         providerType: 'openrouter',
         apiKey: 'sk-or-v1-test-key',
-      }),
-    ).rejects.toThrow(/modelId/i)
-    expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+        modelId: 'anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5',
+      })
+
+      const homeDir = join(
+        browserosDir,
+        'vm',
+        'hermes',
+        'harness',
+        agent.id,
+        'home',
+      )
+      const yaml = readFileSync(join(homeDir, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')
+      const env = readFileSync(join(homeDir, '.env'), 'utf8')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"openrouter"')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5"')
+      expect(env).toContain('OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-test-key')
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('rejects Hermes agent creation when apiKey is missing', async () => {
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ agents, service }) => {
+      await expect(
+        service.createAgent({
+          name: 'Hermes bot',
+          adapter: 'hermes',
+          providerType: 'openrouter',
+          modelId: 'anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5',
+        }),
+      ).rejects.toThrow(/apiKey/i)
+      expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('rejects Hermes agent creation when providerType is missing', async () => {
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ agents, service }) => {
+      await expect(
+        service.createAgent({ name: 'Hermes bot', adapter: 'hermes' }),
+      ).rejects.toThrow(/providerType/i)
+      expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('rejects Hermes agent creation when modelId is missing', async () => {
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ agents, service }) => {
+      await expect(
+        service.createAgent({
+          name: 'Hermes bot',
+          adapter: 'hermes',
+          providerType: 'openrouter',
+          apiKey: 'sk-or-v1-test-key',
+        }),
+      ).rejects.toThrow(/modelId/i)
+      expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+    })
   })
 
   it('writes provider:custom + base_url for openai-compatible providers', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    const agent = await service.createAgent({
-      name: 'Custom Hermes',
-      adapter: 'hermes',
-      providerType: 'openai-compatible',
-      apiKey: 'sk-test',
-      modelId: 'my-model',
-      baseUrl: 'https://api.example.com/v1',
-    })
-
-    const homeDir = join(
-      browserosDir,
-      'vm',
-      'hermes',
-      'harness',
-      agent.id,
-      'home',
-    )
-    const yaml = readFileSync(join(homeDir, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')
-    const env = readFileSync(join(homeDir, '.env'), 'utf8')
-    // Hermes has no provider key called "openai" — the canonical shape
-    // for any OpenAI-compatible endpoint is `provider: custom` with
-    // `base_url` set. Hermes then short-circuits provider lookup and
-    // calls the URL directly using OPENAI_API_KEY.
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"custom"')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"my-model"')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"https://api.example.com/v1"')
-    expect(env).toContain('OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-test')
-  })
-
-  it('falls back to OpenAI default base_url for the openai provider type', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    const agent = await service.createAgent({
-      name: 'OpenAI Hermes',
-      adapter: 'hermes',
-      providerType: 'openai',
-      apiKey: 'sk-openai-test',
-      modelId: 'gpt-4o-mini',
-      // No baseUrl supplied — provider:custom still requires one,
-      // so the mapping's defaultBaseUrl must take over.
-    })
-
-    const homeDir = join(
-      browserosDir,
-      'vm',
-      'hermes',
-      'harness',
-      agent.id,
-      'home',
-    )
-    const yaml = readFileSync(join(homeDir, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"custom"')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"gpt-4o-mini"')
-    expect(yaml).toContain('"https://api.openai.com/v1"')
-  })
-
-  it('rejects openai-compatible Hermes agent creation when baseUrl is missing', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
-    const service = new AgentHarnessService({
-      agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
-      runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
-    })
-
-    await expect(
-      service.createAgent({
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ browserosDir, service }) => {
+      const agent = await service.createAgent({
         name: 'Custom Hermes',
         adapter: 'hermes',
         providerType: 'openai-compatible',
         apiKey: 'sk-test',
         modelId: 'my-model',
-      }),
-    ).rejects.toThrow(/baseUrl/i)
-    expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+        baseUrl: 'https://api.example.com/v1',
+      })
+
+      const homeDir = join(
+        browserosDir,
+        'vm',
+        'hermes',
+        'harness',
+        agent.id,
+        'home',
+      )
+      const yaml = readFileSync(join(homeDir, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')
+      const env = readFileSync(join(homeDir, '.env'), 'utf8')
+      // Hermes has no provider key called "openai" — the canonical shape
+      // for any OpenAI-compatible endpoint is `provider: custom` with
+      // `base_url` set. Hermes then short-circuits provider lookup and
+      // calls the URL directly using OPENAI_API_KEY.
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"custom"')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"my-model"')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"https://api.example.com/v1"')
+      expect(env).toContain('OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-test')
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('falls back to OpenAI default base_url for the openai provider type', async () => {
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ browserosDir, service }) => {
+      const agent = await service.createAgent({
+        name: 'OpenAI Hermes',
+        adapter: 'hermes',
+        providerType: 'openai',
+        apiKey: 'sk-openai-test',
+        modelId: 'gpt-4o-mini',
+        // No baseUrl supplied — provider:custom still requires one,
+        // so the mapping's defaultBaseUrl must take over.
+      })
+
+      const homeDir = join(
+        browserosDir,
+        'vm',
+        'hermes',
+        'harness',
+        agent.id,
+        'home',
+      )
+      const yaml = readFileSync(join(homeDir, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"custom"')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"gpt-4o-mini"')
+      expect(yaml).toContain('"https://api.openai.com/v1"')
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('rejects openai-compatible Hermes agent creation when baseUrl is missing', async () => {
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ agents, service }) => {
+      await expect(
+        service.createAgent({
+          name: 'Custom Hermes',
+          adapter: 'hermes',
+          providerType: 'openai-compatible',
+          apiKey: 'sk-test',
+          modelId: 'my-model',
+        }),
+      ).rejects.toThrow(/baseUrl/i)
+      expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+    })
   })
 
   it('rejects Hermes agent creation when providerType is not in the supported set', async () => {
-    const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
-    const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
+    await withHermesBrowserosDir(async ({ agents, service }) => {
+      await expect(
+        service.createAgent({
+          name: 'Unknown Hermes',
+          adapter: 'hermes',
+          providerType: 'bedrock',
+          apiKey: 'sk-test',
+          modelId: 'm',
+        }),
+      ).rejects.toThrow(/not supported/i)
+      expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
+    })
+  })
+})
+
+async function withHermesBrowserosDir<T>(
+  run: (input: {
+    agents: AgentDefinition[]
+    browserosDir: string
+    service: AgentHarnessService
+  }) => Promise<T>,
+): Promise<T> {
+  const browserosDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-test-'))
+  const previousBrowserosDir = process.env.BROWSEROS_DIR
+  process.env.BROWSEROS_DIR = browserosDir
+  const agents: AgentDefinition[] = []
+  try {
     const service = new AgentHarnessService({
       agentStore: createAgentStore(agents) as AgentStore,
       runtime: stubRuntime(),
-      browserosDir,
     })
-
-    await expect(
-      service.createAgent({
-        name: 'Unknown Hermes',
-        adapter: 'hermes',
-        providerType: 'bedrock',
-        apiKey: 'sk-test',
-        modelId: 'm',
-      }),
-    ).rejects.toThrow(/not supported/i)
-    expect(agents).toHaveLength(0)
-  })
-})
+    return await run({ agents, browserosDir, service })
+  } finally {
+    if (previousBrowserosDir === undefined) {
+      delete process.env.BROWSEROS_DIR
+    } else {
+      process.env.BROWSEROS_DIR = previousBrowserosDir
+    }
+    await rm(browserosDir, { recursive: true, force: true })
+  }
+}
 
 function stubRuntime(): AgentRuntime {
   return {
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.test.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.test.ts
index be67d1449..00a3e6482 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.test.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/acpx-runtime.test.ts
@@ -984,7 +984,6 @@ Use the BrowserOS MCP server for all browser tasks, including browsing the web,
       lockDir: stateDir,
     }
     const hermesRuntime = new HermesContainerRuntime(fakeManagedDeps, {
-      browserosDir,
       hermesHarnessHostDir: join(browserosDir, 'vm', 'hermes', 'harness'),
     })
     getAgentRuntimeRegistry().register(hermesRuntime)
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths-provider-map.test.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths-provider-map.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..0b7fbc12c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths-provider-map.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright 2025 BrowserOS
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'bun:test'
+import { mkdtemp, readFile, rm } from 'node:fs/promises'
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os'
+import { join } from 'node:path'
+import {
+  getHermesAgentHomeHostDir,
+  getHermesHarnessHostDir,
+  writeHermesPerAgentProvider,
+} from '../../../../src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-paths'
+import { getHermesProviderMapping } from '../../../../src/lib/agents/hermes/hermes-provider-map'
+
+describe('Hermes adapter helpers', () => {
+  it('resolves Hermes state under the BrowserOS VM state root', () => {
+    const browserosDir = '/tmp/browseros-test'
+
+    expect(getHermesHarnessHostDir(browserosDir)).toBe(
+      '/tmp/browseros-test/vm/hermes/harness',
+    )
+    expect(
+      getHermesAgentHomeHostDir({ browserosDir, agentId: 'agent-1' }),
+    ).toBe('/tmp/browseros-test/vm/hermes/harness/agent-1/home')
+  })
+
+  it('writes per-agent provider config from the Hermes provider map', async () => {
+    const browserosDir = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'browseros-hermes-'))
+    try {
+      const mapping = getHermesProviderMapping('openai')
+      expect(mapping).toEqual({
+        hermesProvider: 'custom',
+        envVarName: 'OPENAI_API_KEY',
+        requiresBaseUrl: false,
+        defaultBaseUrl: 'https://api.openai.com/v1',
+      })
+
+      await writeHermesPerAgentProvider({
+        browserosDir,
+        agentId: 'agent-1',
+        providerId: mapping?.hermesProvider as string,
+        envVarName: mapping?.envVarName as string,
+        apiKey: 'sk-test',
+        modelId: 'gpt-5.5',
+        baseUrl: mapping?.defaultBaseUrl,
+      })
+
+      const home = getHermesAgentHomeHostDir({
+        browserosDir,
+        agentId: 'agent-1',
+      })
+      await expect(readFile(join(home, 'config.yaml'), 'utf8')).resolves.toBe(
+        [
+          'model:',
+          '  default: "gpt-5.5"',
+          '  provider: "custom"',
+          '  base_url: "https://api.openai.com/v1"',
+          '',
+        ].join('\n'),
+      )
+      await expect(readFile(join(home, '.env'), 'utf8')).resolves.toBe(
+        ['OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-test', ''].join('\n'),
+      )
+    } finally {
+      await rm(browserosDir, { recursive: true, force: true })
+    }
+  })
+})
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command.test.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..28548bc5e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright 2025 BrowserOS
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'bun:test'
+import { OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_CONTAINER_PORT } from '@browseros/shared/constants/openclaw'
+import {
+  type OpenclawGatewayAccessor,
+  resolveOpenclawAcpCommand,
+} from '../../../../src/lib/agents/openclaw/acp-command'
+
+describe('resolveOpenclawAcpCommand', () => {
+  const gateway: OpenclawGatewayAccessor = {
+    getContainerName: () => 'browseros-openclaw-openclaw-gateway-1',
+    getLimaHomeDir: () => '/Users/dev/.browseros-dev/lima',
+    getLimactlPath: () => '/Applications/BrowserOS.app/limactl',
+    getVmName: () => 'browseros-vm',
+  }
+
+  it('builds the in-gateway ACP bridge command', () => {
+    const command = resolveOpenclawAcpCommand(gateway, 'agent:oc-123:main')
+
+    expect(command).toContain('env LIMA_HOME=/Users/dev/.browseros-dev/lima')
+    expect(command).toContain(
+      '/Applications/BrowserOS.app/limactl shell --workdir / browseros-vm --',
+    )
+    expect(command).toContain('nerdctl exec -i')
+    expect(command).toContain('-e OPENCLAW_HIDE_BANNER=1')
+    expect(command).toContain('-e OPENCLAW_SUPPRESS_NOTES=1')
+    expect(command).toContain('browseros-openclaw-openclaw-gateway-1')
+    expect(command).toContain(
+      `openclaw acp --url ws://127.0.0.1:${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_CONTAINER_PORT}`,
+    )
+    expect(command).toContain('--session agent:oc-123:main')
+  })
+
+  it('maps legacy non-agent session keys onto the main gateway agent', () => {
+    const command = resolveOpenclawAcpCommand(
+      gateway,
+      'openai-user:browseros:abc/def',
+    )
+
+    expect(command).toContain(
+      '--session agent:main:openai-user-browseros-abc-def',
+    )
+  })
+})
diff --git a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.test.ts b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.test.ts
index 09fc72f49..1a39d00c7 100644
--- a/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.test.ts
+++ b/packages/browseros-agent/apps/server/tests/lib/agents/runtime/hermes-container-runtime.test.ts
@@ -19,7 +19,9 @@ import {
   getHermesRuntime,
   HermesContainerRuntime,
   resetAgentRuntimeRegistry,
+  startHermesRuntimeBestEffort,
 } from '../../../../src/lib/agents/runtime'
+import type { RuntimeAction } from '../../../../src/lib/agents/runtime/types'
 import type {
   ManagedContainerDeps,
   MountRoot,
@@ -105,7 +107,6 @@ describe('HermesContainerRuntime', () => {
     const browserosDir = extraConfig?.browserosDir ?? '/host/browseros'
     const { deps, getCapturedSpec } = makeDeps({ lockDir })
     const runtime = new HermesContainerRuntime(deps, {
-      browserosDir,
       hermesHarnessHostDir: `${browserosDir}/vm/hermes/harness`,
     })
     return { runtime, getCapturedSpec, browserosDir }
@@ -145,7 +146,6 @@ describe('HermesContainerRuntime', () => {
       },
     })
     const runtime = new HermesContainerRuntime(deps, {
-      browserosDir: '/host/browseros',
       hermesHarnessHostDir: '/host/browseros/vm/hermes/harness',
     })
     await runtime.start()
@@ -157,7 +157,6 @@ describe('HermesContainerRuntime', () => {
     const lockDir = mkTempDir()
     const { deps } = makeDeps({ lockDir, exec: async () => 1 })
     const runtime = new HermesContainerRuntime(deps, {
-      browserosDir: '/host/browseros',
       hermesHarnessHostDir: '/host/browseros/vm/hermes/harness',
     })
     await expect(runtime.start()).rejects.toThrow(/probe failed/i)
@@ -252,4 +251,77 @@ describe('HermesContainerRuntime', () => {
       )
     })
   })
+
+  describe('startHermesRuntimeBestEffort', () => {
+    it('configures Hermes and schedules install + start actions', async () => {
+      const actions: RuntimeAction[] = []
+      const runtime = {
+        executeAction: async (action: RuntimeAction) => {
+          actions.push(action)
+        },
+      } as HermesContainerRuntime
+
+      const result = startHermesRuntimeBestEffort({
+        resourcesDir: '/Applications/BrowserOS.app/Contents/Resources',
+        configureRuntime: (options) => {
+          expect(options).toEqual({
+            resourcesDir: '/Applications/BrowserOS.app/Contents/Resources',
+          })
+          return runtime
+        },
+        onError: (phase, error) => {
+          throw new Error(`${phase}: ${String(error)}`)
+        },
+      })
+
+      expect(result).toBe(runtime)
+      expect(actions).toEqual([{ type: 'install' }, { type: 'start' }])
+    })
+
+    it('returns null when Hermes configuration throws', () => {
+      const errors: Array<{ phase: string; message: string }> = []
+
+      const result = startHermesRuntimeBestEffort({
+        configureRuntime: () => {
+          throw new Error('unsupported')
+        },
+        onError: (phase, error) => {
+          errors.push({
+            phase,
+            message: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
+          })
+        },
+      })
+
+      expect(result).toBeNull()
+      expect(errors).toEqual([{ phase: 'configure', message: 'unsupported' }])
+    })
+
+    it('reports install and start failures without throwing', async () => {
+      const errors: Array<{ phase: string; message: string }> = []
+      const runtime = {
+        executeAction: async (action: RuntimeAction) => {
+          throw new Error(`${action.type} failed`)
+        },
+      } as HermesContainerRuntime
+
+      const result = startHermesRuntimeBestEffort({
+        configureRuntime: () => runtime,
+        onError: (phase, error) => {
+          errors.push({
+            phase,
+            message: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
+          })
+        },
+      })
+
+      expect(result).toBe(runtime)
+      await Promise.resolve()
+      await Promise.resolve()
+      expect(errors).toEqual([
+        { phase: 'install', message: 'install failed' },
+        { phase: 'start', message: 'start failed' },
+      ])
+    })
+  })
 })