Install ERPClaw on the Hermes Agent runtime

Runs on OpenClaw (primary). Experimental support for the Hermes Agent runtime via a GitHub tap.

That sentence is the support model, and it is worth reading precisely. OpenClaw is the runtime ERPClaw is built and tested against. Hermes works, and it is experimental, which means the tap install path is supported but the runtime is not the primary target.

This page is for developers and early adopters comfortable with that distinction.

Install

Two commands, in this order:

hermes skills tap add avansaber/hermes-skills
hermes skills install avansaber/hermes-skills/skills/erpclaw --force

Use the full identifier exactly as written. avansaber/hermes-skills/skills/erpclaw is mandatory. Shorter forms resolve silently to a stale marketplace copy, and the failure is quiet: the install appears to succeed and you end up running old code while reading current documentation. If you take one thing from this page, take that.

Why the install needs --force

--force acknowledges the caution rating the skill audit assigns. That rating is inherent to what ERPClaw is: an ERP that runs local commands against a local database. A tool that posts journal entries and migrates schemas on your machine is correctly flagged as something to install deliberately rather than by accident.

The flag is not a workaround for a broken package. It is an acknowledgement, and requiring it is the right behaviour from the runtime.

Set the install root

export ERPCLAW_HOME=~/.hermes/erpclaw-home

ERPCLAW_HOME sets the install root, and the library, the install state, and the default SQLite database all resolve underneath it. Leave it unset or blank and it defaults to ~/.openclaw/erpclaw, byte identical to the OpenClaw layout.

Set it explicitly when you want the Hermes install kept separate from an existing OpenClaw install on the same machine. Leave it alone if you want both runtimes pointed at the same books.

The manual alternative

If you would rather not pass --force, clone the tap and install from the local path instead. The current copy of that procedure lives in the README of the avansaber/hermes-skills tap, so it stays correct as the tap evolves rather than drifting on this page.

After install

The post-install step initialises the database, and from there the usual first run applies: set up the company, then work in plain language. The core install guide covers the setup path in full, and it is the same once the skill is in place regardless of which runtime loaded it. From there, accounting basics is the natural next page.

Common questions

Is Hermes supported or not? Experimentally, via the GitHub tap. OpenClaw is the primary runtime. Both parts of that sentence are true and neither should be read as the whole answer.

What happens if I use a shorter skill identifier? It resolves to a stale marketplace copy without telling you. Always install with the full avansaber/hermes-skills/skills/erpclaw path.

Can I skip --force? Yes, by cloning the tap and installing from the local path. The tap README carries that procedure.

Where does ERPClaw put its files under Hermes? Wherever ERPCLAW_HOME points. Unset or blank means ~/.openclaw/erpclaw, which is the same layout OpenClaw uses.

Can one machine run both runtimes? Yes. Point them at the same ERPCLAW_HOME to share one set of books, or at different roots to keep them separate.

Is the feature set different on Hermes? The skill is the same skill. What differs is the level of support behind the runtime it is loaded into.