# NousResearch/hermes-agent · Memory and skills capacity limits, warnings, recovery

## Open now

- 6 issues, 7 PRs open on GitHub.
- #5320: feat(memory): raise/auto-scale memory_char_limit defaults and surface usage pressure
- #12568: \[Feature\]: memory tool needs read action, better error messages, and pressure warnings
- #60900: Memory tool: add soft warning at 90% capacity + optional auto-consolidation
- #60902: Memory tool: add soft warning at 90 percent capacity + optional auto-consolidation
- #60905: Memory tool: add soft warning at 90% capacity + optional auto-consolidation
- #62432: Suggestion: signal eviction candidates when memory is full
- PR #30332: fix(memory): raise default char limits to reduce write-retry thrashing
- PR #51499: fix(skills): make size-limit recovery actionable
- PR #51526: fix(skills): make oversize skill refusal actionable
- PR #52054: fix(skills): harden oversized skill guidance
- PR #60908: fix(memory): warn when memory nears capacity
- PR #76036: fix(memory): pre-consolidation char-count guard + timestamped backup
- PR #132036: feat(memory): surface advisory candidates on capacity rejection

These issues and PRs cluster around memory and skills file size limits: retry loops at capacity, missing or unhelpful error messages, soft-warning thresholds, default limit values, and making recovery actions more actionable. A smaller subset touches related concerns like concurrent edits, deletion permanence, and batch operations.

## TL;DR

- 21 member(s): 6 open issue(s), 5 closed issue(s), 7 open PR(s), 0 merged PR(s), 3 PR(s) closed without merging.
- No fix has been merged to main; one or more PRs were attempted (see below).
- **Recommended:** review the prior/competing PR(s) below. A fix was attempted but not merged; your case may extend or revive that work.

## Maintainer resolution verdict

- Internal-tracker verdict over this cluster's issue members: `unresolved`. This is distinct from the fix status above. Weigh it yourself.

## How this cluster was grouped

- Link evidence (`STRUCTURAL_PARTIAL`): some members are connected by structural evidence (shared changed files, or a closing/superseded reference); the rest are joined by an automated relevance judgement over their text.
- Members outside that structural core may belong to a different underlying problem.
- Pairwise link density `0.09`: the share of member pairs that carry a link, counting a structural link in full and a relevance-only link at 0.36. `1.00` means every pair is linked.

## Open related issues

- #5320: feat(memory): raise/auto-scale memory_char_limit defaults and surface usage pressure
- #12568: \[Feature\]: memory tool needs read action, better error messages, and pressure warnings
- #60900: Memory tool: add soft warning at 90% capacity + optional auto-consolidation
- #60902: Memory tool: add soft warning at 90 percent capacity + optional auto-consolidation
- #60905: Memory tool: add soft warning at 90% capacity + optional auto-consolidation
- #62432: Suggestion: signal eviction candidates when memory is full

## Closed / duplicate issues

- #30267: Memory tool repeatedly fails at hard char cap; entries collide on concurrent edits
- #32064: Fix bounded memory: durable unlimited user memory with retrieval
- #35186: memory: No archive path when removing entries from bounded MEMORY.md — deletion is permanent, no bridge to Hindsight
- #48629: memory tool: unconditionally returns all entries on every write operation, causing linear token waste
- #51470: Bug: skill_manage retry loop on SKILL.md >100k chars — agent ignores split suggestion and burns tool calls shaving ~200 chars at a time

## Prior & competing PRs

- **#32112: Fix memory writes when curated snapshot is full**. closed without merge · fix tier `suggested`
  - maintainer direction: category `partial_fix`; implication `needs_llm`
  - _suggested-tier fix detail withheld; re-request with `?tier=all` to include it._
- **#30332: fix(memory): raise default char limits to reduce write-retry thrashing**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `uncategorized`; implication `needs_llm`; refs `#5323`, `#30267`, `#5320`
  - files: `agent/agent_init.py`, `hermes_cli/config.py`, `tools/memory_tool.py`
- **#51499: fix(skills): make size-limit recovery actionable**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `implemented_elsewhere`; implication `superseded`; refs `05a06645b`, `569b912d7`
  - files: `tests/tools/test_skill_size_limits.py`, `tools/skill_manager_tool.py`
- **#51526: fix(skills): make oversize skill refusal actionable**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `uncategorized`; implication `needs_llm`
  - files: `tests/tools/test_skill_manager_tool.py`, `tools/skill_manager_tool.py`
- **#52054: fix(skills): harden oversized skill guidance**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `duplicate_of`; implication `duplicate`; refs `#51499`, `#51526`, `#51499`
  - files: `tests/tools/test_skill_size_limits.py`, `tools/skill_manager_tool.py`
- **#60908: fix(memory): warn when memory nears capacity**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `uncategorized`; implication `needs_llm`
  - files: `tests/tools/test_memory_tool.py`, `tools/memory_tool.py`
- **#60909: feat(memory): add 90% capacity warning and compact directive**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `uncategorized`; implication `needs_llm`; refs `#60900`, `#60902`, `#60902`
- **#76036: fix(memory): pre-consolidation char-count guard + timestamped backup**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `partial_fix`; implication `needs_llm`; refs `38c8a9c10fb3680beb6170a604cbec209fcb89a5`, `e4c700e571c4`, `#30332`, `#60908`, `#60909`, `#76036`, `#76241`, `#60908`, `#76036`, `#30332`, `#30267`, `#60908`, `#60909`, `#60908`, `#60909`, `#60908`, `#76036`, `#76035`, `#76241`, `#76036`, `#76241`, `#76036`, `#60909`, `#60908`, `#60909`, `#60908`, `#76241`, `#76036`, `#76035`, `#76036`, `#76241`, `#76036`, `#76036`, `#60908`, `#60909`, `#60908`, `#60909`, `#76241`, `#76036`, `#30332`, `#374151`, `#76035`, `#76036`, `#76241`
  - files: `tests/tools/test_memory_tool.py`, `tools/memory_tool.py`
- **#83766: fix(memory): warn near capacity**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `uncategorized`; implication `needs_llm`
- **#132036: feat(memory): surface advisory candidates on capacity rejection**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `silent_close`; implication `active`
  - files: `tests/tools/test_memory_capacity_candidates.py`, `tools/memory_tool.py`, `tools/memory_tool_store.py`

## Fix status

- No merged fix on record.
- Subsystem: `agent`