# NousResearch/hermes-agent · Fix orphan processes from --replace restart-watcher

## Open now

- 1 issue, 2 PRs open on GitHub.
- #73480: Detached "--replace" restart-watcher chain spawns unreapable ppid=1 orphans that race the systemd-supervised gateway, causing Telegram polling-conflict crashes
- PR #73718: fix(cli): prevent unreapable ppid=1 orphans from --replace restart-watcher
- PR #80753: fix(cli): keep the --replace restart watcher in the replacement's waitpid chain

These items address a bug where the --replace flag's restart-watcher process becomes detached, spawning unreapable orphans with ppid=1 that can cause polling conflicts. The fix keeps the restart-watcher in the correct waitpid chain to prevent this.

## TL;DR

- 3 member(s): 1 open issue(s), 0 closed issue(s), 2 open PR(s), 0 merged PR(s), 0 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evidence (`STRUCTURAL_SPANNING`): every member is connected by structural evidence: shared changed files, or a closing/superseded reference.
- Pairwise link density `0.67`: 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

- #73480: Detached "--replace" restart-watcher chain spawns unreapable ppid=1 orphans that race the systemd-supervised gateway, causing Telegram polling-conflict crashes

## Prior & competing PRs

- **#73718: fix(cli): prevent unreapable ppid=1 orphans from --replace restart-watcher**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `partial_fix`; implication `needs_llm`; refs `58ad612ffab9`, `#73480`, `#73718`, `#374151`
  - files: `.bytecode-fingerprint`, `agent/tool_executor.py`, `hermes_cli/gateway.py`, `optional-mcps/agentkey/manifest.yaml`, `plugins/model-providers/hetzner/__init__.py`, `plugins/model-providers/hetzner/plugin.yaml`, `skills/email/himalaya/SKILL.md`, `skills/email/himalaya/references/configuration.md`
- **#80753: fix(cli): keep the --replace restart watcher in the replacement's waitpid chain**. open
  - maintainer direction: category `implemented_elsewhere`; implication `superseded`; refs `7e872df0f0a`
  - files: `hermes_cli/gateway.py`, `tests/hermes_cli/test_gateway_restart_watcher_reap.py`

## Fix status

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