# NousResearch/hermes-agent · YAML string vs list misconfiguration causes silent failures

## Open now

- Nothing open on GitHub.

When config values like plugins.enabled are written as quoted strings instead of YAML lists, the system silently misbehaves—unmounting APIs or flagging errors—with little or no warning to the user. Members address detection, warnings, and related token side effects of this misconfiguration pattern.

## TL;DR

- 3 member(s): 0 open issue(s), 1 closed issue(s), 0 open PR(s), 1 merged PR(s), 1 PR(s) closed without merging.
- A fix was merged to main in PR #118843. Verify it addresses your case.
- **Recommended:** read PR #118843 (and any competing PRs below) before filing. Confirm the merged change covers your symptom.

## Maintainer resolution verdict

- Internal-tracker verdict over this cluster's issue members: `resolved` · deciding PR(s): `pr-118843`. 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evidence (`STRUCTURAL_SPANNING`): every member is connected by structural evidence: shared changed files, or a closing/superseded reference.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.

## Closed / duplicate issues

- #83308: plugins.enabled written as a YAML string silently unmounts all user plugin APIs — no warning, 404 indistinguishable from "not installed"

## Prior & competing PRs

- **#118843: config.yaml quoted-string lists are flagged by doctor/startup and no longer written by config set; catalog stars probe re-mints its App token (#83308 #105706 #118113)**. merged to main · fix tier `verified`
  - maintainer direction: category `merged`
  - files: `.github/workflows/skills-index.yml`, `hermes_cli/config.py`, `tests/hermes_cli/test_config_set_list_values.py`, `tests/hermes_cli/test_config_validation.py`, `tests/website/test_fetch_plugin_stars.py`, `website/docs/reference/cli-commands.md`, `website/scripts/fetch-plugin-stars.py`
- **#83313: fix(plugins): warn when plugins.enabled is a string instead of a list**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `implemented_elsewhere`; implication `superseded`; refs `c3021aff0dc`, `#118843`, `#83308`

## Fix status

- Merged to main in PR #118843 (cited above). No release data is tracked. Verify downstream.
- Fix last verified (merged) `2026-09-22`.
- Subsystem: `hermes_cli`