Hermes Agent + xCloud

Manage SSL and domains with Hermes Agent on xCloud

Managing SSL and domains with Hermes Agent means a long-running agent that remembers your sites, answers certificate and DNS questions from a chat app or the terminal, and checks on xCloud for expiring HTTPS while you are away.

Skill: xcloud:ssl
Toolsets: ssl-certificates, sites, integrations
Free with every xCloud account

Set up Hermes Agent All Hermes Agent guides

YouWhich of my sites have a certificate expiring in the next 30 days?

sites_sslread-only

AgentTwo. shop.example.com expires in 6 days and docs.example.com in 24. Both use xCloud's free certificate. Want me to renew the shop one now?

YouYes, renew shop.

sites_ssl_renewneeds approval

AgentRenewal accepted. I will check the status until it settles and load the HTTPS URL, then confirm the new expiry here.

Last updated: October 2026. Keep a human in the loop: xCloud stops and asks before anything that creates, deploys, updates, reboots, deletes or buys.

Setup

How Do You Set Up Hermes Agent to Manage SSL and domains on xCloud?

Connect Hermes Agent once; every job on this account uses the same connection. Then ask in plain words.

1
Add the xCloud MCP server
Add this under mcp_servers in ~/.hermes/config.yaml. If the file already has an mcp_servers block, add only the xcloud entry. Then start a new Hermes session, or run /reload-mcp in the one that is open.
YAML
```
mcp_servers:
  xcloud:
    url: "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp"
    auth: oauth
```
2
Authorize xCloud
On first connect Hermes prints an authorize URL and waits for the sign-in. Run this command to start it yourself or to re-authorize later. On the xCloud approval screen tick the teams and choose Read-only or Full access. Hermes caches the tokens in ~/.hermes/mcp-tokens/xcloud.json and reuses them on later runs.
Terminal
```
hermes mcp login xcloud
```
3
No browser? Use an API key
For a server with no browser, create a token with the mcp:invoke scope plus the read abilities for the areas it will use (read:servers and read:sites, with read:billing and read:addons for billing and add-on tools) and the matching write: abilities if it should change things in Settings, Developers, API Tokens and send it as a header in place of auth: oauth. Keep ~/.hermes/config.yaml out of version control when it holds a token.
YAML
```
mcp_servers:
  xcloud:
    url: "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp"
    headers:
      Authorization: "Bearer YOUR_TOKEN"
```

Check it worked

Then ask Hermes Agent for the job itself, for example:

Prompt

Which of my sites have an SSL certificate that expires in the next 30 days? Send me a short list with the days left.

In practice

How Does SSL and domains Work from Hermes Agent?

Hermes is not a window you keep open next to an editor. It is an agent that stays up, keeps its memory between sessions and can be reached from Telegram, Slack and the other chat apps its gateway supports. For certificates, that changes the shape of the job. The useful message is not a one-off check but something like which of my sites have a certificate that expires in the next 30 days, sent from your phone while a customer waits on the line. Hermes calls xCloud's SSL reads, goes through your sites, and replies in chat with a short list: the site, the provider and the days left.

Memory is where Hermes earns its place here. Tell it once that example.com sits behind your Cloudflare account and that a proxied record is the expected finished state, and the next DNS question will not be reported as a fault. Tell it which team's sites you care about, and later requests lean on that. The scheduler adds the other half. A Hermes cron job runs in a fresh session and delivers its result to a chat, so a twice-daily check of every certificate and domain can land in Slack without you typing anything. Keep that job to reads and a report. When something is due, the report names the site, and you reply in the same thread with a request to renew it. Hermes then restates the site and the provider and waits for your yes, because xCloud treats installing and renewing a certificate as an action that needs confirmation.

Two things behave differently from a terminal agent. A reply in chat is the approval step, so read what Hermes is about to renew before you answer. And a custom certificate is the one case where you should move to a safer place: its private key is a secret, so do not paste it into a chat thread. Do that part from the dashboard, or from a terminal session on a machine you control.

Hermes Agent specific: A scheduled Hermes job has nobody watching it, so write it as a read-only report and have it name the sites that need attention. Hermes reads mcp_servers when a session starts, and a cron job runs in a fresh session, so run hermes mcp login xcloud once and keep the cached tokens in place or the nightly check will find no xCloud tools. Hermes also needs the Full access scope before it can renew anything, while Read-only is enough for the report job.

What xCloud does for ssl and domains

xCloud lets the agent read a site's certificate status, domains and DNS, then install or renew a certificate from xCloud (Let's Encrypt), your own files or a connected Cloudflare account. Adding or changing a domain on an existing site stays in the dashboard, and the agent gives you the path.

Find the site and read its SSL. The agent resolves the site by name or domain, then reads its current SSL state and the list of certificates before it changes anything. That shows the provider, the status and the expiry date.
Check the domain and DNS. It reads the site's primary and additional domains and asks xCloud whether the domain's DNS record points at the server. Each check is one lookup, so the agent repeats it while a record propagates. A record behind Cloudflare's proxy is reported separately.
Choose the certificate source. You pick xCloud's free Let's Encrypt certificate, your own certificate, or the team's Cloudflare integration. If the site already uses a different provider, the agent tells you that switching needs an explicit override and asks first.
Install or renew, once you approve. The agent restates the site and the provider, then installs or renews the certificate. A renewal only runs when the certificate is within seven days of expiry unless you ask for a forced renewal. For a WordPress site turning on HTTPS for the first time, it asks whether to run the database search-and-replace.
Poll to issuance and verify. Install and renew report success before issuance completes. The agent polls the certificate status until it settles, then checks the site over HTTPS before it calls the job done.
Hand off domain changes. If you want to add, change or remove a domain on an existing site, the agent gives you the dashboard path (Site > Domain) and the site's dashboard link, because the API only reads domains after creation.

Reference

SSL and domains Settings and Limits on xCloud

The facts Hermes Agent works within when it manages SSL and domains. Where a row names the dashboard, that step stays yours to take there.

Setting or limit	What applies
Certificate status	A site's SSL state, its certificate list and one certificate's detail and status are all readable
xCloud certificate	Free Let's Encrypt certificate issued and renewed by xCloud. The domain's DNS should already point at the server before you ask
Custom certificate	You supply the PEM certificate and its private key. The key is a secret and is never returned by a read
Cloudflare certificate	Uses the team's connected Cloudflare account. When the zone is connected, xCloud writes the DNS record and the certificate itself at site creation
Switching provider	Needs an explicit force when another provider is already configured, so the agent asks before it replaces a working certificate
Renewal rule	A renewal does nothing unless the certificate is within seven days of expiry; a forced renewal skips that guard. Renewing needs the site SSL permission on your team role
WordPress first HTTPS	An optional database search-and-replace moves existing http:// URLs to https:// when a WordPress site adopts HTTPS for the first time
DNS check	One lookup per call. A proxied Cloudflare record is flagged, and on a Cloudflare-managed site the proxied record is the finished state, not a fault
Domains (read)	The primary domain, additional domains and the domain update status are readable through the API
Domains (write)	Adding, changing or removing a domain on an existing site is dashboard-only: Site > Domain. A staging site goes live under Site > Domain > Go Live
Deleting a certificate	Available through the API, but it can take a site off HTTPS, so the agent restates the target and waits for your approval
Cloudflare 526 errors	A 526 or a certificate warning is an SSL problem, so the agent reads the certificate first. A 522 is different: it usually means ports 80 and 443 are blocked at the origin

Rules Hermes Agent has to follow

Installing, renewing, switching or deleting a certificate stops for your approval, and the agent names the site and the provider before it asks.
A success response means xCloud accepted the work, not that the certificate was issued: the agent polls the status and checks the live HTTPS URL.
The agent never replaces a working certificate with a different provider without telling you, and it never turns off the Cloudflare proxy on a site xCloud manages through Cloudflare.
Changing a domain on an existing site is a dashboard step; the agent gives you the path and the dashboard link xCloud returned, not a made-up workaround.
A custom certificate's private key is a secret: it is never returned by a read and should not be pasted into a shared channel.

Example prompts

What Can You Ask Hermes Agent to Do for SSL and domains?

Type these as written and swap in your own repository, site and server names. Reads and routine actions such as backups, cache purges, PageSpeed scans and vulnerability scans run straight away; creating, deploying, updating, rebooting, deleting, buying or starting a broken-link scan stops and asks first.

Prompt

Which of my sites have an SSL certificate that expires in the next 30 days? Send me a short list with the days left.

Prompt

Every morning at 8, check every site's certificate and DNS and message me only if something expires within 14 days. Change nothing.

Prompt

The renewal on shop.example.com is due. Renew it, then check the site over HTTPS and tell me the new expiry.

Prompt

Check the SSL certificate on shop.example.com and tell me when it expires.

Prompt

Is the DNS A record for example.com pointing at my Frankfurt server yet? Tell me if the Cloudflare proxy is on.

Prompt

Issue a free SSL certificate for example.com once DNS resolves, then confirm the site loads over HTTPS.

Prompt

Renew the certificate on the shop site and tell me the new expiry date.

Prompt

List every domain and additional domain on the shop site and say which is primary.

Prompt

Which of my sites have a certificate that expires in the next 30 days?

Prompt

Use my connected Cloudflare account for the certificate on shop.example.com, and show me what will change first.

Prompt

Visitors get a Cloudflare 526 error on shop.example.com. Check the certificate and tell me what is wrong.

Hermes Agent and SSL and domains: Frequently Asked Questions

What people ask before they let Hermes Agent manage SSL and domains through xCloud.

Can Hermes Agent warn me before an SSL certificate expires?

Yes. Create a Hermes cron job that reads every site's certificate and delivers a short report to your chat. Keep it to reads, because renewing a certificate stops for your approval, which you give by replying in the chat.

Does Hermes Agent remember that a domain is behind Cloudflare?

Hermes keeps memory across sessions, so you can tell it once that a domain uses a proxied Cloudflare record and that this is the finished state. It still asks xCloud for the current DNS and certificate state each time, because memory is not a substitute for the live check.

Can an AI agent add a domain to an existing site?

No. The API reads a site's domains, additional domains and domain update status, but adding, changing or removing a domain on an existing site is a dashboard step under Site > Domain. A domain is chosen when the site is created. The agent can tell you what is currently set and give you the path.

Which certificate options can the agent install?

Three: xCloud's free Let's Encrypt certificate, a custom certificate you supply, and a certificate through your connected Cloudflare account. The agent checks the current state first and asks before it changes anything. Switching a site from one provider to another needs an explicit override.

Why did the agent say a renewal did nothing?

A normal renewal only fires when the certificate is within seven days of expiry. If you need it earlier, ask for a forced renewal and the agent will confirm before it runs. Renewing also needs the site SSL permission on your team role.

Does the agent set up my DNS records?

It reads and checks them rather than writing them. It can tell you whether a domain's record points at your server and whether the Cloudflare proxy is on. DNS and the certificate are written for you only at site creation, when the domain's zone is on a Cloudflare account you connected to xCloud.

What does the agent do about a Cloudflare 526 error?

It treats it as an SSL problem. It reads the site's certificate status and expiry, and fixes it with an installation or renewal after your approval. A 522 is a different fault, usually closed ports 80 and 443 on the origin, so it is checked against the firewall instead.

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