Stability-first operations CLI for long-lived agent workspaces.
Project description
Helm
Stop long-running coding agents from losing context, making unsafe edits, and becoming impossible to audit.
Helm is a local operations layer for AI agent workspaces: profiles before commands, checkpoints before risky work, durable task history after the chat is gone.
Current release: v0.6.6
Quickstart · Why Helm · What Helm Adds · Workflows · Docs
Quickstart
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/JDeun/Helm/main/install.sh | bash
helm doctor --path ~/.helm/workspace
helm profile --path ~/.helm/workspace run inspect_local --task-name "first Helm inspection" -- git status --short
helm status --path ~/.helm/workspace --brief
helm dashboard --path ~/.helm/workspace
The installer installs Helm and creates ~/.helm/workspace. If helm is not found afterward, use the PATH line printed by the installer.
Need a different workspace?
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/JDeun/Helm/main/install.sh | bash -s -- \
--workspace ~/work/helm
Why Helm
Helm is for developers who already use coding agents for real work and need the session to leave behind something more durable than chat history.
Use Helm when you want to:
- run agent-adjacent commands under explicit risk profiles
- block destructive or out-of-profile commands before they execute
- create visible recovery points before broad edits
- keep task and command history in local files
- rehydrate future runs from workspace state instead of memory alone
- review what happened after a long session ends
Helm is not another agent runtime. It is the operating layer around the one you already run.
Use it when an OpenClaw/Hermes-style workspace, or a similar self-hosted agent service, has moved past demos and needs repeated work to stay:
- bounded by explicit execution profiles
- recoverable through checkpoints
- inspectable through task and command logs
- resumable from files instead of chat history
- governed by skill contracts and local policy
If the agent only runs one-off demos, Helm is probably unnecessary.
Three-Minute Demo
helm profile --path ~/.helm/workspace run inspect_local \
--task-name "inspect current repository" \
-- git status --short
helm checkpoint create --path ~/.helm/workspace \
--label before-risky-work \
--include ~/.helm/workspace
helm report --path ~/.helm/workspace --format markdown
helm dashboard --path ~/.helm/workspace
This leaves a task ledger, command log, checkpoint record, and dashboard summary on disk.
How Helm Fits
| Category | Better for | Helm adds |
|---|---|---|
| Agent frameworks | prompts, planners, tool loops, agent graphs | profiles, guard decisions, checkpoints, task ledgers |
| Observability tools | hosted traces, service metrics, telemetry correlation | pre-execution policy and local recovery state |
| Eval tools | scoring model output or task success | operational history around repeated human-agent work |
| Shell wrappers | command convenience | workspace state, memory capture, reports, and recovery discipline |
What Helm Adds
Core ideas:
- Profile: declares the allowed blast radius before a command runs, such as inspect-only, workspace edit, or risky edit.
- Guardrail: checks command shape against local policy before execution, blocking dangerous or out-of-profile actions.
- Checkpoint: preserves a visible recovery point before work that may need rollback.
- Audit trail: records what ran, under which profile, with what guard decision, and what task it belonged to.
- File-backed memory: keeps reusable context in files so later runs resume from durable state instead of chat history.
| Repeated-agent problem | Helm adds |
|---|---|
| The agent forgets prior work | Context hydration from notes, memory, tasks, commands, and checkpoints |
| Risky edits happen too fast | Profiles, command guard, and checkpoint discipline |
| Runs are hard to explain later | Task ledger, command log, status, dashboard, and reports |
| Skill rules live in prompts | SKILL.md guidance plus contract.json execution policy |
| Model fallback is ad hoc | File-backed health checks and fallback selection |
| Operational state is scattered | Workspace layout, adopted sources, and SQLite query index |
Helm is runtime-agnostic, but it is built first for persistent workspaces with state, memory, profiles, checkpoints, and task history.
Workflows
Inspect the workspace.
helm doctor --path ~/.helm/workspace
helm status --path ~/.helm/workspace --brief
helm dashboard --path ~/.helm/workspace
Run under a declared profile.
helm profile --path ~/.helm/workspace run inspect_local \
--task-name "inspect repository state" \
-- git status --short
Adopt existing systems as context sources.
helm survey --path ~/.helm/workspace
helm onboard --path ~/.helm/workspace --use-detected --dry-run
helm onboard --path ~/.helm/workspace --use-detected
Check rollback and recent state.
helm checkpoint-recommend --path ~/.helm/workspace
helm checkpoint list --path ~/.helm/workspace
helm report --path ~/.helm/workspace --format markdown
Probe model health.
helm health --path ~/.helm/workspace state --json
helm health --path ~/.helm/workspace select --json
Try the demo workspace.
helm doctor --path examples/demo-workspace
helm dashboard --path examples/demo-workspace
Workspace Model
Keep Helm in a dedicated workspace. Treat existing systems as read-only context sources first.
- Helm state lives under
.helm/ - profiles, notes, policies, and skill rules stay as explicit files
- OpenClaw, Hermes, and notes vaults can be adopted instead of overwritten
- JSONL remains the append-only source of truth; SQLite is a query index
Docs
Start here:
docs/three-minute-demo.mddocs/first-run.mddocs/onboarding.mddocs/demos.mddocs/integrations/openclaw.mddocs/integrations/existing-agent-workspace.md
Core concepts:
docs/execution-profiles.mddocs/memory-operations-policy.mddocs/task-finalization.mddocs/adaptive-harness.mddocs/skill-quality-and-policy.md
Positioning:
docs/opensource-product-definition.mddocs/opensource-module-split.mddocs/helm-dogfooding-reference.mddocs/comparisons/agent-frameworks.mddocs/comparisons/observability-tools.mddocs/comparisons/eval-tools.md
Release details:
Status
Helm v0.6.6 focuses on packaged reference-file reliability, clearer public/private dogfooding boundaries, and portable operations improvements promoted from OpenClaw practice.
Helm does not include private memory, personal agent overlays, credentials, or private task history.
License
MIT
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