hermes_cli/plugin_compat.py is now the single source of truth for the compat window:
COMPAT_REMOVAL_DATE = 2026-09-14; scan_plugin() statically finds `from F import n`, `import F` + `F.n`,
alias forms and string targets against compat_manifest.json; compat_report() aggregates over the user's
ENABLED external (non-bundled) plugins; disable_reason() decides the loader's skip.
Surfaces (all read from that one report):
* CLI: yellow block under the banner naming plugins + date + `hermes plugins compat` (red + DISABLED after)
* `hermes plugins compat [--json] [path]`: file:line, old -> new per hit; exit 1 while anything remains;
`path` lets a plugin author scan their own checkout
* `hermes doctor`: "Plugin import paths (removed Sep 14, 2026)" section next to the xAI retirement check
* `hermes update`: post-update notice alongside the FTS/curator notices
* Desktop: compat_report() writes HERMES_HOME/.plugin-compat-report.json (deleted when clean); Electron
shows ONE warning dialog per distinct report after the backend is up and persists the dismissal in
userData/plugin-compat-dismissed.json. A new affected plugin, or the date passing, is a new report.
From the date, PluginManager skips a hitting external plugin before importing it, with the reason in
LoadedPlugin.error ("uses N import path(s) removed on 2026-09-14; run `hermes plugins compat` ...") — the
same path a plugin with a broken register() takes, so nothing else is affected. Escape hatch:
plugins.allow_deprecated_imports: true (config_defaults), which only helps until the compat commit is
actually reverted.
Docs: COMPAT_MANIFEST.md (removal date, what-happens table, author instructions), plugin dev guide section.
Tests: tests/test_plugin_compat_notice.py (scanner forms, report scope, date gate + escape hatch, summary
text, report file lifecycle, loader skip via a real PluginManager), electron/plugin-compat-notice.test.ts
(show once, re-show on a different set or on the date passing, malformed file ignored).
Live A/B on this box with a demo plugin on old paths: before the date it loads and the banner/doctor/report
name it; with today=2026-09-14 it is skipped with the reason and the banner turns red; with the escape
hatch it loads again.
For each issue anchor present in BASE 63279301bc non-test .py and absent on HEAD, the BASE comment/docstring block was re-attached at the HEAD location of the code it explained (matched by the distinctive code line / enclosing def). Sentences already covered by an existing HEAD comment were deduped; the issue number always survives. Insert-only: no code lines changed.
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