How to Use KwaFlux from Hermes Agent and OpenClaw (MCP Setup)

Key takeaways

• Hermes Agent adds KwaFlux with one hermes mcp add command, or a kwaflux entry under the top-level mcp_servers key in ~/.hermes/config.yaml.
• OpenClaw adds KwaFlux with openclaw mcp set, which writes it under mcp.servers in OpenClaw's config.
• Both agents start KwaFlux's server as a local program, so the agent must run on the same computer as KwaFlux, not on a remote server.
• Use each agent's own check, hermes mcp test or openclaw mcp show, before your first real request.

Hermes Agent and OpenClaw are personal AI agents that can use MCP tools, and both can drive KwaFlux through the local MCP server that installs with the app. KwaFlux's Settings generates the config and the install command for each. The one rule that matters most: the agent has to run on the computer where KwaFlux runs.

In this guide, you'll learn how to add KwaFlux to Hermes and to OpenClaw, how to check the connection, where people usually go wrong, and what to ask first.

Contents

1. Why the agent must be on the same computer
2. Before you start
3. Hermes Agent: add KwaFlux
4. Hermes Agent: check and limit the tools
5. OpenClaw: add KwaFlux
6. OpenClaw: check the entry
7. Your first requests
8. Troubleshooting
9. FAQ

Why the agent must be on the same computer

KwaFlux's MCP server is a stdio server: the agent starts it as a child process and talks to it over standard input and output. That process then connects to the KwaFlux app over a channel that only works on the same computer.

Many people run OpenClaw or Hermes on a server that stays on, such as a VPS or a home server, and chat with it from their phone. That setup can't reach KwaFlux on your PC. To use KwaFlux, run the agent, or at least the part that starts MCP servers, on the PC or Mac where KwaFlux is installed and open.

Before you start

• KwaFlux 1.0.14 or later, open.
• Node.js 18 or newer, on PATH. Check with node --version. KwaFlux's Settings card also looks for Node.js and writes its full path into the config, as in the examples below; if it can't find Node.js, it says so and writes node instead.
• In KwaFlux: Settings › Agent (MCP), then choose Hermes or OpenClaw under MCP host.

Hermes Agent: add KwaFlux

With the command line. Click Copy install command and run it. For a default Windows install:

hermes mcp add kwaflux --command "C:\Program Files\nodejs\node.exe" --args "C:\Program Files\KwaFlux\Tools\kwaflux-mcp\kwaflux_mcp.mjs"

Hermes connects to the server and shows a picker of its tools; keep the ones you want.

By editing the config. Click Copy config and add it to ~/.hermes/config.yaml:

mcp_servers:
  kwaflux:
    command: 'C:\Program Files\nodejs\node.exe'
    args:
      - 'C:\Program Files\KwaFlux\Tools\kwaflux-mcp\kwaflux_mcp.mjs'

If the file already has an mcp_servers: key, add only the kwaflux: block under it. Don't nest it as mcp: › servers:; Hermes reads the top-level mcp_servers key. Then run /reload-mcp in a session.

Hermes Agent: check and limit the tools

• hermes mcp test kwaflux shows what the server actually answered.
• In chat, Hermes names KwaFlux's tools mcp_kwaflux_<tool>, such as mcp_kwaflux_kwaflux_get_app_status.
• To load only some tools, add a tools: block with include: or exclude: under the server. Hermes registers only the included tools, and include wins if both are set.
• Hermes has a timeout field for tool calls. KwaFlux's wait tool can wait up to 300 seconds in one call, so if long waits get cut off, set it above that.

OpenClaw: add KwaFlux

With the command line. Click Copy install command. On Windows, KwaFlux formats it like this:

openclaw mcp set kwaflux "{\"command\":\"C:\\Program Files\\nodejs\\node.exe\",\"args\":[\"C:\\Program Files\\KwaFlux\\Tools\\kwaflux-mcp\\kwaflux_mcp.mjs\"]}"

The escaped quotes are written for Command Prompt. If your shell mangles them, which PowerShell can, edit the config file instead. On a Mac, KwaFlux wraps the JSON in single quotes.

By editing the config. Click Copy config and merge it into ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "kwaflux": {
        "command": "C:\\Program Files\\nodejs\\node.exe",
        "args": [
          "C:\\Program Files\\KwaFlux\\Tools\\kwaflux-mcp\\kwaflux_mcp.mjs"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}

Keep the double backslashes; JSON needs them. Some third-party guides put servers under mcpServers instead; OpenClaw's own CLI documentation uses mcp.servers.

OpenClaw: check the entry

• openclaw mcp list and openclaw mcp show kwaflux show what's saved.
• OpenClaw's docs note that set and show only read and write the config; they "don't actually connect to the MCP server." So a saved entry doesn't prove the server starts. Ask the agent to call a KwaFlux tool to be sure.
• If the agent doesn't see the new tools, reload OpenClaw's MCP servers or restart its gateway.

Your first requests

Start with:

Use the KwaFlux tools to check whether KwaFlux is running and list my recent tasks.

Then:

Personal agents are good at chaining steps. "Every evening, convert the new clips in this folder for YouTube" can work, as long as the agent runs on the same PC and KwaFlux is open at that time.

Frame interpolation and the matting and replace tools stay in the app; the assistant is told to send you there for those. Agent downloads stay off unless you set Let agents start downloads under Agent access to Ask every time. KwaFlux then shows a popup for each download, and the assistant also asks you to confirm in the chat that you have the right to download that content.

Troubleshooting

For issues common to every host, see the KwaFlux MCP troubleshooting guide.

Final thoughts

For Hermes, run the hermes mcp add line or add a kwaflux block under mcp_servers, then /reload-mcp. For OpenClaw, run openclaw mcp set in Command Prompt or edit mcp.servers in openclaw.json. In both cases, keep the agent and KwaFlux on the same computer, and start with a status check.

Drive KwaFlux from your personal agent

KwaFlux includes a local MCP server for Hermes Agent, OpenClaw, and other MCP apps. AI processing runs locally on your GPU — media files are not uploaded for processing. It runs on Windows 10 (64-bit, version 1809 or later), Windows 11, and macOS 12 or newer on Apple Silicon. Importing files and exploring the app need no account. Signing in with an active paid plan is required only to export, convert, repair a file, or download a file from a link.

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