fix(tui): align /browser connect local CDP handling

Share Chrome CDP launch helpers between the classic CLI and TUI so default /browser connect uses loopback consistently, retries local Chrome launch, and reports a copyable manual-start command instead of claiming a dead connection.

cli.py

@@ -80,6 +80,11 @@ _COMMAND_SPINNER_FRAMES = ("⠋", "⠙", "⠹", "⠸", "⠼", "⠴", "⠦", "⠧
 # Load .env from ~/.hermes/.env first, then project root as dev fallback.
 # User-managed env files should override stale shell exports on restart.
 from hermes_constants import get_hermes_home, display_hermes_home
+from hermes_cli.browser_connect import (
+    DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_URL,
+    manual_chrome_debug_command,
+    try_launch_chrome_debug,
+)
 from hermes_cli.env_loader import load_hermes_dotenv
 from utils import base_url_host_matches
 
@@ -240,65 +245,6 @@ def _parse_service_tier_config(raw: str) -> str | None:
     logger.warning("Unknown service_tier '%s', ignoring", raw)
     return None
 
-
-
-def _get_chrome_debug_candidates(system: str) -> list[str]:
-    """Return likely browser executables for local CDP auto-launch."""
-    candidates: list[str] = []
-    seen: set[str] = set()
-
-    def _add_candidate(path: str | None) -> None:
-        if not path:
-            return
-        normalized = os.path.normcase(os.path.normpath(path))
-        if normalized in seen:
-            return
-        if os.path.isfile(path):
-            candidates.append(path)
-            seen.add(normalized)
-
-    def _add_from_path(*names: str) -> None:
-        for name in names:
-            _add_candidate(shutil.which(name))
-
-    if system == "Darwin":
-        for app in (
-            "/Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome",
-            "/Applications/Chromium.app/Contents/MacOS/Chromium",
-            "/Applications/Brave Browser.app/Contents/MacOS/Brave Browser",
-            "/Applications/Microsoft Edge.app/Contents/MacOS/Microsoft Edge",
-        ):
-            _add_candidate(app)
-    elif system == "Windows":
-        _add_from_path(
-            "chrome.exe", "msedge.exe", "brave.exe", "chromium.exe",
-            "chrome", "msedge", "brave", "chromium",
-        )
-
-        for base in (
-            os.environ.get("ProgramFiles"),
-            os.environ.get("ProgramFiles(x86)"),
-            os.environ.get("LOCALAPPDATA"),
-        ):
-            if not base:
-                continue
-            for parts in (
-                ("Google", "Chrome", "Application", "chrome.exe"),
-                ("Chromium", "Application", "chrome.exe"),
-                ("Chromium", "Application", "chromium.exe"),
-                ("BraveSoftware", "Brave-Browser", "Application", "brave.exe"),
-                ("Microsoft", "Edge", "Application", "msedge.exe"),
-            ):
-                _add_candidate(os.path.join(base, *parts))
-    else:
-        _add_from_path(
-            "google-chrome", "google-chrome-stable", "chromium-browser",
-            "chromium", "brave-browser", "microsoft-edge",
-        )
-
-    return candidates
-
-
 def load_cli_config() -> Dict[str, Any]:
     """
     Load CLI configuration from config files.
@@ -6606,34 +6552,7 @@ class HermesCLI:
 
         Returns True if a launch command was executed (doesn't guarantee success).
         """
-        import subprocess as _sp
+        return try_launch_chrome_debug(port, system)
-
-        candidates = _get_chrome_debug_candidates(system)
-
-        if not candidates:
-            return False
-
-        # Dedicated profile dir so debug Chrome won't collide with normal Chrome
-        data_dir = str(_hermes_home / "chrome-debug")
-        os.makedirs(data_dir, exist_ok=True)
-
-        chrome = candidates[0]
-        try:
-            _sp.Popen(
-                [
-                    chrome,
-                    f"--remote-debugging-port={port}",
-                    f"--user-data-dir={data_dir}",
-                    "--no-first-run",
-                    "--no-default-browser-check",
-                ],
-                stdout=_sp.DEVNULL,
-                stderr=_sp.DEVNULL,
-                start_new_session=True,  # detach from terminal
-            )
-            return True
-        except Exception:
-            return False
 
     def _handle_browser_command(self, cmd: str):
         """Handle /browser connect|disconnect|status — manage live Chrome CDP connection."""
@@ -6642,13 +6561,23 @@ class HermesCLI:
         parts = cmd.strip().split(None, 1)
         sub = parts[1].lower().strip() if len(parts) > 1 else "status"
 
-        _DEFAULT_CDP = "http://127.0.0.1:9222"
+        _DEFAULT_CDP = DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_URL
         current = os.environ.get("BROWSER_CDP_URL", "").strip()
 
         if sub.startswith("connect"):
             # Optionally accept a custom CDP URL: /browser connect ws://host:port
             connect_parts = cmd.strip().split(None, 2)  # ["/browser", "connect", "ws://..."]
             cdp_url = connect_parts[2].strip() if len(connect_parts) > 2 else _DEFAULT_CDP
+            parsed_cdp = urlparse(cdp_url if "://" in cdp_url else f"http://{cdp_url}")
+            if parsed_cdp.path.startswith("/devtools/browser/"):
+                cdp_url = parsed_cdp.geturl()
+            else:
+                cdp_url = parsed_cdp._replace(
+                    path="",
+                    params="",
+                    query="",
+                    fragment="",
+                ).geturl()
 
             # Clear any existing browser sessions so the next tool call uses the new backend
             try:
@@ -6660,11 +6589,8 @@ class HermesCLI:
             print()
 
             # Extract port for connectivity checks
-            _port = 9222
+            _host = parsed_cdp.hostname or "127.0.0.1"
-            try:
+            _port = parsed_cdp.port or (443 if parsed_cdp.scheme in {"https", "wss"} else 80)
-                _port = int(cdp_url.rsplit(":", 1)[-1].split("/")[0])
-            except (ValueError, IndexError):
-                pass
 
             # Check if Chrome is already listening on the debug port
             import socket
@@ -6672,7 +6598,7 @@ class HermesCLI:
             try:
                 s = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM)
                 s.settimeout(1)
-                s.connect(("127.0.0.1", _port))
+                s.connect((_host, _port))
                 s.close()
                 _already_open = True
             except (OSError, socket.timeout):
@@ -6690,7 +6616,7 @@ class HermesCLI:
                         try:
                             s = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM)
                             s.settimeout(1)
-                            s.connect(("127.0.0.1", _port))
+                            s.connect((_host, _port))
                             s.close()
                             _already_open = True
                             break
@@ -6703,33 +6629,18 @@ class HermesCLI:
                         print("     Try again in a few seconds — the debug instance may still be starting")
                 else:
                     print("   ⚠ Could not auto-launch Chrome")
-                    # Show manual instructions as fallback
-                    _data_dir = str(_hermes_home / "chrome-debug")
                     sys_name = _plat.system()
-                    if sys_name == "Darwin":
-                        chrome_cmd = (
-                            'open -a "Google Chrome" --args'
-                            f" --remote-debugging-port=9222"
-                            f' --user-data-dir="{_data_dir}"'
-                            " --no-first-run --no-default-browser-check"
-                        )
-                    elif sys_name == "Windows":
-                        chrome_cmd = (
-                            f'chrome.exe --remote-debugging-port=9222'
-                            f' --user-data-dir="{_data_dir}"'
-                            f" --no-first-run --no-default-browser-check"
-                        )
-                    else:
-                        chrome_cmd = (
-                            f"google-chrome --remote-debugging-port=9222"
-                            f' --user-data-dir="{_data_dir}"'
-                            f" --no-first-run --no-default-browser-check"
-                        )
                     print(f"     Launch Chrome manually:")
-                    print(f"     {chrome_cmd}")
+                    print(f"     {manual_chrome_debug_command(_port, sys_name)}")
             else:
                 print(f"   ⚠ Port {_port} is not reachable at {cdp_url}")
 
+            if not _already_open:
+                print()
+                print("Browser not connected — start Chrome with remote debugging and retry /browser connect")
+                print()
+                return
+
             os.environ["BROWSER_CDP_URL"] = cdp_url
             # Eagerly start the CDP supervisor so pending_dialogs + frame_tree
             # show up in the next browser_snapshot.  No-op if already started.

hermes_cli/browser_connect.py

@@ -0,0 +1,119 @@
+"""Shared helpers for attaching Hermes to a local Chrome CDP port."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+import platform
+import shutil
+import subprocess
+
+from hermes_constants import get_hermes_home
+
+
+DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_PORT = 9222
+DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_URL = f"http://127.0.0.1:{DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_PORT}"
+
+
+def get_chrome_debug_candidates(system: str) -> list[str]:
+    candidates: list[str] = []
+    seen: set[str] = set()
+
+    def add(path: str | None) -> None:
+        if not path:
+            return
+        normalized = os.path.normcase(os.path.normpath(path))
+        if normalized in seen or not os.path.isfile(path):
+            return
+        candidates.append(path)
+        seen.add(normalized)
+
+    def add_from_path(*names: str) -> None:
+        for name in names:
+            add(shutil.which(name))
+
+    if system == "Darwin":
+        for app in (
+            "/Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome",
+            "/Applications/Chromium.app/Contents/MacOS/Chromium",
+            "/Applications/Brave Browser.app/Contents/MacOS/Brave Browser",
+            "/Applications/Microsoft Edge.app/Contents/MacOS/Microsoft Edge",
+        ):
+            add(app)
+    elif system == "Windows":
+        add_from_path(
+            "chrome.exe", "msedge.exe", "brave.exe", "chromium.exe",
+            "chrome", "msedge", "brave", "chromium",
+        )
+        for base in (
+            os.environ.get("ProgramFiles"),
+            os.environ.get("ProgramFiles(x86)"),
+            os.environ.get("LOCALAPPDATA"),
+        ):
+            if not base:
+                continue
+            for parts in (
+                ("Google", "Chrome", "Application", "chrome.exe"),
+                ("Chromium", "Application", "chrome.exe"),
+                ("Chromium", "Application", "chromium.exe"),
+                ("BraveSoftware", "Brave-Browser", "Application", "brave.exe"),
+                ("Microsoft", "Edge", "Application", "msedge.exe"),
+            ):
+                add(os.path.join(base, *parts))
+    else:
+        add_from_path(
+            "google-chrome", "google-chrome-stable", "chromium-browser",
+            "chromium", "brave-browser", "microsoft-edge",
+        )
+
+    return candidates
+
+
+def chrome_debug_data_dir() -> str:
+    return str(get_hermes_home() / "chrome-debug")
+
+
+def manual_chrome_debug_command(port: int = DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_PORT, system: str | None = None) -> str:
+    system = system or platform.system()
+    data_dir = chrome_debug_data_dir()
+    if system == "Darwin":
+        return (
+            'open -a "Google Chrome" --args'
+            f" --remote-debugging-port={port}"
+            f' --user-data-dir="{data_dir}"'
+            " --no-first-run --no-default-browser-check"
+        )
+    if system == "Windows":
+        return (
+            f"chrome.exe --remote-debugging-port={port}"
+            f' --user-data-dir="{data_dir}"'
+            " --no-first-run --no-default-browser-check"
+        )
+    return (
+        f"google-chrome --remote-debugging-port={port}"
+        f' --user-data-dir="{data_dir}"'
+        " --no-first-run --no-default-browser-check"
+    )
+
+
+def try_launch_chrome_debug(port: int = DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_PORT, system: str | None = None) -> bool:
+    candidates = get_chrome_debug_candidates(system or platform.system())
+    if not candidates:
+        return False
+
+    os.makedirs(chrome_debug_data_dir(), exist_ok=True)
+    try:
+        subprocess.Popen(
+            [
+                candidates[0],
+                f"--remote-debugging-port={port}",
+                f"--user-data-dir={chrome_debug_data_dir()}",
+                "--no-first-run",
+                "--no-default-browser-check",
+            ],
+            stdout=subprocess.DEVNULL,
+            stderr=subprocess.DEVNULL,
+            start_new_session=True,
+        )
+        return True
+    except Exception:
+        return False

tests/cli/test_cli_browser_connect.py

@@ -26,8 +26,8 @@ class TestChromeDebugLaunch:
             captured["kwargs"] = kwargs
             return object()
 
-        with patch("cli.shutil.which", side_effect=lambda name: r"C:\Chrome\chrome.exe" if name == "chrome.exe" else None), \
+        with patch("hermes_cli.browser_connect.shutil.which", side_effect=lambda name: r"C:\Chrome\chrome.exe" if name == "chrome.exe" else None), \
-             patch("cli.os.path.isfile", side_effect=lambda path: path == r"C:\Chrome\chrome.exe"), \
+             patch("hermes_cli.browser_connect.os.path.isfile", side_effect=lambda path: path == r"C:\Chrome\chrome.exe"), \
              patch("subprocess.Popen", side_effect=fake_popen):
             assert HermesCLI._try_launch_chrome_debug(9333, "Windows") is True
 
@@ -49,8 +49,8 @@ class TestChromeDebugLaunch:
         monkeypatch.delenv("ProgramFiles(x86)", raising=False)
         monkeypatch.delenv("LOCALAPPDATA", raising=False)
 
-        with patch("cli.shutil.which", return_value=None), \
+        with patch("hermes_cli.browser_connect.shutil.which", return_value=None), \
-             patch("cli.os.path.isfile", side_effect=lambda path: path == installed), \
+             patch("hermes_cli.browser_connect.os.path.isfile", side_effect=lambda path: path == installed), \
              patch("subprocess.Popen", side_effect=fake_popen):
             assert HermesCLI._try_launch_chrome_debug(9222, "Windows") is True
 

tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py

@@ -2779,6 +2779,30 @@ def _stub_urlopen(monkeypatch, *, ok: bool):
     monkeypatch.setattr(urllib.request, "urlopen", _opener)
 
 
+def _stub_urlopen_capture(monkeypatch, *, ok: bool):
+    urls: list[str] = []
+
+    class _Resp:
+        status = 200
+
+        def __enter__(self):
+            return self
+
+        def __exit__(self, *_):
+            return False
+
+    def _opener(url, timeout=2.0):  # noqa: ARG001 — match urllib signature
+        urls.append(url)
+        if not ok:
+            raise OSError("probe failed")
+        return _Resp()
+
+    import urllib.request
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(urllib.request, "urlopen", _opener)
+    return urls
+
+
 def test_browser_manage_status_reads_env_var(monkeypatch):
     """Status returns the env var verbatim (no network I/O)."""
     monkeypatch.setenv("BROWSER_CDP_URL", "http://127.0.0.1:9222")
@@ -2856,6 +2880,79 @@ def test_browser_manage_connect_sets_env_and_cleans_twice(monkeypatch):
     assert cleanup_calls == ["", "http://127.0.0.1:9222"]
 
 
+def test_browser_manage_connect_defaults_to_loopback(monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.delenv("BROWSER_CDP_URL", raising=False)
+    fake = types.SimpleNamespace(
+        cleanup_all_browsers=lambda: None,
+        _get_cdp_override=lambda: os.environ.get("BROWSER_CDP_URL", ""),
+    )
+    with patch.dict(sys.modules, {"tools.browser_tool": fake}):
+        urls = _stub_urlopen_capture(monkeypatch, ok=True)
+        resp = server.handle_request(
+            {"id": "1", "method": "browser.manage", "params": {"action": "connect"}}
+        )
+
+    assert resp["result"] == {"connected": True, "url": "http://127.0.0.1:9222"}
+    assert urls[0] == "http://127.0.0.1:9222/json/version"
+
+
+def test_browser_manage_connect_default_local_reports_launch_hint(monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.delenv("BROWSER_CDP_URL", raising=False)
+    fake = types.SimpleNamespace(
+        cleanup_all_browsers=lambda: None,
+        _get_cdp_override=lambda: os.environ.get("BROWSER_CDP_URL", ""),
+    )
+    with patch.dict(sys.modules, {"tools.browser_tool": fake}):
+        _stub_urlopen(monkeypatch, ok=False)
+        with patch("hermes_cli.browser_connect.try_launch_chrome_debug", return_value=False):
+            resp = server.handle_request(
+                {"id": "1", "method": "browser.manage", "params": {"action": "connect"}}
+            )
+
+    assert resp["error"]["code"] == 5031
+    assert "Start Chrome with remote debugging" in resp["error"]["message"]
+    assert "google-chrome --remote-debugging-port=9222" in resp["error"]["message"]
+    assert "BROWSER_CDP_URL" not in os.environ
+
+
+def test_browser_manage_connect_default_local_retries_after_launch(monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.delenv("BROWSER_CDP_URL", raising=False)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(server.time, "sleep", lambda _seconds: None)
+    fake = types.SimpleNamespace(
+        cleanup_all_browsers=lambda: None,
+        _get_cdp_override=lambda: os.environ.get("BROWSER_CDP_URL", ""),
+    )
+
+    class _Resp:
+        status = 200
+
+        def __enter__(self):
+            return self
+
+        def __exit__(self, *_):
+            return False
+
+    attempts = {"n": 0}
+
+    def _opener(_url, timeout=2.0):  # noqa: ARG001 — match urllib signature
+        attempts["n"] += 1
+        if attempts["n"] < 3:
+            raise OSError("not ready")
+        return _Resp()
+
+    import urllib.request
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(urllib.request, "urlopen", _opener)
+    with patch.dict(sys.modules, {"tools.browser_tool": fake}):
+        with patch("hermes_cli.browser_connect.try_launch_chrome_debug", return_value=True):
+            resp = server.handle_request(
+                {"id": "1", "method": "browser.manage", "params": {"action": "connect"}}
+            )
+
+    assert resp["result"] == {"connected": True, "url": "http://127.0.0.1:9222"}
+    assert os.environ["BROWSER_CDP_URL"] == "http://127.0.0.1:9222"
+
+
 def test_browser_manage_connect_rejects_unreachable_endpoint(monkeypatch):
     """An unreachable endpoint must NOT mutate the env or reap sessions."""
     monkeypatch.setenv("BROWSER_CDP_URL", "http://existing:9222")

tui_gateway/server.py

@@ -4751,6 +4751,24 @@ def _resolve_browser_cdp_url() -> str:
     return ""
 
 
+def _is_default_local_cdp(parsed) -> bool:
+    return (
+        parsed.scheme in {"http", "ws"}
+        and parsed.hostname in {"127.0.0.1", "localhost"}
+        and (parsed.port or 80) == 9222
+    )
+
+
+def _browser_connect_error(url: str, port: int) -> str:
+    from hermes_cli.browser_connect import manual_chrome_debug_command
+
+    return (
+        f"Chrome is not reachable at {url}. "
+        "Start Chrome with remote debugging, then retry /browser connect:\n"
+        f"{manual_chrome_debug_command(port)}"
+    )
+
+
 @method("browser.manage")
 def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
     action = params.get("action", "status")
@@ -4764,7 +4782,9 @@ def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
             },
         )
     if action == "connect":
-        url = params.get("url", "http://localhost:9222")
+        from hermes_cli.browser_connect import DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_URL
+
+        url = params.get("url", DEFAULT_BROWSER_CDP_URL)
         try:
             import urllib.request
             from urllib.parse import urlparse
@@ -4813,7 +4833,28 @@ def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
                     except Exception:
                         continue
                 if not ok:
-                    return _err(rid, 5031, f"could not reach browser CDP at {url}")
+                    if _is_default_local_cdp(parsed):
+                        import platform
+                        from hermes_cli.browser_connect import try_launch_chrome_debug
+
+                        port = parsed.port or 9222
+                        if try_launch_chrome_debug(port, platform.system()):
+                            for _ in range(10):
+                                time.sleep(0.5)
+                                for probe in probe_urls:
+                                    try:
+                                        with urllib.request.urlopen(probe, timeout=1.0) as resp:
+                                            if 200 <= getattr(resp, "status", 200) < 300:
+                                                ok = True
+                                                break
+                                    except Exception:
+                                        continue
+                                if ok:
+                                    break
+                        if not ok:
+                            return _err(rid, 5031, _browser_connect_error(url, port))
+                    else:
+                        return _err(rid, 5031, f"could not reach browser CDP at {url}")
 
             # Persist a normalized URL for downstream CDP resolution.
             # Discovery-style inputs (`http://host:port` or

ui-tui/src/__tests__/createSlashHandler.test.ts

@@ -192,6 +192,7 @@ describe('createSlashHandler', () => {
 
   it.each([
     ['/browser status', 'browser.manage', { action: 'status' }],
+    ['/browser connect', 'browser.manage', { action: 'connect', url: 'http://127.0.0.1:9222' }],
     ['/reload-mcp', 'reload.mcp', { session_id: null }],
     ['/stop', 'process.stop', {}],
     ['/fast status', 'config.get', { key: 'fast', session_id: null }],

ui-tui/src/app/slash/commands/ops.ts

@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ export const opsCommands: SlashCommand[] = [
       const requested = rest.join(' ').trim()
 
       if (action === 'connect') {
-        payload.url = requested || 'http://localhost:9222'
+        payload.url = requested || 'http://127.0.0.1:9222'
       }
 
       ctx.gateway