Glonce

Herdr releases native desktop app for terminals and coding agents

toolsThe Glonce editorsHacker News🔥60Glonce rating60Impact40Novelty45Relevance90Surprise25Players10Credibility70
Herdr releases native desktop app for terminals and coding agents

Herdr describes itself as a desktop app for terminals and coding agents. Its pitch, in the project README: keep work in spaces, see which agents need you, and leave terminals running when you close the window.

The model is built from a few pieces. A space holds work on one machine, usually in one repo. Each space has tabs, and a tab can be split into panes that hold terminals or mod panels side by side. An unnamed space follows the folder of its first terminal; naming a space or tab gives it a label that stays. New tabs start in the folder of the focused terminal.

The agents sidebar pulls agents from all your spaces into one list, including workers started by another agent. Agents that report status appear as Working (still busy), Blocked (waiting for you), Done (finished while you were looking elsewhere) or Idle (not working, or a finished agent you have already looked at). Clicking an agent shows it; a worker with no pane opens in a peek view over the current tab, and you can keep it as a tab. Ctrl-click (Cmd-click on macOS) on a live terminal address in terminal text peeks at that terminal. An address such as t7 means a terminal on the same machine; vps/t7 names one on another machine.

The window arranges terminals, while a separate core process runs them. Closing the window leaves terminals running; closing a pane or tab ends its terminals. After a reboot or a core crash, kept panes come back as fresh shells in their last folders, not as their old programs.

Remote work is handled through SSH. You add a machine from Settings, then Machines, or from the sidebar's Add machine action, choosing a host from your SSH config or typing how SSH reaches it. Spaces on that machine run their terminals there, not on your computer. Each machine keeps its spaces, tabs and splits in its own core; connected screens share that structure and the live terminals but keep their own focus and zoom. Remote work keeps running when the local window closes or the laptop sleeps, as long as the remote machine and core stay up.

Customisation runs through layouts and mods. The built-in layouts include Herdr, Terminals and Herdr 98. A layout arranges the window, and mods are small JavaScript programs that draw its panels, menus and dialogs. Shipped layouts and mods should be duplicated before editing; the copies stay yours, while Herdr updates the shipped ones on start. A broken edit keeps the last good version and reports the error. Ctrl+Shift+P (Cmd+Shift+P on macOS) opens the command palette, and keys can be changed in keys.json.

Installed releases check for updates in the background and download the new app beside the running one; it takes over when you quit and reopen or choose the update action, and terminals keep running in the core. Builds from source do not update themselves.

There is also a command line. herdr-app --skill prints an agent guide for driving the window, herdr-app ls and herdr-app status inspect the open window, and herdr-app commands lists commands and works without a window.

The README also covers building from source (clone with submodules, use Rust 1.95.0 and Zig 0.16.0, then just build, just test, just install) and a benchmark runner, scripts/bench.py, that runs fixed workloads against each build to compare drawing changes on Windows, Linux or macOS.

Key facts

  • Herdr is a desktop app for terminals and coding agents; work is organised into spaces with tabs and split panes.
  • An agents sidebar lists agents from all spaces, including workers started by another agent, with statuses Working, Blocked, Done and Idle.
  • A separate core runs the terminals, so closing the window leaves them running; after a reboot or core crash, panes return as fresh shells in their last folders.
  • SSH machines can be added so a space runs its terminals on the remote machine, not locally.
  • Install via a shell script (Linux, macOS), a PowerShell script (Windows 10 1803 or newer, x64) or a DMG for Apple Silicon; Intel Macs build from source.

Why it matters

Running several coding agents at once means tracking which one is busy and which one is stuck. Herdr's answer is a single sidebar that gathers agents from every space, shows whether each is Working, Blocked, Done or Idle, and includes workers that another agent started. Pairing that with a core process that keeps terminals alive when the window closes makes the app a home for long-running agent work, not just a terminal emulator.

Who it affects

People who run terminals and coding agents across several repos or machines are the target. The SSH support matters to anyone who keeps work on a remote host: those spaces run there and carry on if the laptop sleeps or the local window closes. The mod system is aimed at users who want to change the interface with small JavaScript programs.

How to use it

On Linux and macOS, run the README's shell installer: curl -fsSL https://releases.herdr.dev/app/install.sh | sh. It adds Herdr to your apps and puts the command in ~/.local/bin; add that folder to PATH if asked. On macOS the app lives in ~/Applications/Herdr.app, and Apple Silicon users can instead download Herdr.dmg and drag it to Applications. On x64 Windows with curl and tar (Windows 10 1803 or newer), run irm https://releases.herdr.dev/app/install.ps1 | iex in PowerShell, then open a new terminal so the PATH change applies. Linux needs a desktop session and a working Vulkan driver, and builds cover x86-64 and ARM64. Intel Mac users can build from source with Rust 1.95.0 and Zig 0.16.0.

How solid is it

Everything here comes from the project README, which describes behaviour, install steps and build instructions in concrete detail. The README gives no release date or version number, no pricing or licence, and no user numbers or reviews. It does not say which coding agents are supported or how they report status.

Risks and caveats

Both installers download and run code; the README suggests reading the shell or PowerShell installer first. Usage telemetry is on by default in releases and can be turned off in Settings, then Privacy; the README does not say what it collects. Mods are trusted code, not sandboxed extensions, so the README advises reading its security and privacy notes before installing someone else's mod. Closing a pane or tab ends its terminals, and after a reboot or core crash only fresh shells return, not the old programs. Builds from source do not update themselves.

“Keep work in spaces, see which agents need you, and leave terminals running when you close the window.”

— Herdr README