NousResearch/hermes-agent · error · GenerationError

Pet generation needs an image backend that supports referenc

Error message

Pet generation needs an image backend that supports reference images. Open `hermes tools` → Image Generation and configure Nous Portal, OpenRouter, or OpenAI (gpt-image-2) with an API key.

What it means

Error "Pet generation needs an image backend that supports reference images. Open `hermes tools` → Image Generation and configure Nous Portal, OpenRouter, or OpenAI (gpt-image-2) with an API key." thrown in NousResearch/hermes-agent.

Source

Thrown at agent/pet/generate/imagegen.py:122

    except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001
        active = None
    if active is not None:
        name = getattr(active, "name", "")
        if name in _REF_CAPABLE and active.is_available():
            return SpriteProvider(name=name, provider=active, supports_references=True)

    # Any available reference-capable provider.
    for name in _REF_CAPABLE:
        provider = get_provider(name)
        if provider is not None and provider.is_available():
            return SpriteProvider(name=name, provider=provider, supports_references=True)

    if not require_references and active is not None and active.is_available():
        return SpriteProvider(
            name=getattr(active, "name", "unknown"), provider=active, supports_references=False
        )

    raise GenerationError(
        "Pet generation needs an image backend that supports reference images. "
        "Open `hermes tools` → Image Generation and configure Nous Portal, "
        "OpenRouter, or OpenAI (gpt-image-2) with an API key."
    )


def list_sprite_providers() -> list[dict]:
    """The reference-capable providers available to pick for pet generation.

    Returns ``[{name, label, default}]`` for every ref-capable provider the user
    actually has credentials for, in preference order, marking the one
    :func:`resolve_provider` would choose with no explicit preference. Empty when
    none is configured (the picker hides itself). Best-effort: discovery hiccups
    yield an empty list.
    """
    _discover()
    from agent.image_gen_registry import get_provider

View on GitHub (pinned to c896c09c42)

Solutions

1. Configure a reference-image-capable backend (Nous Portal, OpenRouter, or OpenAI gpt-image-2) in `hermes tools` → Image Generation with an API key.

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at agent/pet/generate/imagegen.py:122 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of NousResearch/hermes-agent@c896c09c42 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/d0309b53bebe34a2. Report an issue: GitHub.