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Use artil init to have incoming messages notify an open Claude Code or Pi session, or start a Hermes run. It also writes the artil skill to ~/.claude/skills, ~/.pi/agent/skills, or Hermes’ skills folder, and links the agent account’s stored API keys and passwords to the client, so the client can read and send messages and use those secrets in a conversation. To use the secrets anywhere else, link them yourself. First install the CLI, sign in as your agent account, and check that you can read its email. With an --account login, only remote Hermes can be set up; artil init --agent <agent> picks its agent. Claude Code, Pi, and Hermes can also hear about new messages through a plugin: the Claude Code plugin, the Pi package, or the Hermes plugin. Use one or the other for a client: installing the plugin replaces what artil init set up for it, and artil init will not set up a client whose plugin is installed. OpenClaw hears about new messages only through its plugin.

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1. Choose where the agent will run

Choose a client below. Local setup adds message delivery, the artil skill, and secret loading. Choosing a new client replaces this computer’s delivery setup, including a remote Hermes webhook set up from here.
Local setup links all of the agent’s stored secrets. Only the agent’s own login can reveal them; members can’t. The Claude Code and Pi links use your user-level configuration and apply across projects; Hermes uses its configured installation. Review the agent’s secrets before connecting a client.
Install Claude Code and use Anthropic authentication. Channels are not available through Bedrock, Google Cloud’s Agent Platform, or Microsoft Foundry. On Team and Enterprise plans, an owner must enable channels first. Console organizations that deploy managed settings must enable channelsEnabled. The development flag below cannot override a disabled channel setting. See Claude’s channel requirements.Connect this computer:
Setup adds the artil-messages channel and allows the CLI commands that read and send messages. Complete anything listed under Next steps, such as a skill name conflict or a secret that was left out.Start a new Claude Code session using the command setup prints:
Check that Claude starts with the channel enabled. Resolve any startup warning about blocked channels. The new session also loads the secrets hook. Keep it open for the email check below; closing it stops notifications.

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2. Check an incoming message

From your own email account, send a new message to the agent’s address. For example: “Please reply to confirm you can read this email.” The client receives a notification containing the message ID. Local clients use the CLI to read and reply; the remote Hermes webhook prompts it to use its configured message tools. Watch the client read the message, then check your inbox for its reply.
Keep the Claude Code or Pi session open, or check the background-job log for local Hermes. For a remote Hermes server, check that webhook setup is complete and the URL is reachable. Inspect any client permission prompts before expecting a reply.Run artil auth status to check the agent and its channels. Sender restrictions, spam filtering, and notification limits can stop a message from reaching the client. See message troubleshooting.
Apart from remote Hermes, which a webhook reaches, one client at a time hears an agent’s new messages, and a message that arrives while none listens waits in the inbox; see Who hears about new messages.

Next: sign up for a service

Use this inbox to receive a verification email, finish signup, and store the service’s credentials.

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Change or disconnect a client

Run artil init to choose a different client. A new choice replaces this computer’s delivery setup, including a remote Hermes webhook set up from here. Keeping the same choice repairs outdated setup and updates the installed skill and secret links.If a separately installed skill has the same name, setup keeps it and reports the conflict under Next steps.
This command removes delivery setup on this computer, including a remote Hermes webhook set up from here. A webhook set up from another computer stays. To remove it, disconnect on that computer, or set up remote Hermes here, which replaces it, and then disconnect.
It also removes the skills, the Pi extensions, secret links, and allowed artil commands that setup added for the disconnected local clients. Open Pi sessions keep receiving messages until you run /reload in them. Your agent, messages, and secrets remain stored in Artil. If Hermes’ config.yaml is on this computer, the command removes the artil route and asks you to restart Hermes. On another server, remove that route yourself. Plugins from artil plugin install stay; the command names them, and artil plugin remove <client> takes them out.Remove separately linked secrets, such as a project’s .env, with artil secrets unlink <place>. Stop programs that already loaded those values. For CLI sign-out, see manage a login.