# Manage Cloudflare caching with Hermes Agent

> Managing Cloudflare with Hermes Agent means asking it to verify WordPress sites' Cloudflare links, purge the edge cache or toggle development mode through xSpeed Hub, in a chat or from a cron job it runs.

Page: https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/cloudflare/
Last updated: October 2026

Hermes Agent keeps working between your messages, which makes it a natural place for the dull half of Cloudflare care: checking that the connection still works. Ask it in a chat and it calls list_sites, then cloudflare_verify, which asks Cloudflare whether the credentials and zone stored in xSpeed still resolve. It reports the answer and changes nothing.

When you want an action, it has two. purge_cloudflare clears only the edge copy for a site. set_cloudflare_dev_mode with enabled true bypasses the edge for about three hours, so origin changes show at once, and turns off when asked or when time runs out. Both need Cloudflare connected in xSpeed on that site, and neither accepts site: "all", so a pass over many sites is one call per site.

Hermes has cron-style scheduling, and the Hub does not schedule prompts for agents, so a recurring check lives in Hermes. Each run is a fresh session with nobody to answer a prompt, and a nightly cloudflare_verify across your sites works well because it only reads. Write the job's prompt so that it reports failures and stops, instead of fixing them on its own. A failed check is usually a changed token, which a person should look at. Ask Hermes to name the sites that failed and the message Cloudflare returned, so you can fix the credentials in xSpeed on those sites and run the check again.

## Set up Hermes Agent once

### 1. Put your sites in xSpeed Hub

Sign in at app.xspeedcache.com with Google or email; the Hub is free and has no site cap. Then connect each WordPress site from its own dashboard: click Connect Hub in the xSpeed Cache top bar, then Connect via xSpeed Hub. Each site needs the free xSpeed Cache plugin.

### 2. Add xSpeed Hub to config.yaml

Add this entry under mcp_servers. auth: oauth tells Hermes to handle discovery, dynamic client registration, PKCE and token refresh itself. If you edit the file from inside a running session, Hermes reloads its MCP connections with a 30 second timeout, which is too short for a browser sign-in, so finish the entry and then run the login in the next step.

File: `~/.hermes/config.yaml`

```yaml
mcp_servers:
  xspeedhub:
    url: "https://app.xspeedcache.com/xspeed/mcp"
    auth: oauth
```

### 3. Sign in with hermes mcp login

Run this once. Hermes prints an authorization URL, opens your browser where it can, and waits for the callback on a local loopback port. Sign in to xSpeed Hub and approve. There is no token to paste; Hermes caches the credentials it receives under ~/.hermes/mcp-tokens. On a remote host, paste the redirect URL back into the terminal when Hermes asks, or forward the callback port over SSH.

```bash
hermes mcp login xspeedhub
hermes mcp test xspeedhub
```

Full setup: https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/

### Before you send a prompt that changes something

Reads change nothing on your sites, though contact_support emails xSpeed support. Writes run once your connection allows them, so your client's approval prompt and a read-only connection (the token's Read-only everywhere switch, or a Viewer sign-in) are the gates that matter. A Hermes server entry has a trust setting. The default, full, adds no approval prompt for that server's tools, and the approvals setting covers dangerous shell commands, not MCP tools. Set trust: untrusted on the xspeedhub entry and Hermes asks before every call to a tool that lacks a readOnlyHint of true. The Hub does not mark its tools that way, so with untrusted every Hub call asks, reads included. To remove writes instead of prompting, set tools.include on the entry to the read tools; the filter takes globs and include wins over exclude. The Hub itself has no confirmation step.

## Prompts

- Using xSpeed Hub, run cloudflare_verify on each of my sites now and give me one line per site.
- Use xSpeed Hub to purge the Cloudflare edge cache on shop and tell me what Cloudflare said.
- With xSpeed Hub, turn Cloudflare development mode on for blog, and turn it off when I say I am done.

## Example session

```
You: Use xSpeed Hub to check Cloudflare on shop, then purge the edge copy if the link is good.
  → cloudflare_verify(site: shop) [read-only]: Credentials and zone resolve; Cloudflare connected
Agent: The link works on shop. Purge its Cloudflare edge cache now with purge_cloudflare?
You: Yes.
  → purge_cloudflare(site: shop) [changes site]: Cloudflare edge cache purged
Agent: Done: the edge cache for shop is purged. I did not change anything else on the site, and I did not check the server page cache. If the old version still shows, a page-cache purge is the next step.
```

## How it works

1. **Verify the connection**: cloudflare_verify calls Cloudflare's API with the credentials stored on the site and checks that the token and zone still resolve. It purges nothing and works on a read-only connection. If Cloudflare is not connected on that site, the call comes back as an error and the agent should tell you rather than retry.
2. **Purge the edge**: purge_cloudflare empties the Cloudflare edge cache for the site's zone. It does not touch the copies on your server. When Cloudflare is in front of a site, a content change usually needs both, so the agent runs purge_cache first and purge_cloudflare after it, or one purge_cache of type all, which reaches the edge when Cloudflare is connected.
3. **Turn development mode on to see origin changes**: set_cloudflare_dev_mode with enabled true bypasses the edge for about three hours, so changes on the origin show immediately. It slows the site for real visitors the whole time. Your client's prompt is the gate here, because the Hub's instructions do not name this tool in their confirm list.
4. **Turn it off when you finish**: set_cloudflare_dev_mode with enabled false switches development mode off. Cloudflare also ends it on its own after about three hours. No Hub tool reads whether it is currently on, so note when you turned it on.
5. **Read a failure**: A rejected token, an empty zone ID or a refused call comes back as an error that names the action, the HTTP status and Cloudflare's message when it gave one. It is not reported as a success. The credentials themselves are set in the xSpeed Cache panel in wp-admin, not through the Hub.

## Reference

| | |
| --- | --- |
| Read tool | cloudflare_verify; purges nothing and works on a read-only connection |
| Write tools | purge_cloudflare and set_cloudflare_dev_mode (enabled true or false) |
| Needs | Cloudflare connected in xSpeed on that site: integration on, an API token (or the legacy key and email) and a Zone ID |
| Edge purge scope | Everything Cloudflare holds for the site's zone; the server copies stay |
| Development mode | Bypasses the edge for about 3 hours, then Cloudflare switches it off |
| Token permissions | Zone Cache Purge, and Zone Settings Edit for development mode |
| What verify proves | The token and zone resolve; a token without Zone Settings Edit still verifies |
| Through purge_cache | Type all also clears the edge when Cloudflare is connected; page, assets, object and rest do not |
| Every site at once | None of the three accept site: "all"; one site per call |
| Failure shape | An error with the action, the HTTP status and Cloudflare's message |
| Read-only connection | The connection token with Read-only everywhere on, or a Viewer member's sign-in; purge_cloudflare and set_cloudflare_dev_mode are refused and cloudflare_verify works. An OAuth sign-in gets the scopes the client asks for, so the switch does not make it read-only |
| Confirmation | None on the Hub; your client's prompt is the gate |

## Rules

- Run cloudflare_verify first, but do not read a pass as proof that every call will work. A token that lacks Zone Settings Edit verifies and purges fine, then fails the first time development mode is switched.
- Purge the server and the edge together after a content change. Purging only the site leaves visitors on the old page until the edge copy expires.
- Turn development mode off as soon as you are done. It slows the site for real visitors for up to about three hours, and no tool reports its state.
- Never paste a Cloudflare token or Global API Key into the chat. Connect Cloudflare in the xSpeed Cache panel in wp-admin, and use a scoped API token rather than the Global API Key.
- purge_cloudflare and set_cloudflare_dev_mode are write tools. The Hub runs them as soon as your connection allows writes, so your client's approval prompt and a read-only connection (the connection token with Read-only everywhere on, or a Viewer member's sign-in) are the gates that matter.

## Good to know with Hermes Agent

At its default trust setting, full, Hermes adds no approval prompt for a server, so a chat or a cron job can call set_cloudflare_dev_mode with nobody asked. Set trust to untrusted on the xspeedhub entry and Hermes asks before every call to a tool that lacks a read-only hint. The Hub sets no such hint, so every Hub call asks, cloudflare_verify included, and a cron run has nobody to answer. To make a scheduled check safe, set tools include on the entry to the read tools you need, which leaves purge_cloudflare and set_cloudflare_dev_mode out entirely, or use the connection token with Read-only everywhere on (a Viewer member's sign-in also works). The Hub has no confirmation step, and development mode slows real visitors for about three hours, so do purges and dev mode in chats you start yourself.

## More prompts for this job

They work in any client connected to xSpeed Hub.

- Use xSpeed Hub to check that the Cloudflare connection on shop still works.
- With xSpeed Hub, purge the Cloudflare edge cache on blog.
- I changed the checkout page on shop. Use xSpeed Hub to purge the site cache and the Cloudflare edge.
- Use xSpeed Hub to turn Cloudflare development mode on for shop. I am editing the theme.
- With xSpeed Hub, turn Cloudflare development mode off on shop.
- Ask xSpeed Hub to verify Cloudflare on shop and tell me what is wrong if it fails.
- Using xSpeed Hub, which of my sites have a working Cloudflare connection? Check them one at a time.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can Hermes Agent run a Cloudflare check on a schedule?

Yes, with its own cron support. The job calls cloudflare_verify for each site and reports the result. The Hub has no scheduler for agent prompts, so the timing lives in Hermes, and the check only reads.

### What does a failed cloudflare_verify mean for Hermes Agent?

It means Cloudflare did not accept the credentials or zone saved in xSpeed on that site, for example after a token was revoked. A purge there would fail too. Update the credentials in xSpeed and run the check again. A pass does not prove dev mode will work, since a token without Zone Settings Edit still verifies.

### What does a site need before the Cloudflare tools work?

Cloudflare has to be connected in xSpeed on that site: the integration switched on, an API token (or the legacy Global API Key with your Cloudflare email) and the Zone ID of the domain. You set these in the xSpeed Cache panel in wp-admin. Without them, the tools return an error instead of acting.

### Does purging the xSpeed cache also clear Cloudflare?

A purge_cache of type all does, when the site has Cloudflare connected, and it reports each step. A page, assets, object or rest purge stays on your server. purge_cloudflare clears only the edge, so use it when the server copy is already fresh.

### How long does development mode last?

About three hours. Cloudflare switches it off on its own after that. While it is on, the edge is bypassed, so origin changes show at once and real visitors get a slower site. Turn it off yourself with set_cloudflare_dev_mode set to false when you are done.

### Why did cloudflare_verify pass but development mode failed?

Verifying and purging do not need Zone Settings Edit on the token, so a token without it looks fine. Development mode writes a zone setting, so it is refused. Edit the token in Cloudflare so it has both Zone Cache Purge and Zone Settings Edit, then try again.

### Can I purge Cloudflare on all my sites with one prompt?

Not with purge_cloudflare, which takes one site per call. A purge_cache of type all with site set to all clears the edge on each site that has Cloudflare connected, and the result is reported per site. The Hub tells the agent to confirm a write across every site with you once first.

## Manage Cloudflare with other agents

[Claude Code](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/claude-code/cloudflare/) · [Claude](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/claude/cloudflare/) · [Claude Cowork](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/claude-cowork/cloudflare/) · [ChatGPT](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/chatgpt/cloudflare/) · [Codex](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/codex/cloudflare/) · [Cursor](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/cursor/cloudflare/) · [GitHub Copilot in VS Code](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/github-copilot/cloudflare/) · [Windsurf](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/windsurf/cloudflare/) · [Gemini CLI](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/gemini-cli/cloudflare/) · [Antigravity](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/antigravity/cloudflare/) · [Zed](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/zed/cloudflare/) · [Kiro](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/kiro/cloudflare/) · [OpenCode](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/opencode/cloudflare/) · [OpenClaw](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/openclaw/cloudflare/) · [Grok Build](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/grok-build/cloudflare/) · [ChatGPT dots](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/chatgpt-dots/cloudflare/) · [Grok](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/grok/cloudflare/) · [Grok Bot](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/grok-bot/cloudflare/) · [Muse](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/muse/cloudflare/) · [Manus](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/manus/cloudflare/) · [Kimi Code](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/kimi/cloudflare/) · [Paperclip](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/paperclip/cloudflare/) · [NanoClaw](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/nanoclaw/cloudflare/)

## More with Hermes Agent

- [Purge the WordPress cache with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/purge-cache/)
- [Find out why WordPress pages are not cached with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/troubleshoot-cache/)
- [Scan a website for speed problems with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/speed-scan/)
- [Run and track PageSpeed tests with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/pagespeed-tests/)
- [Raise a WordPress site's PageSpeed score with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/optimize-site/)
- [Tune WordPress cache settings with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/cache-settings/)
- [Warm the WordPress cache with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/preload-cache/)
- [Set up the Redis object cache with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/object-cache/)
- [Manage every WordPress site at once with Hermes Agent](https://xspeedcache.com/agent/hermes-agent/fleet/)

## Documentation

- How to connect Cloudflare: https://xspeedcache.com/docs/cloudflare/
- How to serve assets from a CDN: https://xspeedcache.com/docs/cdn/
- How to enable Page Cache: https://xspeedcache.com/docs/page-cache/