elelem-server

Alpha. It works, with known gaps. Check the known issues before you rely on it.

elelem-server runs one elelem session inside a small web server and serves a chat page for it. Type a message in the browser and the agent runs on the machine where the server runs, with that machine’s files and tools. Use it to watch or steer an agent from another device on a network you control.

Warning: The server binds to 0.0.0.0 and has no authentication, no TLS, and no origin check. Anyone who can reach the port can send the agent instructions and answer its permission prompts. If the agent has a shell tool, that means running commands as you. Any web page open in your browser can also send messages to http://localhost:4567/message. Run it only on a machine and network you trust, and block the port from everything else.

Install #

gem install elelem-server

You also need a provider gem, for example elelem-anthropic or elelem-llama.

Configure #

Usage: elelem-server [options]
    -p, --provider NAME              Provider to use (default: stub)
        --port PORT                  Port to listen on (default: 4567)
    -h, --help                       Show this help

The address is fixed at 0.0.0.0; there is no flag to change it. There is no --model flag; the provider’s own defaults and environment variables apply.

elelem-server does not load elelem-builtins. The session gets only the tools and setup blocks from plugin files in ~/.agents/plugins/ and .agents/plugins/. With none, the agent can talk but not act. To give it the default tools:

# ~/.agents/plugins/builtins.rb
require "elelem/builtins"

Use #

elelem-server -p anthropic --port 4567

elelem v0.2.0 listening on http://0.0.0.0:4567

Open http://localhost:4567 in a browser. Enter sends a message; Shift+Enter adds a line. Replies and the model’s thinking stream in as they arrive. When a tool asks for permission, for example through elelem-tools permissions, the page shows the question with Allow and Deny buttons. Ctrl+C in the terminal stops the server.

How it works #

The page is one HTML file with inline CSS and JavaScript and no external assets. The server is WEBrick with 4 routes:

The session’s input and output are a WebTerminal object. Output is stripped of ANSI colour codes and broadcast to every connected browser. When a tool calls ask, the question goes out as a prompt event with an id, and the tool waits until /answer arrives with that id.

Each /message starts the turn in a new thread and returns 204 immediately. When the turn ends, the server sends done.

Limitations #

• No authentication, no TLS, and a fixed 0.0.0.0 bind. See the warning above.
• One session for everyone. Every browser tab shares the same conversation and sees the same stream.
• Messages go straight to the model. Slash commands such as /reload are not interpreted.
• Nothing stops 2 turns from running at once if you send a second message before the first finishes.
• A page opened mid-session sees only new events, not the history.
• The page’s formatting is rudimentary: line breaks in replies are not preserved.

Development #

git clone https://git.mokhan.ca/elelem/server.git
cd server
bin/setup
bin/test
bin/run

bin/run starts exe/elelem-server through Bundler and passes its arguments on. The development Gemfile has no provider gems, so it runs the stub provider unless you add one.

Environment #