PR #13564: fix(gateway): add IMAP ID extension and SMTP port 465 support

• Repository: NousResearch/hermes-agent
• Author: BarryLee
• State: open | merged: False
• Link: https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/pull/13564

Description (problem / solution / changelog)

What does this PR do?

• Add RFC 2971 IMAP ID extension support for providers that require client identification (notably 163.com)
• Fix SMTP connection to properly handle implicit TLS on port 465 per RFC 8314

Platforms Tested

• macOS (local development)
• Raspberry Pi 4B (Docker container)

Notes

• The IMAP ID command is sent after every login to ensure compatibility
• ID command failures are logged but don't fail the connection (it's optional per RFC)

Related Issue

https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/issues/13558

Fixes #

Type of Change

<!-- Check the one that applies. -->

• 🐛 Bug fix (non-breaking change that fixes an issue)
• ✨ New feature (non-breaking change that adds functionality)
• 🔒 Security fix
• 📝 Documentation update
• ✅ Tests (adding or improving test coverage)
• ♻️ Refactor (no behavior change)
• 🎯 New skill (bundled or hub)

Changes Made

<!-- List the specific changes. Include file paths for code changes. -->

IMAP ID Extension (RFC 2971)

Some mail servers (notably 163.com) reject connections as "Unsafe Login" if the client doesn't identify itself via the IMAP ID command after login. This PR adds _send_imap_id() which:

• Checks if the server advertises ID capability
• Sends a minimal client identity
• Gracefully skips if ID is not supported (per RFC, it's optional)

SMTP Connection Fix (RFC 8314)

Previously, the code always used STARTTLS regardless of port. Per RFC 8314:

• Port 465 should use implicit TLS (SMTP_SSL)
• Port 587 should use STARTTLS

This fixes connection issues with providers like 163.com that use port 465 for SMTP.

How to Test

<!-- Steps to verify this change works. For bugs: reproduction steps + proof that the fix works. -->

1. Setup 163.com email in hermes setup gateway
2. Add EMAIL_SMTP_PORT=465 to ~/.hermes/.env
3. IMAP login now succeeds (previously failed with "Unsafe Login"); SMTP send works correctly on port 465
4. All existing email tests pass in tests/gateway/test_email.py

Checklist

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Code

• I've read the Contributing Guide
• My commit messages follow Conventional Commits (fix(scope):, feat(scope):, etc.)
• I searched for existing PRs to make sure this isn't a duplicate
• My PR contains only changes related to this fix/feature (no unrelated commits)
• I've run pytest tests/ -q and all tests pass
  • Some (82) tests failed, all unrelated to this change
• I've added tests for my changes (required for bug fixes, strongly encouraged for features)
• I've tested on my platform: <!-- e.g. Ubuntu 24.04, macOS 15.2, Windows 11 -->

Documentation & Housekeeping

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• [N/A] I've updated relevant documentation (README, docs/, docstrings) — or N/A
• [N/A] I've updated cli-config.yaml.example if I added/changed config keys — or N/A
• [N/A] I've updated CONTRIBUTING.md or AGENTS.md if I changed architecture or workflows — or N/A
• I've considered cross-platform impact (Windows, macOS) per the compatibility guide — or N/A
• [N/A] I've updated tool descriptions/schemas if I changed tool behavior — or N/A

For New Skills

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• This skill is broadly useful to most users (if bundled) — see Contributing Guide
• SKILL.md follows the standard format (frontmatter, trigger conditions, steps, pitfalls)
• No external dependencies that aren't already available (prefer stdlib, curl, existing Hermes tools)
• I've tested the skill end-to-end: hermes --toolsets skills -q "Use the X skill to do Y"

Screenshots / Logs

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Changed files

• gateway/platforms/email.py (modified, +77/-7)
• tests/gateway/test_email.py (modified, +72/-0)