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General

What is Orpheus?

A runtime for AI agents that need to remember things. It keeps workers warm, persists files, and routes sessions to the same worker.

What languages are supported?

  • Python 3.10+
  • Node.js 18+

Where does Orpheus run?

On your machine. It’s self-hosted (macOS or Linux).

Deployment

How do I update my agent?

Run orpheus deploy . again. Workers restart with new code, workspace is preserved.

Can I have multiple agents?

Yes. Each agent has its own worker pool and workspace.

What happens to workspace on redeploy?

Nothing. Workspace persists across redeployments. Only orpheus undeploy deletes it.

Execution

How long can tasks run?

As long as you configure. Set timeout: 3600 for 1 hour. Tested up to 30+ minutes.

Are requests retried on failure?

No. Orpheus uses safe-first design. Failed/crashed requests are logged, not auto-retried. You decide whether to retry.

What’s the difference between failed and crashed?

  • Failed: Your handler returned an error
  • Crashed: Daemon died while your handler was running

Sessions

Do sessions guarantee same worker?

Best-effort. If the preferred worker is busy, another worker handles the request.

How long do sessions last?

Until the worker dies or is removed (idle timeout).

Should I use sessions or workspace?

  • Sessions: For in-memory state (fast, lost on worker death)
  • Workspace: For durable state (survives everything)
  • Both: For conversational agents (session for speed, workspace for durability)

Scaling

When does Orpheus scale up?

When queue depth > 3 requests per worker.

When does it scale down?

When queue depth < 0.5 requests per worker, after idle timeout.

Can I scale to zero?

Yes. Set min_workers: 0. First request after idle will have a cold start.

Resources

How much memory do agents get?

Configurable via memory in agent.yaml. Default is 512MB.

Where are workspaces stored?

~/.orpheus/workspaces/{agent-name}/

Where are logs?

~/.orpheus/logs/

Troubleshooting

Agent deploys but doesn’t respond

Check orpheus stats my-agent - are workers healthy?

Requests are slow

Check if min_workers: 0 (cold starts). Set to 1+ for warm workers.

Worker keeps crashing

Likely out of memory. Increase memory in agent.yaml.

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