diff --git a/clusters/atlas/flux-system/applications/hermes/kustomization.yaml b/clusters/atlas/flux-system/applications/hermes/kustomization.yaml
index 57fed46e..3949282b 100644
--- a/clusters/atlas/flux-system/applications/hermes/kustomization.yaml
+++ b/clusters/atlas/flux-system/applications/hermes/kustomization.yaml
@@ -30,6 +30,10 @@ spec:
       kind: Deployment
       name: hermes-agent
       namespace: hermes
+    - apiVersion: apps/v1
+      kind: DaemonSet
+      name: hermes-node-ssh-access
+      namespace: hermes
     - apiVersion: apps/v1
       kind: Deployment
       name: hermes
diff --git a/dockerfiles/Dockerfile.hermes-agent b/dockerfiles/Dockerfile.hermes-agent
index 806a721a..6ece284a 100644
--- a/dockerfiles/Dockerfile.hermes-agent
+++ b/dockerfiles/Dockerfile.hermes-agent
@@ -685,8 +685,104 @@ for before, after, label in replacements:
 path.write_text(source)
 PY
 
+# Make parent-linked API workers first-class live dashboard sessions. They stay
+# active until the API runner closes them, even during a long final model call;
+# normal interactive sessions retain the stock five-minute recency window.
+RUN python - <<'PY'
+from pathlib import Path
+
+path = Path("/opt/hermes/hermes_cli/web_server.py")
+source = path.read_text()
+
+route_marker = '@app.get("/api/sessions")\n'
+helper = '''def _dashboard_session_is_active(session: Dict[str, Any], now: float) -> bool:
+    """Return liveness for interactive sessions and durable API workers."""
+    if session.get("ended_at") is not None:
+        return False
+    if session.get("source") == "api_server" and session.get("parent_session_id"):
+        return True
+    last_active = session.get("last_active") or session.get("started_at") or 0
+    try:
+        return (now - float(last_active)) < 300
+    except (TypeError, ValueError):
+        return False
+
+
+'''
+if source.count(route_marker) != 1:
+    raise SystemExit("Hermes sessions route marker changed")
+source = source.replace(route_marker, helper + route_marker, 1)
+
+signature_before = '''    cwd_prefix: str = None,
+    profile: Optional[str] = None,
+):
+'''
+signature_after = '''    cwd_prefix: str = None,
+    profile: Optional[str] = None,
+    include_children: bool = False,
+):
+'''
+sessions_start = source.index('async def get_sessions(')
+sessions_end = source.index('\n\n@app.get("/api/profiles/sessions")', sessions_start)
+sessions_source = source[sessions_start:sessions_end]
+if sessions_source.count(signature_before) != 1:
+    raise SystemExit("Hermes sessions signature changed")
+sessions_source = sessions_source.replace(signature_before, signature_after, 1)
+query_before = '''                offset=offset,
+                min_message_count=min_message_count,
+'''
+query_after = '''                offset=offset,
+                include_children=include_children,
+                min_message_count=min_message_count,
+'''
+if sessions_source.count(query_before) != 1:
+    raise SystemExit("Hermes sessions query changed")
+sessions_source = sessions_source.replace(query_before, query_after, 1)
+source = source[:sessions_start] + sessions_source + source[sessions_end:]
+
+status_before = '''                sessions = db.list_sessions_rich(limit=50)
+                now = time.time()
+                active_sessions = sum(
+                    1 for s in sessions
+                    if s.get("ended_at") is None
+                    and (now - s.get("last_active", s.get("started_at", 0))) < 300
+                )
+'''
+status_after = '''                sessions = db.list_sessions_rich(
+                    limit=500,
+                    include_children=True,
+                    order_by_last_active=True,
+                )
+                now = time.time()
+                active_sessions = sum(
+                    1 for session in sessions
+                    if _dashboard_session_is_active(session, now)
+                )
+'''
+if source.count(status_before) != 1:
+    raise SystemExit("Hermes active session status block changed")
+source = source.replace(status_before, status_after, 1)
+
+row_before = '''                s["is_active"] = (
+                    s.get("ended_at") is None
+                    and (now - s.get("last_active", s.get("started_at", 0))) < 300
+                )'''
+row_after = '''                s["is_active"] = _dashboard_session_is_active(s, now)'''
+if source.count(row_before) != 2:
+    raise SystemExit(
+        "Hermes session activity rows changed: expected 2, "
+        f"found {source.count(row_before)}"
+    )
+source = source.replace(row_before, row_after)
+
+path.write_text(source)
+PY
+
 # Keep the browser terminal reliable across GPU context loss, make durable
-# worker lineage visible, and expose the family Telegram-linking entry point.
+# worker lineage visible, expose an accessible API-worker transcript, and
+# expose the family Telegram-linking entry point.
+COPY dockerfiles/hermes-session-activity-panel.tsx /opt/hermes/web/src/components/SessionActivityPanel.tsx
+
 RUN node <<'NODE'
 const fs = require("node:fs");
 
@@ -704,6 +800,13 @@ function replaceOnce(source, before, after, label) {
 {
   const path = "/opt/hermes/web/src/pages/ChatPage.tsx";
   let source = fs.readFileSync(path, "utf8");
+  source = replaceOnce(
+    source,
+    'import { ChatSessionList } from "@/components/ChatSessionList";\n',
+    'import { ChatSessionList } from "@/components/ChatSessionList";\n' +
+      'import { SessionActivityPanel } from "@/components/SessionActivityPanel";\n',
+    "accessible activity import",
+  );
   source = replaceOnce(
     source,
     'import { WebglAddon } from "@xterm/addon-webgl";\n',
@@ -790,9 +893,62 @@ function replaceOnce(source, before, after, label) {
 `,
     "xterm repaint cleanup",
   );
+  source = replaceOnce(
+    source,
+    `          <div
+            ref={hostRef}
+            className="hermes-chat-xterm-host min-h-0 min-w-0 flex-1"
+          />
+
+          {/* NS-504:`,
+    `          <div
+            ref={hostRef}
+            className="hermes-chat-xterm-host min-h-0 min-w-0 flex-1"
+          />
+
+          {resumeParam && (
+            <SessionActivityPanel
+              key={resumeParam + "\\0" + (scopedProfile ?? "")}
+              sessionId={resumeParam}
+              profile={scopedProfile}
+            />
+          )}
+
+          {/* NS-504:`,
+    "accessible activity mount",
+  );
   source = source.replace(
     "@xterm/xterm Terminal (WebGL renderer, Unicode 11 widths)",
-    "@xterm/xterm Terminal (repaintable canvas, Unicode 11 widths)",
+    "@xterm/xterm Terminal (repaintable canvas + accessible activity, Unicode 11 widths)",
+  );
+  fs.writeFileSync(path, source);
+}
+
+// Child API workers are hidden from the stock list by default. Let the chat
+// tree opt into them without changing the Sessions page's root-only contract.
+{
+  const path = "/opt/hermes/web/src/lib/api.ts";
+  let source = fs.readFileSync(path, "utf8");
+  source = replaceOnce(
+    source,
+    `    order: "created" | "recent" = "created",
+  ) =>
+    fetchJSON<PaginatedSessions>(
+      appendProfileParam(
+        \`/api/sessions?limit=\${limit}&offset=\${offset}&order=\${order}\`,
+        profile,
+      ),
+    ),`,
+    `    order: "created" | "recent" = "created",
+    includeChildren = false,
+  ) =>
+    fetchJSON<PaginatedSessions>(
+      appendProfileParam(
+        \`/api/sessions?limit=\${limit}&offset=\${offset}&order=\${order}&include_children=\${includeChildren}\`,
+        profile,
+      ),
+    ),`,
+    "session child query option",
   );
   fs.writeFileSync(path, source);
 }
@@ -814,6 +970,12 @@ function replaceOnce(source, before, after, label) {
     "const SESSION_LIMIT = 100;",
     "session-tree list limit",
   );
+  source = replaceOnce(
+    source,
+    '.getSessions(SESSION_LIMIT, 0, scopeKey, "recent")',
+    '.getSessions(SESSION_LIMIT, 0, scopeKey, "recent", true)',
+    "session-tree child query",
+  );
   source = replaceOnce(
     source,
     "  const [reloadNonce, setReloadNonce] = useState(0);\n",
@@ -1053,6 +1215,14 @@ RUN cd /opt/hermes/web \
     && grep -Fq 'scheduleTerminalPaint' src/pages/ChatPage.tsx \
     && grep -Fq 'sessionTree.childrenByParent' \
         src/components/ChatSessionList.tsx \
+    && grep -Fq 'getSessions(SESSION_LIMIT, 0, scopeKey, "recent", true)' \
+        src/components/ChatSessionList.tsx \
+    && grep -Fq 'SessionActivityPanel' src/pages/ChatPage.tsx \
+    && grep -Fq 'Poll-backed transcript; terminal rendering is not required.' \
+        src/components/SessionActivityPanel.tsx \
+    && grep -Fq 'include_children=${includeChildren}' src/lib/api.ts \
+    && grep -Fq '_dashboard_session_is_active' \
+        /opt/hermes/hermes_cli/web_server.py \
     && grep -Fq 'Open Telegram setup' src/App.tsx \
     && grep -Fq '"pre_turn_route"' /opt/hermes/hermes_cli/plugins.py \
     && grep -Fq '"pre_internal_route"' /opt/hermes/hermes_cli/plugins.py \
diff --git a/dockerfiles/hermes-session-activity-panel.tsx b/dockerfiles/hermes-session-activity-panel.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..130c8ac9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerfiles/hermes-session-activity-panel.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,273 @@
+/** Accessible, poll-backed transcript for externally started Hermes workers. */
+
+import { Button } from "@nous-research/ui/ui/components/button";
+import {
+  Activity,
+  ChevronDown,
+  ChevronUp,
+  RefreshCw,
+  TerminalSquare,
+} from "lucide-react";
+import { useCallback, useEffect, useMemo, useRef, useState } from "react";
+
+import {
+  api,
+  type SessionInfo,
+  type SessionMessage,
+} from "@/lib/api";
+
+const POLL_MS = 2_000;
+
+interface SessionActivityPanelProps {
+  sessionId: string;
+  profile?: string;
+}
+
+function messageLabel(message: SessionMessage): string {
+  if (message.role === "tool") {
+    return message.tool_name ? `Tool result: ${message.tool_name}` : "Tool result";
+  }
+  if (message.tool_calls?.length) {
+    const names = message.tool_calls
+      .map((call) => call.function.name)
+      .filter(Boolean)
+      .join(", ");
+    return names ? `Tool calls: ${names}` : "Tool calls";
+  }
+  return message.role === "assistant" ? "Hermes" : message.role;
+}
+
+function latestTimestamp(messages: SessionMessage[]): number | null {
+  let latest: number | null = null;
+  for (const message of messages) {
+    if (typeof message.timestamp !== "number") continue;
+    latest = latest === null ? message.timestamp : Math.max(latest, message.timestamp);
+  }
+  return latest;
+}
+
+function ActivityMessage({
+  message,
+  index,
+}: {
+  message: SessionMessage;
+  index: number;
+}) {
+  const toolCalls = message.tool_calls ?? [];
+  const content = message.content ?? "";
+  const isToolResult = message.role === "tool";
+
+  return (
+    <article
+      className="rounded border border-white/15 bg-white/5 px-3 py-2 text-xs text-white/85"
+      data-message-index={index}
+    >
+      <div className="mb-1 flex flex-wrap items-center justify-between gap-2 text-[0.6875rem] font-semibold uppercase tracking-wider text-white/60">
+        <span>{messageLabel(message)}</span>
+        {typeof message.timestamp === "number" && (
+          <time dateTime={new Date(message.timestamp * 1000).toISOString()}>
+            {new Date(message.timestamp * 1000).toLocaleTimeString()}
+          </time>
+        )}
+      </div>
+
+      {toolCalls.map((call) => (
+        <details key={call.id} className="my-1 rounded border border-white/10 px-2 py-1">
+          <summary className="cursor-pointer select-none text-white/75">
+            {call.function.name || "tool"} arguments
+          </summary>
+          <pre className="mt-2 max-h-72 overflow-auto whitespace-pre-wrap break-words text-[0.6875rem] text-white/70">
+            {call.function.arguments}
+          </pre>
+        </details>
+      ))}
+
+      {content && isToolResult ? (
+        <details className="mt-1" open={content.length < 1_500}>
+          <summary className="cursor-pointer select-none text-white/75">
+            {content.length.toLocaleString()} characters of output
+          </summary>
+          <pre className="mt-2 max-h-96 overflow-auto whitespace-pre-wrap break-words text-[0.6875rem] leading-relaxed text-white/75">
+            {content}
+          </pre>
+        </details>
+      ) : content ? (
+        <pre className="whitespace-pre-wrap break-words font-sans leading-relaxed text-white/90">
+          {content}
+        </pre>
+      ) : toolCalls.length === 0 ? (
+        <div className="text-white/50">Waiting for the next recorded event…</div>
+      ) : null}
+    </article>
+  );
+}
+
+/**
+ * Show every persisted message and tool event without relying on xterm's
+ * canvas. API workers default to this view; the normal terminal remains one
+ * click away and continues running underneath it.
+ */
+export function SessionActivityPanel({
+  sessionId,
+  profile,
+}: SessionActivityPanelProps) {
+  const [detail, setDetail] = useState<SessionInfo | null>(null);
+  const [messages, setMessages] = useState<SessionMessage[]>([]);
+  const [expanded, setExpanded] = useState(true);
+  const [error, setError] = useState<string | null>(null);
+  const [pollTime, setPollTime] = useState(Date.now());
+  const requestRunning = useRef(false);
+  const scrollRef = useRef<HTMLDivElement | null>(null);
+  const stickToBottom = useRef(true);
+
+  const load = useCallback(async () => {
+    if (requestRunning.current) return;
+    requestRunning.current = true;
+    try {
+      const [nextDetail, response] = await Promise.all([
+        api.getSessionDetail(sessionId, profile ?? ""),
+        api.getSessionMessages(sessionId, profile ?? ""),
+      ]);
+      setDetail(nextDetail);
+      setMessages(response.messages);
+      setError(null);
+      setPollTime(Date.now());
+      if (stickToBottom.current) {
+        requestAnimationFrame(() => {
+          const node = scrollRef.current;
+          if (node) node.scrollTop = node.scrollHeight;
+        });
+      }
+    } catch (cause) {
+      setError(cause instanceof Error ? cause.message : "activity feed unavailable");
+    } finally {
+      requestRunning.current = false;
+    }
+  }, [profile, sessionId]);
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    void load();
+    const timer = window.setInterval(() => void load(), POLL_MS);
+    const onVisibility = () => {
+      if (!document.hidden) void load();
+    };
+    document.addEventListener("visibilitychange", onVisibility);
+    return () => {
+      window.clearInterval(timer);
+      document.removeEventListener("visibilitychange", onVisibility);
+    };
+  }, [load]);
+
+  const latest = useMemo(() => latestTimestamp(messages), [messages]);
+  const quietSeconds = latest === null ? null : Math.max(0, pollTime / 1000 - latest);
+  const running = detail?.ended_at == null;
+  const status = error
+    ? "Activity feed reconnecting"
+    : running && quietSeconds !== null && quietSeconds > 15
+      ? "Working — waiting for the model or a tool result"
+      : running
+        ? "Working"
+        : "Run finished";
+
+  // Ordinary interactive TUI sessions keep their established terminal UI.
+  if (detail && detail.source !== "api_server") return null;
+
+  if (!expanded) {
+    return (
+      <Button
+        onClick={() => setExpanded(true)}
+        prefix={<Activity className="h-4 w-4" />}
+        aria-expanded="false"
+        className="absolute left-4 top-4 z-30 bg-black/90 text-white"
+      >
+        Show live activity
+      </Button>
+    );
+  }
+
+  return (
+    <section
+      className="absolute inset-0 z-30 flex min-h-0 flex-col bg-black text-white"
+      aria-label={`Live activity for ${detail?.title || sessionId}`}
+    >
+      <div className="flex flex-wrap items-center justify-between gap-2 border-b border-white/15 px-3 py-2">
+        <div className="min-w-0">
+          <div className="flex items-center gap-2 text-sm font-semibold">
+            <Activity className="h-4 w-4 text-warning" aria-hidden />
+            <span className="truncate">Live worker activity</span>
+          </div>
+          <div
+            className="mt-0.5 text-[0.6875rem] text-white/65"
+            aria-live="polite"
+            aria-atomic="true"
+          >
+            {status} · {messages.length} recorded events
+          </div>
+        </div>
+        <div className="flex items-center gap-2">
+          <Button
+            ghost
+            onClick={() => void load()}
+            prefix={<RefreshCw className="h-3.5 w-3.5" />}
+            aria-label="Refresh worker activity"
+            className="text-white"
+          >
+            Refresh
+          </Button>
+          <Button
+            ghost
+            onClick={() => setExpanded(false)}
+            prefix={<TerminalSquare className="h-3.5 w-3.5" />}
+            aria-expanded="true"
+            className="text-white"
+          >
+            Terminal view
+          </Button>
+        </div>
+      </div>
+
+      {error && (
+        <div className="border-b border-warning/40 bg-warning/10 px-3 py-2 text-xs text-warning">
+          {error}. Retrying automatically.
+        </div>
+      )}
+
+      <div
+        ref={scrollRef}
+        className="min-h-0 flex-1 space-y-2 overflow-y-auto p-3"
+        tabIndex={0}
+        onScroll={(event) => {
+          const node = event.currentTarget;
+          stickToBottom.current =
+            node.scrollHeight - node.scrollTop - node.clientHeight < 80;
+        }}
+      >
+        {messages.length === 0 ? (
+          <div className="flex min-h-full flex-col items-center justify-center gap-3 text-center text-sm text-white/65">
+            <Activity className="h-7 w-7 animate-pulse text-warning" aria-hidden />
+            <div>
+              <div className="font-medium text-white/85">Connecting to the worker transcript…</div>
+              <div className="mt-1 text-xs">This view refreshes every two seconds.</div>
+            </div>
+          </div>
+        ) : (
+          messages.map((message, index) => (
+            <ActivityMessage
+              key={`${message.timestamp ?? "untimed"}-${index}`}
+              message={message}
+              index={index}
+            />
+          ))
+        )}
+      </div>
+
+      <div className="flex items-center justify-between border-t border-white/15 px-3 py-1.5 text-[0.625rem] text-white/50">
+        <span>Poll-backed transcript; terminal rendering is not required.</span>
+        <span className="flex items-center gap-1">
+          {expanded ? <ChevronUp className="h-3 w-3" /> : <ChevronDown className="h-3 w-3" />}
+          Updated {new Date(pollTime).toLocaleTimeString()}
+        </span>
+      </div>
+    </section>
+  );
+}
diff --git a/services/hermes/agent-deployment.yaml b/services/hermes/agent-deployment.yaml
index 7270354b..c5beab82 100644
--- a/services/hermes/agent-deployment.yaml
+++ b/services/hermes/agent-deployment.yaml
@@ -48,6 +48,16 @@ spec:
           {{- with secret "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh" -}}
           {{ .Data.data.private_key }}
           {{- end }}
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-config: kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-template-node-ssh-config: |
+          {{- with secret "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh" -}}
+          {{ .Data.data.config }}
+          {{- end }}
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-known-hosts: kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-template-node-ssh-known-hosts: |
+          {{- with secret "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh" -}}
+          {{ .Data.data.known_hosts }}
+          {{- end }}
         vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-chat-relay-key: kv/data/atlas/hermes/chat-telegram
         vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-template-chat-relay-key: |
           {{- with secret "kv/data/atlas/hermes/chat-telegram" -}}
@@ -124,8 +134,8 @@ spec:
               cp /config/SOUL.md /opt/data/SOUL.md
               cp /config/AGENTS.md /opt/data/workspace/AGENTS.md
               cp /config/START-HERE.md /opt/data/workspace/START-HERE.md
-              cp /config/ssh_config /opt/data/home/.ssh/config
-              cp /config/ssh_known_hosts /opt/data/home/.ssh/known_hosts
+              cp /vault/secrets/node-ssh-config /opt/data/home/.ssh/config
+              cp /vault/secrets/node-ssh-known-hosts /opt/data/home/.ssh/known_hosts
               if [ -s /vault/secrets/node-ssh-private-key ]; then
                 cp /vault/secrets/node-ssh-private-key /opt/data/home/.ssh/id_ed25519_atlas_nodes
                 chmod 0600 /opt/data/home/.ssh/id_ed25519_atlas_nodes
@@ -522,6 +532,8 @@ spec:
             - {name: HERMES_DASHBOARD_FILES_ROOT, value: /opt/data/workspace}
             - {name: HERMES_DASHBOARD_PUBLIC_URL, value: https://agent.hermes.bstein.dev}
             - {name: HERMES_TUI_AGENT_INIT_TIMEOUT_S, value: "180"}
+            - {name: HERMES_STREAM_STALE_TIMEOUT, value: "600"}
+            - {name: HERMES_API_CALL_STALE_TIMEOUT, value: "600"}
             - {name: API_SERVER_ENABLED, value: "true"}
             - {name: API_SERVER_HOST, value: 0.0.0.0}
             - {name: API_SERVER_PORT, value: "8642"}
diff --git a/services/hermes/node-ssh-access.yaml b/services/hermes/node-ssh-access.yaml
index c1e3f1b1..0d834165 100644
--- a/services/hermes/node-ssh-access.yaml
+++ b/services/hermes/node-ssh-access.yaml
@@ -1,13 +1,11 @@
 # services/hermes/node-ssh-access.yaml
 apiVersion: v1
-kind: ConfigMap
+kind: ServiceAccount
 metadata:
   name: hermes-node-ssh-access
   namespace: hermes
   labels:
     app: hermes-node-ssh-access
-data:
-  authorized_key: >-
 ---
 apiVersion: apps/v1
 kind: DaemonSet
@@ -24,8 +22,19 @@ spec:
     metadata:
       labels:
         app: hermes-node-ssh-access
+      annotations:
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject: "true"
+        vault.hashicorp.com/role: hermes-node-ssh
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-public-key: kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-template-node-ssh-public-key: |
+          {{- with secret "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh" -}}
+          {{ .Data.data.public_key }}
+          {{- end }}
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-pre-populate-only: "true"
+        vault.hashicorp.com/agent-init-first: "true"
     spec:
-      automountServiceAccountToken: false
+      serviceAccountName: hermes-node-ssh-access
+      automountServiceAccountToken: true
       tolerations:
         - operator: Exists
       containers:
@@ -36,7 +45,7 @@ spec:
           args:
             - |
               reconcile() {
-                key="$(cat /config/authorized_key)"
+                key="$(cat /vault/secrets/node-ssh-public-key)"
                 found=0
                 for user in atlas oceanus; do
                   home="/host-home/${user}"
@@ -62,9 +71,6 @@ spec:
             seccompProfile:
               type: RuntimeDefault
           volumeMounts:
-            - name: access-config
-              mountPath: /config
-              readOnly: true
             - name: host-home
               mountPath: /host-home
             - name: tmp
@@ -77,9 +83,6 @@ spec:
               cpu: 50m
               memory: 32Mi
       volumes:
-        - name: access-config
-          configMap:
-            name: hermes-node-ssh-access
         - name: host-home
           hostPath:
             path: /home
diff --git a/services/hermes/scripts/patch_api_server_sessions.py b/services/hermes/scripts/patch_api_server_sessions.py
index b6d3af08..3e3abf5f 100644
--- a/services/hermes/scripts/patch_api_server_sessions.py
+++ b/services/hermes/scripts/patch_api_server_sessions.py
@@ -88,7 +88,16 @@ RUNS_AFTER = '''        run_id = f"run_{uuid.uuid4().hex}"
                 return web.json_response(_openai_error("Session database unavailable", code="session_db_unavailable"), status=503)
             if not db.get_session(parent_session_id):
                 return web.json_response(_openai_error(f"Parent session not found: {parent_session_id}", code="parent_session_not_found"), status=404)
-            if not db.get_session(session_id):
+            existing_session = db.get_session(session_id)
+            if existing_session and existing_session.get("parent_session_id") != parent_session_id:
+                return web.json_response(
+                    _openai_error(
+                        "Session belongs to a different parent objective",
+                        code="session_parent_conflict",
+                    ),
+                    status=409,
+                )
+            if not existing_session:
                 db.create_session(
                     session_id,
                     "api_server",
@@ -101,10 +110,41 @@ RUNS_AFTER = '''        run_id = f"run_{uuid.uuid4().hex}"
                     parts = incident.group(1).split("/")
                     label = " · ".join(parts[1:3]) if len(parts) >= 3 else incident.group(1)
                     db.set_session_title(session_id, f"Sonar · {label} · {session_id[-8:]}")
+            else:
+                # A deliberate continuation of the same visible worker should
+                # return to the active state until this run reaches a terminal
+                # status. Cross-parent reuse was rejected above.
+                db.reopen_session(session_id)
 
         # Approval queues gate host-side tool execution and must be isolated
 '''
 
+RUN_CLOSE_BEFORE = '''            finally:
+                # If the asyncio wrapper is cancelled (for example via
+'''
+
+RUN_CLOSE_AFTER = '''            finally:
+                # Parent-linked API workers are durable dashboard sessions.
+                # Close them on every terminal run path so the dashboard can
+                # distinguish a long model wait from completed or failed work.
+                if parent_session_id:
+                    try:
+                        db = self._ensure_session_db()
+                        if db is not None:
+                            terminal_status = self._run_statuses.get(run_id, {}).get(
+                                "status", "failed"
+                            )
+                            db.end_session(session_id, f"api_run_{terminal_status}")
+                    except Exception:
+                        logger.exception(
+                            "[api_server] failed to close session %s for run %s",
+                            session_id,
+                            run_id,
+                        )
+
+                # If the asyncio wrapper is cancelled (for example via
+'''
+
 
 def patch(source: Path, destination: Path) -> None:
     """Apply the narrow session-lineage extension and fail on upstream drift."""
@@ -113,9 +153,15 @@ def patch(source: Path, destination: Path) -> None:
         raise RuntimeError("Hermes API session patch context changed")
     if RUNS_BEFORE not in content:
         raise RuntimeError("Hermes API runs patch context changed")
+    if RUN_CLOSE_BEFORE not in content:
+        raise RuntimeError("Hermes API run-close patch context changed")
     destination.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
     content = content.replace(BEFORE, AFTER, 1)
-    destination.write_text(content.replace(RUNS_BEFORE, RUNS_AFTER, 1), encoding="utf-8")
+    content = content.replace(RUNS_BEFORE, RUNS_AFTER, 1)
+    destination.write_text(
+        content.replace(RUN_CLOSE_BEFORE, RUN_CLOSE_AFTER, 1),
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
 
 
 def main() -> int:
diff --git a/testing/tests/test_hermes_chat_quality.py b/testing/tests/test_hermes_chat_quality.py
index 78c918fb..0d96d9c8 100644
--- a/testing/tests/test_hermes_chat_quality.py
+++ b/testing/tests/test_hermes_chat_quality.py
@@ -164,6 +164,16 @@ def test_gateway_image_honors_ui_model_and_caps_reasoning():
     assert "Anthropic API / direct OAuth (not used by Switchyard)" in dockerfile
     assert "scheduleTerminalPaint" in dockerfile
     assert "sessionTree.childrenByParent" in dockerfile
+    assert "SessionActivityPanel" in dockerfile
+    assert "include_children=${includeChildren}" in dockerfile
+    assert "_dashboard_session_is_active" in dockerfile
+    activity = (
+        ROOT / "dockerfiles" / "hermes-session-activity-panel.tsx"
+    ).read_text()
+    assert "Live worker activity" in activity
+    assert "api.getSessionMessages" in activity
+    assert "aria-live=\"polite\"" in activity
+    assert "Poll-backed transcript; terminal rendering is not required." in activity
     assert "Open Telegram setup" in dockerfile
 
 
@@ -466,6 +476,10 @@ def test_chat_image_generation_uses_private_owner_broker():
         'hermes/developer-ssh"'
         in vault_policy
     )
+    assert (
+        'write_policy_and_role "hermes-node-ssh" "hermes" '
+        '"hermes-node-ssh-access"' in vault_policy
+    )
 
 
 def test_compact_image_edit_resolves_latest_tenant_artifact(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
@@ -1024,7 +1038,13 @@ def test_api_session_patch_accepts_parent_lineage(tmp_path: Path):
     source = tmp_path / "api_server.py"
     destination = tmp_path / "patched.py"
     source.write_text(
-        "prefix\n" + module.BEFORE + "middle\n" + module.RUNS_BEFORE + "suffix\n",
+        "prefix\n"
+        + module.BEFORE
+        + "middle\n"
+        + module.RUNS_BEFORE
+        + "run body\n"
+        + module.RUN_CLOSE_BEFORE
+        + "suffix\n",
         encoding="utf-8",
     )
 
@@ -1036,6 +1056,9 @@ def test_api_session_patch_accepts_parent_lineage(tmp_path: Path):
     assert "Parent session not found" in patched
     assert "HERMES_API_DEFAULT_PARENT_MATCH_PREFIXES" in patched
     assert "user_message.startswith(default_prefixes)" in patched
+    assert "session_parent_conflict" in patched
+    assert "db.reopen_session(session_id)" in patched
+    assert 'db.end_session(session_id, f"api_run_{terminal_status}")' in patched
 
 
 def test_legacy_api_sessions_are_nested_idempotently(tmp_path: Path):
diff --git a/testing/tests/test_hermes_cli_lanes.py b/testing/tests/test_hermes_cli_lanes.py
index ac6b8bb8..8188ccad 100644
--- a/testing/tests/test_hermes_cli_lanes.py
+++ b/testing/tests/test_hermes_cli_lanes.py
@@ -686,6 +686,9 @@ def test_agent_root_is_stock_dashboard_and_terminal_is_a_separate_path():
 
     assert "dashboard" not in containers
     hermes = containers["hermes"]
+    hermes_env = {item["name"]: item["value"] for item in hermes["env"]}
+    assert hermes_env["HERMES_STREAM_STALE_TIMEOUT"] == "600"
+    assert hermes_env["HERMES_API_CALL_STALE_TIMEOUT"] == "600"
     assert hermes["command"] == ["/bin/sh", "-ec"]
     startup = hermes["args"][0]
     assert ". /opt/data/.env" in startup
@@ -828,6 +831,7 @@ def test_flux_health_checks_follow_the_owner_oauth_sidecar():
         for item in flux["spec"]["healthChecks"]
     }
     assert ("Deployment", "hermes-agent") in checks
+    assert ("DaemonSet", "hermes-node-ssh-access") in checks
     assert ("Deployment", "oauth2-proxy-hermes-agent") not in checks
 
 
@@ -924,6 +928,12 @@ def test_owner_agent_has_pinned_dedicated_node_ssh_access():
     assert annotations[
         "vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-private-key"
     ] == "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh"
+    assert annotations[
+        "vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-config"
+    ] == "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh"
+    assert annotations[
+        "vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-known-hosts"
+    ] == "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh"
 
     init = next(
         item
@@ -931,21 +941,17 @@ def test_owner_agent_has_pinned_dedicated_node_ssh_access():
         if item["name"] == "init-config"
     )
     command = init["command"][2]
-    assert "cp /config/ssh_config /opt/data/home/.ssh/config" in command
+    assert "cp /vault/secrets/node-ssh-config /opt/data/home/.ssh/config" in command
+    assert (
+        "cp /vault/secrets/node-ssh-known-hosts /opt/data/home/.ssh/known_hosts"
+        in command
+    )
     assert "chmod 0600 /opt/data/home/.ssh/id_ed25519_atlas_nodes" in command
 
     config = yaml.safe_load((HERMES / "agent-configmap.yaml").read_text())["data"]
-    assert "IdentityFile /opt/data/home/.ssh/id_ed25519_atlas_nodes" in config[
-        "ssh_config"
-    ]
-    assert "StrictHostKeyChecking yes" in config["ssh_config"]
-    assert "PasswordAuthentication no" in config["ssh_config"]
-    pinned_hosts = [
-        line for line in config["ssh_known_hosts"].splitlines() if line.strip()
-    ]
-    assert len(pinned_hosts) == 21
-    assert all(" ssh-ed25519 " in line for line in pinned_hosts)
-    assert any(line.startswith("[titan-23]:2277 ") for line in pinned_hosts)
+    assert "ssh_config" not in config
+    assert "ssh_known_hosts" not in config
+    assert "ssh-ed25519" not in (HERMES / "agent-configmap.yaml").read_text()
 
     resources = yaml.safe_load((HERMES / "kustomization.yaml").read_text())[
         "resources"
@@ -956,16 +962,56 @@ def test_owner_agent_has_pinned_dedicated_node_ssh_access():
         for item in yaml.safe_load_all((HERMES / "node-ssh-access.yaml").read_text())
         if item
     ]
+    service_account = next(item for item in access if item["kind"] == "ServiceAccount")
+    assert service_account["metadata"]["name"] == "hermes-node-ssh-access"
     daemonset = next(item for item in access if item["kind"] == "DaemonSet")
     pod = daemonset["spec"]["template"]["spec"]
-    assert pod["automountServiceAccountToken"] is False
+    assert pod["serviceAccountName"] == "hermes-node-ssh-access"
+    assert pod["automountServiceAccountToken"] is True
+    pod_annotations = daemonset["spec"]["template"]["metadata"]["annotations"]
+    assert pod_annotations["vault.hashicorp.com/role"] == "hermes-node-ssh"
+    assert pod_annotations[
+        "vault.hashicorp.com/agent-inject-secret-node-ssh-public-key"
+    ] == "kv/data/atlas/hermes/developer-ssh"
     host_home = next(item for item in pod["volumes"] if item["name"] == "host-home")
     assert host_home["hostPath"] == {"path": "/home", "type": "Directory"}
     reconciler = pod["containers"][0]["args"][0]
+    assert "cat /vault/secrets/node-ssh-public-key" in reconciler
     assert "grep -qxF" in reconciler
     assert "for user in atlas oceanus" in reconciler
 
 
+def test_owner_agent_tracks_no_ssh_identity_or_host_key_material():
+    """Vault references may be tracked; SSH identities and trust data may not."""
+    forbidden = (
+        "BEGIN OPENSSH PRIVATE KEY",
+        "ssh-ed25519 AAAA",
+        "ssh-rsa AAAA",
+        "IdentityFile ",
+        "UserKnownHostsFile ",
+        "StrictHostKeyChecking ",
+        "ssh_config:",
+        "ssh_known_hosts:",
+    )
+    text_suffixes = {
+        ".conf",
+        ".json",
+        ".md",
+        ".py",
+        ".sh",
+        ".toml",
+        ".yaml",
+        ".yml",
+    }
+    tracked = "\n".join(
+        path.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
+        for path in HERMES.rglob("*")
+        if path.is_file() and path.suffix in text_suffixes
+    )
+    for marker in forbidden:
+        assert marker not in tracked
+
+
 def test_switchyard_has_a_dedicated_non_owner_identity_and_read_only_catalog():
     """Routing must not inherit the owner agent's cluster-admin capability."""
     service_accounts = [