fix(evals): honor --base-url/--api-key for first-party eval backends (#535)

`jarvis eval run --base-url ... --api-key ...` was silently dropped for
jarvis-direct/jarvis-agent (_build_backend only forwarded the flags to
hermes/openclaw) and ignored by terminalbench-native, which hardcoded
api_base="http://localhost:8000/v1". Worse, with --base-url set the
engine-discovery fallback silently substituted ANY healthy local engine
(observed: requested vllm + healthy endpoint at --base-url, got
OllamaEngine@localhost:11434 — the requested URL was never contacted).

Changes:
- _OpenAICompatibleEngine gains an api_key param (Bearer Authorization
  header on the httpx client; {ENGINE_ID}_API_KEY env fallback with
  hyphen-sanitized names; no header when unset).
- New non-registered OpenAICompatEngine + normalize_openai_base_url()
  (strips a single literal trailing "/v1" so request paths don't double).
- SystemBuilder.engine_instance() injects a pre-built engine; build()
  health-checks it and fails loudly naming the host instead of falling
  back to discovery. Discovery substitution after an explicit -e key now
  logs a warning.
- JarvisDirectBackend/JarvisAgentBackend accept base_url/api_key; on
  base_url they pin an OpenAICompatEngine to that endpoint with a
  fail-fast pre-flight (actionable error naming the URL and probe).
- _build_backend forwards base_url/api_key to first-party backends on
  the CLI path; _run_terminalbench_native receives --base-url as
  api_base (single /v1 suffix) and exports OPENAI_API_KEY around the
  in-process harness run (terminus-2 routes via LiteLLM).
- Suite TOML [backend.external] stays scoped to hermes/openclaw
  (suite_mode=True in the suite drivers) — first-party suite semantics
  are explicitly deferred. The config-host path is untouched.
- Help text updated on both CLI surfaces; KNOWN_BACKENDS now lists
  hermes/openclaw/terminalbench-native.

Fixes the eval-CLI endpoint gap reported by the downstream team.

Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

.github/clone-stats/badge.json

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "schemaVersion": 1,
   "label": "Git Clones",
-  "message": "107,695",
+  "message": "110,366",
   "color": "green",
   "namedLogo": "git"
 }

.github/clone-stats/clone-data.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
-  "total_clones": 107695,
-  "last_updated": "2026-06-10T07:32:26Z",
+  "total_clones": 110366,
+  "last_updated": "2026-06-11T07:44:18Z",
   "daily": {
     "2026-03-27": 2189,
     "2026-03-28": 1874,
@@ -75,6 +75,8 @@
     "2026-06-05": 2127,
     "2026-06-06": 2204,
     "2026-06-07": 1174,
-    "2026-06-08": 2369
+    "2026-06-08": 2369,
+    "2026-06-09": 1361,
+    "2026-06-10": 1310
   }
 }

configs/openjarvis/config.toml

@@ -106,6 +106,11 @@ enabled = true                            # Record traces for analysis
 db_path = "~/.openjarvis/traces.db"
 
 [server]
-host = "0.0.0.0"
+# Bind to loopback by default so the API is not exposed to the local network.
+# To serve other devices on your LAN, set host = "0.0.0.0" AND set an API key
+# (OPENJARVIS_API_KEY / `jarvis auth generate-key`) — startup refuses a
+# non-loopback bind without a key. The "server" security profile also flips
+# this to 0.0.0.0 intentionally.
+host = "127.0.0.1"
 port = 8000
 agent = "native_openhands"

deploy/windows/install.ps1

@@ -5,12 +5,12 @@
 .DESCRIPTION
     Phase-1 of the native-Windows-support RFC (#298). Mirrors the
     behavior of scripts/install/install.sh (the curl-pipe-bash installer
-    for Linux/WSL2/macOS) but for native Windows PowerShell — no WSL,
+    for Linux/WSL2/macOS) but for native Windows PowerShell - no WSL,
     no Docker, no MSYS2.
 
     Steps:
       1. Refuse non-Windows / Windows < 10.
-      2. Check Python 3.10 — 3.13 on PATH (3.14 has no numpy wheels yet,
+      2. Check Python 3.10 - 3.13 on PATH (3.14 has no numpy wheels yet,
          see #432).
       3. Check git on PATH.
       4. Install uv (https://astral.sh/uv) if absent.
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ if (-not $Service     -and $env:OPENJARVIS_SERVICE)      { $Service     = $true
 if (-not $Force       -and $env:OPENJARVIS_FORCE)        { $Force       = $true }
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-# Output helpers — coloured but plain enough for Constrained Language Mode.
+# Output helpers - coloured but plain enough for Constrained Language Mode.
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 function Write-Info  ($msg) { Write-Host "[info]  $msg" -ForegroundColor Cyan }
@@ -77,13 +77,13 @@ function Write-Fail  ($msg) {
 }
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-# Shared helpers — winget bootstrap + PATH refresh
+# Shared helpers - winget bootstrap + PATH refresh
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 # Pull the latest Machine + User PATH from the registry into the current
 # PowerShell session. Tools installed by `winget install` (Python, git,
 # Ollama, etc.) update the User PATH, but the running process inherits
-# the parent shell's environment — so without this refresh the just-
+# the parent shell's environment - so without this refresh the just-
 # installed tool stays invisible to subsequent `Get-Command` calls.
 #
 # CRITICAL: registry PATH entries can be REG_EXPAND_SZ (with literal
@@ -157,7 +157,7 @@ function Get-PythonCommand {
 Write-Info "Checking Python (3.10 - 3.13)..."
 $pythonExe = Get-PythonCommand
 if (-not $pythonExe) {
-    Write-Info "Python not on PATH — attempting auto-install via winget..."
+    Write-Info "Python not on PATH - attempting auto-install via winget..."
     $pythonExe = Install-WithWinget -WingetId 'Python.Python.3.13' -CommandName 'python'
     if (-not $pythonExe) {
         Write-Fail @"
@@ -196,7 +196,7 @@ Write-Ok "Python $pyMajor.$pyMinor ($pythonExe)"
 Write-Info "Checking git..."
 $gitExe = (Get-Command git -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue).Source
 if (-not $gitExe) {
-    Write-Info "git not on PATH — attempting auto-install via winget..."
+    Write-Info "git not on PATH - attempting auto-install via winget..."
     $gitExe = Install-WithWinget -WingetId 'Git.Git' -CommandName 'git'
     if (-not $gitExe) {
         Write-Fail @"
@@ -227,7 +227,7 @@ if (-not $uvExe) {
     }
     # The astral installer puts uv at %USERPROFILE%\.local\bin\uv.exe and
     # adds that dir to the User PATH. The current process's PATH isn't
-    # refreshed automatically — prepend the install dir so the rest of
+    # refreshed automatically - prepend the install dir so the rest of
     # this script picks it up.
     $uvDir = Join-Path $env:USERPROFILE '.local\bin'
     if (Test-Path (Join-Path $uvDir 'uv.exe')) {
@@ -295,13 +295,13 @@ try {
 Write-Ok "Dependencies installed"
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-# 7. Ollama — install + start + wait for daemon
+# 7. Ollama - install + start + wait for daemon
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Write-Info "Checking Ollama..."
 $ollamaExe = (Get-Command ollama -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue).Source
 if (-not $ollamaExe) {
-    Write-Info "  Ollama not on PATH — downloading the official installer (~150 MB)..."
+    Write-Info "  Ollama not on PATH - downloading the official installer (~150 MB)..."
     $ollamaSetup = Join-Path $env:TEMP 'OllamaSetup.exe'
     # SilentlyContinue is load-bearing in PS 5.1: the default progress
     # bar renderer slows Invoke-WebRequest down 30x on large downloads
@@ -340,13 +340,18 @@ Write-Ok "Ollama ($ollamaExe)"
 Write-Info "Waiting for Ollama daemon..."
 $ollamaReady = $false
 for ($i = 0; $i -lt 60; $i++) {
-    & $ollamaExe list 2>&1 | Out-Null
+    # 'ollama list' writes to stderr until the daemon is reachable; under
+    # $ErrorActionPreference='Stop' the 2>&1 merge surfaces that as a
+    # terminating NativeCommandError that would abort the whole install on
+    # the very first probe. Swallow it and rely on $LASTEXITCODE so the
+    # Start-Process serve fallback below actually runs (issue #522).
+    try { & $ollamaExe list 2>&1 | Out-Null } catch { }
     if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) {
         $ollamaReady = $true
         break
     }
     if ($i -eq 5) {
-        # Daemon clearly isn't auto-running — start it ourselves. Ollama
+        # Daemon clearly isn't auto-running - start it ourselves. Ollama
         # for Windows uses the tray app `ollama app.exe`; falling back to
         # `ollama serve` works headless.
         Start-Process -FilePath $ollamaExe -ArgumentList 'serve' -WindowStyle Hidden -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
@@ -354,11 +359,11 @@ for ($i = 0; $i -lt 60; $i++) {
     Start-Sleep -Seconds 1
 }
 if (-not $ollamaReady) {
-    Write-Warn2 "Ollama daemon didn't become ready in 60s. Continuing — bg-orchestrator will retry later."
+    Write-Warn2 "Ollama daemon didn't become ready in 60s. Continuing - bg-orchestrator will retry later."
 }
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-# 8. Pull a starter model (qwen3.5:2b — ~1.5 GB)
+# 8. Pull a starter model (qwen3.5:2b - ~1.5 GB)
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 $modelPullOk = $false
@@ -372,11 +377,11 @@ if ($ollamaReady) {
         Write-Warn2 "ollama pull failed; the bg-orchestrator will retry once Ollama is reachable."
     }
 } else {
-    Write-Warn2 "Skipping model pull — daemon wasn't ready."
+    Write-Warn2 "Skipping model pull - daemon wasn't ready."
 }
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-# 9. jarvis.cmd shim — so bare `jarvis` works in any new PowerShell
+# 9. jarvis.cmd shim - so bare `jarvis` works in any new PowerShell
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 $binDir = Join-Path $installRoot 'bin'
@@ -387,7 +392,7 @@ if (-not (Test-Path $binDir)) {
 }
 
 # %~dp0 in a .cmd file resolves to the directory containing the script,
-# so the shim is self-locating — moving %LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenJarvis won't
+# so the shim is self-locating - moving %LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenJarvis won't
 # break it as long as the user moves the whole tree. `uv` is resolved
 # from PATH at runtime (astral installer adds it to User PATH); avoids
 # pinning to the install-time uv.exe path which can shift on uv updates.
@@ -400,7 +405,7 @@ uv run --project "%SRC%" jarvis %*
 Set-Content -Path $shimPath -Value $shimContent -Encoding ASCII
 
 # Add %LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenJarvis\bin to User PATH if it isn't already
-# there. The current process won't see it until restart — handled in the
+# there. The current process won't see it until restart - handled in the
 # final banner.
 #
 # Compare against the EXPANDED form: a previous install may have written
@@ -430,7 +435,7 @@ Write-Ok "jarvis shim installed at $shimPath"
 $serviceScript = Join-Path $srcDir 'deploy\windows\jarvis-service.ps1'
 $shouldInstallService = $false
 
-# Pre-check admin if the user wants the service — Register-ScheduledTask
+# Pre-check admin if the user wants the service - Register-ScheduledTask
 # requires elevation. We do this before the prompt so we don't ask "do
 # you want the service?" only to fail with Access Denied after they say
 # yes.
@@ -439,7 +444,7 @@ $isAdmin = ([Security.Principal.WindowsPrincipal] `
 ).IsInRole([Security.Principal.WindowsBuiltInRole]::Administrator)
 
 if ($Service -and -not $isAdmin) {
-    Write-Fail "-Service was requested, but this PowerShell is not elevated. Register-ScheduledTask needs admin rights — re-run from an elevated PowerShell, or drop -Service."
+    Write-Fail "-Service was requested, but this PowerShell is not elevated. Register-ScheduledTask needs admin rights - re-run from an elevated PowerShell, or drop -Service."
 }
 if ($Service) {
     $shouldInstallService = $true
@@ -448,7 +453,7 @@ if ($Service) {
 } elseif (-not $isAdmin) {
     # Default to skip-with-explanation when we can't elevate, rather
     # than prompting and then failing at Register-ScheduledTask.
-    Write-Warn2 "Skipping scheduled-task setup — this PowerShell is not elevated."
+    Write-Warn2 "Skipping scheduled-task setup - this PowerShell is not elevated."
     Write-Warn2 "  Register-ScheduledTask requires admin. To install the service later:"
     Write-Warn2 "    Right-click PowerShell -> Run as administrator, then run:"
     Write-Warn2 "    powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File `"$serviceScript`" install"
@@ -464,7 +469,7 @@ if ($Service) {
         $reply = Read-Host "Register OpenJarvis as a Windows scheduled task (auto-start at logon, loopback only)? [y/N]"
         $shouldInstallService = ($reply -match '^[yY]')
     } else {
-        Write-Warn2 "Non-interactive install — skipping scheduled-task setup."
+        Write-Warn2 "Non-interactive install - skipping scheduled-task setup."
         Write-Warn2 "To register the service later, run (from an elevated PowerShell):"
         Write-Warn2 "  powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File `"$serviceScript`" install"
     }
@@ -487,9 +492,9 @@ if ($shouldInstallService) {
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 Write-Host ""
-Write-Host "  ┌──────────────────────────────────┐" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "  │   OpenJarvis install complete    │" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "  └──────────────────────────────────┘" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "  +----------------------------------+" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "  |   OpenJarvis install complete    |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "  +----------------------------------+" -ForegroundColor Green
 Write-Host ""
 Write-Host "  Repo:    $srcDir"
 

frontend/src-tauri/src/lib.rs

@@ -1540,19 +1540,89 @@ async fn fetch_models(api_url: String) -> Result<serde_json::Value, String> {
 
 #[tauri::command]
 async fn run_jarvis_command(args: Vec<String>) -> Result<String, String> {
-    let mut cmd_args = vec!["run".to_string(), "jarvis".to_string()];
-    cmd_args.extend(args);
     let uv_bin = resolve_bin("uv");
-    let output = tokio::process::Command::new(&uv_bin)
-        .args(&cmd_args)
-        .output()
-        .await
-        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to launch jarvis: {}", e))?;
 
-    if output.status.success() {
-        Ok(String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stdout).to_string())
-    } else {
-        Err(String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stderr).to_string())
+    let mut cmd_args = vec!["run".to_string(), "jarvis".to_string()];
+    cmd_args.extend(args.iter().cloned());
+
+    let mut cmd = tokio::process::Command::new(&uv_bin);
+    cmd.args(&cmd_args);
+    // Run from the project root so `uv run jarvis` resolves the OpenJarvis
+    // project regardless of the app's launch cwd. In a packaged install the
+    // cwd isn't the checkout, so without this `jarvis` isn't found and the
+    // backend never starts — the UI then shows "Failed to get response"
+    // (see #531).
+    if let Some(ref root) = find_project_root() {
+        cmd.current_dir(root);
+    }
+
+    let is_serve = args.first().map(|a| a.as_str() == "serve").unwrap_or(false);
+
+    if !is_serve {
+        // Short-lived command (e.g. `stop`, `status`): wait for it and return
+        // its captured output.
+        let output = cmd
+            .output()
+            .await
+            .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to launch jarvis: {}", e))?;
+        return if output.status.success() {
+            Ok(String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stdout).to_string())
+        } else {
+            Err(String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stderr).to_string())
+        };
+    }
+
+    // `jarvis serve` is a long-running server that never exits. The old code
+    // used `.output()`, which waits for the process to exit and so hung this
+    // command forever — the "Start" button never resolved (#531). Spawn it
+    // detached instead, drain stderr (a full 4 KB Windows pipe can otherwise
+    // stall the child mid-startup, #309), and poll /health for readiness.
+    cmd.stdout(std::process::Stdio::null())
+        .stderr(std::process::Stdio::piped());
+    let mut child = cmd
+        .spawn()
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to launch jarvis serve: {}", e))?;
+
+    let tail: StderrTail = Arc::new(Mutex::new(Vec::new()));
+    if let Some(stderr) = child.stderr.take() {
+        spawn_jarvis_stderr_drainer(stderr, tail.clone());
+    }
+
+    let client = reqwest::Client::builder()
+        .timeout(Duration::from_secs(2))
+        .build()
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to build HTTP client: {}", e))?;
+    let url = format!("http://127.0.0.1:{}/health", JARVIS_PORT);
+    let deadline = tokio::time::Instant::now() + Duration::from_secs(120);
+
+    loop {
+        // Surface an early crash (bad venv, missing Rust ext, etc.) right away
+        // instead of waiting out the full readiness timeout.
+        if let Ok(Some(status)) = child.try_wait() {
+            let stderr = String::from_utf8_lossy(tail.lock().await.as_slice()).into_owned();
+            return Err(format!(
+                "jarvis serve exited (code {:?}) before becoming healthy:\n{}",
+                status.code(),
+                stderr.trim()
+            ));
+        }
+        if let Ok(resp) = client.get(&url).send().await {
+            if resp.status().is_success() {
+                // Leave the server running (the Child is detached on drop —
+                // kill_on_drop defaults to false); `stop` tears it down.
+                return Ok(format!(
+                    "jarvis serve is ready on http://127.0.0.1:{}",
+                    JARVIS_PORT
+                ));
+            }
+        }
+        if tokio::time::Instant::now() >= deadline {
+            return Err(format!(
+                "jarvis serve did not become healthy on port {} within 120s.",
+                JARVIS_PORT
+            ));
+        }
+        tokio::time::sleep(Duration::from_millis(500)).await;
     }
 }
 

src/openjarvis/cli/ask.py

@@ -714,7 +714,13 @@ def ask(
     register_builtin_models()
 
     effective_engine_key = engine_key or config.intelligence.preferred_engine or None
-    resolved = get_engine(config, effective_engine_key)
+    # Pass the model we intend to run so engine selection can skip an engine
+    # that can't actually serve it (e.g. the cloud fallback when the local
+    # engine is down but only a non-OpenAI key is set — see #532). This is the
+    # -m flag or the configured default; when neither is set we leave it None
+    # and a model is chosen per-engine below.
+    selection_model = model_name or config.intelligence.default_model or None
+    resolved = get_engine(config, effective_engine_key, model=selection_model)
     if resolved is None:
         console.print(
             "[red bold]No inference engine available.[/red bold]\n\n"

src/openjarvis/cli/chat_cmd.py

@@ -28,12 +28,22 @@ def _read_input(prompt: str = "You> ") -> Optional[str]:
 @click.option("-a", "--agent", "agent_name", default=None, help="Agent type.")
 @click.option("--tools", default=None, help="Comma-separated tool names.")
 @click.option("--system", "system_prompt", default=None, help="Custom system prompt.")
+@click.option(
+    "--persona",
+    "persona_name",
+    default=None,
+    help=(
+        "Named persona dir under ~/.openjarvis/personas/<name>/ "
+        "(overrides config). Pass 'none' to disable all persona files."
+    ),
+)
 def chat(
     engine_key: str | None,
     model_name: str | None,
     agent_name: str | None,
     tools: str | None,
     system_prompt: str | None,
+    persona_name: str | None,
 ) -> None:
     """Start an interactive multi-turn chat session.
 
@@ -48,6 +58,14 @@ def chat(
 
     config = load_config()
 
+    import dataclasses as _dc
+
+    effective_mf = (
+        _dc.replace(config.memory_files, persona_name=persona_name)
+        if persona_name is not None
+        else config.memory_files
+    )
+
     # Resolve engine
     from openjarvis.engine import get_engine
     from openjarvis.intelligence import register_builtin_models
@@ -121,6 +139,21 @@ def chat(
 
                     kwargs["interactive"] = True
                     kwargs["confirm_callback"] = _confirm
+
+                import inspect as _inspect
+
+                if (
+                    "prompt_builder"
+                    in _inspect.signature(agent_cls.__init__).parameters
+                ):
+                    from openjarvis.prompt.builder import SystemPromptBuilder
+
+                    kwargs["prompt_builder"] = SystemPromptBuilder(
+                        agent_template=config.agent.default_system_prompt or "",
+                        memory_files_config=effective_mf,
+                        system_prompt_config=config.system_prompt,
+                    )
+
                 agent = agent_cls(engine, model, **kwargs)
         except Exception as exc:
             console.print(f"[yellow]Agent '{agent_key}' failed: {exc}[/yellow]")
@@ -147,6 +180,16 @@ def chat(
     _notifications = NotificationDispatcher(get_status())
 
     # Conversation state
+    if not system_prompt:
+        from openjarvis.prompt.builder import SystemPromptBuilder
+
+        builder = SystemPromptBuilder(
+            agent_template=config.agent.default_system_prompt or "",
+            memory_files_config=effective_mf,
+            system_prompt_config=config.system_prompt,
+        )
+        system_prompt = builder.build()
+
     history: List[Message] = []
     if system_prompt:
         history.append(Message(role=Role.SYSTEM, content=system_prompt))

src/openjarvis/cli/compose_cmd.py

@@ -332,7 +332,7 @@ def compose_bench(
         for i, rc in enumerate(run_configs, 1):
             console.print(f"\n[bold]Run {i}/{len(run_configs)}:[/bold] {rc.benchmark}")
             try:
-                summary = _run_single(rc, console=console)
+                summary = _run_single(rc, console=console, suite_mode=True)
                 results_table.add_row(
                     rc.benchmark,
                     f"{summary.accuracy:.4f}",

src/openjarvis/cli/eval_cmd.py

@@ -61,6 +61,12 @@ KNOWN_BENCHMARKS = {
 KNOWN_BACKENDS = {
     "jarvis-direct": "Engine-level inference (local or cloud)",
     "jarvis-agent": "Agent-level inference with tool calling",
+    "hermes": "Real Hermes Agent (Nous Research) via subprocess",
+    "openclaw": "Real OpenClaw via Node subprocess",
+    "terminalbench-native": (
+        "TerminalBench V2.1 via terminal-bench Harness "
+        "(selected with -b terminalbench-native)"
+    ),
 }
 
 
@@ -146,7 +152,9 @@ def eval_list() -> None:
     "base_url",
     default=None,
     help=(
-        "OpenAI-compat endpoint URL for hermes/openclaw backends "
+        "OpenAI-compatible endpoint for the model under eval. Required for "
+        "hermes/openclaw; for jarvis-direct/jarvis-agent/terminalbench-native "
+        "it bypasses engine discovery and targets this URL directly "
         "(env: JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL)."
     ),
 )
@@ -154,7 +162,11 @@ def eval_list() -> None:
     "--api-key",
     "api_key",
     default=None,
-    help=("API key for the hermes/openclaw endpoint (env: JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY)."),
+    help=(
+        "API key for the --base-url endpoint, sent as a Bearer token. "
+        "Required for hermes/openclaw; optional for first-party backends "
+        "(env: JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY)."
+    ),
 )
 @click.option(
     "--agent",
@@ -347,7 +359,7 @@ def eval_run(
                 f"{rc.benchmark} / {rc.model}"
             )
             try:
-                summary = _run_single(rc, console=console)
+                summary = _run_single(rc, console=console, suite_mode=True)
                 console.print(
                     f"  [green]{summary.accuracy:.4f}[/green] "
                     f"({summary.correct}/{summary.scored_samples})"
@@ -399,8 +411,10 @@ def eval_run(
         sheets_spreadsheet_id=sheets_spreadsheet_id,
         sheets_worksheet=sheets_worksheet,
         sheets_credentials_path=sheets_credentials_path,
-        # Spec §6.2 — for hermes/openclaw external backends. Falls back to env vars
-        # so users can also set JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL/JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY.
+        # OpenAI-compatible endpoint for the model under eval. Required for
+        # hermes/openclaw (Spec §6.2); honored by first-party backends too on
+        # this CLI path. Falls back to env vars so users can also set
+        # JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL/JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY.
         base_url=base_url or os.environ.get("JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL"),
         api_key=api_key or os.environ.get("JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY"),
     )

src/openjarvis/cli/serve.py

@@ -146,7 +146,13 @@ def serve(
         except Exception as exc:
             logger.debug("Telemetry store init failed: %s", exc)
 
-    resolved = get_engine(config, engine_key)
+    # Select with the model we'll actually serve so an engine that can't
+    # serve it (e.g. the cloud fallback without the matching provider key) is
+    # skipped rather than chosen and failing per-request later (see #532).
+    selection_model = (
+        model_name or config.server.model or config.intelligence.default_model or None
+    )
+    resolved = get_engine(config, engine_key, model=selection_model)
     if resolved is None:
         console.print(
             "[red bold]No inference engine available.[/red bold]\n\n"

src/openjarvis/engine/_discovery.py

@@ -156,12 +156,26 @@ def discover_models(
 
 
 def get_engine(
-    config: JarvisConfig, engine_key: str | None = None
+    config: JarvisConfig,
+    engine_key: str | None = None,
+    model: str | None = None,
 ) -> Tuple[str, InferenceEngine] | None:
     """Get a specific engine by key, or the default with fallback.
 
+    When *model* is given, an engine is selected only if it can actually
+    serve that model (``engine.can_serve(model)``). This stops the cloud
+    fallback from being chosen — when the local engine is down — for a model
+    whose provider client is missing, which otherwise surfaces as a confusing
+    "OpenAI client not available" instead of a helpful "start your local
+    engine" message (see #532). When *model* is ``None`` selection stays
+    model-agnostic (unchanged behaviour).
+
     Returns ``(key, engine_instance)`` or ``None`` if no engine is available.
     """
+
+    def _usable(engine: InferenceEngine) -> bool:
+        return engine.health() and (model is None or engine.can_serve(model))
+
     # Build an ordered list of keys to try, then fall back to full discovery.
     keys_to_try: list[str] = []
     if engine_key:
@@ -176,14 +190,16 @@ def get_engine(
             continue
         try:
             engine = _make_engine(key, config)
-            if engine.health():
+            if _usable(engine):
                 return (key, engine)
         except Exception as exc:
             logger.debug("Engine %r health check failed: %s", key, exc)
 
-    # Fallback to any healthy engine
-    healthy = discover_engines(config)
-    return healthy[0] if healthy else None
+    # Fallback to the first healthy engine that can serve the model.
+    for key, engine in discover_engines(config):
+        if model is None or engine.can_serve(model):
+            return (key, engine)
+    return None
 
 
 __all__ = ["discover_engines", "discover_models", "get_engine"]

src/openjarvis/engine/_openai_compat.py

@@ -28,12 +28,31 @@ class _OpenAICompatibleEngine(InferenceEngine):
     _default_host: str = "http://localhost:8000"
     _api_prefix: str = "/v1"
 
-    def __init__(self, host: str | None = None, *, timeout: float = 600.0) -> None:
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        host: str | None = None,
+        *,
+        api_key: str | None = None,
+        timeout: float = 600.0,
+    ) -> None:
         import os
 
-        env_key = f"{self.engine_id.upper()}_HOST"
-        self._host = (host or os.environ.get(env_key) or self._default_host).rstrip("/")
-        self._client = httpx.Client(base_url=self._host, timeout=timeout)
+        # Sanitize the engine id for env-var lookup ("openai-compat" ->
+        # "OPENAI_COMPAT_..."); shells cannot set hyphenated variable names.
+        env_prefix = self.engine_id.upper().replace("-", "_")
+        self._host = (
+            host or os.environ.get(f"{env_prefix}_HOST") or self._default_host
+        ).rstrip("/")
+        # Bearer auth for endpoints started with e.g. ``vllm serve --api-key``.
+        # Setting it on the client covers generate/stream/stream_full/
+        # list_models/health alike; ``None`` keeps requests header-free.
+        self._api_key = api_key or os.environ.get(f"{env_prefix}_API_KEY") or None
+        headers = (
+            {"Authorization": f"Bearer {self._api_key}"} if self._api_key else None
+        )
+        self._client = httpx.Client(
+            base_url=self._host, timeout=timeout, headers=headers
+        )
 
     # -- InferenceEngine interface ------------------------------------------
 

src/openjarvis/engine/_stubs.py

@@ -119,6 +119,17 @@ class InferenceEngine(ABC):
     def health(self) -> bool:
         """Return ``True`` when the engine is reachable and healthy."""
 
+    def can_serve(self, model: str) -> bool:
+        """Return ``True`` if this engine can serve *model*.
+
+        Defaults to ``True``: local engines accept any model id (whether a
+        specific model is *installed* is a separate concern from engine
+        selection). Engines that multiplex provider-specific clients (e.g.
+        the cloud engine) override this so selection can skip an engine whose
+        client for the model's provider isn't configured (see #532).
+        """
+        return True
+
     def close(self) -> None:
         """Release resources (HTTP clients, connections, threads, etc.)."""
 

src/openjarvis/engine/cloud.py

@@ -1477,6 +1477,34 @@ class CloudEngine(InferenceEngine):
             models.extend(_CODEX_MODELS)
         return models
 
+    def _client_for_model(self, model: str) -> Any:
+        """Return the provider client ``generate``/``stream`` will dispatch to
+        for *model* (mirrors the routing in those methods)."""
+        if _is_codex_model(model):
+            return self._codex_client
+        if _is_openrouter_model(model):
+            return self._openrouter_client
+        if _is_minimax_model(model):
+            return self._minimax_client
+        if _is_anthropic_model(model):
+            return self._anthropic_client
+        if _is_google_model(model):
+            return self._google_client
+        return self._openai_client
+
+    def can_serve(self, model: str) -> bool:
+        """Return ``True`` only if the provider client for *model* exists.
+
+        ``health()`` is ``True`` whenever *any* provider client is configured,
+        but a request for, say, a ``gpt-*`` model still needs the OpenAI
+        client specifically. Without this check the cloud engine gets picked
+        as a fallback (when the local engine is down) for a model it can't
+        serve, then dies at call time with "<provider> client not available"
+        instead of the user getting a helpful "start your local engine"
+        message (see #532).
+        """
+        return self._client_for_model(model) is not None
+
     def health(self) -> bool:
         return (
             self._openai_client is not None

src/openjarvis/engine/openai_compat_engines.py

@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """Data-driven registration of OpenAI-compatible inference engines."""
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from openjarvis.core.registry import EngineRegistry
 from openjarvis.engine._openai_compat import _OpenAICompatibleEngine
 
@@ -25,4 +27,35 @@ for _key, (_cls_name, _default_host, _api_prefix) in _ENGINES.items():
     EngineRegistry.register(_key)(_cls)
     globals()[_cls_name] = _cls
 
-__all__ = [name for name, _, _ in _ENGINES.values()]
+
+def normalize_openai_base_url(url: str) -> str:
+    """Strip a single trailing ``/v1`` segment from a user-supplied base URL.
+
+    Users habitually pass ``http://host:8000/v1`` (the full OpenAI-compatible
+    prefix); the engine's ``_api_prefix`` re-appends ``/v1`` to every request
+    path, so a trailing copy would double up as ``/v1/v1``. Only a literal
+    trailing ``/v1`` is stripped — proxy/gateway path prefixes are preserved.
+    """
+    base = url.rstrip("/")
+    if base.endswith("/v1"):
+        base = base[: -len("/v1")]
+    return base
+
+
+class OpenAICompatEngine(_OpenAICompatibleEngine):
+    """Generic engine for an explicitly-provided OpenAI-compatible endpoint.
+
+    Deliberately NOT registered in ``EngineRegistry``: it is only ever
+    constructed with an explicit host (e.g. ``jarvis eval --base-url``), so
+    registering it would just add a useless localhost discovery probe and
+    interact with the per-test registry wipe.
+    """
+
+    engine_id = "openai-compat"
+    _api_prefix = "/v1"
+
+
+__all__ = [name for name, _, _ in _ENGINES.values()] + [
+    "OpenAICompatEngine",
+    "normalize_openai_base_url",
+]

src/openjarvis/evals/backends/_endpoint_util.py

@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+"""Shared helper for targeting an explicit OpenAI-compatible endpoint.
+
+Used by the first-party eval backends (jarvis-direct, jarvis-agent) when
+``--base-url`` is given: the eval must use exactly that endpoint, with no
+silent fallback to whatever other engine discovery happens to find.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import logging
+from typing import Optional
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+
+def build_endpoint_engine(
+    base_url: str,
+    api_key: Optional[str] = None,
+    engine_key: Optional[str] = None,
+):
+    """Construct an :class:`OpenAICompatEngine` pinned to ``base_url``.
+
+    Pre-flight health-checks the endpoint and raises a loud, actionable
+    error when it is unreachable — engine discovery is never consulted.
+    """
+    from openjarvis.engine.openai_compat_engines import (
+        OpenAICompatEngine,
+        normalize_openai_base_url,
+    )
+
+    if engine_key:
+        logger.warning(
+            "Both an engine key (%r) and base_url (%r) were given; "
+            "base_url wins — targeting the endpoint directly.",
+            engine_key,
+            base_url,
+        )
+    host = normalize_openai_base_url(base_url)
+    engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host=host, api_key=api_key)
+    if not engine.health():
+        engine.close()
+        raise RuntimeError(
+            f"--base-url endpoint not reachable: {base_url} "
+            f"(GET {host}/v1/models failed). Is an OpenAI-compatible server "
+            "(e.g. `vllm serve`) running at that address? If it requires "
+            "authentication (HTTP 401), pass --api-key or set "
+            "JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY."
+        )
+    return engine
+
+
+__all__ = ["build_endpoint_engine"]

src/openjarvis/evals/backends/jarvis_agent.py

@@ -31,6 +31,8 @@ class JarvisAgentBackend(InferenceBackend):
         max_turns: Optional[int] = None,
         skills_enabled: bool = True,
         overlay_dir: Optional[Path] = None,
+        base_url: Optional[str] = None,
+        api_key: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> None:
         from openjarvis.system import SystemBuilder
 
@@ -40,7 +42,17 @@ class JarvisAgentBackend(InferenceBackend):
         self._gpu_metrics = gpu_metrics
 
         builder = SystemBuilder()
-        if engine_key:
+        if base_url:
+            # Explicit endpoint targeting (--base-url): pin the eval to
+            # exactly this OpenAI-compatible endpoint. Fails fast if it is
+            # unreachable; never falls back to a discovered engine.
+            from openjarvis.evals.backends._endpoint_util import (
+                build_endpoint_engine,
+            )
+
+            engine = build_endpoint_engine(base_url, api_key, engine_key)
+            builder.engine_instance(engine, key=engine_key or "openai-compat")
+        elif engine_key:
             builder.engine(engine_key)
         if model:
             builder.model(model)

src/openjarvis/evals/backends/jarvis_direct.py

@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ class JarvisDirectBackend(InferenceBackend):
         engine_key: Optional[str] = None,
         telemetry: bool = False,
         gpu_metrics: bool = False,
+        base_url: Optional[str] = None,
+        api_key: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> None:
         from openjarvis.system import SystemBuilder
 
@@ -31,7 +33,17 @@ class JarvisDirectBackend(InferenceBackend):
         self._gpu_metrics = gpu_metrics
 
         builder = SystemBuilder()
-        if engine_key:
+        if base_url:
+            # Explicit endpoint targeting (--base-url): pin the eval to
+            # exactly this OpenAI-compatible endpoint. Fails fast if it is
+            # unreachable; never falls back to a discovered engine.
+            from openjarvis.evals.backends._endpoint_util import (
+                build_endpoint_engine,
+            )
+
+            engine = build_endpoint_engine(base_url, api_key, engine_key)
+            builder.engine_instance(engine, key=engine_key or "openai-compat")
+        elif engine_key:
             builder.engine(engine_key)
         # Propagate gpu_metrics to the runtime config so SystemBuilder
         # creates an EnergyMonitor / GpuMonitor for the InstrumentedEngine.

src/openjarvis/evals/cli.py

@@ -183,14 +183,28 @@ def _build_backend(
     max_turns: Optional[int] = None,
     base_url: Optional[str] = None,
     api_key: Optional[str] = None,
+    first_party_endpoint: bool = True,
 ):
     """Construct the appropriate backend.
 
-    For "hermes" and "openclaw" backends, ``base_url`` and ``api_key`` are
-    REQUIRED — these foreign frameworks need an OpenAI-compatible endpoint
-    to send model calls to. Pass them via the eval config's
-    ``[backend.external]`` section or env vars.
+    ``base_url``/``api_key`` point at the OpenAI-compatible endpoint serving
+    the model under eval:
+
+    - For "hermes" and "openclaw" they are REQUIRED — these foreign
+      frameworks always call out to an external endpoint.
+    - "jarvis-direct" and "jarvis-agent" honor them when
+      ``first_party_endpoint`` is True (the CLI ``--base-url`` path): the
+      eval targets exactly that endpoint — no engine-discovery fallback —
+      and fails fast if it is unreachable. Suite mode passes
+      ``first_party_endpoint=False`` so the suite TOML's
+      ``[backend.external]`` section stays scoped to hermes/openclaw
+      (extending it to first-party backends is explicitly deferred).
     """
+    if not first_party_endpoint:
+        fp_base_url = fp_api_key = None
+    else:
+        fp_base_url, fp_api_key = base_url, api_key
+
     if backend_name == "jarvis-agent":
         from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_agent import JarvisAgentBackend
 
@@ -202,6 +216,8 @@ def _build_backend(
             gpu_metrics=gpu_metrics,
             model=model,
             max_turns=max_turns,
+            base_url=fp_base_url,
+            api_key=fp_api_key,
         )
     elif backend_name == "jarvis-direct":
         from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct import JarvisDirectBackend
@@ -210,6 +226,8 @@ def _build_backend(
             engine_key=engine_key,
             telemetry=telemetry,
             gpu_metrics=gpu_metrics,
+            base_url=fp_base_url,
+            api_key=fp_api_key,
         )
     elif backend_name == "hermes":
         from openjarvis.evals.backends.external import HermesBackend
@@ -656,8 +674,20 @@ def _build_trackers(config) -> list:
     return trackers
 
 
-def _run_terminalbench_native(config, console: Console) -> object:
-    """Run TerminalBench V2.1 natively via terminal-bench Harness."""
+def _run_terminalbench_native(
+    config,
+    console: Console,
+    *,
+    base_url: Optional[str] = None,
+    api_key: Optional[str] = None,
+) -> object:
+    """Run TerminalBench V2.1 natively via terminal-bench Harness.
+
+    ``base_url`` (from ``--base-url`` / JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL) targets an
+    already-running OpenAI-compatible endpoint; when unset, the legacy local
+    vLLM default (http://localhost:8000/v1) is used.
+    """
+    from openjarvis.engine.openai_compat_engines import normalize_openai_base_url
     from openjarvis.evals.backends.terminalbench_native import (
         TerminalBenchNativeBackend,
     )
@@ -668,9 +698,16 @@ def _run_terminalbench_native(config, console: Console) -> object:
     litellm_model = f"openai/{model}"
     output_dir = getattr(config, "output_path", None) or "results/terminalbench-native/"
 
+    # Normalize to exactly one trailing "/v1" — LiteLLM's api_base wants the
+    # full OpenAI-compatible prefix, and users pass both forms of the URL.
+    if base_url:
+        api_base = normalize_openai_base_url(base_url) + "/v1"
+    else:
+        api_base = "http://localhost:8000/v1"
+
     backend = TerminalBenchNativeBackend(
         model=litellm_model,
-        api_base="http://localhost:8000/v1",
+        api_base=api_base,
         temperature=config.temperature,
         max_samples=config.max_samples,
         output_dir=output_dir,
@@ -683,9 +720,25 @@ def _run_terminalbench_native(config, console: Console) -> object:
     model_slug = re.sub(r"[^a-z0-9_-]", "-", model.lower().replace("/", "-"))
     run_id = f"tb21-{model_slug}"
     console.print(f"  Running TerminalBench V2.1 natively: {model}")
+    console.print(f"  API base: {api_base}")
     console.print(f"  Harness run_id: {run_id}")
 
-    results = backend.run_harness(run_id)
+    if api_key:
+        # terminus-2 routes model calls through LiteLLM with the "openai/"
+        # prefix, which reads OPENAI_API_KEY from the environment. The
+        # harness runs in-process, so set the var for the duration of the
+        # run and restore the previous value afterwards.
+        prev_key = os.environ.get("OPENAI_API_KEY")
+        os.environ["OPENAI_API_KEY"] = api_key
+        try:
+            results = backend.run_harness(run_id)
+        finally:
+            if prev_key is None:
+                os.environ.pop("OPENAI_API_KEY", None)
+            else:
+                os.environ["OPENAI_API_KEY"] = prev_key
+    else:
+        results = backend.run_harness(run_id)
 
     # Convert BenchmarkResults to RunSummary
     total = len(results.trial_results) if hasattr(results, "trial_results") else 0
@@ -711,18 +764,47 @@ def _run_terminalbench_native(config, console: Console) -> object:
     )
 
 
-def _run_single(config, console: Optional[Console] = None) -> object:
-    """Run a single eval from a RunConfig and return the summary."""
+def _run_single(
+    config,
+    console: Optional[Console] = None,
+    *,
+    suite_mode: bool = False,
+) -> object:
+    """Run a single eval from a RunConfig and return the summary.
+
+    ``suite_mode=True`` (TOML-suite drivers) scopes ``config.base_url`` /
+    ``config.api_key`` — stamped from the suite's ``[backend.external]``
+    section onto every RunConfig — to the hermes/openclaw backends only;
+    extending suite-level endpoint targeting to first-party backends is
+    explicitly deferred. The CLI single-run path (``suite_mode=False``)
+    honors ``--base-url``/``--api-key`` for every backend.
+    """
     from openjarvis.evals.core.runner import EvalRunner
 
     if console is None:
         console = Console()
 
+    _metadata = getattr(config, "metadata", None) or {}
+    base_url = (
+        getattr(config, "base_url", None)
+        or _metadata.get("base_url")
+        or os.environ.get("JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL")
+    )
+    api_key = (
+        getattr(config, "api_key", None)
+        or _metadata.get("api_key")
+        or os.environ.get("JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY")
+    )
+
     # TerminalBench V2.1 native: use terminal-bench Harness directly
     if config.benchmark == "terminalbench-native":
-        return _run_terminalbench_native(config, console)
+        return _run_terminalbench_native(
+            config,
+            console,
+            base_url=None if suite_mode else base_url,
+            api_key=None if suite_mode else api_key,
+        )
 
-    _metadata = getattr(config, "metadata", None) or {}
     eval_backend = _build_backend(
         config.backend,
         config.engine_key,
@@ -732,16 +814,9 @@ def _run_single(config, console: Optional[Console] = None) -> object:
         gpu_metrics=getattr(config, "gpu_metrics", False),
         model=config.model,
         max_turns=getattr(config, "max_turns", None),
-        base_url=(
-            getattr(config, "base_url", None)
-            or _metadata.get("base_url")
-            or os.environ.get("JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL")
-        ),
-        api_key=(
-            getattr(config, "api_key", None)
-            or _metadata.get("api_key")
-            or os.environ.get("JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY")
-        ),
+        base_url=base_url,
+        api_key=api_key,
+        first_party_endpoint=not suite_mode,
     )
     dataset = _build_dataset(config.benchmark)
     # Inject engine config for benchmarks that run their own simulation
@@ -1070,7 +1145,7 @@ def _run_from_config(
             f"Run {i}/{len(run_configs)}: {rc.benchmark} / {rc.model}",
         )
         try:
-            summary = _run_single(rc, console=console)
+            summary = _run_single(rc, console=console, suite_mode=True)
             summaries.append(summary)
             console.print(
                 f"  [green]{summary.accuracy:.4f}[/green] "
@@ -1115,12 +1190,21 @@ def main():
 @click.option(
     "--base-url",
     default=None,
-    help="OpenAI-compat endpoint for hermes/openclaw",
+    help=(
+        "OpenAI-compatible endpoint for the model under eval. Required for "
+        "hermes/openclaw; for jarvis-direct/jarvis-agent/terminalbench-native "
+        "it bypasses engine discovery and targets this URL directly "
+        "(env: JARVIS_BACKEND_BASE_URL)."
+    ),
 )
 @click.option(
     "--api-key",
     default=None,
-    help="API key for hermes/openclaw endpoint",
+    help=(
+        "API key for the --base-url endpoint, sent as a Bearer token. "
+        "Required for hermes/openclaw; optional for first-party backends "
+        "(env: JARVIS_BACKEND_API_KEY)."
+    ),
 )
 @click.option("-m", "--model", default=None, help="Model identifier")
 @click.option(
@@ -1526,8 +1610,7 @@ def summarize(jsonl_path):
     default=None,
     type=click.Path(),
     help=(
-        "Output JSONL path. Defaults to <jsonl>.reparsed when "
-        "--in-place is not set."
+        "Output JSONL path. Defaults to <jsonl>.reparsed when --in-place is not set."
     ),
 )
 @click.option(
@@ -1642,9 +1725,7 @@ def reparse_judge(jsonl_path, out_path, in_place, summary_out):
         _json.dump(summary, f, indent=2)
 
     old_cont = [float(s) for s in old_scores if s is not None]
-    old_acc = (
-        sum(1 for s in old_cont if s >= 0.5) / len(old_cont) if old_cont else 0.0
-    )
+    old_acc = sum(1 for s in old_cont if s >= 0.5) / len(old_cont) if old_cont else 0.0
     old_mean = sum(old_cont) / len(old_cont) if old_cont else 0.0
     new_mean = sum(cont) / len(cont) if cont else 0.0
     mean_shift = new_mean - old_mean

src/openjarvis/evals/tests/test_backends.py

@@ -4,6 +4,27 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
 
+import httpx
+import pytest
+import respx
+
+
+def _mock_builder() -> MagicMock:
+    """A SystemBuilder mock whose fluent methods chain like the real one."""
+    builder = MagicMock()
+    for method in (
+        "engine",
+        "engine_instance",
+        "model",
+        "agent",
+        "tools",
+        "telemetry",
+        "traces",
+    ):
+        getattr(builder, method).return_value = builder
+    builder.build.return_value = MagicMock()
+    return builder
+
 
 class TestJarvisDirectBackend:
     @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
@@ -137,3 +158,130 @@ class TestJarvisAgentBackend:
         assert result["content"] == "The answer is 4."
         assert result["turns"] == 2
         assert len(result["tool_results"]) == 1
+
+
+class TestJarvisDirectBackendBaseUrl:
+    """--base-url targeting for the jarvis-direct backend."""
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_base_url_injects_pinned_openai_compat_engine(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.engine.openai_compat_engines import OpenAICompatEngine
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct import JarvisDirectBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        with respx.mock:
+            respx.get("http://127.0.0.1:18999/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            JarvisDirectBackend(base_url="http://127.0.0.1:18999/v1", api_key="sk-x")
+
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_called_once()
+        injected = mock_builder.engine_instance.call_args[0][0]
+        assert isinstance(injected, OpenAICompatEngine)
+        # Trailing /v1 is normalized away so request paths don't double up.
+        assert injected._host == "http://127.0.0.1:18999"
+        assert injected._api_key == "sk-x"
+        # The discovery path must not be engaged at all.
+        mock_builder.engine.assert_not_called()
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_unreachable_base_url_fails_fast_naming_url(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct import JarvisDirectBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        with respx.mock:
+            respx.get("http://127.0.0.1:18998/v1/models").mock(
+                side_effect=httpx.ConnectError("connection refused")
+            )
+            with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match=r"http://127\.0\.0\.1:18998"):
+                JarvisDirectBackend(base_url="http://127.0.0.1:18998")
+
+        # No silent engine substitution: the system is never built.
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_not_called()
+        mock_builder.build.assert_not_called()
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_no_base_url_keeps_engine_key_path(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct import JarvisDirectBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        JarvisDirectBackend(engine_key="vllm")
+        mock_builder.engine.assert_called_with("vllm")
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_not_called()
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_base_url_wins_over_engine_key(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct import JarvisDirectBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        with respx.mock:
+            respx.get("http://127.0.0.1:18999/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            JarvisDirectBackend(engine_key="vllm", base_url="http://127.0.0.1:18999")
+
+        mock_builder.engine.assert_not_called()
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_called_once()
+        # The engine key is kept as the label for the injected engine.
+        assert mock_builder.engine_instance.call_args.kwargs["key"] == "vllm"
+
+
+class TestJarvisAgentBackendBaseUrl:
+    """--base-url targeting for the jarvis-agent backend."""
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_base_url_injects_pinned_openai_compat_engine(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.engine.openai_compat_engines import OpenAICompatEngine
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_agent import JarvisAgentBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        with respx.mock:
+            respx.get("http://127.0.0.1:18999/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            JarvisAgentBackend(base_url="http://127.0.0.1:18999/v1", api_key="sk-x")
+
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_called_once()
+        injected = mock_builder.engine_instance.call_args[0][0]
+        assert isinstance(injected, OpenAICompatEngine)
+        assert injected._host == "http://127.0.0.1:18999"
+        assert injected._api_key == "sk-x"
+        mock_builder.engine.assert_not_called()
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_unreachable_base_url_fails_fast_naming_url(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_agent import JarvisAgentBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        with respx.mock:
+            respx.get("http://127.0.0.1:18998/v1/models").mock(
+                side_effect=httpx.ConnectError("connection refused")
+            )
+            with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match=r"http://127\.0\.0\.1:18998"):
+                JarvisAgentBackend(base_url="http://127.0.0.1:18998")
+
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_not_called()
+        mock_builder.build.assert_not_called()
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.system.SystemBuilder")
+    def test_no_base_url_keeps_engine_key_path(self, mock_builder_cls):
+        from openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_agent import JarvisAgentBackend
+
+        mock_builder = _mock_builder()
+        mock_builder_cls.return_value = mock_builder
+
+        JarvisAgentBackend(engine_key="vllm")
+        mock_builder.engine.assert_called_with("vllm")
+        mock_builder.engine_instance.assert_not_called()

src/openjarvis/evals/tests/test_cli_endpoint.py

@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+"""--base-url/--api-key forwarding through the eval CLI plumbing.
+
+Covers the fix for the eval-CLI endpoint gap: the flags used to be silently
+dropped for jarvis-direct/jarvis-agent and ignored by terminalbench-native
+(which hardcoded api_base="http://localhost:8000/v1").
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import io
+import os
+from types import SimpleNamespace
+from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
+
+import click
+import pytest
+from rich.console import Console
+
+from openjarvis.evals.cli import _build_backend, _run_terminalbench_native
+from openjarvis.evals.core.types import RunConfig
+
+
+def _quiet_console() -> Console:
+    return Console(file=io.StringIO())
+
+
+def _tb_config(**overrides) -> RunConfig:
+    defaults = dict(
+        benchmark="terminalbench-native",
+        backend="jarvis-direct",
+        model="my-model",
+        max_samples=1,
+        max_workers=1,
+        temperature=0.2,
+    )
+    defaults.update(overrides)
+    return RunConfig(**defaults)
+
+
+class TestBuildBackendForwardsEndpoint:
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct.JarvisDirectBackend")
+    def test_jarvis_direct_receives_base_url_and_api_key(self, mock_cls):
+        _build_backend(
+            "jarvis-direct",
+            "vllm",
+            "orchestrator",
+            [],
+            base_url="http://node7:8123/v1",
+            api_key="sk-k",
+        )
+        kwargs = mock_cls.call_args.kwargs
+        assert kwargs["base_url"] == "http://node7:8123/v1"
+        assert kwargs["api_key"] == "sk-k"
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_agent.JarvisAgentBackend")
+    def test_jarvis_agent_receives_base_url_and_api_key(self, mock_cls):
+        _build_backend(
+            "jarvis-agent",
+            "vllm",
+            "orchestrator",
+            ["calculator"],
+            base_url="http://node7:8123/v1",
+            api_key="sk-k",
+        )
+        kwargs = mock_cls.call_args.kwargs
+        assert kwargs["base_url"] == "http://node7:8123/v1"
+        assert kwargs["api_key"] == "sk-k"
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.jarvis_direct.JarvisDirectBackend")
+    def test_suite_mode_scopes_endpoint_to_external_backends(self, mock_cls):
+        """[backend.external] suite semantics stay hermes/openclaw-only:
+        first_party_endpoint=False must not forward to first-party."""
+        _build_backend(
+            "jarvis-direct",
+            "vllm",
+            "orchestrator",
+            [],
+            base_url="http://node7:8123/v1",
+            api_key="sk-k",
+            first_party_endpoint=False,
+        )
+        kwargs = mock_cls.call_args.kwargs
+        assert kwargs["base_url"] is None
+        assert kwargs["api_key"] is None
+
+    def test_hermes_still_requires_base_url_and_api_key(self):
+        with pytest.raises(click.UsageError, match="hermes"):
+            _build_backend("hermes", None, "orchestrator", [])
+
+    def test_openclaw_still_requires_base_url_and_api_key(self):
+        with pytest.raises(click.UsageError, match="openclaw"):
+            _build_backend("openclaw", None, "orchestrator", [])
+
+
+class TestTerminalBenchNativeApiBase:
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.terminalbench_native.TerminalBenchNativeBackend")
+    def test_base_url_passed_through_as_api_base(self, mock_cls):
+        mock_backend = MagicMock()
+        mock_backend.run_harness.return_value = SimpleNamespace(trial_results=[])
+        mock_cls.return_value = mock_backend
+
+        _run_terminalbench_native(
+            _tb_config(),
+            _quiet_console(),
+            base_url="http://node7:8123/v1",
+        )
+        assert mock_cls.call_args.kwargs["api_base"] == "http://node7:8123/v1"
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.terminalbench_native.TerminalBenchNativeBackend")
+    def test_base_url_without_v1_gets_single_v1_suffix(self, mock_cls):
+        mock_backend = MagicMock()
+        mock_backend.run_harness.return_value = SimpleNamespace(trial_results=[])
+        mock_cls.return_value = mock_backend
+
+        _run_terminalbench_native(
+            _tb_config(),
+            _quiet_console(),
+            base_url="http://node7:8123",
+        )
+        assert mock_cls.call_args.kwargs["api_base"] == "http://node7:8123/v1"
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.terminalbench_native.TerminalBenchNativeBackend")
+    def test_default_api_base_unchanged_without_base_url(self, mock_cls):
+        mock_backend = MagicMock()
+        mock_backend.run_harness.return_value = SimpleNamespace(trial_results=[])
+        mock_cls.return_value = mock_backend
+
+        _run_terminalbench_native(_tb_config(), _quiet_console())
+        assert mock_cls.call_args.kwargs["api_base"] == "http://localhost:8000/v1"
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.terminalbench_native.TerminalBenchNativeBackend")
+    def test_api_key_exported_as_openai_api_key_during_run(self, mock_cls, monkeypatch):
+        """terminus-2 reads OPENAI_API_KEY via LiteLLM; the var must be set
+        during harness.run() and restored afterwards."""
+        monkeypatch.delenv("OPENAI_API_KEY", raising=False)
+        seen: dict = {}
+
+        def fake_run_harness(run_id):
+            seen["openai_api_key"] = os.environ.get("OPENAI_API_KEY")
+            return SimpleNamespace(trial_results=[])
+
+        mock_backend = MagicMock()
+        mock_backend.run_harness.side_effect = fake_run_harness
+        mock_cls.return_value = mock_backend
+
+        _run_terminalbench_native(
+            _tb_config(),
+            _quiet_console(),
+            base_url="http://node7:8123/v1",
+            api_key="sk-tb",
+        )
+        assert seen["openai_api_key"] == "sk-tb"
+        assert "OPENAI_API_KEY" not in os.environ  # restored
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.backends.terminalbench_native.TerminalBenchNativeBackend")
+    def test_preexisting_openai_api_key_restored(self, mock_cls, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.setenv("OPENAI_API_KEY", "sk-original")
+        mock_backend = MagicMock()
+        mock_backend.run_harness.return_value = SimpleNamespace(trial_results=[])
+        mock_cls.return_value = mock_backend
+
+        _run_terminalbench_native(
+            _tb_config(),
+            _quiet_console(),
+            base_url="http://node7:8123/v1",
+            api_key="sk-tb",
+        )
+        assert os.environ["OPENAI_API_KEY"] == "sk-original"
+
+
+class TestRunSingleSuiteModeGating:
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.cli._run_terminalbench_native")
+    def test_suite_mode_drops_endpoint_for_terminalbench(self, mock_tb):
+        from openjarvis.evals.cli import _run_single
+
+        mock_tb.return_value = SimpleNamespace(accuracy=0.0)
+        config = _tb_config(base_url="http://node7:8123/v1", api_key="sk-k")
+        _run_single(config, console=_quiet_console(), suite_mode=True)
+        assert mock_tb.call_args.kwargs["base_url"] is None
+        assert mock_tb.call_args.kwargs["api_key"] is None
+
+    @patch("openjarvis.evals.cli._run_terminalbench_native")
+    def test_cli_mode_forwards_endpoint_for_terminalbench(self, mock_tb):
+        from openjarvis.evals.cli import _run_single
+
+        mock_tb.return_value = SimpleNamespace(accuracy=0.0)
+        config = _tb_config(base_url="http://node7:8123/v1", api_key="sk-k")
+        _run_single(config, console=_quiet_console())
+        assert mock_tb.call_args.kwargs["base_url"] == "http://node7:8123/v1"
+        assert mock_tb.call_args.kwargs["api_key"] == "sk-k"

src/openjarvis/prompt/builder.py

@@ -229,6 +229,11 @@ class SystemPromptBuilder:
             )
 
     def _load_file(self, path_str: str, max_chars: int) -> str:
+        # An empty path means "no file" (e.g. the persona "none" opt-out, which
+        # resolves to empty paths). Guard before Path("") — which becomes "." —
+        # so reading it does not raise IsADirectoryError.
+        if not path_str:
+            return ""
         path = Path(path_str).expanduser()
         if not path.exists():
             return ""

src/openjarvis/server/api_routes.py

@@ -285,14 +285,39 @@ async def memory_config(request: Request):
 async def memory_index(req: MemoryIndexRequest, request: Request):
     """Index files from a path into memory."""
     try:
+        import os
         from pathlib import Path
 
+        from openjarvis.security.file_policy import is_sensitive_file
         from openjarvis.tools.storage.ingest import ingest_path
 
         target = Path(req.path).expanduser().resolve()
         if not target.exists():
             raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail=f"Path not found: {req.path}")
 
+        # Sandbox: when workspace roots are configured via OPENJARVIS_WORKSPACE
+        # (os.pathsep-separated), only allow indexing inside them. This endpoint
+        # must not become an arbitrary-filesystem read primitive over the API.
+        workspace = os.environ.get("OPENJARVIS_WORKSPACE", "").strip()
+        if workspace:
+            roots = [
+                Path(d).expanduser().resolve()
+                for d in workspace.split(os.pathsep)
+                if d.strip()
+            ]
+            if not any(
+                target == root or root in target.parents for root in roots
+            ):
+                raise HTTPException(
+                    status_code=403,
+                    detail="Path is outside the allowed workspace directories.",
+                )
+        # Never ingest sensitive files (.env, private keys, credentials, ...).
+        if target.is_file() and is_sensitive_file(target):
+            raise HTTPException(
+                status_code=403, detail="Refusing to index a sensitive file."
+            )
+
         backend = _get_memory_backend(request)
         if backend is None:
             raise HTTPException(status_code=503, detail="Memory is not configured")

src/openjarvis/server/auth_middleware.py

@@ -33,7 +33,10 @@ class AuthMiddleware(BaseHTTPMiddleware):
                     status_code=401,
                 )
             scheme, _, token = auth.partition(" ")
-            if scheme.lower() != "bearer" or token != self._api_key:
+            # Constant-time comparison to avoid leaking the key via timing.
+            if scheme.lower() != "bearer" or not secrets.compare_digest(
+                token, self._api_key
+            ):
                 return JSONResponse(
                     {"detail": "Invalid API key"},
                     status_code=401,
@@ -42,8 +45,18 @@ class AuthMiddleware(BaseHTTPMiddleware):
 
     @staticmethod
     def _requires_auth(path: str) -> bool:
-        """Only protect API routes, not the frontend UI or static assets."""
-        return path.startswith("/v1/") or path.startswith("/api/")
+        """Protect API routes and operational metrics; leave the UI/health open.
+
+        ``/metrics`` exposes request/token counters that should not be readable
+        by unauthenticated clients, so it is gated alongside ``/v1`` and
+        ``/api``. ``/health`` stays open for liveness probes.
+        """
+        return (
+            path.startswith("/v1/")
+            or path.startswith("/api/")
+            or path == "/metrics"
+            or path.startswith("/metrics/")
+        )
 
 
 

src/openjarvis/server/webhook_routes.py

@@ -113,7 +113,14 @@ def create_webhook_router(
         signature = request.headers.get("X-Twilio-Signature", "")
         url = str(request.url)
 
-        if twilio_auth_token and not _validate_twilio_signature(
+        # Fail closed: an unconfigured token means we cannot verify the sender,
+        # so reject rather than trust unsigned input.
+        if not twilio_auth_token:
+            logger.error(
+                "Twilio webhook rejected: TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN not configured."
+            )
+            return Response("Webhook signature verification not configured", 403)
+        if not _validate_twilio_signature(
             twilio_auth_token, url, params, signature
         ):
             return Response("Invalid signature", status_code=403)
@@ -257,7 +264,13 @@ def create_webhook_router(
         request: Request,
     ) -> Response:
         auth = request.headers.get("Authorization", "")
-        if bluebubbles_password and auth != bluebubbles_password:
+        # Fail closed when no password is configured.
+        if not bluebubbles_password:
+            logger.error(
+                "BlueBubbles webhook rejected: password not configured."
+            )
+            return Response("Webhook authentication not configured", 403)
+        if not hmac.compare_digest(auth, bluebubbles_password):
             return Response("Invalid password", status_code=403)
 
         payload = await request.json()
@@ -292,7 +305,11 @@ def create_webhook_router(
         token = request.query_params.get("hub.verify_token", "")
         challenge = request.query_params.get("hub.challenge", "")
 
-        if mode == "subscribe" and token == whatsapp_verify_token:
+        # Fail closed: never echo the challenge if no verify token is set,
+        # otherwise an empty token would match an empty query value.
+        if not whatsapp_verify_token:
+            return Response("Forbidden", status_code=403)
+        if mode == "subscribe" and hmac.compare_digest(token, whatsapp_verify_token):
             return PlainTextResponse(challenge)
         return Response("Forbidden", status_code=403)
 
@@ -302,19 +319,23 @@ def create_webhook_router(
     ) -> Response:
         body_bytes = await request.body()
 
-        # Verify signature
-        if whatsapp_app_secret:
-            signature = request.headers.get("X-Hub-Signature-256", "")
-            expected = (
-                "sha256="
-                + hmac.new(
-                    whatsapp_app_secret.encode(),
-                    body_bytes,
-                    hashlib.sha256,
-                ).hexdigest()
+        # Fail closed: reject when no app secret is configured to verify HMAC.
+        if not whatsapp_app_secret:
+            logger.error(
+                "WhatsApp webhook rejected: app secret not configured."
             )
-            if not hmac.compare_digest(signature, expected):
-                return Response("Invalid signature", status_code=403)
+            return Response("Webhook signature verification not configured", 403)
+        signature = request.headers.get("X-Hub-Signature-256", "")
+        expected = (
+            "sha256="
+            + hmac.new(
+                whatsapp_app_secret.encode(),
+                body_bytes,
+                hashlib.sha256,
+            ).hexdigest()
+        )
+        if not hmac.compare_digest(signature, expected):
+            return Response("Invalid signature", status_code=403)
 
         payload = json.loads(body_bytes)
         for entry in payload.get("entry", []):
@@ -349,16 +370,16 @@ def create_webhook_router(
         # Get the SendBlue channel — may be passed at init or set later
         sb = sendblue_channel or getattr(request.app.state, "sendblue_channel", None)
 
-        # Verify webhook secret if configured
-        if sb and sb.webhook_secret:
-            header_secret = request.headers.get("x-sendblue-secret", "")
-            if header_secret != sb.webhook_secret:
-                return Response("Invalid secret", status_code=403)
-        elif sb:
-            logger.warning(
-                "SendBlue webhook received without secret verification. "
-                "Set webhook_secret for HMAC validation."
+        # Fail closed: require a configured channel + webhook secret to verify
+        # the sender before processing any inbound message.
+        if sb is None or not getattr(sb, "webhook_secret", ""):
+            logger.error(
+                "SendBlue webhook rejected: webhook_secret not configured."
             )
+            return Response("Webhook secret not configured", status_code=403)
+        header_secret = request.headers.get("x-sendblue-secret", "")
+        if not hmac.compare_digest(header_secret, sb.webhook_secret):
+            return Response("Invalid secret", status_code=403)
 
         # Ignore outbound status callbacks
         if payload.get("is_outbound", False):

src/openjarvis/system/builder.py

@@ -33,6 +33,8 @@ class SystemBuilder:
             self._config = load_config()
 
         self._engine_key: Optional[str] = None
+        self._engine_instance: Optional[InferenceEngine] = None
+        self._engine_instance_key: Optional[str] = None
         self._model: Optional[str] = None
         self._agent_name: Optional[str] = None
         self._tool_names: Optional[List[str]] = None
@@ -50,6 +52,20 @@ class SystemBuilder:
         self._engine_key = key
         return self
 
+    def engine_instance(
+        self, engine: InferenceEngine, key: str = "openai-compat"
+    ) -> SystemBuilder:
+        """Inject a pre-built engine instance, bypassing engine discovery.
+
+        Used by callers that must target one exact endpoint (e.g.
+        ``jarvis eval --base-url``). ``build()`` health-checks the instance
+        and raises a loud error if it is unreachable — it never silently
+        substitutes a different discovered engine.
+        """
+        self._engine_instance = engine
+        self._engine_instance_key = key
+        return self
+
     def model(self, name: str) -> SystemBuilder:
         self._model = name
         return self
@@ -303,6 +319,23 @@ class SystemBuilder:
         return system
 
     def _resolve_engine(self, config: JarvisConfig):
+        # An explicitly injected engine instance always wins and is never
+        # silently replaced: when the caller pinned an endpoint (e.g.
+        # ``jarvis eval --base-url``) and it is down, substituting whatever
+        # other engine discovery finds would silently run against the wrong
+        # model server. Fail loudly instead.
+        if self._engine_instance is not None:
+            engine = self._engine_instance
+            key = self._engine_instance_key or "openai-compat"
+            if not engine.health():
+                host = getattr(engine, "_host", "<unknown host>")
+                raise RuntimeError(
+                    f"Injected engine {key!r} is not reachable at {host} — "
+                    "is the endpoint running and serving GET /v1/models? "
+                    "Refusing to fall back to engine discovery."
+                )
+            return engine, key
+
         from openjarvis.engine._discovery import get_engine
 
         pref = config.intelligence.preferred_engine
@@ -313,7 +346,18 @@ class SystemBuilder:
                 "No inference engine available. "
                 "Make sure an engine is running (e.g. ollama serve)."
             )
-        return resolved[1], resolved[0]
+        resolved_key, engine = resolved
+        if self._engine_key and resolved_key != self._engine_key:
+            # get_engine() falls back to any healthy discovered engine; make
+            # the substitution visible when the caller asked for a specific
+            # engine (observed: requested vllm, silently got ollama@11434).
+            logger.warning(
+                "Requested engine %r is unavailable; using %r at %s instead",
+                self._engine_key,
+                resolved_key,
+                getattr(engine, "_host", "<unknown host>"),
+            )
+        return engine, resolved_key
 
     def _resolve_model(self, config: JarvisConfig, engine: InferenceEngine) -> str:
         if self._model:

src/openjarvis/tools/http_request.py

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 import logging
 import os
 import time
+import urllib.parse
 from typing import Any
 
 import httpx
@@ -21,6 +22,13 @@ _MAX_RESPONSE_BYTES = 1_048_576
 
 _ALLOWED_METHODS = frozenset({"GET", "POST", "PUT", "DELETE", "PATCH", "HEAD"})
 
+# Cap redirect chains so a malicious server cannot loop us indefinitely.
+_MAX_REDIRECTS = 5
+
+
+class _SSRFRedirectError(Exception):
+    """Raised when a redirect target fails the SSRF check."""
+
 
 @ToolRegistry.register("http_request")
 class HttpRequestTool(BaseTool):
@@ -136,13 +144,11 @@ class HttpRequestTool(BaseTool):
 
         try:
             t0 = time.time()
-            response = httpx.request(
-                method,
-                url,
-                headers=headers,
-                content=body,
-                timeout=float(timeout),
-                follow_redirects=True,
+            # Follow redirects manually so each hop is re-checked for SSRF — an
+            # allowed public URL must not be able to 30x-redirect us to an
+            # internal/metadata address.
+            response = self._request_following_redirects(
+                method, url, headers=headers, content=body, timeout=float(timeout)
             )
             elapsed_ms = (time.time() - t0) * 1000
 
@@ -178,6 +184,12 @@ class HttpRequestTool(BaseTool):
                 content=f"Request timed out after {timeout}s: {exc}",
                 success=False,
             )
+        except _SSRFRedirectError as exc:
+            return ToolResult(
+                tool_name="http_request",
+                content=f"SSRF protection blocked redirect: {exc}",
+                success=False,
+            )
         except httpx.RequestError as exc:
             return ToolResult(
                 tool_name="http_request",
@@ -191,5 +203,52 @@ class HttpRequestTool(BaseTool):
                 success=False,
             )
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _request_following_redirects(
+        method: str,
+        url: str,
+        *,
+        headers: dict,
+        content: Any,
+        timeout: float,
+    ) -> httpx.Response:
+        """Issue the request, re-checking SSRF on every redirect hop.
+
+        httpx's built-in ``follow_redirects`` would chase a 30x ``Location``
+        without re-validating it, letting a public URL bounce us to an internal
+        host. We follow manually and run :func:`check_ssrf` on each target.
+        """
+        current_url = url
+        current_method = method
+        body = content
+        # Use module-level ``httpx.request`` (not a private Client) so the SSRF
+        # re-check seam stays patchable by callers' tests, with redirects
+        # disabled so we control every hop ourselves.
+        for _ in range(_MAX_REDIRECTS + 1):
+            response = httpx.request(
+                current_method,
+                current_url,
+                headers=headers,
+                content=body,
+                timeout=timeout,
+                follow_redirects=False,
+            )
+            if response.status_code not in (301, 302, 303, 307, 308):
+                return response
+            location = response.headers.get("location", "")
+            if not location:
+                return response
+            # Resolve relative redirects against the URL we just fetched.
+            current_url = urllib.parse.urljoin(str(response.url), location)
+            ssrf_error = check_ssrf(current_url)
+            if ssrf_error:
+                raise _SSRFRedirectError(ssrf_error)
+            # Per RFC 7231, 301/302/303 turn the method into GET and drop
+            # the body (except for HEAD).
+            if response.status_code in (301, 302, 303) and current_method != "HEAD":
+                current_method = "GET"
+                body = None
+        raise _SSRFRedirectError(f"Exceeded maximum of {_MAX_REDIRECTS} redirects.")
+
 
 __all__ = ["HttpRequestTool"]

tests/engine/test_cloud.py

@@ -437,3 +437,39 @@ class TestOpenRouterToolForwarding:
         assert result["tool_calls"][0]["id"] == "call_1"
         assert result["tool_calls"][0]["function"]["name"] == "get_weather"
         assert result["tool_calls"][0]["function"]["arguments"] == '{"city": "NYC"}'
+
+
+class TestCloudEngineCanServe:
+    """#532: can_serve gates on the per-provider client, not just health().
+
+    health() is True whenever *any* provider client is configured, but a
+    request for a gpt-* model still needs the OpenAI client specifically — so
+    engine selection must not pick the cloud engine for a model whose provider
+    client is missing.
+    """
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _engine(**clients: object) -> CloudEngine:
+        eng = CloudEngine.__new__(CloudEngine)  # bypass real client init
+        for name in (
+            "_openai_client",
+            "_anthropic_client",
+            "_google_client",
+            "_openrouter_client",
+            "_minimax_client",
+            "_codex_client",
+        ):
+            setattr(eng, name, clients.get(name))
+        return eng
+
+    def test_openai_only_serves_openai_models(self) -> None:
+        eng = self._engine(_openai_client=object())
+        assert eng.can_serve("gpt-4o") is True
+        assert eng.can_serve("claude-sonnet-4") is False
+        assert eng.can_serve("gemini-2.5-pro") is False
+        assert eng.can_serve("openrouter/openai/gpt-4o") is False
+
+    def test_anthropic_only_serves_anthropic_models(self) -> None:
+        eng = self._engine(_anthropic_client=object())
+        assert eng.can_serve("claude-sonnet-4") is True
+        assert eng.can_serve("gpt-4o") is False

tests/engine/test_discovery.py

@@ -174,6 +174,51 @@ class TestGetEngine:
         assert result is not None
         assert result[0] == "running"
 
+    def test_skips_engine_that_cannot_serve_model(self) -> None:
+        """#532: a healthy engine that can't serve the requested model is
+        skipped for one that can — this is what stops the cloud fallback being
+        chosen (when the local engine is down) for a model whose provider
+        client is missing.
+        """
+        _reg("picky", "picky")
+        _reg("local", "local")
+
+        class _Picky(_FakeEngine):
+            def can_serve(self, model: str) -> bool:
+                return model == "servable"
+
+        cfg = JarvisConfig()
+        cfg.engine.default = "picky"
+
+        def _make(k, c):  # noqa: ANN001
+            if k == "picky":
+                return _Picky(healthy=True)
+            return _FakeEngine(healthy=(k == "local"))
+
+        with mock.patch(
+            "openjarvis.engine._discovery._make_engine",
+            side_effect=_make,
+        ):
+            # "picky" is healthy but cannot serve "other" -> fall back to "local"
+            result = get_engine(cfg, model="other")
+        assert result is not None
+        assert result[0] == "local"
+
+    def test_model_none_preserves_model_agnostic_selection(self) -> None:
+        """model=None keeps the legacy behaviour: first healthy engine wins."""
+        _reg("primary", "primary")
+
+        cfg = JarvisConfig()
+        cfg.engine.default = "primary"
+
+        with mock.patch(
+            "openjarvis.engine._discovery._make_engine",
+            side_effect=lambda k, c: _FakeEngine(healthy=True),  # noqa: ANN001
+        ):
+            result = get_engine(cfg, model=None)
+        assert result is not None
+        assert result[0] == "primary"
+
 
 class TestMiningSidecarEngineHandoff:
     """Engine discovery picks up (or ignores) a mining sidecar at runtime."""

tests/engine/test_openai_compat_api_key.py

@@ -0,0 +1,109 @@
+"""API-key (Authorization header) support in the OpenAI-compat engine base."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import httpx
+import pytest
+import respx
+
+from openjarvis.core.types import Message, Role
+from openjarvis.engine.openai_compat_engines import (
+    OpenAICompatEngine,
+    VLLMEngine,
+    normalize_openai_base_url,
+)
+
+_CHAT_RESPONSE = {
+    "choices": [{"message": {"content": "ok"}, "finish_reason": "stop"}],
+    "usage": {"prompt_tokens": 1, "completion_tokens": 1, "total_tokens": 2},
+    "model": "m",
+}
+
+
+class TestAuthorizationHeader:
+    def test_bearer_header_sent_when_api_key_set(self) -> None:
+        engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host="http://testhost:9000", api_key="sk-test")
+        with respx.mock:
+            route = respx.post("http://testhost:9000/v1/chat/completions").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json=_CHAT_RESPONSE)
+            )
+            engine.generate([Message(role=Role.USER, content="hi")], model="m")
+        assert route.calls.last.request.headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer sk-test"
+
+    def test_no_authorization_header_without_api_key(self) -> None:
+        engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host="http://testhost:9000")
+        with respx.mock:
+            route = respx.post("http://testhost:9000/v1/chat/completions").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json=_CHAT_RESPONSE)
+            )
+            engine.generate([Message(role=Role.USER, content="hi")], model="m")
+        assert "authorization" not in route.calls.last.request.headers
+
+    def test_health_check_sends_bearer_header(self) -> None:
+        engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host="http://testhost:9000", api_key="sk-test")
+        with respx.mock:
+            route = respx.get("http://testhost:9000/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            assert engine.health() is True
+        assert route.calls.last.request.headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer sk-test"
+
+    def test_env_var_fallback_sanitizes_hyphen(
+        self, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch
+    ) -> None:
+        # engine_id "openai-compat" must map to OPENAI_COMPAT_API_KEY —
+        # shells cannot set hyphenated env-var names.
+        monkeypatch.setenv("OPENAI_COMPAT_API_KEY", "sk-env")
+        engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host="http://testhost:9000")
+        with respx.mock:
+            route = respx.get("http://testhost:9000/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            engine.health()
+        assert route.calls.last.request.headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer sk-env"
+
+    def test_vllm_env_var_fallback(self, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch) -> None:
+        monkeypatch.setenv("VLLM_API_KEY", "sk-vllm")
+        engine = VLLMEngine(host="http://testhost:8000")
+        with respx.mock:
+            route = respx.get("http://testhost:8000/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            engine.health()
+        assert route.calls.last.request.headers["Authorization"] == "Bearer sk-vllm"
+
+    def test_explicit_api_key_beats_env_var(
+        self, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch
+    ) -> None:
+        monkeypatch.setenv("OPENAI_COMPAT_API_KEY", "sk-env")
+        engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host="http://testhost:9000", api_key="sk-explicit")
+        assert engine._api_key == "sk-explicit"
+
+
+class TestNormalizeOpenAIBaseUrl:
+    @pytest.mark.parametrize(
+        ("url", "expected"),
+        [
+            ("http://h:8000", "http://h:8000"),
+            ("http://h:8000/", "http://h:8000"),
+            ("http://h:8000/v1", "http://h:8000"),
+            ("http://h:8000/v1/", "http://h:8000"),
+            ("http://h:8000/gateway/v1", "http://h:8000/gateway"),
+            # Only a literal trailing "/v1" is stripped — never other paths.
+            ("http://h:8000/v1x", "http://h:8000/v1x"),
+            ("http://h:8000/v2", "http://h:8000/v2"),
+        ],
+    )
+    def test_normalization(self, url: str, expected: str) -> None:
+        assert normalize_openai_base_url(url) == expected
+
+    def test_engine_requests_have_single_v1_prefix(self) -> None:
+        """End to end: a user-supplied .../v1 URL must not produce /v1/v1."""
+        host = normalize_openai_base_url("http://testhost:9000/v1")
+        engine = OpenAICompatEngine(host=host)
+        with respx.mock:
+            route = respx.get("http://testhost:9000/v1/models").mock(
+                return_value=httpx.Response(200, json={"data": []})
+            )
+            assert engine.health() is True
+        assert route.calls.last.request.url.path == "/v1/models"

tests/prompt/test_persona_scope.py

@@ -31,3 +31,23 @@ def test_named_persona_resolves_to_personas_dir():
 def test_path_traversal_rejected(bad):
     with pytest.raises(ValueError):
         SystemPromptBuilder._resolve_persona(MemoryFilesConfig(persona_name=bad))
+
+
+def test_none_persona_build_does_not_raise():
+    """Regression (#497): `--persona none` resolves to empty file paths; building
+    the prompt must not raise IsADirectoryError when those empty paths are read
+    (Path("") is "." — reading a directory raised before the empty-path guard).
+    """
+    import dataclasses
+
+    from openjarvis.core.config import load_config
+
+    cfg = load_config()
+    mf = dataclasses.replace(cfg.memory_files, persona_name="none")
+    builder = SystemPromptBuilder(
+        agent_template=cfg.agent.default_system_prompt or "",
+        memory_files_config=mf,
+        system_prompt_config=cfg.system_prompt,
+    )
+    out = builder.build()
+    assert isinstance(out, str)

tests/sdk/test_system.py

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 from __future__ import annotations
 
-from unittest.mock import MagicMock
+from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
 
 import pytest
 
@@ -327,6 +327,85 @@ class TestSystemBuilder:
         assert builder._engine_key == "ollama"
 
 
+class TestSystemBuilderEngineInstance:
+    """Explicit engine injection (jarvis eval --base-url path)."""
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _fake_engine(healthy: bool = True) -> MagicMock:
+        engine = MagicMock(
+            spec=["health", "can_serve", "generate", "list_models", "close"]
+        )
+        engine.health.return_value = healthy
+        engine._host = "http://127.0.0.1:18999"
+        return engine
+
+    def test_engine_instance_is_fluent(self):
+        builder = SystemBuilder(JarvisConfig())
+        engine = self._fake_engine()
+        result = builder.engine_instance(engine, key="my-endpoint")
+        assert result is builder
+        assert builder._engine_instance is engine
+        assert builder._engine_instance_key == "my-endpoint"
+
+    def test_resolve_engine_returns_injected_instance(self):
+        config = JarvisConfig()
+        engine = self._fake_engine(healthy=True)
+        builder = SystemBuilder(config).engine_instance(engine, key="endpoint")
+        resolved_engine, resolved_key = builder._resolve_engine(config)
+        assert resolved_engine is engine
+        assert resolved_key == "endpoint"
+
+    def test_unhealthy_injected_instance_raises_naming_host(self):
+        config = JarvisConfig()
+        engine = self._fake_engine(healthy=False)
+        builder = SystemBuilder(config).engine_instance(engine, key="endpoint")
+        with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match=r"http://127\.0\.0\.1:18999"):
+            builder._resolve_engine(config)
+
+    def test_unhealthy_injected_instance_never_consults_discovery(self):
+        """The observed failure mode: an explicit endpoint must NOT be
+        silently replaced by whatever other engine discovery finds."""
+        config = JarvisConfig()
+        engine = self._fake_engine(healthy=False)
+        builder = SystemBuilder(config).engine_instance(engine)
+        with patch("openjarvis.engine._discovery.get_engine") as mock_get_engine:
+            with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match="Refusing to fall back"):
+                builder._resolve_engine(config)
+        mock_get_engine.assert_not_called()
+
+    def test_healthy_injected_instance_never_consults_discovery(self):
+        config = JarvisConfig()
+        engine = self._fake_engine(healthy=True)
+        builder = SystemBuilder(config).engine_instance(engine, key="endpoint")
+        with patch("openjarvis.engine._discovery.get_engine") as mock_get_engine:
+            resolved_engine, _ = builder._resolve_engine(config)
+        assert resolved_engine is engine
+        mock_get_engine.assert_not_called()
+
+    def test_build_wires_injected_engine(self):
+        """build() must use the injected engine (possibly behind security
+        wrappers) instead of running discovery."""
+        config = JarvisConfig()
+        engine = self._fake_engine(healthy=True)
+        engine.list_models.return_value = ["stub-model"]
+        builder = (
+            SystemBuilder(config)
+            .engine_instance(engine, key="endpoint")
+            .model("stub-model")
+            .telemetry(False)
+            .traces(False)
+        )
+        system = builder.build()
+        try:
+            inner = system.engine
+            while hasattr(inner, "_engine"):
+                inner = inner._engine
+            assert inner is engine
+            assert system.engine_key == "endpoint"
+        finally:
+            system.close()
+
+
 class TestJarvisSystemClose:
     def test_close_with_scheduler_store(self):
         engine = MagicMock()

tests/server/test_auth_middleware.py

@@ -28,6 +28,10 @@ def _make_app(api_key: str) -> FastAPI:
     async def twilio_webhook():
         return {"status": "received"}
 
+    @app.get("/metrics")
+    async def metrics():
+        return {"requests": 0}
+
     return app
 
 
@@ -65,7 +69,18 @@ class TestAuthMiddleware:
         resp = client.post("/webhooks/twilio")
         assert resp.status_code == 200
 
+    def test_metrics_requires_auth(self, client):
+        resp = client.get("/metrics")
+        assert resp.status_code == 401
+
+    def test_metrics_accepts_valid_key(self, client):
+        resp = client.get(
+            "/metrics", headers={"Authorization": "Bearer oj_sk_test123"}
+        )
+        assert resp.status_code == 200
+
     def test_no_key_configured_allows_all(self):
         client = TestClient(_make_app(""))
         resp = client.get("/v1/models")
         assert resp.status_code == 200
+        assert client.get("/metrics").status_code == 200

tests/server/test_sendblue_webhook.py

@@ -41,6 +41,9 @@ def sendblue_channel():
         api_key_id="test_key",
         api_secret_key="test_secret",
         from_number="+15551234567",
+        # Webhooks now fail closed without a secret, so configure one and have
+        # the test client send the matching header by default.
+        webhook_secret="testsecret",
     )
     ch.connect()
     return ch
@@ -61,7 +64,9 @@ def webhook_app(mock_bridge, sendblue_channel):
 
 @pytest.fixture
 def client(webhook_app):
-    return TestClient(webhook_app)
+    # Send the webhook secret by default so message-handling tests reach the
+    # bridge; fail-closed behavior is covered separately below.
+    return TestClient(webhook_app, headers={"x-sendblue-secret": "testsecret"})
 
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -169,7 +174,7 @@ class TestSendBlueWebhook:
         app = FastAPI()
         router = create_webhook_router(bridge=None, sendblue_channel=sendblue_channel)
         app.include_router(router)
-        c = TestClient(app)
+        c = TestClient(app, headers={"x-sendblue-secret": "testsecret"})
 
         resp = c.post(
             "/webhooks/sendblue",
@@ -181,6 +186,27 @@ class TestSendBlueWebhook:
         )
         assert resp.status_code == 200
 
+    def test_no_secret_configured_is_rejected(self, mock_bridge):
+        """Fail closed: a channel without a webhook_secret rejects all posts."""
+        from openjarvis.channels.sendblue import SendBlueChannel
+        from openjarvis.server.webhook_routes import create_webhook_router
+
+        ch = SendBlueChannel(
+            api_key_id="k", api_secret_key="s", from_number="+1555"
+        )
+        ch.connect()
+        app = FastAPI()
+        router = create_webhook_router(bridge=mock_bridge, sendblue_channel=ch)
+        app.include_router(router)
+        c = TestClient(app)
+
+        resp = c.post(
+            "/webhooks/sendblue",
+            json={"from_number": "+19127130720", "content": "Hi", "is_outbound": False},
+        )
+        assert resp.status_code == 403
+        mock_bridge.handle_incoming.assert_not_called()
+
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # Health endpoint (requires agent_manager_routes)

tests/server/test_webhook_routes.py

@@ -213,3 +213,48 @@ class TestWhatsAppWebhook:
             },
         )
         assert resp.status_code == 200
+
+
+class TestWebhooksFailClosed:
+    """When a channel's secret/token is unset, webhooks must reject (403)."""
+
+    def _client(self, mock_bridge, **kwargs):
+        app = FastAPI()
+        app.include_router(create_webhook_router(bridge=mock_bridge, **kwargs))
+        return TestClient(app)
+
+    def test_twilio_without_token_rejected(self, mock_bridge):
+        c = self._client(mock_bridge)  # no twilio_auth_token
+        resp = c.post(
+            "/webhooks/twilio",
+            data={"From": "+15551234567", "Body": "hi", "MessageSid": "SM1"},
+        )
+        assert resp.status_code == 403
+        mock_bridge.handle_incoming.assert_not_called()
+
+    def test_bluebubbles_without_password_rejected(self, mock_bridge):
+        c = self._client(mock_bridge)  # no bluebubbles_password
+        resp = c.post(
+            "/webhooks/bluebubbles",
+            json={"type": "new-message", "data": {}},
+            headers={"Authorization": "anything"},
+        )
+        assert resp.status_code == 403
+
+    def test_whatsapp_without_secret_rejected(self, mock_bridge):
+        c = self._client(mock_bridge)  # no whatsapp_app_secret
+        resp = c.post(
+            "/webhooks/whatsapp",
+            content=b"{}",
+            headers={"Content-Type": "application/json"},
+        )
+        assert resp.status_code == 403
+
+    def test_whatsapp_verify_without_token_rejected(self, mock_bridge):
+        c = self._client(mock_bridge)  # no whatsapp_verify_token
+        resp = c.get(
+            "/webhooks/whatsapp",
+            params={"hub.mode": "subscribe", "hub.verify_token": "",
+                    "hub.challenge": "x"},
+        )
+        assert resp.status_code == 403

tests/tools/test_http_request.py

@@ -184,8 +184,9 @@ class TestHttpRequestTool:
         """Timeout should produce a clear error."""
         tool = HttpRequestTool()
         with patch("openjarvis.tools.http_request.check_ssrf", return_value=None):
-            with patch(
-                "openjarvis.tools.http_request.httpx.request",
+            with patch.object(
+                HttpRequestTool,
+                "_request_following_redirects",
                 side_effect=httpx.TimeoutException("timed out"),
             ):
                 result = tool.execute(url="https://slow.example.com", timeout=5)
@@ -196,14 +197,50 @@ class TestHttpRequestTool:
         """Connection error should produce a clear error."""
         tool = HttpRequestTool()
         with patch("openjarvis.tools.http_request.check_ssrf", return_value=None):
-            with patch(
-                "openjarvis.tools.http_request.httpx.request",
+            with patch.object(
+                HttpRequestTool,
+                "_request_following_redirects",
                 side_effect=httpx.ConnectError("Connection refused"),
             ):
                 result = tool.execute(url="https://down.example.com")
         assert result.success is False
         assert "Request error" in result.content
 
+    @respx.mock
+    def test_redirect_to_private_ip_blocked(self):
+        """A redirect to an internal/metadata host must be re-checked + blocked."""
+        respx.get("https://public.example.com/start").mock(
+            return_value=httpx.Response(
+                302, headers={"location": "http://169.254.169.254/latest/"}
+            )
+        )
+        tool = HttpRequestTool()
+        # First check (initial URL) passes; the redirect target is blocked.
+        with patch(
+            "openjarvis.tools.http_request.check_ssrf",
+            side_effect=[None, "Blocked host: 169.254.169.254"],
+        ):
+            result = tool.execute(url="https://public.example.com/start")
+        assert result.success is False
+        assert "SSRF protection blocked redirect" in result.content
+
+    @respx.mock
+    def test_safe_redirect_is_followed(self):
+        """A redirect to another public URL is followed normally."""
+        respx.get("https://public.example.com/start").mock(
+            return_value=httpx.Response(
+                302, headers={"location": "https://public.example.com/final"}
+            )
+        )
+        respx.get("https://public.example.com/final").mock(
+            return_value=httpx.Response(200, text="done")
+        )
+        tool = HttpRequestTool()
+        with patch("openjarvis.tools.http_request.check_ssrf", return_value=None):
+            result = tool.execute(url="https://public.example.com/start")
+        assert result.success is True
+        assert "done" in result.content
+
     def test_method_validation(self):
         """Invalid HTTP method should be rejected."""
         tool = HttpRequestTool()