From db0f2ce94be4e5cd45e199beb0abefae17cbed2a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Greg Pstrucha <875316+Gricha@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 05:35:10 +0000
Subject: [PATCH 1/2] fix: daemon mode not starting properly via systemctl

- Add SHELL=/bin/bash fallback for terminals (systemd doesn't set SHELL)
- Auto-start service after `perry agent install` instead of requiring manual start
- Add SHELL env var to systemd service file
---
 src/agent/run.ts     |  2 +-
 src/agent/systemd.ts | 23 +++++++++++++++++++++--
 2 files changed, 22 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/src/agent/run.ts b/src/agent/run.ts
index 42cb50cc..1056d0b5 100644
--- a/src/agent/run.ts
+++ b/src/agent/run.ts
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ function createAgentServer(
   };
 
   const getPreferredShell = () => {
-    return currentConfig.terminal?.preferredShell || process.env.SHELL;
+    return currentConfig.terminal?.preferredShell || process.env.SHELL || '/bin/bash';
   };
 
   const terminalHandler = new TerminalHandler({
diff --git a/src/agent/systemd.ts b/src/agent/systemd.ts
index d767c343..16926e4c 100644
--- a/src/agent/systemd.ts
+++ b/src/agent/systemd.ts
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ export function generateServiceFile(options: InstallOptions = {}): string {
     `Environment=PERRY_PORT=${port}`,
     `Environment=PERRY_CONFIG_DIR=${configDir}`,
     `Environment=NODE_ENV=production`,
+    `Environment=SHELL=/bin/bash`,
   ];
 
   if (options.noHostAccess) {
@@ -126,9 +127,27 @@ export async function installService(options: InstallOptions = {}): Promise<void
     throw new Error('Installation failed: systemd configuration could not be completed');
   }
 
+  try {
+    await runSystemctl(['start', SERVICE_NAME]);
+    console.log(`Service ${SERVICE_NAME} started`);
+  } catch (err) {
+    const msg = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);
+    console.error(`Warning: Could not start service. ${msg}`);
+    console.log('');
+    console.log('Installation complete, but service failed to start.');
+    console.log('Try starting manually:');
+    console.log(`  systemctl --user start ${SERVICE_NAME}`);
+    console.log('');
+    console.log('To check status:');
+    console.log(`  systemctl --user status ${SERVICE_NAME}`);
+    console.log('');
+    console.log('To view logs:');
+    console.log(`  journalctl --user -u ${SERVICE_NAME} -f`);
+    return;
+  }
+
   console.log('');
-  console.log('Installation complete! To start the agent:');
-  console.log(`  systemctl --user start ${SERVICE_NAME}`);
+  console.log('Installation complete! Agent is now running.');
   console.log('');
   console.log('To check status:');
   console.log(`  systemctl --user status ${SERVICE_NAME}`);

From 956c8b5d798a54570db1738c2f11eca08271313d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Greg Pstrucha <875316+Gricha@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 05:39:52 +0000
Subject: [PATCH 2/2] fix: use restart instead of start to apply new config

---
 src/agent/systemd.ts | 2 +-
 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/src/agent/systemd.ts b/src/agent/systemd.ts
index 16926e4c..88c599a5 100644
--- a/src/agent/systemd.ts
+++ b/src/agent/systemd.ts
@@ -128,7 +128,7 @@ export async function installService(options: InstallOptions = {}): Promise<void
   }
 
   try {
-    await runSystemctl(['start', SERVICE_NAME]);
+    await runSystemctl(['restart', SERVICE_NAME]);
     console.log(`Service ${SERVICE_NAME} started`);
   } catch (err) {
     const msg = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);