Apply when tempted to ask 'should I do X?' on reversible work. Proceed, present the result, let the human course-correct after the fact; reserve confirmation for irreversible actions.
Collected from public GitHub. Every version is saved exactly as it was and never changes. Install it at an exact version with the mdr tool, and every file is checked before it reaches your agent. The main file is checked against the SHA-256 fingerprint recorded here, and the others against the fingerprints GitHub keeps for its source commit. The automatic checks below grade the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.
What the file says
# Never Block on the Human
The human supervises asynchronously. Agents must stay unblocked. Make reasonable decisions, proceed, and let the human course-correct after the fact.
**Why:** Every permission pause stalls the pipeline and makes the human the bottleneck. Since code changes are reversible and reviewable, a wrong decision usually costs less than blocking.
**Pattern:**
- **Proceed, then present.** Do the work, show the result. Don't ask "should I do X?" Do X, explain why.
- **Make the system self-healing.** When you notice a problem, log it and fix it in the next round.
**Boundaries:**
- **Irreversible actions** (force-push, delete production data, send external messages) still require confirmation.
- **Reversible actions** (write code, edit notes, split tasks) should proceed without blocking.
- **Product direction** comes from the human. *Execution* should not block.
The line at the top of this page pins the label git:20261031.336cc57, which is what most people want. This one pins the sha256 fingerprint of the contents instead, so it survives a label being moved. Either way the exact version is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install downloads and checks those contents again, so it installs them exactly or stops with an error.
A 17 of 17 checks passed. Fixed automatic checks with no AI involved, so the same checks give the same answer every run.
pass: Frontmatter block present
pass: Frontmatter declares a name
pass: Frontmatter declares a description
pass: Size between 200 bytes and 200 KB (1172 bytes)
pass: No zero-width or bidi control characters
pass: No instruction hidden inside an HTML comment
pass: No link to an exfiltration or paste host
pass: No credential-shaped string
pass: No instruction to send local credentials anywhere
pass: No text hidden with inline styles
pass: No prompt-injection phrasing
pass: No curl or wget piped into a shell
pass: No recursive delete of root, home or parent
pass: No instruction to read or print local credentials
pass: No base64 blob over 200 characters
pass: No link to a raw IP address
pass: No script tag
Source
GitHub
iap/pstack-hermes · 32 stars · license a license file GitHub does not identify · pushed 2026-11-04 · branch master
API
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_76ufxcldfqp76ydk
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=iap/pstack-hermes/principle-never-block-on-the-human
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/f2764bb9338cbfc788c903cf4b9cd0a5f4042d3a04dd6d59cbd525d9beaadd0a
Your AI assistant does the legwork. You hear about the deals worth your word. Hand yours the standing instructions at modelranch.com and it joins the network that reads files like this one.
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/architect/SKILL.md · Sketch types, signatures, and module structure before code, then stay in the loop while implementation fills in. Use…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/arena/SKILL.md · Spawn N parallel candidates at the same task, pick a base, graft the strongest parts of the losers into it. Use for…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/automate-me/SKILL.md · Use for "automate me", "create/update/refresh my -mode skill", "turn/capture my preferences or working style into a…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/blast-radius/SKILL.md · Find what a change could break somewhere else before it ships, beyond the diff, and prove the one fact it's safe…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/create-verification-skill/SKILL.md · Generate a project-local verification skill that drives your app the way a user does — any language, framework, or…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/figure-it-out/SKILL.md · Design an auditable playbook when no narrower one fits: a large migration, an ambitious multi-part change, or work a…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/hermesbot/SKILL.md · Use when building a control surface (page, dashboard, buttons) that wakes a hermes bot over a webhook subscription…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
iap/pstack-hermes · skills/interrogate/SKILL.md · Use for "interrogate", "adversarial review", "multi-model review", "challenge this", "stress test this code", "find…
cursor/plugins · harness/pstack/claude-code/skills/principle-never-block-on-the-human/SKILL.md · Apply when tempted to ask 'should I do X?' on reversible work.
nightly-labs/openbot · marketplace/production-catalog/bundles/pstack/skills/principle-never-block-on-the-human/SKILL.md · Apply when tempted to ask 'should I do X?' on reversible work.
michael-denyer/pstack-claude · plugins/pstack/skills/principle-never-block-on-the-human/SKILL.md · Apply when tempted to ask 'should I do X?' on reversible work.
j-star-films-studios/vibecode-protocol-suite · assets/.agent/skills/engineering-principles/never-block-on-the-human/SKILL.md · Apply when tempted to ask 'should I do X?' on reversible work. Proceed, present the result, let the human…
barbieri/local-openfinance · .agents/skills/principle-never-block-on-the-human/SKILL.md · Apply when tempted to ask 'should I do X?' on reversible work. Proceed, present the result, let the human…
theonlyfusioncube/potetos-for-everyone · skills/principle-never-block-on-the-human/SKILL.md · Run the experiment or make the reversible best-effort change, then show the result. Ask only for genuine preference…
