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v1.4.0
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Release Notes - hal-9000 v1.4.0

Release Date: January 27, 2026

Overview

hal-9000 v1.4.0 introduces persistent session management and cross-session MCP configuration, eliminating the need to re-authenticate or reconfigure tools with every new container instance.

What's New

🎯 Major Features

Session Persistence Across Container Instances

  • Authentication tokens persist - login once, use in all subsequent sessions
  • Claude session state survives container lifecycle changes
  • Implemented via hal9000-claude-session shared Docker volume
  • Users no longer need to re-login when starting a new project

Before v1.4.0:

hal-9000 /project1          # Login required
exit
hal-9000 /project2          # Login required AGAIN ✗

After v1.4.0:

hal-9000 /project1          # Login once
exit
hal-9000 /project2          # Logged in automatically ✓

MCP Server Configuration Persistence

  • MCP server registrations survive session boundaries
  • Custom MCP server settings are preserved across containers
  • Feature flags and preferences maintained consistently
  • Critical for multi-session workflows with shared tools

Example:

# Session 1: Add a custom MCP server
hal-9000 /project1
# Inside Claude: (add custom MCP server)
exit

# Session 2: Custom server automatically available
hal-9000 /project2
# Custom MCP server is ready to use ✓

Subscription Login Support

  • Users can now authenticate with Claude subscription
  • API key authentication still fully supported
  • Subscription auth provides better credential management
  • Both methods store credentials in persistent volume

🐳 Docker Images

All four profile images published and tested:

Image Size Includes
base 652MB Claude CLI, Docker CLI, Node.js, Python, uv, foundation MCP servers
python 652MB base + Python 3.11, pip, venv
node 652MB base + Node.js 20 LTS, npm, yarn, pnpm
java 652MB base + Java 21 LTS, Maven, Gradle

Registry: ghcr.io/hellblazer/hal-9000

📦 Foundation MCP Servers (Pre-installed)

  • ChromaDB - Vector database for semantic search
  • Memory Bank - Cross-session persistent memory
  • Sequential Thinking - Step-by-step reasoning

🏗️ Shared Volumes

Three persistent Docker volumes enable cross-session state:

Volume Purpose Content
hal9000-claude-home Plugin installations & credentials ~/.claude directory
hal9000-claude-session Session state & MCP config .claude.json + auth tokens
hal9000-memory-bank Cross-session memory Structured memory store

Installation

New Users

# Download and install hal-9000 CLI
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Hellblazer/hal-9000/main/install-hal-9000.sh | bash

# Verify installation
hal-9000 --version

# Start using it
hal-9000 /path/to/your/project

Upgrade from v1.3.2

The upgrade is transparent - no configuration changes needed:

# Stop running containers (optional)
hal-9000 daemon stop

# Re-run the installer
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Hellblazer/hal-9000/main/install-hal-9000.sh | bash

# Restart
hal-9000 /path/to/your/project

Migration Note: Your existing session data and MCP configurations are automatically preserved in shared volumes.

Key Improvements

Persistence

  • Session state no longer lost between container instances
  • Credentials cached for faster login experience
  • MCP registrations survive container lifecycle

Reliability

  • Fixed critical bug where authentication state was not shared
  • Improved credential caching mechanism
  • Better Docker volume mount handling

Developer Experience

  • Faster project switching (no re-login required)
  • Consistent MCP environment across all sessions
  • Better integration with Claude Code plugins

Breaking Changes

None. This is a fully backward-compatible release.

Existing installations will continue to work without modification. New sessions will automatically use the persistent volumes.

Docker Images Registry

Images are published to GitHub Container Registry (ghcr.io):

# Automatically pulled by hal-9000 CLI when needed
hal-9000 /path

# Manual pull (if needed)
docker pull ghcr.io/hellblazer/hal-9000:base
docker pull ghcr.io/hellblazer/hal-9000:python
docker pull ghcr.io/hellblazer/hal-9000:node
docker pull ghcr.io/hellblazer/hal-9000:java

Verification & Testing

Installation Verification

hal-9000 --verify
# Should report: Prerequisites verified

Session Persistence Test

# First session
hal-9000 /project1
# [Inside Claude] Run any command
exit

# Second session (without re-login)
hal-9000 /project2
# [Session should be authenticated]

MCP Configuration Test

# Add custom MCP server in first session
hal-9000 /project1
# [Register custom MCP server]
exit

# Check persistence in second session
hal-9000 /project2
# [Custom MCP server should be available]

Known Issues

None at this time. Please report issues at: https://github.com/Hellblazer/hal-9000/issues

Support

Credits

Session persistence implementation and verification enabled by comprehensive Docker volume testing and architectural validation.

Previous Version: v1.3.2
Next Version Target: v1.5.0 (E2E testing, CI/CD pipeline)

SHA256 Checksums

install-hal-9000.sh: [provided in release assets]

hal-9000: Containerized Claude with persistent sessions and MCP configuration management

Assets 3
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