Rufous: Apache-2.0 Rust agent harness with built-in BS detector for small local models
solyarisoftware · x · 2026-11-03
- Rufous is an open-source (Apache-2.0) autonomous agent harness written in Rust, built for small 1B–12B local models running on Ollama, LM Studio, llama-server, or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint.
- Key feature: a built-in "BS detector" — if the model claims "I created the file" but its tool-call history shows it never did, Rufous stops the response and forces the model to correct itself.
- Tiny prefill: system prompt plus 9 core tool schemas is only 1,250 tokens, so even 1B–4B models can drive it; web, memory and MCP tools are progressively disclosed via enabletools, with skills loaded on demand as flat .md files or SKILL.md folders.
- Claude Code-compatible: hooks use the hooks.json format shared by Claude Code, Codex and Cursor (SessionStart, PreToolUse, PostToolUse, Stop events); a project's .mcp.json servers are merged into the session automatically.
- Philosophy: small doesn't have to mean limited — named after the 3-gram rufous hummingbird that migrates from Mexico to Alaska yearly.
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