How do I install the Wake State skill?

Run npx skillmds add modbender/wake-state in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Wake State safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: executes scripts. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Wake State?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Wake State free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Wake State?

modbender (@modbender) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Wake State by modbender — Agent Skill

Name: Wake State
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: modbender

Wake State

Persist agent state across crashes, context deaths, and restarts. Use when you need to save current context, restore after a crash, maintain a memory file across sessions, or implement crash recovery. Essential for autonomous agents that must survive context window limits.

modbender 53b8582 2 files · 12.8 KB Updated Sep 9, 2026 12 repo stars

File contents

Wake State — Crash Recovery & Persistence

Survive context death. Every autonomous agent eventually hits its context window limit and "dies." This skill ensures you wake up knowing exactly what you were doing.

Why This Exists

OpenClaw agents get persistent sessions, but context windows still have limits. When you fill up and restart, you need a reliable handoff mechanism. Wake State gives you:

Structured state files — not just raw text, but parseable key-value state
Auto-snapshots — save state on every loop iteration automatically
Crash detection — know if your last session ended cleanly or crashed
Task queue — persistent TODO list that survives restarts
Checkpoint/restore — save named checkpoints and roll back to them

Commands

Save current state

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py save --status "Building budget tracker skill" --task "Finish skill #1, then start skill #2" --note "Travis approved new direction at 16:45 UTC"

Read current state

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py read

Add a task to the persistent queue

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py task-add --task "Build security scanner skill" --priority high

Complete a task

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py task-done --id 1

List pending tasks

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py tasks

Create a named checkpoint

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py checkpoint --name "pre-migration"

Restore from checkpoint

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py restore --name "pre-migration"

Record a heartbeat (mark session as alive)

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py heartbeat

Check crash status (did last session end cleanly?)

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py crash-check

Set a key-value pair

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py set --key "moltbook_status" --value "pending_claim"

Get a key-value pair

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py get --key "moltbook_status"

Data Storage

State stored in ~/.openclaw/wake-state/ by default:

state.json — current state (status, notes, key-values)
tasks.json — persistent task queue
checkpoints/ — named checkpoint snapshots
heartbeat.json — crash detection timestamps

Recovery Flow

On startup, your agent should:

Run crash-check to see if the last session ended cleanly
Run read to get the current state
Run tasks to see pending work
Resume from where you left off

Tips

Call heartbeat every loop iteration — this is how crash detection works
Call save at the end of every major task completion
Use checkpoints before risky operations (migrations, deploys)
Keep status descriptions short but specific
The task queue survives restarts — use it instead of mental notes

---name: wake-statedescription: Persist agent state across crashes, context deaths, and restarts. Use when you need to save current context, restore after a crash, maintain a memory file across sessions, or implement crash recovery. Essential for autonomous agents that must survive context window limits.--- # Wake State — Crash Recovery & Persistence Survive context death. Every autonomous agent eventually hits its context window limit and "dies." This skill ensures you wake up knowing exactly what you were doing. ## Why This Exists OpenClaw agents get persistent sessions, but context windows still have limits. When you fill up and restart, you need a reliable handoff mechanism. Wake State gives you: 1. **Structured state files** — not just raw text, but parseable key-value state 2. **Auto-snapshots** — save state on every loop iteration automatically 3. **Crash detection** — know if your last session ended cleanly or crashed 4. **Task queue** — persistent TODO list that survives restarts 5. **Checkpoint/restore** — save named checkpoints and roll back to them ## Commands ### Save current state ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py save --status "Building budget tracker skill" --task "Finish skill #1, then start skill #2" --note "Travis approved new direction at 16:45 UTC" ``` ### Read current state ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py read ``` ### Add a task to the persistent queue ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py task-add --task "Build security scanner skill" --priority high ``` ### Complete a task ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py task-done --id 1 ``` ### List pending tasks ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py tasks ``` ### Create a named checkpoint ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py checkpoint --name "pre-migration" ``` ### Restore from checkpoint ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py restore --name "pre-migration" ``` ### Record a heartbeat (mark session as alive) ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py heartbeat ``` ### Check crash status (did last session end cleanly?) ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py crash-check ``` ### Set a key-value pair ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py set --key "moltbook_status" --value "pending_claim" ``` ### Get a key-value pair ```bash python3 {baseDir}/scripts/wakestate.py get --key "moltbook_status" ``` ## Data Storage State stored in `~/.openclaw/wake-state/` by default: - `state.json` — current state (status, notes, key-values) - `tasks.json` — persistent task queue - `checkpoints/` — named checkpoint snapshots - `heartbeat.json` — crash detection timestamps ## Recovery Flow On startup, your agent should: 1. Run `crash-check` to see if the last session ended cleanly 2. Run `read` to get the current state 3. Run `tasks` to see pending work 4. Resume from where you left off ## Tips - Call `heartbeat` every loop iteration — this is how crash detection works - Call `save` at the end of every major task completion - Use checkpoints before risky operations (migrations, deploys) - Keep status descriptions short but specific - The task queue survives restarts — use it instead of mental notes

Frequently asked questions