Openclaw

openclaw

Canonical setup and operational guidance for OpenClaw + memories.sh.

Quick Start

# First-time setup
openclaw onboard
cd your-project
memories init
memories generate claude -o ~/.openclaw/workspace/AGENTS.md --force
memories generate agents
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills
if [ -d .agents/skills ]; then cp -R .agents/skills/. ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/; fi
memories files ingest --global --include-config
memories files apply --global --include-config --force

# Optional: schedule a weekday reminder to run the refresh flow
memories reminders add "0 9 * * 1-5" "OpenClaw refresh: run generate + skills copy + files apply"

Workflow Decision Tree

• If openclaw is missing, stop and direct the user to official OpenClaw install docs.
• If OpenClaw was not onboarded on this machine, run first-time setup.
• If setup exists and contract/rules changed, run workspace contract refresh.
• If the task is session lifecycle memory flow, run OpenClaw memory lifecycle commands (bootstrap, flush, snapshot, sync) in that order as needed.
• If behavior appears stale, run verification checks and troubleshooting in order.
• If workspace path is custom, read ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json and replace default ~/.openclaw/workspace paths.

Workspace Contract Refresh

cd your-project
memories generate claude -o ~/.openclaw/workspace/AGENTS.md --force
memories generate agents
if [ -d .agents/skills ]; then cp -R .agents/skills/. ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/; fi
memories files ingest --global --include-config
memories files apply --global --include-config --force

Optional reminder check:

memories reminders list
memories reminders run

Memory Lifecycle Workflow (OpenClaw File Mode)

Use these when session context must persist across resets/compaction:

# 1) Bootstrap semantic + recent episodic context from OpenClaw files
memories openclaw memory bootstrap

# 2) Flush meaningful session events to today's daily log before compaction/reset
memories openclaw memory flush <session-id> --messages 15

# 3) Persist raw session snapshot in DB + OpenClaw snapshot file
memories openclaw memory snapshot <session-id> --trigger reset

# 4) Reconcile DB and OpenClaw files (import/export/both)
memories openclaw memory sync --direction both

Trigger guidance:

• Session start/new workspace: bootstrap
• Near context budget or inactivity compaction: flush
• /new, /reset, manual handoff, or auto compaction boundaries: snapshot --trigger new_session|reset|manual|auto_compaction
• Cross-device/manual file edits: sync --direction import|export|both

Guardrails

• Prefer deterministic generate + ingest/apply flows over manual workspace edits.
• For lifecycle persistence, use openclaw memory bootstrap|flush|snapshot|sync instead of ad-hoc file writes.
• Keep skills copy conditional so missing .agents/skills does not fail the flow.
• Do not delete user workspace files unless explicitly requested.
• Treat project docs and official OpenClaw docs as source of truth.

Reference Files

• Operational workflows: See references/workflows.md for setup, verification, and troubleshooting.