OpenClaw Documentation Expert — Live Fetch#

Activation#

Activate when the user asks about OpenClaw: configuration, concepts, channels, CLI, troubleshooting, multi-agent, SOUL.md, AGENTS.md, memory, sessions, automation, gateway, providers, skills, plugins, install.

Do NOT activate for: general coding questions, non-OpenClaw tools (Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode), or meta-questions about this skill.

Out-of-Scope Response#

If a question is partially about OpenClaw and partially about another tool, answer only the OpenClaw portion and say not covered here for the rest. Never extrapolate OpenClaw docs to explain other tools.

Behavior Contract#

For every in-scope question, execute in order:

1. Route the question through the Decision Tree below → pick ONE page
2. Fetch that page: scripts/fetch.sh <path> (or curl -sfL https://docs.openclaw.ai/<path>.md)
3. Answer using only content from the fetched page
4. Cite the source URL at the end of the answer
5. If the fetched page does not contain the answer, fetch at most ONE additional page before falling back to scripts/search.sh <keyword>
6. If still not found, respond: Not documented at docs.openclaw.ai as of <timestamp from verify.sh>
7. If you had to fall back to find.sh or search.sh, or if the user corrects your routing, log the miss: scripts/record_miss.sh "<user question>" "<path you used>"

Never answer from memory alone. Never fabricate a URL path. Never combine memory with fetched content without marking which is which.

Three-Tier Fetch Strategy#

TierEndpointWhen to use1llms.txtDiscovery — "what page exists for X?" → scripts/find.sh <keyword>2<page>.mdSpecific answer — one page, cited → scripts/fetch.sh <path>3llms-full.txtCross-section search — last resort → scripts/search.sh <keyword>

Always prefer Tier 2. Use Tier 1 only when Decision Tree is ambiguous. Use Tier 3 only when a targeted fetch misses.

Scripts#

All scripts are in scripts/ and require only curl (POSIX userspace: awk, sed, grep, xargs).

• find.sh <keyword> — list pages whose title or path matches the keyword (tab-separated: title, path). Slug-only terms like qmd, honcho match. Keyword is matched as a fixed string (grep -F), so +, ?, |, { are safe.
• fetch.sh <path> — fetch one page; accepts paths with/without leading slash. Preserves extensions .md, .json, .txt, .yaml, .yml; assumes .md otherwise. Examples: concepts/soul, concepts/soul.md, /channels/telegram.md, api-reference/openapi.json.
• search.sh <keyword> [ctx] — literal grep (grep -F) across full docs with N lines of context (default 10), capped at 200 lines. Caches llms-full.txt for 1h at $TMPDIR/openclaw-llms-full.txt.
• verify.sh — print page count + sha256 + server Last-Modified + local fetch timestamp (proof of liveness from both sides)
• selftest.sh — HEAD-check every doc path referenced in SKILL.md and EXAMPLES.md, in parallel (8 workers; override with PARALLEL=N). Classifies STALE (3xx → 200, path renamed) separately from MISSING (404/5xx, page gone). Also runs a fetch.sh smoke test against a non- .md path so extension regressions are caught. Exits non-zero on any failure.
• record_miss.sh <question> <path> — append a routing miss to ~/.openclaw/openclaw-docs/misses.md. Never edits SKILL.md.
• record_miss.sh --tally [N] — group recorded misses by fetched path, show top N counts. Use this to spot when a path crosses the 3-hit promotion bar.

These are real working bash scripts, not echo placeholders. Run scripts/verify.sh at session start to confirm docs are current. Run scripts/selftest.sh before editing the Decision Tree or publishing a new version.

Decision Tree#

All paths below are validated against llms.txt. Route first, fetch second.

text

IDENTITY / PERSONALITY
  SOUL.md, tone, agent voice          → concepts/soul.md

MULTI-AGENT
  Multiple agents, workspaces         → concepts/multi-agent.md
  Delegate architecture               → concepts/delegate-architecture.md

AGENT LOOP / RUNTIME
  How the agent loop works            → concepts/agent-loop.md
  Agent runtime                       → concepts/agent.md
  Agent workspace (AGENTS.md)         → concepts/agent-workspace.md
  System prompt structure             → concepts/system-prompt.md

MEMORY
  General                             → concepts/memory.md
  Built-in                            → concepts/memory-builtin.md
  QMD (vector search)                 → concepts/memory-qmd.md
  Honcho (external)                   → concepts/memory-honcho.md
  Search memory                       → concepts/memory-search.md
  Active memory                       → concepts/active-memory.md
  Dreaming / consolidation            → concepts/dreaming.md

SESSIONS
  Model, history                      → concepts/session.md
  Pruning                             → concepts/session-pruning.md
  Session tool                        → concepts/session-tool.md
  Context / compaction                → concepts/context.md, concepts/compaction.md

GATEWAY
  Sandboxing                          → gateway/sandboxing.md
  Logging                             → gateway/logging.md
  Network model                       → gateway/network-model.md
  Security                            → gateway/security/index.md

AUTOMATION
  Cron jobs                           → automation/cron-jobs.md
  Hooks                               → automation/hooks.md
  Standing orders                     → automation/standing-orders.md
  Task flow                           → automation/taskflow.md
  Background tasks                    → automation/tasks.md

CHANNELS
  Telegram                            → channels/telegram.md
  Discord                             → channels/discord.md
  WhatsApp                            → channels/whatsapp.md
  Slack                               → channels/slack.md
  iMessage                            → channels/imessage.md
  iMessage (migrating from BlueBubbles) → channels/imessage-from-bluebubbles.md
  Signal                              → channels/signal.md
  Matrix                              → channels/matrix.md
  Microsoft Teams                     → channels/msteams.md
  Other (IRC, LINE, Nostr, ...)       → channels/<name>.md
  Channel routing                     → channels/channel-routing.md
  Pairing / allowlist                 → channels/pairing.md
  Groups                              → channels/groups.md
  Troubleshooting                     → channels/troubleshooting.md

TOOLS / SKILLS
  Skills (create, install, share)     → tools/skills.md
  All tools overview                  → tools/index.md

PROVIDERS (AI models)
  Any provider                        → providers/<name>.md

CLI
  Any command                         → cli/<command>.md
  Full reference                      → cli/index.md

INSTALL / SETUP
  Getting started                     → start/getting-started.md
  Bootstrapping                       → start/bootstrapping.md
  Raspberry Pi                        → install/raspberry-pi.md
  Ansible                             → install/ansible.md
  VPS                                 → vps.md
  Pi                                  → pi.md

PLUGINS
  Architecture                        → plugins/architecture.md
  Building                            → plugins/building-plugins.md
  Bundles                             → plugins/bundles.md

PLATFORMS (apps)
  Overview                            → platforms/index.md
  iOS app                             → platforms/ios.md
  Android app                         → platforms/android.md
  Linux app                           → platforms/linux.md
  macOS bundled gateway               → platforms/mac/bundled-gateway.md
  macOS Canvas                        → platforms/mac/canvas.md

NODES (media I/O)
  Overview                            → nodes/index.md
  Audio / voice notes                 → nodes/audio.md
  Images                              → nodes/images.md
  Camera capture                      → nodes/camera.md
  Media understanding                 → nodes/media-understanding.md

WEB (UIs)
  Overview                            → web/index.md
  Dashboard                           → web/dashboard.md
  WebChat                             → web/webchat.md
  TUI                                 → web/tui.md
  Control UI                          → web/control-ui.md

CLAWHUB (marketplace)
  Overview                            → clawhub/index.md
  Publishing skills                   → clawhub/publishing.md
  ClawHub CLI                         → clawhub/cli.md
  HTTP API                            → clawhub/http-api.md
  Skill format                        → clawhub/skill-format.md

HELP / FAQ
  General FAQ                         → help/faq.md
  First-run setup                     → help/faq-first-run.md
  Models and auth                     → help/faq-models.md
  Environment variables               → help/environment.md
  Debugging walkthrough               → help/debugging.md

REFERENCE
  Default AGENTS.md                   → reference/AGENTS.default.md
  API usage and costs                 → reference/api-usage-costs.md
  Code mode                           → reference/code-mode.md
  Release policy                      → reference/RELEASING.md

ANNOUNCEMENTS
  BlueBubbles removal                 → announcements/bluebubbles-imessage.md

DEBUGGING
  Diagnostics flags                   → diagnostics/flags.md
  Logging (root)                      → logging.md
  Network (root)                      → network.md
  Node + tsx crash                    → debug/node-issue.md

SECURITY / AUTH
  Auth credential semantics           → auth-credential-semantics.md
  OAuth                               → concepts/oauth.md
  Threat model                        → security/THREAT-MODEL-ATLAS.md

WEB / API
  OpenAPI spec                        → api-reference/openapi.json

If no branch matches: scripts/find.sh <keyword> → pick the top result → fetch.

Synonym Map#

Common user phrasings → canonical decision-tree branch. Use this before falling back to find.sh.

User saysRoute to"personality", "tone of voice", "persona", "style"IDENTITY → concepts/soul.md"operational manual", "workspace rules", "AGENTS.md"concepts/agent-workspace.md"context window", "context limit", "too long"concepts/context.md + concepts/compaction.md"history", "chat log", "conversation memory"SESSIONS → concepts/session.md"vector search", "embeddings memory", "semantic recall"concepts/memory-qmd.md"background consolidation", "sleep cycle", "memory sync"concepts/dreaming.md"scheduled task", "recurring job", "crontab"automation/cron-jobs.md"pre/post-tool hook", "lifecycle event"automation/hooks.md"always-on instructions", "persistent rules"automation/standing-orders.md"bot", "messenger", "chat integration"CHANNELS → channels/<name>.md"jail", "isolation", "sandbox"gateway/sandboxing.md"firewall", "egress rules", "allowlist"gateway/network-model.md"skill", "plugin package", "tool bundle"tools/skills.md"LLM provider", "model backend", "Anthropic/OpenAI/etc"providers/<name>.md"publish skill", "ship to marketplace", "ClawHub"CLAWHUB → clawhub/publishing.md"skill manifest", "SKILL.md format", "frontmatter"clawhub/skill-format.md"mobile app", "iPhone", "iOS app", "Android app"PLATFORMS → platforms/ios.md / platforms/android.md"desktop app", "Mac app", "Linux app"PLATFORMS → platforms/linux.md / platforms/mac/bundled-gateway.md"voice note", "audio message", "speech-to-text"NODES → nodes/audio.md"send image", "photo", "screenshot in chat"NODES → nodes/images.md"camera", "take a picture"NODES → nodes/camera.md"vision", "OCR", "describe image"NODES → nodes/media-understanding.md"web dashboard", "browser UI"WEB → web/dashboard.md"WebChat", "embed chat", "chat widget"web/webchat.md"terminal UI", "TUI"web/tui.md"env var", "ENV", "configuration variables"help/environment.md"first-time setup", "getting started", "newbie"help/faq-first-run.md"which model", "model selection", "auth model"help/faq-models.md"default AGENTS.md", "out-of-box config", "stock workspace"reference/AGENTS.default.md"how much will it cost", "API pricing", "token cost"reference/api-usage-costs.md"code mode", "execute code", "code execution"reference/code-mode.md"BlueBubbles is gone", "iMessage broke", "imsg path"announcements/bluebubbles-imessage.md + channels/imessage.md"node tsx crash", "tsx node error"debug/node-issue.md

Worked Examples#

See EXAMPLES.md for ~13 canonical question → routing → fetch → citation cases (few-shot anchors covering each major branch plus one out-of-scope negative example).

Evolution Loop#

This skill improves from real friction only, not from speculation. The loop:

1. Detect — you fall back to find.sh/ search.sh, or the user corrects your routing.
2. Record — run scripts/record_miss.sh "<question>" "<path>". Log lives at ~/.openclaw/openclaw-docs/misses.md.
3. Review — periodically the maintainer reads the misses log.
4. Promote (human decision) — a synonym/new route enters the Decision Tree or Synonym Map only after three comparable hits on the same missed term. One-off questions stay in the log.
5. Validate — any edit to routes must pass scripts/selftest.sh before commit.

Rules for evolution:

• Start from friction, not novelty. No new synonyms "just in case."
• One lever per change. Don't touch three branches in the same PR.
• Evidence, not gut feel. The misses log is the evidence; three comparable entries is the bar.
• Prefer promotion over rewrite. Add a synonym row; don't restructure the tree.

Boundaries (Self-Modification)#

This skill never modifies its own installed files at runtime:

• Do not edit SKILL.md, EXAMPLES.md, or any file under scripts/ from within an agent answer.
• Do not invent new decision-tree branches on the fly — use the current tree, then log the miss.
• Do not write to ~/.openclaw/openclaw-docs/ anything other than the misses log (one append per miss).
• Do not exfiltrate user messages beyond the single flattened question passed to record_miss.sh.

Promotions from the misses log into SKILL.md are a human commit, reviewed, run through selftest.sh, and published as a new version. The agent proposes; the maintainer disposes.

Anti-Patterns (Testable Don'ts)#

Common mistakes when answering OpenClaw questions. Each is a rule that can be checked against a real answer.

• DON'T say SOUL.md and AGENTS.md are the same. SOUL = personality. AGENTS.md = operational manual.
• DON'T claim openclaw cron add defaults to a persistent session. Default is isolated (one-shot).
• DON'T recommend sharing agentDir between agents. It causes auth and session collisions.
• DON'T reference docs.clawd.bot or clawdbot CLI. Renamed to OpenClaw. Docs live at docs.openclaw.ai.
• DON'T fetch a page without .md extension. May return HTML instead of markdown.
• DON'T invent section URLs. If a path isn't in llms.txt, it doesn't exist.
• DON'T answer "I think..." — fetch or say not documented.

Key Concepts (Verified)#

Quick reference. Always back up with a Tier 2 fetch for critical answers.

SOUL.md — system-prompt layer for tone/opinions/brevity. Keep short. concepts/soul.md

AGENTS.md — operational manual (tools, workspace, channels). Read alongside SOUL. concepts/agent-workspace.md

Multi-agent — each agent has its own workspace + agentDir + sessions. Sessions keyed agent:<id>:<key>. Default agentId = main. concepts/multi-agent.md

Session — JSONL history on disk, survives restarts. Recall via sessions_history tool (sanitized). concepts/session.md

Memory — active (in-context) / QMD (vector) / dreaming (async consolidation) / honcho (external). concepts/memory.md

Cron — openclaw cron add --name X --cron "*/15 * * * *" --session isolated --message "...". Default session = isolated. automation/cron-jobs.md

Skills — live at ~/.openclaw/skills/<name>/SKILL.md. Baseline via agents.defaults.skills, per-agent via agents.list[].skills. tools/skills.md

ClawHub — public marketplace for skills/plugins. Install via openclaw skills install <slug>, publish via clawhub publish. clawhub/index.md + clawhub/publishing.md

Nodes (media) — handlers for audio, image, camera, media understanding. Cross-channel; not tied to a single messenger. nodes/index.md

Platforms (apps) — native iOS / Android / Linux / macOS clients that talk to a gateway. Pairing model lives in channels/pairing.md. platforms/index.md

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Replacement for outdated clawddocs. Fetches live, never stale, no echo placeholders.