ClawVault 🐘
An elephant never forgets. Structured memory for OpenClaw agents.
Built for OpenClaw — install via
clawhub install clawvault
Install
bash
npm install -g clawvault
Quick Setup
bash
# Auto-discover OpenClaw memory folder and configure clawvault setup
OpenClaw Hook Integration (Recommended)
ClawVault includes an OpenClaw hook for automatic context death resilience:
bash
# Register the hook from clawvault package openclaw hooks install clawvault openclaw hooks enable clawvault
What the hook handles automatically:
- •Gateway startup → Detects if previous session died, injects alert
- •On /new command → Creates checkpoint before session reset
Manual commands still valuable for:
- •
clawvault wake— Full recap with projects and handoffs - •
clawvault sleep— Detailed handoff with decisions and blockers - •
clawvault checkpoint— Explicit save during heavy work
The hook is your safety net. Manual commands give richer context.
New in v1.4.1
- •OpenClaw hook — automatic context death resilience
- •clawvault wake — all-in-one session start (recover + recap)
- •clawvault sleep — all-in-one session end (handoff + git commit)
New in v1.4.0
- •qmd required — semantic search is now core functionality
- •clawvault setup — auto-discovers OpenClaw's memory folder
- •clawvault status — vault health, checkpoint age, qmd index
- •clawvault template — list/create/add with 7 built-in templates
- •clawvault link --backlinks — see what links to a file
- •clawvault link --orphans — find broken wiki-links
Setup
bash
# Initialize vault (creates folder structure + templates) clawvault init ~/my-vault # Or set env var to use existing vault export CLAWVAULT_PATH=/path/to/memory
Core Commands
Store memories by type
bash
# Types: fact, feeling, decision, lesson, commitment, preference, relationship, project clawvault remember decision "Use Postgres over SQLite" --content "Need concurrent writes for multi-agent setup" clawvault remember lesson "Context death is survivable" --content "Checkpoint before heavy work" clawvault remember relationship "Justin Dukes" --content "Client contact at Hale Pet Door"
Quick capture to inbox
bash
clawvault capture "TODO: Review PR tomorrow"
Search (requires qmd installed)
bash
# Keyword search (fast) clawvault search "client contacts" # Semantic search (slower, more accurate) clawvault vsearch "what did we decide about the database"
Context Death Resilience
Checkpoint (save state frequently)
bash
clawvault checkpoint --working-on "PR review" --focus "type guards" --blocked "waiting for CI"
Recover (check on wake)
bash
clawvault recover --clear # Shows: death time, last checkpoint, recent handoff
Handoff (before session end)
bash
clawvault handoff \ --working-on "ClawVault improvements" \ --blocked "npm token" \ --next "publish to npm, create skill" \ --feeling "productive"
Recap (bootstrap new session)
bash
clawvault recap # Shows: recent handoffs, active projects, pending commitments, lessons
Wake (all-in-one session start)
bash
clawvault wake # Combines: recover + recap + summary # Shows context death status + recent handoffs + what you were working on
Sleep (all-in-one session end)
bash
clawvault sleep "Finished PR review" \ --next "merge after CI" \ --blocked "waiting for approval" \ --decisions "use strict mode" \ --feeling "productive" # Creates handoff, clears death flag, offers git commit
Auto-linking
Wiki-link entity mentions in markdown files:
bash
# Link all files clawvault link --all # Link single file clawvault link memory/2024-01-15.md
Folder Structure
code
vault/ ├── .clawvault/ # Internal state │ ├── last-checkpoint.json │ └── dirty-death.flag ├── decisions/ # Key choices with reasoning ├── lessons/ # Insights and patterns ├── people/ # One file per person ├── projects/ # Active work tracking ├── handoffs/ # Session continuity ├── inbox/ # Quick captures └── templates/ # Document templates
Best Practices
- •Checkpoint every 10-15 min during heavy work
- •Handoff before session end — future you will thank you
- •Recover on wake — check if last session died
- •Use types — knowing WHAT you're storing helps WHERE to put it
- •Wiki-link liberally —
[[person-name]]builds your knowledge graph
Integration with qmd
ClawVault uses qmd for search:
bash
# Install qmd bun install -g github:tobi/qmd # Add vault as collection qmd collection add /path/to/vault --name my-memory --mask "**/*.md" # Update index qmd update && qmd embed
Environment Variables
- •
CLAWVAULT_PATH— Default vault path (skips auto-discovery)