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OpenClaw Guide Ch7: Memory and Data Management

#openclaw #ai #agents #automation

Chapter 7: Memory and Data Management

đŸŽ¯ Learning Objective: Understand OpenClaw's memory mechanisms, configure efficient data storage and search systems, and implement cross-Agent data sharing with privacy protection

🧠 Memory System Overview

OpenClaw's memory system is at the core of its intelligence, enabling Agents to:

  • 📚 Persistent Memory: Retain important information across sessions
  • 🔍 Intelligent Search: Fast semantic-based information retrieval
  • 🔗 Context Association: Automatically relate relevant historical information
  • 🚀 Performance Optimization: Efficient vectorized storage and indexing

🏗ī¸ Memory Architecture

7.1 Memory Hierarchy 

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│            Session Memory               │
│        (Current conversation context)   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│           Working Memory                │
│        (Short-term working memory)      │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│          Long-term Memory               │
│        (Persistent long-term memory)    │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Shared Memory Pool              │
│        (Cross-Agent shared memory)      │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
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7.2 Core Components

Memory Search Engine

  • Vector Storage: Text content converted to high-dimensional vectors
  • Hybrid Search: Vector similarity + keyword matching
  • Index Optimization: Real-time index construction and maintenance

Storage Backends

  • Local Files: Markdown files + vector database
  • Cloud Sync: Optional remote backup and synchronization
  • Cache Layer: In-memory cache for hot data

💾 Storage Configuration

7.3 Local Storage

File Structure 

~/.openclaw/workspace-main/
├── memory/                    # Memory file directory
│   ├── MEMORY.md             # Main memory file
│   ├── 2026-02-13.md        # Date-specific memory
│   ├── topics/              # Topic-based memory
│   │   ├── projects.md
│   │   ├── meetings.md
│   │   └── decisions.md
│   └── vectors/             # Vector database
│       ├── embeddings.db
│       └── index.faiss
└── sessions/                 # Session history
    └── *.jsonl              # Session records
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OpenClaw Configuration 

{
  "agents": {
    "defaults": {
      "memorySearch": {
        "sources": ["memory", "sessions"],
        "provider": "local",
        "model": "text-embedding-3-small",
        "query": {
          "hybrid": {
            "enabled": true,
            "vectorWeight": 0.7,
            "textWeight": 0.3
          }
        },
        "cache": {
          "enabled": true,
          "size": "100MB"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}
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7.4 Vector Search Configuration

Supported Embedding Models

Provider Model Strengths Cost
OpenAI text-embedding-3-small Well-balanced Low
OpenAI text-embedding-3-large Highest accuracy Medium
Local sentence-transformers Works offline Free
Voyage voyage-large-2 Professional-grade High

🔍 Memory Search and Management

7.5 Basic Search Operations

memory_search Tool 

# Basic semantic search
memory_search query="project progress status"

# Limit search scope
memory_search query="meeting notes" maxResults=10 minScore=0.7

# Search specific sources
memory_search query="technical decisions" sources=["memory"]
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7.6 Advanced Search Techniques

Hybrid Search Tuning 

{
  "query": {
    "hybrid": {
      "enabled": true,
      "vectorWeight": 0.8,    // Prioritize semantic similarity
      "textWeight": 0.2,      // Moderate keyword matching
      "threshold": 0.6        // Similarity threshold
    }
  }
}
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7.7 Memory Organization Best Practices

File Naming Conventions 

MEMORY.md              # Primary long-term memory
2026-02-13.md         # Date-specific memory
projects/              # Topic-based categories
├── openclaw-manual.md
├── tiktok-factory.md
└── agent-architecture.md
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Structured Content 

# Project Memory File Example

## Project Overview
- **Name**: OpenClaw Training Manual
- **Status**: Fast publication phase
- **Owner**: Joe

## Key Decisions
### 2026-02-13: Chapter Structure Reorganization
- **Background**: Found non-sequential chapter numbering
- **Decision**: Added Chapters 7 & 8 to maintain a complete sequence
- **Impact**: Improved professionalism and credibility

## Next Actions
- [ ] Complete Chapters 7 & 8
- [ ] Generate English and Japanese versions
- [ ] Start the publishing process
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🔄 Data Sync and Backup

7.8 Backup Strategy

Multi-Layer Backup Plan 

┌─────────────────┐  Auto backup  ┌─────────────────┐
│   Local Files   │ ───────────→  │   Git Repository │
│   (Real-time)   │               │ (Version control)│
└─────────────────┘               └─────────────────┘
         │                                 │
         │ Scheduled sync                  │ Push
         â–ŧ                                 â–ŧ
┌─────────────────┐               ┌─────────────────┐
│ Cloud Storage   │               │  Remote Backup  │
│ (Daily backup)  │               │ (Disaster rec.) │
└─────────────────┘               └─────────────────┘
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Git Auto-Backup Script 

#!/bin/bash
# memory-backup.sh — Automated memory file backup

WORKSPACE="/home/openclaw01/.openclaw/workspace-main"

cd "$WORKSPACE"

if [[ -n $(git status --porcelain memory/) ]]; then
    echo "Memory file changes detected, starting backup..."
    git add memory/
    git commit -m "Memory backup: $(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M')"
    git push origin main
    echo "✅ Memory backup complete"
else
    echo "ℹī¸ No memory file changes, skipping backup"
fi
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🛡ī¸ Privacy and Security

7.10 Data Privacy Protection

Sensitive Data Classification 

{
  "dataClassification": {
    "public": ["general_knowledge", "documentation"],
    "internal": ["project_plans", "meeting_notes"],
    "confidential": ["personal_info", "credentials"],
    "restricted": ["financial_data", "legal_documents"]
  }
}
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Data Redaction Configuration 

{
  "privacy": {
    "autoRedaction": {
      "enabled": true,
      "patterns": [
        {"type": "email", "replace": "[EMAIL_REDACTED]"},
        {"type": "phone", "replace": "[PHONE_REDACTED]"},
        {"type": "credit_card", "replace": "[CARD_REDACTED]"},
        {"type": "api_key", "replace": "[API_KEY_REDACTED]"}
      ]
    },
    "encryptionAtRest": {
      "enabled": true,
      "algorithm": "AES-256",
      "keyRotationDays": 90
    }
  }
}
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7.11 GDPR Compliance

Data Retention Policies 

{
  "dataRetention": {
    "policies": [
      {
        "type": "personal_data",
        "retentionDays": 365,
        "autoDelete": true
      },
      {
        "type": "session_logs",
        "retentionDays": 90,
        "anonymizeAfter": 30
      },
      {
        "type": "technical_logs",
        "retentionDays": 30,
        "autoDelete": true
      }
    ]
  }
}
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User Rights Implementation 

# Data Export (Right to Data Portability)
openclaw memory export --user-id "user123" --format json

# Data Deletion (Right to Erasure)
openclaw memory delete --user-id "user123" --confirm

# Data Access (Right of Access)
openclaw memory list --user-id "user123" --include-metadata
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🚀 Performance Optimization

7.12 Search Performance Tuning

Index Optimization 

{
  "indexing": {
    "strategy": "incremental",
    "batchSize": 100,
    "updateFrequency": "hourly",
    "vectorDimensions": 1536,
    "clustering": {
      "enabled": true,
      "method": "kmeans",
      "clusters": 50
    }
  }
}
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Cache Configuration 

{
  "cache": {
    "levels": [
      {
        "name": "memory",
        "type": "in_memory",
        "size": "256MB",
        "ttl": "1h"
      },
      {
        "name": "disk",
        "type": "file_cache",
        "size": "1GB",
        "ttl": "24h"
      }
    ]
  }
}
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🔧 Cross-Agent Memory Sharing

7.14 Shared Memory Architecture 

{
  "sharedMemory": {
    "enabled": true,
    "namespaces": [
      {
        "name": "global",
        "access": ["all"],
        "content": ["general_knowledge", "system_info"]
      },
      {
        "name": "project_team",
        "access": ["project-agent-1", "project-agent-2"],
        "content": ["project_data", "shared_decisions"]
      },
      {
        "name": "personal",
        "access": ["main"],
        "content": ["private_notes", "personal_preferences"]
      }
    ]
  }
}
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7.15 Memory Access Control 

{
  "memoryAcl": {
    "rules": [
      {
        "agent": "customer-service",
        "allow": ["read", "write"],
        "namespaces": ["customer_data", "faq"],
        "restrict": ["personal", "financial"]
      },
      {
        "agent": "analytics",
        "allow": ["read"],
        "namespaces": ["global", "analytics"],
        "anonymize": true
      }
    ]
  }
}
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🛠ī¸ Troubleshooting

7.16 Common Issues

Search Performance Degradation 

# Check index status
openclaw memory status --detailed

# Rebuild index
openclaw memory reindex --force

# Clear cache
openclaw memory cache clear
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Switching Embedding Models 

# Back up existing index
openclaw memory backup --include-vectors

# Switch embedding model
openclaw config set memorySearch.model "text-embedding-3-large"

# Regenerate vectors
openclaw memory reindex --rebuild-vectors
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Corrupted Memory Files 

# Verify file integrity
openclaw memory verify --fix-errors

# Restore from backup
openclaw memory restore --from-backup "2026-02-13"
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📋 Chapter Summary

Key Takeaways

  1. Memory Architecture: Layered storage, vector search, hybrid queries
  2. Data Protection: Privacy redaction, GDPR compliance, encrypted storage
  3. Performance Optimization: Index tuning, caching strategy, distributed storage
  4. Sharing Mechanisms: Cross-Agent memory sharing, access control

Best Practices

  • Structure your memory: Use standardized file naming and content formats
  • Back up regularly: Multi-layer backup strategy with version control
  • Minimize permissions: Assign memory access only as needed
  • Monitor performance: Regularly check search performance and storage usage

🔗 Related Resources:

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