OpenClaw Dream

Automatic memory consolidation — turn scattered daily notes into clean, organized long-term memory.

Overview

Memory files accumulate noise over time: relative dates lose meaning, contradictory entries confuse the agent, duplicates waste context, and stale information causes hallucinations. Dream fixes this by running a structured consolidation pass.

When to Run

• - Manual: User says "dream", "整理记忆", "consolidate memory"
• Cron: Schedule via openclaw cron add for daily execution (recommended: 3-4 AM)
• Heartbeat: Add to HEARTBEAT.md as a periodic task (every 3-5 days)
• Condition check: Only run if memory/.last_dream is older than 24h AND new daily notes exist since last dream

Execution

Always run as a sub-agent to avoid blocking the main session:

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For manual triggers in the main session, spawn the sub-agent, reply to user "开始整理记忆，稍后汇报结果", then yield.

Four-Phase Consolidation

Phase 1: Scan

1. 1. Read MEMORY.md — note current line count, section headers, last-updated date
2. Read all memory/YYYY-MM-DD.md files from the last 14 days
3. Read memory/self-improving/*.jsonl if it exists (error/correction/best_practice/decision logs)
4. Read .last_dream timestamp to know what's already been processed
5. Build a mental map: what topics exist, what's fresh, what's stale

Phase 2: Analyze

Scan all content for these problems:

Relative dates — Find phrases like "yesterday", "today", "last week", "recently", "刚才", "昨天", "上周". Cross-reference with the file's date to compute the absolute date.

Contradictions — Same topic with conflicting conclusions across different files. Examples:

• - "API uses Express" in one file, "migrated to Fastify" in another
• Different pricing numbers for the same product on different dates

Duplicates — Same fact recorded in multiple daily notes. Example:

• - Three different files all note the same build command or deployment step

Stale entries — Information about things that no longer exist:

• - References to deleted files or deprecated APIs
• Completed tasks still marked as "in progress"
• Resolved issues still listed as open

Unprocessed JSONL patterns — High-frequency errors or corrections in self-improving logs that should become rules in MEMORY.md

Important events not yet in MEMORY.md — Significant decisions, lessons, or changes in daily notes that deserve long-term retention

Phase 3: Consolidate

Execute fixes in this order:

1. 1. Date absolutization: Replace relative dates with absolute dates

- "Yesterday we decided X" (in 2026-03-15.md) → "2026-03-14: decided X" - Preserve the original meaning; only change the date reference

1. 2. Contradiction resolution: Keep the most recent entry, remove or mark the old one

- Add [superseded by YYYY-MM-DD] to the old entry if in a daily note - In MEMORY.md, simply update to the latest fact

1. 3. Duplicate merging: Consolidate into one canonical entry

- Keep the most complete/detailed version - Note the date range if relevant ("first noted YYYY-MM-DD")

1. 4. Stale cleanup: Remove or archive entries about things that no longer exist

- Mark completed projects as done with completion date - Remove references to deleted files/configs

1. 5. JSONL distillation: Extract patterns from self-improving logs

- Errors appearing ≥2 times → add rule to MEMORY.md "经验教训" section - Important decisions → add to appropriate MEMORY.md section - Update memory/self-improving/.last_distill timestamp

1. 6. Daily notes → MEMORY.md promotion: Identify significant items worth keeping long-term

- Major decisions, architectural changes, new integrations - People/relationships updates - Lessons learned - Do NOT promote routine operational logs

Phase 4: Write

1. 1. Update MEMORY.md:

- Apply all changes from Phase 3 - Keep total line count under 250 lines (warn if approaching) - Update the *最后更新* date at the bottom - Preserve existing section structure (don't reorganize unless necessary)

1. 2. Rebuild vector index:

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1. 3. Generate dream log at memory/dream-log-YYYY-MM-DD.md:

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1. 4. Update timestamp:

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Safety Rules

• - Never delete daily note files — only modify MEMORY.md and generate dream-log
• Never modify source code, configs, or non-memory files
• Preserve all 📌 pinned entries in MEMORY.md (lines starting with 📌 are never removed)
• When uncertain about a contradiction, keep both entries and flag in dream-log as "needs human review"
• Dream-log is append-only — never modify past dream logs

Configuration

Users can create DREAM.md in workspace root to customize behavior:

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If DREAM.md doesn't exist, use defaults above.

Cron Setup Example

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