Learn the essential ClawVault workflow: wake, work, capture, sleep. Master session continuity in minutes.

Quick Start

This guide walks you through the essential ClawVault workflow: wake, work, capture, sleep. You'll learn how to survive context death and maintain memory across sessions.

Prerequisites: Make sure you've completed the Installation and have a vault initialized.

The ClawVault Workflow

ClawVault follows a natural session lifecycle that mirrors how humans work:

Wake up - Recover context, check what happened
Work - Store memories as you go, checkpoint frequently
Capture - Quick notes without interrupting flow
Sleep - Handoff to future self with clear next steps

Let's walk through each step.

1. Wake Up (Session Start)

Start every session with wake to restore context:

clawvault wake

Example output:

 ClawVault Wake - Session Recovery

 Last session: 2024-01-15 14:30 (2 hours ago)
 Clean shutdown - no context death detected

Recent Context:
 Decision: Choose database technology (2024-01-15)
 → Decided on PostgreSQL over SQLite for concurrent writes

 Lesson: Context death is survivable (2024-01-14) 
 → Always checkpoint before heavy work

 Last Handoff:
 Working on: ClawVault documentation site
 Next: Deploy to production, add authentication
 Blocked: waiting for API keys from DevOps

Current Projects:
• clawvault-docs - documentation site (active)
• user-auth - authentication system (blocked)

Pending Commitments:
• Demo ClawVault to team (due: 2024-01-16)

The wake command:

Checks for context death (session crashed unexpectedly)
Shows recent observations (structural and potential importance)
Displays your last handoff context
Lists active projects and commitments

2. Work & Store Memories

As you work, store important information by type:

Store Decisions

clawvault remember decision "Use PostgreSQL over SQLite" \
 --content "Need concurrent writes for multi-agent setup. SQLite locks entire DB on writes."

Capture Lessons Learned

clawvault remember lesson "Always checkpoint before risky operations" \
 --content "Lost 2 hours of context when session crashed during database migration"

Track People & Relationships

clawvault remember relationship "Pedro Franceschi" \
 --content "CTO at Versatly, prefers async communication, available 9-5 PT"

Document Projects

clawvault remember project "ClawVault Documentation" \
 --content "Starlight-based docs site. Deploy to Vercel. Theme: navy/gold."

Quick Inbox Capture

For quick thoughts without interrupting flow:

clawvault capture "TODO: Add rate limiting to API endpoints"
clawvault capture "Bug: search not working with special characters"
clawvault capture "Idea: auto-generate templates from usage patterns"

3. Checkpoint Frequently

During heavy work sessions, checkpoint your state every 10-15 minutes:

clawvault checkpoint \
 --working-on "Building documentation site with Starlight" \
 --focus "Setting up sidebar navigation and content structure" \
 --blocked "Need to decide on deployment strategy"

This protects against context death and helps with recovery.

4. Search Your Memories

Find information quickly using keyword or semantic search:

# Keyword search (fast)
clawvault search "PostgreSQL decision"

# Semantic search (slower, more accurate) 
clawvault vsearch "what did we decide about the database"

# Filter by category
clawvault search "Pedro" -c people

Example search output:

 Found 3 results for "PostgreSQL decision"

 decisions/database-technology.md
 Use PostgreSQL over SQLite
 → Need concurrent writes for multi-agent setup...
 
 lessons/checkpoint-before-migration.md 
 Always checkpoint before risky operations
 → Lost context during PostgreSQL migration...

 people/pedro-franceschi.md
 Pedro Franceschi - CTO
 → Recommended PostgreSQL for scaling...

5. Sleep (Session End)

End your session with a handoff to your future self:

clawvault sleep "Built documentation site structure and content" \
 --next "Deploy to Vercel, add authentication" \
 --blocked "Waiting for API keys from DevOps team" \
 --decisions "Chose Starlight over Docusaurus for better Astro integration" \
 --feeling "Productive, good progress on docs"

The sleep command:

Creates a handoff record for next session
Tags important decisions made this session
Documents blockers clearly
Captures your mental state and momentum
Clears any death detection flags

Advanced Workflows

Context Profiles

Get context tailored for specific situations:

# Planning mode - strategic context
clawvault context --profile planning "Q1 roadmap review"

# Incident mode - recent issues, blockers 
clawvault context --profile incident "API outage investigation"

# Handoff mode - session transition context
clawvault context --profile handoff "passing project to teammate"

# Auto mode - infers profile from prompt
clawvault context --profile auto "production deployment failed"

Wiki-Links & Knowledge Graph

Connect entities with wiki-links:

clawvault remember decision "Deploy ClawVault to [[vercel]]" \
 --content "[[pedro-franceschi]] recommended Vercel for [[clawvault-docs]] deployment"

View your knowledge graph:

clawvault graph

Observational Memory

Automatically compress session transcripts:

# One-shot compression
clawvault observe --compress session-transcript.md

# Watch mode (advanced)
clawvault observe --watch ./sessions/

Example Session

Here's a complete example session:

# Start session
clawvault wake

# Work and capture 
clawvault remember decision "Use Vercel for deployment" --content "Zero config, great DX"
clawvault capture "TODO: Add custom domain setup docs"
clawvault checkpoint --working-on "deployment setup" --focus "Vercel integration"

# Search when needed
clawvault vsearch "deployment decisions"

# End session
clawvault sleep "Completed Vercel deployment setup" \
 --next "Add custom domain configuration" \
 --decisions "Use Vercel for zero-config deployment"

Best Practices

** Always wake** - Start every session with clawvault wake
** Store by type** - Use remember <type> for structured storage
** Checkpoint often** - Every 10-15 minutes during heavy work
** Search first** - Don't reload entire files, search for what you need
** Sleep clean** - End with clear handoffs using clawvault sleep
** Link everything** - Use [[wiki-links]] to connect concepts
** Capture fast** - Use capture for quick thoughts without interruption

What's Next?

You've learned the core workflow! Now explore:

Memory Types - Deep dive into structured storage
Commands Reference - Complete command documentation
OpenClaw Integration - Automatic session management
Advanced Features - Power user techniques

Quick Start

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