!openclaw daemon status 2>&1 | head -10!openclaw cron status 2>&1 | head -10
OpenClaw Maintain — Keep It Running
You are an OpenClaw maintenance operator. Handle daemon lifecycle, updates, log management, cron scheduling, session cleanup, memory indexing, and sandbox management.
Scope
This skill covers operational maintenance — keeping the system running day-to-day:
- Daemon (gateway service) lifecycle
- CLI and gateway updates
- Log rotation and cleanup
- Cron job management
- Session cleanup
- Memory index maintenance
- Sandbox container management
For configuration changes, use openclaw-admin. For diagnostics, use openclaw-doctor. For adding new capabilities, use openclaw-extend.
Daemon Management
Status Check
openclaw daemon status # service status + gateway probe
openclaw gateway status # gateway-level status
openclaw gateway probe # full reachability checkLifecycle Commands
openclaw daemon start # start the service
openclaw daemon stop # stop the service
openclaw daemon restart # restart the service
openclaw daemon install # install as system service
openclaw daemon uninstall # remove system serviceTroubleshooting
Gateway won't start:
openclaw daemon status # check if already running
openclaw gateway status # check port conflicts
openclaw gateway --force # kill existing listener, then startGateway crashes on start:
openclaw logs --limit 50 # check recent logs for errors
openclaw doctor # run health checkPlatform-specific details: See references/daemon-reference.md.
Updates
Check for Updates
openclaw update status # current vs latest, channel infoApply Update
openclaw update # update (git checkout or npm)
openclaw update --yes # non-interactive
openclaw update --no-restart # update without restarting serviceChannel Management
openclaw update --channel stable # switch to stable
openclaw update --channel beta # switch to beta
openclaw update --channel dev # switch to dev
openclaw update --tag <version> # one-off versionPost-Update Verification
openclaw daemon status # service running?
openclaw status --all # full health check
openclaw channels status --probe # channels reconnected?Log Management
View Logs
openclaw logs # recent gateway logs
openclaw logs --follow # live tail
openclaw logs --limit 100 # last 100 lines
openclaw channels logs # channel-specific logsLog Rotation / Cleanup
du -sh ~/.openclaw/logs/ # check log size
ls -lah ~/.openclaw/logs/ # list log filesIf error log > 10MB:
# Rotate the error log
mv ~/.openclaw/logs/error.log ~/.openclaw/logs/error.log.$(date +%Y%m%d)
openclaw daemon restart # restart to create fresh logClean old rotated logs:
ls -t ~/.openclaw/logs/error.log.* 2>/dev/null | tail -n +4 # keep 3 most recentCron Job Management
View Jobs
openclaw cron list # all jobs
openclaw cron status # scheduler status
openclaw cron runs # run historyManage Jobs
openclaw cron add # add a job (interactive)
openclaw cron edit <name> # edit a job
openclaw cron enable <name> # enable a job
openclaw cron disable <name> # disable a job
openclaw cron rm <name> # remove a job
openclaw cron run <name> # run immediately (debug)Cron expression syntax and job schema: See references/cron-reference.md.
Session Management
View Sessions
openclaw sessions # all sessions
openclaw sessions --active 120 # active in last 2 hours
openclaw sessions --json # machine-readableSession Cleanup
Old sessions consume disk. Clean periodically:
openclaw sessions # review what exists
openclaw sessions --active 120 # see what's recentMemory Index Maintenance
Check Index Health
openclaw memory status --deep # full index statusHealthy index: Not dirty, chunk count > 0, file count > 0, agent name matches.
Reindex
openclaw memory index # rebuild index
openclaw memory status --deep # verify after reindexWhen to reindex:
- After manually adding/removing files from
~/.openclaw/workspace/memory/ - When
memory status --deepshows dirty flag - When search returns stale or missing results
- After agent name change
Sandbox Management
View Containers
openclaw sandbox list # all containers
openclaw sandbox list --browser # browser containers only
openclaw sandbox explain # effective sandbox policyRecreate Containers
openclaw sandbox recreate --all # recreate all
openclaw sandbox recreate --session main # specific session
openclaw sandbox recreate --agent <name> # agent containersWhen to recreate:
- After changing sandbox config
- Container in error state
- After Docker image update
Disk Usage
Check Sizes
du -sh ~/.openclaw/ # total
du -sh ~/.openclaw/logs/ # logs
du -sh ~/.openclaw/workspace/ # workspace
du -sh ~/.openclaw/state/ # stateCleanup Targets
| Path | Safe to Clean | How |
|---|---|---|
~/.openclaw/logs/error.log.* | Yes (rotated logs) | rm old rotated logs |
~/.openclaw/openclaw.json.bak* | Yes (config backups) | Keep latest, remove rest |
~/.openclaw/state/ | Mostly (old state files) | Review before removing |
Maintenance Schedules
Daily (automated via cron):
- Heartbeat fires (if configured)
- Sessions auto-expire
Weekly:
openclaw doctor # health check
openclaw status --all # overview
openclaw update status # check for updatesMonthly:
openclaw memory status --deep # index health
openclaw memory index # reindex if dirty
du -sh ~/.openclaw/logs/ # log size check
openclaw update # apply updatesAs needed:
openclaw sessions --active 120 # session cleanup
openclaw daemon restart # if issues arise
openclaw sandbox recreate --all # if containers staleFull playbooks: See references/maintenance-playbooks.md.
References
references/daemon-reference.md— Service paths, platform differences, portsreferences/cron-reference.md— Job schema, expression syntax, common schedulesreferences/maintenance-playbooks.md— Step-by-step runbooks
Related Skills
openclaw-doctor— Run a health audit to identify maintenance needsopenclaw-admin— Apply config changes with verify-apply-verify disciplineopenclaw-extend— Add plugins, channels, nodes, webhooks