home / skills / petekp / agent-skills / openclaw-customizer

openclaw-customizer skill

/skills/openclaw-customizer

This skill helps you configure and customize OpenClaw deployments, writing bootstrap files, configuring channels, and building creative automation patterns.

This is most likely a fork of the openclaw-customizer skill from petekp
npx playbooks add skill petekp/agent-skills --skill openclaw-customizer

Review the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.

Files (8)
SKILL.md
4.4 KB
---
name: openclaw-customizer
description: >
  Expert guide for configuring, customizing, and creatively leveraging OpenClaw — the self-hosted AI gateway
  that connects LLMs to messaging channels (Telegram, WhatsApp, Discord, Slack, iMessage, etc.).
  Use when the user wants to: (1) Set up or modify their openclaw.json configuration, (2) Write or edit
  bootstrap files (SOUL.md, USER.md, AGENTS.md, IDENTITY.md, TOOLS.md), (3) Configure messaging channels,
  (4) Set up models and providers, (5) Create multi-agent routing, (6) Build skills, hooks, or cron jobs,
  (7) Troubleshoot OpenClaw issues, (8) Get creative ideas for leveraging OpenClaw in non-obvious ways.
  Triggers on: openclaw, gateway, SOUL.md, USER.md, AGENTS.md, IDENTITY.md, channels setup, agent routing,
  heartbeat, cron jobs, openclaw hooks, openclaw skills, openclaw config, openclaw.json, personal assistant setup.
---

# OpenClaw Customizer

Help the user configure, customize, and creatively leverage their OpenClaw instance.

## Approach

Be imaginative and inventive. OpenClaw is a flexible system — suggest non-obvious combinations
of features that solve real problems. Think beyond basic chat: cron jobs, multi-agent routing,
hooks, channel-specific personas, memory pipelines, and automation patterns.

When the user asks about a specific area, load the relevant reference file before responding.

## Reference Files

Load these on demand based on what the user needs:

| Topic | File | When to load |
|-------|------|-------------|
| Config schema & settings | [references/configuration.md](references/configuration.md) | Editing openclaw.json, any config question |
| Bootstrap files | [references/bootstrap-files.md](references/bootstrap-files.md) | SOUL.md, USER.md, AGENTS.md, IDENTITY.md, TOOLS.md |
| Channel setup | [references/channels.md](references/channels.md) | Any messaging channel (Telegram, WhatsApp, Discord, Slack, iMessage, etc.) |
| Models & providers | [references/models-providers.md](references/models-providers.md) | Model selection, provider config, failover, auth |
| Tools, skills, hooks, cron | [references/tools-skills-hooks.md](references/tools-skills-hooks.md) | Tool policy, skills, hooks, cron jobs, memory system |
| Multi-agent routing | [references/multi-agent.md](references/multi-agent.md) | Multiple agents, routing, bindings, isolation |
| Creative patterns | [references/creative-patterns.md](references/creative-patterns.md) | Ideas, inspiration, non-obvious uses, advanced patterns |

## Workflow

1. **Understand what the user wants to customize** — ask clarifying questions if needed
2. **Load the relevant reference(s)** — read the specific file(s) for the topic at hand
3. **Propose changes** — show the exact JSON5 config or markdown content to add/modify
4. **Explain the "why"** — help the user understand what each setting does and why you chose it
5. **Suggest adjacent improvements** — if you see an opportunity to make their setup better, mention it

## Key File Locations

- Config: `~/.openclaw/openclaw.json`
- Workspace: `~/.openclaw/workspace/` (or `~/.openclaw/workspace-<agentId>/`)
- Bootstrap: `SOUL.md`, `USER.md`, `AGENTS.md`, `IDENTITY.md`, `TOOLS.md` in workspace root
- Skills: `~/.openclaw/skills/` (shared) or `<workspace>/skills/` (per-agent)
- Hooks: `~/.openclaw/hooks/` (shared) or `<workspace>/hooks/` (per-agent)
- Memory: `<workspace>/memory/YYYY-MM-DD.md` (daily), `<workspace>/MEMORY.md` (long-term)
- Sessions: `~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/sessions/`
- Logs: `/tmp/openclaw/openclaw-YYYY-MM-DD.log`
- Cron: `~/.openclaw/cron/jobs.json`

## Live Documentation

For anything not covered in the reference files, fetch from the OpenClaw docs:
- Docs index: `https://docs.openclaw.ai/llms.txt`
- Getting started: `https://docs.openclaw.ai/start/getting-started`
- Configuration: `https://docs.openclaw.ai/gateway/configuration.md`
- Configuration examples: `https://docs.openclaw.ai/gateway/configuration-examples.md`

## Guidelines

- Always show concrete JSON5 snippets or markdown content — not just descriptions
- Use JSON5 format (comments and trailing commas are OK in openclaw.json)
- When suggesting SOUL.md or USER.md content, tailor it to what you know about the user
- Suggest `openclaw doctor` when troubleshooting
- Remind about `allowFrom` security — never suggest `open` DM policy without a warning
- For multi-agent setups, emphasize workspace isolation and credential separation
- When suggesting cron jobs, always include timezone awareness

Overview

This skill guides you through configuring, customizing, and creatively leveraging OpenClaw — the self-hosted AI gateway that connects LLMs to messaging channels. It helps edit openclaw.json, author bootstrap files (SOUL.md, USER.md, AGENTS.md, IDENTITY.md, TOOLS.md), set up channels, build multi-agent routing, and create skills/hooks/cron jobs with concrete examples.

How this skill works

I inspect the relevant workspace and config files (openclaw.json, workspace bootstrap files, skills, hooks, cron jobs) and propose concrete JSON5 or markdown edits you can paste. For troubleshooting I recommend running openclaw doctor and point to logs (/tmp/openclaw/openclaw-YYYY-MM-DD.log). I always include why each change is needed and adjacent improvements like failover providers or memory pipelines.

When to use it

  • Setting up or modifying ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json or per-agent configs
  • Writing or improving SOUL.md, USER.md, AGENTS.md, IDENTITY.md, TOOLS.md bootstraps
  • Connecting or debugging messaging channels (Telegram, WhatsApp, Discord, Slack, iMessage)
  • Designing multi-agent routing, bindings, and workspace isolation
  • Creating skills, hooks, cron jobs, or automated pipelines
  • Troubleshooting errors, authentication, or model/provider failover

Best practices

  • Always provide a JSON5 snippet for openclaw.json edits; include comments explaining keys
  • Keep agent workspaces isolated and separate credentials per workspace to avoid cross-agent leaks
  • Use allowFrom policies — never set an open DM policy without explicit warning and reasons
  • Include timezone in cron jobs and show sample job entry (e.g., timezone: 'UTC')
  • Add a lightweight heartbeat hook for routing health checks and provider failover

Example use cases

  • Multi-channel personal assistant: route Telegram for notifications, Slack for team tasks, and iMessage for personal DMs using per-channel personas
  • Cron-driven daily digest: cron job reads workspace MEMORY.md, summarizes events, and posts to Discord at 09:00 America/New_York
  • Provider failover: primary LLM provider with a secondary fallback and automatic retries in openclaw.json
  • Skill + hook automation: skill extracts calendar events, hook triggers reminder messages via WhatsApp
  • Creative pipeline: agent A produces research notes, agent B refines them into publish-ready summaries and posts to Slack

FAQ

How do I safely open a channel for webhooks?

Use allowFrom to restrict origins, enable signature verification if supported, and test with openclaw doctor before going live.

What should I include in SOUL.md?

Write concise mission, persona, and high-level capabilities. Provide example prompts and constraints. I can draft a tailored SOUL.md for your use case.