Signal Dreaming
by @lzyling
Signal-driven memory consolidation for OpenClaw agents. Automatically consolidates recent session logs into long-term memory using recall frequency signals f...
clawhub install signal-dreamingπ About This Skill
name: signal-dreaming description: Signal-driven memory consolidation for OpenClaw agents. Automatically consolidates recent session logs into long-term memory using recall frequency signals from memory/.dreams/short-term-recall.json β content that has been searched more often gets prioritized. Runs in three safe phases (Sense/Consolidate/Settle) with a human-readable dream diary. Use when setting up automated memory maintenance, running a manual "dream" consolidation pass, or upgrading from date-ordered log processing to signal-aware prioritization.
Memory Dreaming
Signal-aware memory consolidation in three phases. Instead of processing logs by date order, this skill reads memory/.dreams/short-term-recall.json (maintained automatically by OpenClaw's memory-core) to find what's been most frequently recalled β then prioritizes consolidating those entries into long-term topic files.
Memory Architecture Assumed
This skill expects a two-layer memory layout:
memory/YYYY-MM-DD*.md) β raw session notes, never deletedmemory/.md ) β curated, durable knowledge on a specific subject (e.g. memory/clash-verge.md, memory/business.md). Created manually or by the dream agent when new topics emerge.MEMORY.md) β high-level status overview with pointers to L2 filesIf you are starting fresh, create at least MEMORY.md and memory/dream-log.md before the first dream run. L2 files are created on demand.
Quick Start
Manual dream (run once)
Tell your agent:
> "Run a memory dream consolidation. Follow the protocol in
Or simply: *"ηηεδΈͺζ’¦"* / *"run a dream consolidation"* β if this skill is loaded, the agent will know what to do.
Automated daily dream (cron)
Set up an isolated agentTurn cron that runs while your human is asleep:
{
"name": "daily-dream",
"schedule": { "kind": "cron", "expr": "0 7 * * *", "tz": "" },
"sessionTarget": "isolated",
"payload": {
"kind": "agentTurn",
"timeoutSeconds": 900,
"message": "Run a memory dream consolidation. Find and read references/dream-protocol.md inside the signal-dreaming skill (check your skillDirs; common locations: skills/signal-dreaming/ or ~/.openclaw/skills/signal-dreaming/). Workspace root: . End your final response with a one-line dream summary β the cron delivery mechanism will auto-announce it."
},
"delivery": { "mode": "announce", "channel": "", "to": "" }
}
Adjust expr and tz to match when your human sleeps.
How the Signal Works
OpenClaw's memory-core maintains memory/.dreams/short-term-recall.json automatically. Every memory_search call updates this file with:
recallCount β how many times a snippet was returned in resultstotalScore β weighted composite (relevance Γ frequency Γ query diversity Γ recency)queryHashes β distinct queries that surfaced this snippet (diversity signal)recallDays β days the snippet was activeThe dream protocol reads totalScore to rank candidates. Snippets with totalScore > 0.8 from multiple distinct queries are strong promotion candidates.
Three-Phase Safety Model
| Phase | Writes | Purpose | |-------|--------|---------| | Sense | β None | Read recall signals + scan recent logs | | Consolidate | β L2 files only | Promote high-value content to topic files | | Settle | β MEMORY.md + dream-log.md | Trim index, write diary entry |
Phase 1 is always read-only. An error in Sense never corrupts files.
Quality Gates
The full protocol includes a read-only planning checkpoint before writes:
memory/ to /.backup/memory-dreams/YYYYMMDD-HHMM/ .bak suffix before modification; MEMORY.md is backed up there too before rewrite.references/dream-audit.sh for the common lightweight sanity checks; it is not full DLP.Compatibility with OpenClaw 2026.4.15+
OpenClaw 2026.4.15 changed the built-in memory-core Dreaming default from inline to separate mode. This is a different system from this skill:
| | memory-core built-in Dreaming | signal-dreaming (this skill) |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Heartbeat (automated) | Cron agentTurn |
| Output | DREAMS.md / memory/dreaming/{phase}/ | memory/dream-log.md + L2 files |
| Signal source | Internal | memory/.dreams/short-term-recall.json |
These two systems are independent. You can use this skill whether or not built-in Dreaming is enabled.
If you use both:
separate mode (default in 2026.4.15+). This keeps memory/YYYY-MM-DD*.md clean so this skill sees only real session notes.inline mode, the protocol will skip ## Light Sleep / ## REM Sleep phase blocks when scanning daily logs.Key Rules
memory/YYYY-MM-DD*.md) β archiving breaks memory_search indexing/.backup/memory-dreams/YYYYMMDD-HHMM/MEMORY.md.bak memory/, with .bak suffix, before editing existing topic filesFull Protocol
See references/dream-protocol.md for the complete three-phase workflow, scoring thresholds, dream-log format, and safety mechanisms.
π‘ Examples
Manual dream (run once)
Tell your agent:
> "Run a memory dream consolidation. Follow the protocol in
Or simply: *"ηηεδΈͺζ’¦"* / *"run a dream consolidation"* β if this skill is loaded, the agent will know what to do.
Automated daily dream (cron)
Set up an isolated agentTurn cron that runs while your human is asleep:
{
"name": "daily-dream",
"schedule": { "kind": "cron", "expr": "0 7 * * *", "tz": "" },
"sessionTarget": "isolated",
"payload": {
"kind": "agentTurn",
"timeoutSeconds": 900,
"message": "Run a memory dream consolidation. Find and read references/dream-protocol.md inside the signal-dreaming skill (check your skillDirs; common locations: skills/signal-dreaming/ or ~/.openclaw/skills/signal-dreaming/). Workspace root: . End your final response with a one-line dream summary β the cron delivery mechanism will auto-announce it."
},
"delivery": { "mode": "announce", "channel": "", "to": "" }
}
Adjust expr and tz to match when your human sleeps.