claw-migrate - OpenClaw Backup & Restore Guide

Simple & Safe: No code, no automation, just clear instructions

🎯 What Is This?

claw-migrate is a pure guidance skill - no installation needed, no code to run.

Just follow the instructions below to backup and restore your OpenClaw workspace.

📁 Path 1: Backup

Quick Backup (Recommended)

# Backup core files only (fast)
tar -czf openclaw-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S).tar.gz \
  -C /workspace/projects/workspace \
  AGENTS.md SOUL.md IDENTITY.md USER.md TOOLS.md HEARTBEAT.md \
  memory/ .learnings/ docs/ scripts/ templates/

Full Backup (Include Skills)

# Backup everything including skills
tar -czf openclaw-full-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S).tar.gz \
  -C /workspace/projects/workspace \
  AGENTS.md SOUL.md IDENTITY.md USER.md TOOLS.md HEARTBEAT.md \
  memory/ .learnings/ docs/ scripts/ templates/ skills/ agents/

What to Backup ✅

| Category | Files | Backup? | |----------|-------|---------| | Core Config | AGENTS.md, SOUL.md, IDENTITY.md, USER.md | ✅ Yes | | Tools | TOOLS.md, HEARTBEAT.md | ✅ Yes | | Memory | memory/.md | ✅ Yes | | Learnings | .learnings/.md | ✅ Yes | | Docs | docs/ | ✅ Yes | | Scripts | scripts/ | ✅ Yes | | Templates | templates/ | ✅ Yes | | Skills | skills/ | ⚠️ Optional (large) | | Agents | agents/ | ⚠️ Optional |

What NOT to Backup ❌

| Files | Reason | |-------|--------| | .env | Contains API keys | | openclaw.json | Contains secrets | | credentials/ | Pairing tokens | | identity/ | Device auth | | devices/ | Paired devices | | feishu/ | Channel config | | browser/ | Browser data (large) |

🔄 Path 2: Restore

Restore from Backup

# Extract backup to workspace
tar -xzf openclaw-backup-YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.tar.gz \
  -C /workspace/projects/workspace/

Restore Steps

Stop OpenClaw (if running)
```
openclaw gateway stop
```

Extract Backup

tar -xzf your-backup.tar.gz -C /workspace/projects/workspace/

Verify Files
```
ls -la /workspace/projects/workspace/
```
Re-pair Channels (required)
```
openclaw pairing
```
Restart OpenClaw
```
openclaw gateway restart
```

Restore Notes ⚠️

| Item | Action | |------|--------| | API Keys | Re-add to .env | | Channel Pairing | Re-pair all channels | | Device Auth | Re-authenticate devices | | Memory Files | Merged automatically | | Skills | Preserved (no re-install needed) |

📤 Path 3: Share to ClawTalent

Prepare for Sharing

Sanitize Sensitive Info

# Remove .env, credentials, etc.
rm -rf .env credentials/ identity/ devices/

Create Manifest

{
  "name": "my-openclaw-config",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "My OpenClaw workspace config",
  "openclaw_version": "2026.3.13",
  "skills": ["coze-web-search", "agent-browser"],
  "agents": ["main", "life", "work"]
}

Upload to GitHub

git add .
git commit -m "Share OpenClaw config"
git push origin main

Share via ClawTalent Platform

Visit: https://clawtalent.shop

Create account
Upload sanitized config
Get CT-XXXX ID
Share ID with others

🔍 Path 4: Discover Configs

Browse ClawTalent

Visit: https://clawtalent.shop

Search for:

Multi-agent setups
Specific skills
Industry templates

Deploy from ClawTalent

# Get config from CT-XXXX ID
git clone https://github.com/hanxueyuan/clawtalent-CT-XXXX.git
cd clawtalent-CT-XXXX
tar -xzf config.tar.gz -C /workspace/projects/workspace/

Verify Before Deploy

Check OpenClaw version compatibility
Review skills list
Check agent configurations
Verify no sensitive data included

🔐 Security Best Practices

Always ✅

Store backups in private GitHub repos
Use environment variables for API keys
Re-pair channels after restore
Sanitize before sharing

Never ❌

Share .env files
Commit API keys to Git
Share pairing tokens
Backup browser data (privacy)

📋 Quick Reference

Backup Commands

# Quick backup (core files only)
tar -czf backup.tar.gz -C /workspace/projects/workspace \
  AGENTS.md SOUL.md memory/ .learnings/

# Full backup (include skills)
tar -czf full-backup.tar.gz -C /workspace/projects/workspace \
  AGENTS.md SOUL.md memory/ .learnings/ skills/ agents/

Restore Commands

# Extract backup
tar -xzf backup.tar.gz -C /workspace/projects/workspace/

# Verify
ls -la /workspace/projects/workspace/

Storage Options

| Option | Command | |--------|---------| | Local | cp backup.tar.gz ~/backups/ | | GitHub | git push origin main | | Cloud | Upload to Google Drive / Dropbox |

🆘 Troubleshooting

"Permission denied"

# Fix permissions
chmod -R 755 /workspace/projects/workspace/
chmod 600 /workspace/projects/workspace/.env

"Missing files after restore"

Check .gitignore - some files are excluded from backup by design.

"Channel not working after restore"

Re-pair channels:

openclaw pairing

"Skills not found"

Skills are in skills/ directory. Verify:

ls /workspace/projects/workspace/skills/

📚 Resources

GitHub: https://github.com/hanxueyuan/claw-migrate
ClawTalent: https://clawtalent.shop
OpenClaw Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai

📄 License

MIT License - Free to use and share (but sanitize first!)