claw-migrate - OpenClaw Backup & Restore Guide

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

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🎯 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.

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📁 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)

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🔄 Path 2: Restore

Restore from Backup

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

Restore Steps

1. Stop OpenClaw (if running) bash openclaw gateway stop

2. Extract Backup bash tar -xzf your-backup.tar.gz -C /workspace/projects/workspace/

3. Verify Files bash ls -la /workspace/projects/workspace/

4. Re-pair Channels (required) bash openclaw pairing

5. Restart OpenClaw bash 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)

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📤 Path 3: Share to ClawTalent

Prepare for Sharing

1. Sanitize Sensitive Info bash # Remove .env, credentials, etc. rm -rf .env credentials/ identity/ devices/

2. Create Manifest json { "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"] }

3. Upload to GitHub bash git add . git commit -m "Share OpenClaw config" git push origin main

Share via ClawTalent Platform

Visit: https://clawtalent.shop

1. Create account
2. Upload sanitized config
3. Get CT-XXXX ID
4. Share ID with others

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🔍 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

1. Check OpenClaw version compatibility
2. Review skills list
3. Check agent configurations
4. Verify no sensitive data included

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🔐 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)

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📋 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

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🆘 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/

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📚 Resources

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

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📄 License

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