OpenClaw Tutorial Series

A comprehensive guide to mastering OpenClaw — from basic gateway setup to advanced multi-agent architectures with sophisticated memory systems.

Who This Is For

Single-user operators wanting to understand the platform deeply
Developers transitioning from single-user to multi-user deployments
Power users building custom agents, skills, and plugins

Learning Path

Foundation (Start Here)

Module	Topic	Time	Key Outcome
01	Gateway Fundamentals	30 min	Running gateway with Telegram
02	Session Management	45 min	Multi-user safe configuration

Core Systems

Module	Topic	Time	Key Outcome
03	Memory Systems	90 min	Hybrid search + curation workflow
04	Sub-Agents	45 min	Task delegation patterns

Extension

Module	Topic	Time	Key Outcome
05	Skills & Plugins	60 min	Custom capabilities

Module	Topic	Time	Key Outcome
06	Group Chat Handling	45 min	Multi-user chat etiquette + access control
07	Farcaster Setup	60 min	Decentralized social integration

Quick Reference

Essential Files

~/.openclaw/
├── openclaw.json          # Main configuration (JSON5)
├── workspace/             # Default agent workspace
│   ├── MEMORY.md          # Long-term curated memory
│   └── memory/            # Daily logs (YYYY-MM-DD.md)
├── agents/                # Per-agent directories
│   └── <agentId>/
│       ├── sessions/      # Session transcripts
│       └── agent/         # Agent-specific config
└── memory/                # Vector index storage
    └── <agentId>.sqlite   # Embeddings database

Key Config Patterns

// ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
{
  // Gateway basics
  gateway: { port: 18789 },
  
  // CRITICAL for multi-user: isolate sessions by sender
  session: { dmScope: "per-channel-peer" },
  
  // Telegram channel
  channels: {
    telegram: {
      enabled: true,
      botToken: "YOUR_TOKEN",
      dmPolicy: "pairing",
    },
  },
  
  // Memory search with hybrid (vector + keyword)
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      memorySearch: {
        provider: "gemini",
        query: {
          hybrid: {
            enabled: true,
            vectorWeight: 0.7,
            textWeight: 0.3,
          },
        },
      },
    },
  },
}

CLI Essentials

# Start gateway
openclaw gateway

# Check status
openclaw status

# Telegram pairing
openclaw pairing list telegram
openclaw pairing approve telegram <CODE>

# View logs
openclaw logs --follow

# Configuration validation
openclaw doctor
openclaw doctor --fix

Module Summaries

Module 1: Gateway Fundamentals

Learn to install, configure, and run the OpenClaw gateway with Telegram integration.

Topics: Installation, configuration (JSON5), Telegram bot setup, essential CLI commands

Module 2: Session Management

Understand session isolation — critical for transitioning from single-user to multi-user deployments.

Topics: Session keys, dmScope setting, migration patterns, security considerations

Module 3: Memory Systems

Deep dive into OpenClaw’s memory architecture — from markdown files to vector search to hybrid retrieval.

Topics: Memory files, vector embeddings, hybrid search, MMR, temporal decay, QMD backend, memory curation workflow

Module 4: Sub-Agents

Learn to delegate tasks to specialized sub-agents for complex workflows.

Topics: sessions_spawn, orchestrator patterns, specialized workers

Module 5: Skills & Plugins

Extend OpenClaw with custom instructions (skills) or new capabilities (plugins).

Topics: SKILL.md format, MCP plugins, decision framework, Coach case study

Module 6: Group Chat Handling

Navigate multi-user conversations with grace — when to participate, when to stay silent, and how to enforce access control.

Topics: Participation principles, response triggers, access control patterns, multi-agent groups

Module 7: Farcaster Setup

Integrate your agents with Farcaster, the decentralized social protocol, using the Neynar API.

Topics: Neynar API setup, posting casts/threads, reading feeds, engagement workflows

Prerequisites

Node.js 20+ (22+ recommended)
A Telegram account (for channel setup)
API key for at least one LLM provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, etc.)
Optional: API key for embeddings (Gemini, OpenAI, Voyage, or local GGUF model)

Resources

Built with care for the OpenClaw community