Config Validation

openclaw.json Configuration Validation

Validate openclaw.json against the official OpenClaw documentation and check for latest features, deprecated settings, and optimal configurations.

Official Documentation Sources

When validating configuration, fetch the latest information using the docs-research skill — it holds the tool-priority ladder (Firecrawl → Exa → Perplexity → Jina → context7 → WebFetch) and the canonical OpenClaw documentation URL map (docs site, source/changelog, skills examples).

Always verify against official docs before recommending changes. OpenClaw evolves — features may be added or deprecated.

Validation Checklist

1. Structure Validation

Verify top-level sections exist and are well-formed:

{
  "agents": { ... },        // Required
  "channels": { ... },      // At least one channel needed
  "tools": { ... },         // Recommended
  "plugins": { ... },       // Optional
  "session": { ... }        // Optional
}

2. agents.defaults

3. agents.defaults.heartbeat

4. agents.defaults.compaction

5. agents.list[]

6. channels.*

For each configured channel (telegram, discord, whatsapp):

7. tools

8. plugins

9. session

Cross-Validation with Workspace Files

Feature Freshness Check

After fetching latest docs, check for:

1. New config fields not present in current config 2. Deprecated fields that should be migrated 3. New channel types available but not configured 4. New tool profiles or options 5. New compaction strategies or memory features 6. Model updates — newer models available

Validation Report Template

# openclaw.json Validation Report

## Config Summary
- Model: [primary model]
- Channels: [list of enabled channels]
- Tools profile: [profile]
- Heartbeat: [interval] with [model]

## Validation Results

### CRITICAL
- [ ] [Issue + recommendation]

### HIGH
- [ ] [Issue + recommendation]

### MEDIUM
- [ ] [Issue + recommendation]

### LOW / Suggestions
- [ ] [Optional improvement]

## Cross-Validation
- [ ] USER.md ↔ allowFrom: [match/mismatch]
- [ ] HEARTBEAT.md ↔ heartbeat config: [aligned/misaligned]
- [ ] AGENTS.md ↔ group configs: [covered/missing]

## Feature Freshness
- [ ] Current version features: [all used / N missing]
- [ ] Deprecated settings: [none / list]
- [ ] Recommended additions: [list]

Best Practices

1. Always validate after editing openclaw.json 2. Run openclaw doctor --fix after changes (Docker multi-instance: openclaw-{name} doctor --fix) 3. Check official docs for latest features quarterly 4. Keep model names current — use provider/model format (e.g. anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-20250514) 5. Use allowlist dmPolicy in production 6. Enable loopDetection for stability 7. Set heartbeat to a cheap model, configure heartbeat.target 8. Match userTimezone to primary user's location 9. Verify agent.skipBootstrap path (singular agent, NOT agents.defaults.skipBootstrap) 10. Cron jobs are managed via CLI, config only has cron.enabled