Troubleshooting OpenClaw: A Minimalist Reset Method

OpenClaw Reset Procedure for Unstable Setups

When OpenClaw setups become unstable—with skills burning tokens, agents reporting false completions, or updates breaking connections—a complete reset to minimal configuration can identify the root cause. This approach isolates problems by removing complexity.

Five-Step Reset Process

Step 1: Remove All Skills (60 seconds)

Move all skills to backup to eliminate common instability sources like silent loops, token burning, context injection, config overwrites, or malware:

mkdir ~/.openclaw/skills-backup
mv ~/.openclaw/agents/*/skills/* ~/.openclaw/skills-backup/

This preserves skills for later restoration while testing the core agent functionality.

Step 2: Switch to Claude Sonnet (30 seconds)

Change the AI model configuration to eliminate model-related issues:

{
  "ai": {
    "model": "claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929"
  }
}

Sonnet is recommended as cheap, reliable, and consistent with tool calling. If your setup works with Sonnet but not with Opus, GPT-5.4, or local models, the model was the problem.

Step 3: Clear Sessions (15 seconds)

Remove potentially corrupted conversation history:

rm -rf ~/.openclaw/agents/*/sessions/*

This doesn't affect SOUL.md, memory, USER.md, or permanent configurations—only session data that can corrupt after updates or model switches.

Step 4: Simplify SOUL.md (60 seconds)

Check your current SOUL.md and replace with a minimal version if needed:

cat ~/.openclaw/agents/*/SOUL.md

Replace with this 5-line version:

be direct. no filler. match my tone.
if I ask a question, answer it first.
never say "absolutely", "great question", or "I'd be happy to."
if you don't know something, say so.
if a task will cost significant tokens, tell me before doing it.

Add more instructions gradually based on what annoys you over the next week.

Step 5: Restart and Test (30 seconds)

Restart OpenClaw and send a basic message:

openclaw stop
openclaw start

Test with simple queries like "what day is it?" or "summarize this article" with a URL. If it responds correctly without weird behavior, your core works. Problems came from what you removed. Add components back one at a time, testing after each addition.

Why This Works

Most OpenClaw setups accumulate skills, agents, crons, model switches, and config tweaks until one component causes collapse. Since everything was added simultaneously, identifying the problematic piece becomes impossible. Stripping to minimal configuration and rebuilding incrementally creates stable setups.

After implementing this reset, one user reported a stable setup with one agent, Sonnet, and four skills (web search, daily briefing, note-taker, and a custom Python script for email triage) costing under $10/month and running without issues for over four weeks.