Agent Self-Recovery

~/.openclaw/skill-state/agent-self-recovery/state.yaml

Signs You're Stuck

• Tried the same approach 3+ times with the same result
• Making changes that feel random rather than targeted
• Lost track of the original goal
• Taking longer than expected on a 'simple' step

Recovery Protocol

Step 1: Stop

Step 2: Write State

• what_trying

  : what were you trying to do?

• what_tried

  : append this latest approach to the list

• loop_type

  : name the pattern (see Step 3)

• attempts

  : increment by 1

• status: recovering

• started_at

  : current timestamp (first time only)

Step 3: Name the Loop

loop_type

• same-fix-variations

  — trying the same fix with minor changes

• cascading-dependencies

  — each fix reveals a new dependency

• unclear-error

  — unclear what the actual error is

• lost-goal

  — lost track of original requirement

Step 4: Break the Loop

loop_type: unclear-error

loop_type: lost-goal

status: escalated

status: escalated

Step 5: Resume with a New Approach

last_approach

what_tried

status: recovered