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Quick Start Guide

Get your first evolution session running in 5 minutes.

Prerequisites

# 1. Install OpenClaw
npm install -g openclaw@latest

# 2. Verify installation
openclaw --version
# Should show: openclaw/2026.2.x or later

Step 1: Clone & Setup (1 minute)

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/your-org/openclaw-evolution-framework.git
cd openclaw-evolution-framework

# Create your config from the example
cp evolution-config.example.yaml evolution-config.yaml

Step 2: Customize Your Config (2 minutes)

Edit evolution-config.yaml:

# Minimal config for first run
themes:
  - name: "Domain Expertise"
    description: "Explore your domain knowledge"
    weight: 40
  
  - name: "Free Exploration"
    description: "Follow curiosity"
    weight: 30
  
  - name: "Practical Application"
    description: "Build something useful"
    weight: 30

safety:
  max_duration_hours: 2  # Start with 2 hours
  interval_minutes: 10   # 10 min between rounds
  
  night_mode:
    enabled: false  # Disable for first test

output:
  directory: "memory/evolution"

That's it! Keep the rest as default.

Step 3: Add the Cron Job (1 minute)

# Add the evolution cron job
openclaw cron add --file cron-evolution-job.json

# Verify it's added
openclaw cron list
# You should see: evolution-fast-loop

Step 4: Start Your First Session (1 minute)

# Trigger immediately (don't wait for schedule)
openclaw cron run evolution-fast-loop

# Watch the logs (in another terminal)
tail -f ~/.openclaw/agents/main/sessions/*.jsonl

What Happens Next?

  1. First round starts (~8-10 minutes)

    • Agent selects a theme
    • Explores deeply
    • Saves insights to memory/evolution/round-01-*.md

  2. Auto-triggers next round

    • Every 10 minutes (or your configured interval)
    • Continues until 2 hours (or your max_duration)

  3. Stops automatically

    • Generates summary report
    • Saves to memory/evolution/FINAL-REPORT-*.md

Check Your Results

# List all exploration rounds
ls -la memory/evolution/

# Read the first round
cat memory/evolution/round-01-*.md

# View the summary (after session completes)
cat memory/evolution/summary-*.md

Common Issues

"Evolution doesn't start"

Check:

# 1. Verify cron job is enabled
openclaw cron list

# 2. Check recent logs
openclaw cron runs evolution-fast-loop --limit 5

# 3. Manually trigger to see errors
openclaw cron run evolution-fast-loop

"No output files created"

Fix:

# Create output directory
mkdir -p memory/evolution

# Check permissions
chmod 755 memory/evolution

"API key errors"

Solution:

Next Steps

Once your first session completes:

  1. Review the output

    • Read memory/evolution/round-*.md files
    • Check the summary report

  2. Customize themes

    • Edit evolution-config.yaml
    • Add your specific exploration areas

  3. Add safety features

    • Enable HITL checkpoints
    • Configure night mode
    • Set custom stop conditions

  4. Run longer sessions

    • Increase max_duration_hours
    • Try overnight runs (8-10 hours)

Example: Overnight Run

For a full overnight evolution session:

# evolution-config.yaml

safety:
  max_duration_hours: 10
  interval_minutes: 8
  
  night_mode:
    enabled: true
    quiet_hours: "23:00-07:00"
    silent_delivery: true
  
  hitl_checkpoints:
    - round: 20
      pause: true
      message: "20 rounds complete. Continue?"

Then start before bed:

openclaw cron run evolution-fast-loop

Wake up to 40-60 rounds of deep exploration! ☀️

Getting Help

Ready to evolve? 🌳

Run this now:

openclaw cron run evolution-fast-loop