[Use Case Name]

Category: [Daily Automation / Content / Infrastructure / Development] Example Model: [cheap / balanced / strong / local] Updated: [YYYY-MM-DD] Source: [Original / Community contribution / External URL] Ownership note: [Personal runbook example / Community-contributed showcase / External project review]

Use this template for automations that have been tested manually. Replace every bracketed placeholder before running the job.

Quick Start

1. Prerequisites

[Tool or plugin] configured
[Channel] configured and allowlisted
Provider auth profile set up, if this job needs an API model
Secrets stored outside the published config

2. Add The Cron Job

Use the CLI:

openclaw cron add \
  --name "[use-case-name]" \
  --cron "[minute] [hour] * * *" \
  --timezone "[TIMEZONE]" \
  --session isolated \
  --message "[PROMPT_TEXT]"

Replace:

[use-case-name] with a short job name.
[minute] [hour] with the cron expression.
[TIMEZONE] with a real timezone such as America/Los_Angeles.
[PROMPT_TEXT] with the prompt below.

3. Prompt

[Paste your complete prompt here.]

Requirements:
1. [What to check]
2. [What to produce]
3. [Where to deliver]
4. [What to skip]

Return HEARTBEAT_OK if nothing needs attention.

4. Test

openclaw cron list
openclaw cron run <job-id> --wait
openclaw tasks list

Watch the output. Fix the prompt before enabling repeated runs.

What This Does

Problem: [One concrete sentence.]

Solution: [One concrete sentence.]

Configuration Notes

Schedule Examples

Schedule	Cron
Daily at 7 AM	`0 7 * * *`
Weekdays at 9 AM	`0 9 * * 1-5`
Sunday at 8 AM	`0 8 * * 0`
Every six hours	`0 /6 * *`

Model Selection

Task Type	Suggested Tier
Status check	cheap
Normal research	balanced
Public writing	strong
Private local processing	local

Use model IDs from your own agents.defaults.models; do not copy provider names from an example unless they exist in your config.

Delivery Options

Telegram:

Deliver the result to Telegram chat [CHAT_ID].

Email:

Save a draft email to [DESTINATION]. Do not send it without approval.

Task ledger:

Create or update OpenClaw tasks for each actionable item.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Likely Cause	Fix
Job does not run	Disabled cron or wrong timezone	Check `openclaw cron list`
Wrong model	Job inherits defaults	Set an explicit agent/model path
Missing data	Tool or channel not configured	Check plugin/channel config
Too much output	Prompt too broad	Add limits and skip rules
Repeated noise	No no-op signal	Tell it to return `HEARTBEAT_OK`

Lessons Learned

What Worked Well

[Technique that was effective]
[Prompt constraint that improved output]
[Operational habit that made this reliable]

What Did Not Work

[Approach you abandoned]
[Source that was too noisy]
[Schedule that created too much output]

Gotchas To Watch For

[Rate limits, timing issues, channel formatting, stale data, or auth failures]
[Anything that made the automation look correct while silently failing]

Variations

Alternative schedule: [Brief description]

Different delivery channel: [Brief description]

Read-only mode: [Brief description]

Security Notes

No hardcoded secrets.
No public dashboard requirement.
Confirm destructive commands.
Keep remote access through Tailscale or an allowlisted messaging channel.
Treat ClawHub as inspiration only; rebuild local skills before use.

Changelog

[YYYY-MM-DD] - Initial version by [author]
[YYYY-MM-DD] - [Change description]