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Dory Memory

File-based memory system for AI agents that forget between sessions.

Rating
4 (289 reviews)
Downloads
2,737 downloads
Version
1.0.0

Overview

File-based memory system for AI agents that forget between sessions.

Complete Documentation

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Dory-Proof Memory System

AI agents forget everything between sessions. This skill implements a file-based memory system that survives context resets.

Core Principle

Text > Brain. Write everything down. Files are memory. The agent only "remembers" what's on disk.

The Dory-Proof Pattern (Critical)

When the user gives a task:

  • IMMEDIATELY write their EXACT WORDS to state/ACTIVE.md
  • Then interpret what it means
  • Then do the work
  • Mark complete when done
Why: Paraphrasing introduces drift. Exact words preserve intent across context flushes.

Workspace Structure

text
workspace/
├── AGENTS.md        # Operating rules (system file, don't rename)
├── SOUL.md          # Identity + personality
├── USER.md          # About the human
├── MEMORY.md        # Curated long-term memory (<10KB)
├── LESSONS.md       # "Never again" safety rules
├── TOOLS.md         # Tool-specific notes
│
├── state/           # Active state (check every session)
│   ├── ACTIVE.md    # Current task (exact user words)
│   ├── HOLD.md      # Blocked items (check before acting!)
│   ├── STAGING.md   # Drafts awaiting approval
│   └── DECISIONS.md # Recent choices with timestamps
│
├── memory/          # Historical
│   ├── YYYY-MM-DD.md
│   ├── recent-work.md
│   └── archive/
│
└── ops/             # Operational
    └── WORKSPACE-INDEX.md

Boot Sequence (Every Session)

  • Read state/HOLD.md — what's BLOCKED
  • Read state/ACTIVE.md — current task
  • Read state/DECISIONS.md — recent choices
  • Read memory/recent-work.md — last 48 hours
  • Read MEMORY.md — long-term (main session only)
Output status line after boot:
text
📋 Boot: ACTIVE=[task] | HOLD=[n] items | STAGING=[n] drafts

State File Formats

state/ACTIVE.md

markdown
## Current Instruction
**User said:** "[exact quote]"
**Interpretation:** [what you think it means]
**Status:**
- [ ] Step 1
- [ ] Step 2

state/HOLD.md

markdown
[YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM | session] Item — reason blocked
ALL agents must check before acting on anything that looks ready.

state/DECISIONS.md

markdown
[YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM | session] Decision made

Conflict Resolution

When files conflict, priority (highest first):

  • state/HOLD.md — blocks override all
  • state/ACTIVE.md — current instruction
  • state/DECISIONS.md — recent choices
  • AGENTS.md — general rules

Memory Scoring (Before Saving to MEMORY.md)

Score on 4 axes (0–3 each):

Axis0123
LongevityGone tomorrowWeeksMonthsYears+
ReuseOne-offOccasionalFrequentEvery session
ImpactTrivialNice to knowChanges outputsChanges decisions
UniquenessObviousSlightly helpfulHard to rederiveImpossible without
Save if: Total ≥ 8, OR any axis = 3 AND total ≥ 6.

Quick Setup

Copy template files from assets/templates/ to your workspace:

bash
cp -r skills/dory-memory/assets/templates/* ~/.openclaw/workspace/

Then customize SOUL.md and USER.md for your agent.

References

  • references/IMPLEMENTATION-GUIDE.md — Full setup walkthrough
  • references/ANTI-PATTERNS.md — Common mistakes to avoid

Installation

Terminal bash 

openclaw install dory-memory
Copied!

💻Code Examples

└── WORKSPACE-INDEX.md

--workspace-indexmd.txt
## Boot Sequence (Every Session)

1. Read `state/HOLD.md` — what's BLOCKED
2. Read `state/ACTIVE.md` — current task
3. Read `state/DECISIONS.md` — recent choices
4. Read `memory/recent-work.md` — last 48 hours
5. Read `MEMORY.md` — long-term (main session only)

Output status line after boot:

📋 Boot: ACTIVE=[task] | HOLD=[n] items | STAGING=[n] drafts

-boot-activetask--holdn-items--stagingn-drafts.txt
## State File Formats

### state/ACTIVE.md

[YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM | session] Item — reason blocked

yyyy-mm-dd-hhmm--session-item--reason-blocked.txt
**ALL agents must check before acting on anything that looks ready.**

### state/DECISIONS.md

[YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM | session] Decision made

yyyy-mm-dd-hhmm--session-decision-made.txt
## Conflict Resolution

When files conflict, priority (highest first):
1. **state/HOLD.md** — blocks override all
2. **state/ACTIVE.md** — current instruction
3. **state/DECISIONS.md** — recent choices
4. **AGENTS.md** — general rules

## Memory Scoring (Before Saving to MEMORY.md)

Score on 4 axes (0–3 each):

| Axis | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|------|---|---|---|---|
| Longevity | Gone tomorrow | Weeks | Months | Years+ |
| Reuse | One-off | Occasional | Frequent | Every session |
| Impact | Trivial | Nice to know | Changes outputs | Changes decisions |
| Uniqueness | Obvious | Slightly helpful | Hard to rederive | Impossible without |

**Save if:** Total ≥ 8, OR any axis = 3 AND total ≥ 6.

## Quick Setup

Copy template files from `assets/templates/` to your workspace:
example.txt
workspace/
├── AGENTS.md        # Operating rules (system file, don't rename)
├── SOUL.md          # Identity + personality
├── USER.md          # About the human
├── MEMORY.md        # Curated long-term memory (<10KB)
├── LESSONS.md       # "Never again" safety rules
├── TOOLS.md         # Tool-specific notes
│
├── state/           # Active state (check every session)
│   ├── ACTIVE.md    # Current task (exact user words)
│   ├── HOLD.md      # Blocked items (check before acting!)
│   ├── STAGING.md   # Drafts awaiting approval
│   └── DECISIONS.md # Recent choices with timestamps
│
├── memory/          # Historical
│   ├── YYYY-MM-DD.md
│   ├── recent-work.md
│   └── archive/
│
└── ops/             # Operational
    └── WORKSPACE-INDEX.md
example.md
## Current Instruction
**User said:** "[exact quote]"
**Interpretation:** [what you think it means]
**Status:**
- [ ] Step 1
- [ ] Step 2

Tags

#web_and-frontend-development

Quick Info

Category Development
Model Claude 3.5
Complexity Multi-Agent
Author justinhartbiz
Last Updated 3/10/2026
🚀
Optimized for
Claude 3.5
🧠

Ready to Install?

Get started with this skill in seconds

openclaw install dory-memory

Resources

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