OpenClaw Agent Workflow Skill

A lightweight task-tracking protocol for OpenClaw agents handling multi-step work. Eliminates silent failures and opaque state by requiring structured status reports at every transition.

Workflow States

State	Meaning
`planned`	Task accepted by main agent, not yet dispatched
`dispatching`	Main agent has sent task to worker; awaiting `accepted` confirmation
`in_progress`	Worker confirmed receipt AND has begun work (evidence required)
`blocked`	Worker cannot proceed; main agent must intervene
`reviewing`	Worker reports done; main agent is verifying output
`done`	Main agent has verified output and reported to user

Evidence Rules

State upgrades MUST be backed by evidence. Spawning alone does not count.

Transition	Required Evidence
`dispatching` → `in_progress`	Worker sends `accepted` report with first action taken
`in_progress` → `reviewing`	Worker sends `done` report with concrete output (file path, result, diff, etc.)
`reviewing` → `done`	Main agent has read/verified the output artifact
`*` → `blocked`	Worker sends `blocked` report with specific blocker description

Rule: Never write "task is in_progress" in a user-facing update unless the worker has sent an accepted report.

Timeout Rules

Launch timeout: If a worker does not send an accepted report within 10 minutes of dispatch, treat the task as a launch failure.
Milestone timeout: If a worker is in_progress and sends no update (milestone or done) for 10 minutes, escalate to blocked.
Recovery: On timeout, main agent must either re-dispatch or report failure to user. Never silently wait.

Worker Report Protocol

Workers report back to the main agent using this structured format. All fields are required.

On `accepted`

status:   accepted
summary:  <one sentence: what I understand the task to be>
evidence: <first concrete action taken, e.g. "read file X", "found 3 candidates">
risk:     <none | low | medium | high> — <brief reason if not none>
next:     <what I will do next>

On `milestone`

status:   milestone
summary:  <what was just completed>
evidence: <artifact or output, e.g. file written, test passed, result found>
risk:     <none | low | medium | high> — <brief reason if not none>
next:     <what remains>

On `blocked`

status:   blocked
summary:  <what I was trying to do>
evidence: <specific error, missing input, or ambiguity causing the block>
risk:     high — blocked task cannot proceed
next:     <what main agent needs to do to unblock>

On `done`

status:   done
summary:  <what was accomplished>
evidence: <final artifact: file path, output, test result, etc.>
risk:     <none | low | medium | high> — <brief reason if not none>
next:     none

Main Agent Report Protocol

Main agent reports to the user at these moments:

After dispatching (transition to dispatching)
After receiving accepted (transition to in_progress)
After each milestone from a worker
After verifying output (transition to done)
Immediately on blocked or timeout

Report Format

who:    <worker name or task ID>
status: <dispatching | in_progress | milestone | blocked | done>
output: <what has been produced so far, or "none yet">
next:   <what happens next, or "task complete">

Timing Rules

Do NOT wait silently. Every state change → one report to user.
Do NOT batch multiple state changes into one delayed report.
If nothing has changed for 5 minutes during in_progress, send a heartbeat to user.

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