OpenClaw runs work in the background through tasks, scheduled jobs, inferred commitments, event hooks, and standing instructions. Use this page to pick the right mechanism.

Quick decision guide

flowchart TD
    START([What do you need?]) --> Q1{Schedule work?}
    START --> Q2{Track detached work?}
    START --> Q3{Orchestrate multi-step flows?}
    START --> Q4{React to lifecycle events?}
    START --> Q5{Give the agent persistent instructions?}
    START --> Q6{Remember a natural follow-up?}

    Q1 -->|Yes| Q1a{Exact timing or flexible?}
    Q1a -->|Exact| CRON["Scheduled Tasks (Cron)"]
    Q1a -->|Flexible| HEARTBEAT[Heartbeat]

    Q2 -->|Yes| TASKS[Background Tasks]
    Q3 -->|Yes| FLOW[Task Flow]
    Q4 -->|Yes| HOOKS[Hooks]
    Q5 -->|Yes| SO[Standing Orders]
    Q6 -->|Yes| COMMITMENTS[Inferred Commitments]

Scheduled Tasks (Cron) vs Heartbeat

Use Scheduled Tasks (Cron) when you need precise timing or isolated execution. Use Heartbeat when the work benefits from full session context and approximate timing is fine.

Core concepts

Scheduled tasks (cron)

Cron is the Gateway's built-in scheduler for precise timing. It persists jobs, wakes the agent at the right time, and can deliver output to a chat channel or webhook endpoint. Supports one-shot reminders, recurring expressions, and inbound webhook triggers.

See Scheduled Tasks.

Tasks

The background task ledger tracks all detached work: ACP runs, subagent spawns, isolated cron executions, and CLI operations. Tasks are records, not schedulers. Use openclaw tasks list and openclaw tasks audit to inspect them.

See Background Tasks.

Inferred commitments

Commitments are opt-in, short-lived follow-up memories. OpenClaw infers them from normal conversations, scopes them to the same agent and channel, and delivers due check-ins through heartbeat. Exact user-requested reminders still belong to cron.

See Inferred Commitments.

Task Flow

Task Flow is the flow orchestration substrate above background tasks. It manages durable multi-step flows with managed and mirrored sync modes, revision tracking, and openclaw tasks flow list|show|cancel for inspection.

See Task Flow.

Standing orders

Standing orders grant the agent permanent operating authority for defined programs. They live in workspace files (typically AGENTS.md) and are injected into every session. Combine with cron for time-based enforcement.

See Standing Orders.

Hooks

Internal hooks are event-driven scripts triggered by agent lifecycle events (/new, /reset, /stop), session compaction, gateway startup, and message flow. They are discovered from hook directories and managed with openclaw hooks. For in-process tool-call interception, use Plugin hooks.

See Hooks.

Heartbeat

Heartbeat is a periodic main-session turn (default every 30 minutes). It batches multiple checks (inbox, calendar, notifications) in one agent turn with full session context. Heartbeat turns do not create task records and do not extend daily/idle session reset freshness. Use HEARTBEAT.md for a small checklist, or a tasks: block when you want due-only periodic checks inside heartbeat itself. Empty heartbeat files skip as empty-heartbeat-file; due-only task mode skips as no-tasks-due. Heartbeats defer while cron work is active or queued, and heartbeat.skipWhenBusy can also defer an agent while that same agent's session-keyed subagent or nested lanes are busy.

See Heartbeat.

How they work together

• Cron handles precise schedules (daily reports, weekly reviews) and one-shot reminders. All cron executions create task records.
• Heartbeat handles routine monitoring (inbox, calendar, notifications) in one batched turn every 30 minutes.
• Hooks react to specific events (session resets, compaction, message flow) with custom scripts. Plugin hooks cover tool calls.
• Standing orders give the agent persistent context and authority boundaries.
• Task Flow coordinates multi-step flows above individual tasks.
• Tasks automatically track all detached work so you can inspect and audit it.

Related

• Scheduled Tasks — precise scheduling and one-shot reminders
• Inferred Commitments — memory-like follow-up check-ins
• Background Tasks — task ledger for all detached work
• Task Flow — durable multi-step flow orchestration
• Hooks — event-driven lifecycle scripts
• Plugin hooks — in-process tool, prompt, message, and lifecycle hooks
• Standing Orders — persistent agent instructions
• Heartbeat — periodic main-session turns
• Configuration Reference — all config keys

Source: docs/automation/index.md