devclaw-gitea/docs/TOOLS.md

DevClaw — Tools Reference

Complete reference for all 11 tools registered by DevClaw. See index.ts for registration.

Worker Lifecycle

work_start

Pick up a task from the issue queue. Handles level assignment, label transition, session creation/reuse, task dispatch, and audit logging — all in one call.

Source: lib/tools/work-start.ts

Context: Only works in project group chats.

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
issueId	number	No	Issue ID. If omitted, picks next by priority.
role	"dev" | "qa"	No	Worker role. Auto-detected from issue label if omitted.
projectGroupId	string	No	Project group ID. Auto-detected from group context.
level	string	No	Developer level (junior, medior, senior, reviewer). Auto-detected if omitted.

What it does atomically:

1. Resolves project from projects.json
2. Validates no active worker for this role
3. Fetches issue from tracker, verifies correct label state
4. Assigns level (LLM-chosen via level param → label detection → keyword heuristic fallback)
5. Resolves level to model ID via config or defaults
6. Loads prompt instructions from projects/roles/<project>/<role>.md
7. Looks up existing session for assigned level (session-per-level)
8. Transitions label (e.g. To Do → Doing)
9. Creates session via Gateway RPC if new (sessions.patch)
10. Dispatches task to worker session via CLI (openclaw gateway call agent)
11. Updates projects.json state (active, issueId, level, session key)
12. Writes audit log entries (work_start + model_selection)
13. Sends notification
14. Returns announcement text

Level selection priority:

1. level parameter (LLM-selected) — highest priority
2. Issue label (e.g. a label named "junior" or "senior")
3. Keyword heuristic from model-selector.ts — fallback

Execution guards:

• Rejects if role already has an active worker
• Respects roleExecution (sequential: rejects if other role is active)

On failure: Rolls back label transition. No orphaned state.

---

work_finish

Complete a task with a result. Called by workers (DEV/QA sub-agent sessions) directly, or by the orchestrator.

Source: lib/tools/work-finish.ts

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
role	"dev" | "qa"	Yes	Worker role
result	string	Yes	Completion result (see table below)
projectGroupId	string	Yes	Project group ID
summary	string	No	Brief summary for the announcement
prUrl	string	No	PR/MR URL (auto-detected if omitted)

Valid results by role:

Role	Result	Label transition	Side effects
DEV	"done"	Doing → To Test	git pull, auto-detect PR URL
DEV	"blocked"	Doing → To Do	Task returns to queue
QA	"pass"	Testing → Done	Issue closed
QA	"fail"	Testing → To Improve	Issue reopened
QA	"refine"	Testing → Refining	Awaits human decision
QA	"blocked"	Testing → To Test	Task returns to QA queue

What it does atomically:

1. Validates role:result combination
2. Resolves project and active worker
3. Executes completion via pipeline service (label transition + side effects)
4. Deactivates worker (sessions map preserved for reuse)
5. Sends notification
6. Ticks queue to fill free worker slots
7. Writes audit log

Scheduling: After completion, work_finish ticks the queue. The scheduler sees the new label (To Test or To Improve) and dispatches the next worker if a slot is free.

---

Task Management

task_create

Create a new issue in the project's issue tracker.

Source: lib/tools/task-create.ts

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	Yes	Project group ID
title	string	Yes	Issue title
description	string	No	Full issue body (markdown)
label	StateLabel	No	State label. Defaults to "Planning".
assignees	string[]	No	GitHub/GitLab usernames to assign
pickup	boolean	No	If true, immediately pick up for DEV after creation

Use cases:

• Orchestrator creates tasks from chat messages
• Workers file follow-up bugs discovered during development
• Breaking down epics into smaller tasks

Default behavior: Creates issues in "Planning" state. Only use "To Do" when the user explicitly requests immediate work.

---

task_update

Change an issue's state label manually without going through the full pickup/complete flow.

Source: lib/tools/task-update.ts

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	Yes	Project group ID
issueId	number	Yes	Issue ID to update
state	StateLabel	Yes	New state label
reason	string	No	Audit log reason for the change

Valid states: Planning, To Do, Doing, To Test, Testing, Done, To Improve, Refining

Use cases:

• Manual state adjustments (e.g. Planning → To Do after approval)
• Failed auto-transitions that need correction
• Bulk state changes by orchestrator

---

task_comment

Add a comment to an issue for feedback, notes, or discussion.

Source: lib/tools/task-comment.ts

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	Yes	Project group ID
issueId	number	Yes	Issue ID to comment on
body	string	Yes	Comment body (markdown)
authorRole	"dev" | "qa" | "orchestrator"	No	Attribution role prefix

Use cases:

• QA adds review feedback before pass/fail decision
• DEV posts implementation notes or progress updates
• Orchestrator adds summary comments

When authorRole is provided, the comment is prefixed with a role emoji and attribution label.

---

Operations

status

Lightweight queue + worker state dashboard.

Source: lib/tools/status.ts

Context: Auto-filters to project in group chats. Shows all projects in DMs.

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	No	Filter to specific project. Omit for all.

Returns per project:

• Worker state: active/idle, current issue, level, start time
• Queue counts: To Do, To Test, To Improve
• Role execution mode

---

health

Worker health scan with optional auto-fix.

Source: lib/tools/health.ts

Context: Auto-filters to project in group chats.

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	No	Filter to specific project. Omit for all.
fix	boolean	No	Apply fixes for detected issues. Default: false (read-only).
activeSessions	string[]	No	Active session IDs for zombie detection.

Health checks:

Issue	Severity	Detection	Auto-fix
Active worker with no session key	Critical	active=true but no session in map	Deactivate worker
Active worker whose session is dead	Critical	Session key not in active sessions list	Deactivate worker, revert label
Worker active >2 hours	Warning	startTime older than 2h	Deactivate worker, revert label to queue
Inactive worker with lingering issue ID	Warning	active=false but issueId still set	Clear issueId

---

work_heartbeat

Manual trigger for heartbeat: health fix + queue dispatch. Same logic as the background heartbeat service, but invoked on demand.

Source: lib/tools/work-heartbeat.ts

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	No	Target single project. Omit for all.
dryRun	boolean	No	Report only, don't dispatch. Default: false.
maxPickups	number	No	Max worker dispatches per tick.
activeSessions	string[]	No	Active session IDs for zombie detection.

Two-pass sweep:

1. Health pass — Runs checkWorkerHealth per project per role. Auto-fixes zombies, stale workers, orphaned state.
2. Tick pass — Calls projectTick per project. Fills free worker slots by priority (To Improve > To Test > To Do).

Execution guards:

• projectExecution: "sequential" — only one project active at a time
• roleExecution: "sequential" — only one role (DEV or QA) active at a time per project (enforced in projectTick)

---

Setup

project_register

One-time project setup. Creates state labels, scaffolds prompt files, adds project to state.

Source: lib/tools/project-register.ts

Context: Only works in the Telegram/WhatsApp group being registered.

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
projectGroupId	string	No	Auto-detected from current group if omitted
name	string	Yes	Short project name (e.g. my-webapp)
repo	string	Yes	Path to git repo (e.g. ~/git/my-project)
groupName	string	No	Display name. Defaults to Project: {name}.
baseBranch	string	Yes	Base branch for development
deployBranch	string	No	Deploy branch. Defaults to baseBranch.
deployUrl	string	No	Deployment URL
roleExecution	"parallel" | "sequential"	No	DEV/QA parallelism. Default: "parallel".

What it does atomically:

1. Validates project not already registered
2. Resolves repo path, auto-detects GitHub/GitLab from git remote
3. Verifies provider health (CLI installed and authenticated)
4. Creates all 8 state labels (idempotent — safe to run again)
5. Adds project entry to projects.json with empty worker state
   • DEV sessions: { junior: null, medior: null, senior: null }
   • QA sessions: { reviewer: null, tester: null }
6. Scaffolds prompt files: projects/roles/<project>/dev.md and qa.md
7. Writes audit log

---

setup

Agent + workspace initialization.

Source: lib/tools/setup.ts

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
newAgentName	string	No	Create a new agent. Omit to configure current workspace.
channelBinding	"telegram" | "whatsapp"	No	Channel to bind (with newAgentName only)
migrateFrom	string	No	Agent ID to migrate channel binding from
models	object	No	Model overrides per role and level (see Configuration)
projectExecution	"parallel" | "sequential"	No	Project execution mode

What it does:

1. Creates a new agent or configures existing workspace
2. Optionally binds messaging channel (Telegram/WhatsApp)
3. Optionally migrates channel binding from another agent
4. Writes workspace files: AGENTS.md, HEARTBEAT.md, projects/projects.json
5. Configures model tiers in openclaw.json

---

onboard

Conversational onboarding guide. Returns step-by-step instructions for the agent to walk the user through setup.

Source: lib/tools/onboard.ts

Note: Call this before setup to get step-by-step guidance.

Parameters:

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
mode	"first-run" | "reconfigure"	No	Auto-detected from current state

Flow:

1. Call onboard — returns QA-style step-by-step instructions
2. Agent walks user through: agent selection, channel binding, model tiers
3. Agent calls setup with collected answers
4. User registers projects via project_register in group chats

---

Completion Rules Reference

The pipeline service (lib/services/pipeline.ts) defines declarative completion rules:

dev:done    → Doing    → To Test     (git pull, detect PR)
dev:blocked → Doing    → To Do       (return to queue)
qa:pass     → Testing  → Done        (close issue)
qa:fail     → Testing  → To Improve  (reopen issue)
qa:refine   → Testing  → Refining    (await human decision)
qa:blocked  → Testing  → To Test     (return to QA queue)

Issue Priority Order

When the heartbeat or work_heartbeat fills free worker slots, issues are prioritized:

1. To Improve — QA failures get fixed first (highest priority)
2. To Test — Completed DEV work gets reviewed next
3. To Do — Fresh tasks are picked up last

This ensures the pipeline clears its backlog before starting new work.