OpenClaw Power User Tip: Long-Lived Sessions via Telegram Topics

How one advanced user turned OpenClaw into multiple specialized AIs using focused, persistent Telegram topic workspaces

The Core Idea

Instead of one giant conversation that eventually forgets everything or becomes polluted, this setup uses Telegram forum topics as isolated, long-memory workspaces — each with its own independent, persistent session context.

Result: Deep, evolving knowledge per topic (Knowledge base, Food journal, Video research, Business analysis, etc.) without cross-contamination.

Sessions in OpenClaw – The Basics

  • A session = persistent conversation thread with full context memory (messages, tools, preferences, knowledge…)
  • Sessions are stored on disk (usually ~/.openclaw/agents/.../sessions/ in JSONL format) → survives restarts
  • Default behavior: Daily reset ~4:00 AM local time → new session starts after cutoff to prevent context bloat
  • Good for casual DMs, terrible for long-running topic-based work

How Telegram Topics Become Perfect Workspaces

OpenClaw automatically gives each Telegram chat type its own session scope:

  • DMs → usually one main session (or per-sender)
  • Regular groups → one session per group
  • Forum/supergroup topics → each topic gets its own completely separate session

Power move: Create one private Telegram supergroup, enable Topics (forum mode), and add narrow-purpose topics like:

Knowledge base

Permanent reference & facts

Food journal

Daily tracking & patterns

Video research

Content ideas & sources

Business analysis

Strategy & metrics

Self-improvement

Habits & reflections

Meeting prep

Notes & agendas

The Critical Customization: Disable Daily Reset + Long Expiration

The default daily wipe destroys long-term value. The advanced user changed two things:

  1. Disabled daily auto-reset for thread/topic sessions
  2. Set session expiration to a very long period (e.g. 365 days / 1 year)

Result: Once a topic session starts, it keeps all history and context for months or years (until manually reset or expiration hits lazily on next message).

How to Configure (based on OpenClaw patterns)

  • Edit config: ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json or use openclaw config set
  • Disable global daily reset or override for threads/groups
  • Set long expiration: sessionExpiration: 365 (days) or similar
  • Look for per-type overrides (e.g. resetByType, thread-specific policies)
  • Use /new or /reset in any topic when you want to intentionally clear it

Default vs. Power-User Setup – Quick Comparison

Aspect

Default Behavior

Customized Setup

Daily reset

Yes (~4 AM)

Disabled

Session expiration

Short / daily / idle-based

1 year (365 days)

Telegram topics

Each gets own session

Same + long-lived context

Context lifetime per topic

Resets daily

Builds for months/years

Best for

Casual, short chats

Deep, specialized long-term workflows

Why This Setup Feels Like Magic

  • No context pollution — topics stay laser-focused
  • Evolving memory — agent learns your style deeply over time in each domain
  • Zero re-explanation — just message the right topic
  • Works beautifully with crons, humanizer skill, knowledge drops, etc.

How to Replicate It (4 Steps)

  1. Create a private Telegram supergroup → enable Topics (forum mode)
  2. Add your OpenClaw bot to the group
  3. Configure session policies: long expiration + disable daily reset for threads (see docs.openclaw.ai/concepts/session)
  4. Start creating narrow topics and using them as dedicated workspaces

This single trick turns OpenClaw from a general chat into a collection of domain-specific, long-memory assistants.