How to Enable Hooks in OpenClaw: A Complete Guide to Event-Driven Automation
How to Enable Hooks in OpenClaw: A Complete Guide to Event-Driven Automation
OpenClaw hooks transform your AI coding assistant from a reactive tool into a proactive automation powerhouse. When you enable hooks, you're giving OpenClaw the ability to automatically respond to events like starting a new session, running commands, or processing tool results. This guide walks you through everything you need to know about enabling hooks, from the basic CLI commands to advanced troubleshooting and security considerations.
Quick Answer: Enabling Hooks in 3 Steps
To enable hooks in OpenClaw, first run openclaw hooks list to see available hooks, then execute openclaw hooks enable [hook-name] to activate the specific hook you want, and finally restart your gateway process to load the changes. The entire process takes less than a minute once you know which hooks you need.
What Are OpenClaw Hooks and Why Should You Enable Them?
Think of hooks as tiny automation scripts that wake up when specific events happen in your OpenClaw environment. Unlike webhooks that receive external HTTP requests, hooks are internal event handlers written in TypeScript that run directly within your gateway process.
When you enable hooks, you unlock automation capabilities that would otherwise require manual intervention. For example, the session-memory hook automatically saves your conversation context every time you issue the /new command. Without it, you'd lose that context forever. The command-logger hook creates an audit trail of every command executed, which is invaluable for debugging or compliance requirements.
Hooks operate on an event-driven model. Each hook subscribes to one or more event types—like command:new, gateway:startup, or tool_result_persist. When those events fire, your enabled hooks execute their handler functions. This architecture keeps OpenClaw lightweight while giving you tremendous flexibility to customize behavior.
The real power comes from combining multiple hooks. You might enable session-memory to preserve context, bootstrap-extra-files to inject custom workspace templates, and command-logger for audit trails—all working together seamlessly. For teams managing pull requests and CI pipelines, hooks can even automate GitHub workflow responses when combined with webhook triggers.
Here's why developers enable hooks:
- Automatic context preservation across session resets
- Audit logging for security and compliance
- Custom workspace initialization with project-specific templates
- Event-driven integrations with external tools and services
- Automated notifications when specific conditions occur
- Data transformation before tool results are persisted
The hook system is opt-in by design. OpenClaw comes with several bundled hooks ready to use, but none are active until you explicitly enable them. This gives you full control over which automations run in your environment.
How Do You Enable Hooks in OpenClaw Using the CLI?
The openclaw hooks CLI command is your primary interface for hook management. The enablement process follows a simple discover-enable-restart pattern that works the same for bundled and custom hooks.
Step 1: Verify Hook Discovery
Before enabling any hook, confirm it's been discovered by OpenClaw. Hook discovery runs automatically and scans three locations: the bundled hooks directory (ships with OpenClaw), ~/.openclaw/hooks/ for global hooks, and <workspace>/hooks/ for workspace-specific hooks.
Run this command to see all discovered hooks:
openclaw hooks list
You'll see output showing hook names, their source (bundled, managed, or workspace), and their eligibility status. Eligible hooks have all prerequisites met and can be enabled immediately. Ineligible hooks are missing requirements—maybe a binary isn't in your PATH or an environment variable isn't set.
For detailed information about a specific hook, including its event subscriptions and configuration requirements:
openclaw hooks info session-memory
This command reveals what events trigger the hook, any required binaries or environment variables, and a description of what the hook does.
Step 2: Enable the Hook
Once you've identified an eligible hook, enable it with a single command:
openclaw hooks enable session-memory
This updates your OpenClaw configuration file (typically at ~/.openclaw/config.json) to mark the hook as enabled. The command validates that the hook exists and is eligible before making changes.
You can enable multiple hooks in sequence:
openclaw hooks enable session-memory
openclaw hooks enable command-logger
openclaw hooks enable bootstrap-extra-files
To see what would change without actually modifying your configuration, add the --dry-run flag:
openclaw hooks enable boot-md --dry-run
Step 3: Restart the Gateway
Hook configuration only loads when the gateway starts. After enabling hooks, you must restart the gateway process for changes to take effect.
On macOS with the menu bar app, click the OpenClaw icon and select "Restart Gateway." For development environments or Linux deployments, restart your gateway process directly:
# If running as a service
sudo systemctl restart openclaw-gateway
# If running manually
# Stop the current process (Ctrl+C) and restart it
openclaw gateway start
Check your gateway logs to confirm hooks loaded successfully:
openclaw logs --follow
Look for registration messages like Registered hook: session-memory -> command:new. These confirm your hooks are active and listening for events.
Verification
After restart, verify your hooks are enabled:
openclaw hooks list
Enabled hooks show an "enabled" status indicator. If a hook appears discovered but not enabled after following these steps, double-check your configuration file or review the troubleshooting section below.
The same process works whether you're enabling bundled hooks or custom hooks you've written yourself. OpenClaw treats all discovered hooks identically once they meet eligibility requirements.
What's the Difference Between Bundled Hooks and Custom Hooks?
OpenClaw ships with several pre-built hooks called "bundled hooks," but the hook system is designed for extensibility. Understanding the distinction helps you decide when to use what's available versus building something custom.
Bundled Hooks
These hooks come with OpenClaw and cover common automation needs. They're maintained by the core team, thoroughly tested, and ready to use immediately. The main bundled hooks include:
session-memory: Saves your conversation context to ~/.openclaw/workspace/memory/ when you issue /new. Without this, starting a fresh session means losing all prior context. With it, OpenClaw remembers past decisions and project context across sessions.
command-logger: Creates an audit trail of all command events in ~/.openclaw/logs/commands.log. Each entry timestamps the command, session ID, and associated data. Essential for debugging workflow issues or meeting compliance requirements.
bootstrap-extra-files: Injects additional files into the agent workspace during initialization. Useful for monorepo setups where you need custom AGENTS.md or TOOLS.md files loaded automatically.
boot-md: Executes instructions from a BOOT.md file when the gateway starts. Think of it as a startup script for your OpenClaw environment—you might use it to set environment variables, initialize configurations, or run health checks.
Bundled hooks require no setup beyond enabling them. They handle common scenarios that most users need, and they're good starting points for understanding how hooks work.
Custom Hooks
When bundled hooks don't meet your needs, you can write custom hooks. A custom hook is just a directory containing two files:
- HOOK.md: Metadata file with YAML frontmatter that describes the hook, specifies which events it subscribes to, and declares any requirements
- handler.ts: TypeScript file that exports a default function implementing your automation logic
Custom hooks live in ~/.openclaw/hooks/ (available globally) or <workspace>/hooks/ (workspace-specific). OpenClaw discovers them automatically using the same mechanism as bundled hooks.
You'd create a custom hook when you need to:
- Integrate with internal tools specific to your organization
- Implement business logic that doesn't apply broadly
- Transform data in ways unique to your workflow
- Connect to APIs or services not covered by existing integrations
For example, you might build a custom hook that posts to an internal Slack channel when specific error patterns appear in tool results. Or a hook that validates commit messages against your team's conventions before they're executed.
The development process is straightforward. Create the directory structure, write your HOOK.md metadata, implement your handler function, and enable the hook just like a bundled one. Many teams start by exploring OpenClaw's integration capabilities before deciding what custom hooks to build.
Hook Packs
There's a third category: hook packs. These are collections of hooks distributed as npm packages. They're neither bundled with OpenClaw nor custom to your local environment—they're community-contributed or third-party hooks you install on demand.
Install hook packs with:
openclaw hooks install @openclaw/my-hook-pack
Hook packs can include dependencies, configuration templates, and multiple related hooks that work together. They bridge the gap between bundled and custom: professionally maintained like bundled hooks, but specialized like custom hooks.
Which OpenClaw Hooks Should You Enable First?
Not all hooks are equally useful for all workflows. Enable hooks based on your actual needs rather than turning everything on. Here's a prioritized approach based on common scenarios.
For Individual Developers
Start with session-memory. This is the single most valuable hook for solo developers because it preserves context across sessions. When you're deep in a debugging session and need to start fresh without losing what you've learned, session-memory saves that context automatically.
Add command-logger next if you're working on complex multi-step workflows. The audit trail helps you understand what happened when things go wrong. It's also useful when you're learning OpenClaw's command system and want to review what you've executed.
Consider bootstrap-extra-files if you work in monorepos or have project-specific templates that should load automatically. This eliminates manual setup every time you start working on a project.
For Teams
Enable command-logger first for audit and compliance. Teams need visibility into who ran what commands and when. The centralized log provides that accountability.
Add session-memory so team members can share context when handing off work. One developer can export their session memory, and another can import it to understand the full picture.
Deploy boot-md to standardize team environments. Put shared initialization logic in BOOT.md that runs for everyone when their gateway starts. This ensures consistent configuration across the team.
For teams managing continuous integration, setting up custom RSS alerts alongside hooks can create a complete monitoring solution.
For Production Deployments
Command-logger is mandatory in production for security and compliance. You need to know exactly what automated processes executed.
Session-memory might not be appropriate for production workloads if sessions don't need historical context. Evaluate based on your specific use case.
Custom hooks for monitoring become essential. You'll want hooks that report health metrics, detect anomalies, and alert on-call engineers when thresholds are breached.
Starting Minimal
The best practice is to start with just session-memory and add more hooks only when you hit specific pain points they solve. Enabling too many hooks upfront creates unnecessary complexity. Each hook adds processing overhead and potential failure points.
You can always enable more hooks later. The reverse—disabling hooks that turned out unnecessary—requires cleaning up any data or side effects they created.
How Do You Troubleshoot Hook Enablement Issues?
Even with correct syntax, hooks sometimes fail to enable or don't behave as expected. Here's how to diagnose and fix common problems.
Hook Not Appearing in List
If openclaw hooks list doesn't show a hook you created, the discovery process failed. Check these items:
Verify directory structure. Your hook directory must contain HOOK.md and handler.ts at the root level. Nested deeper won't work.
Validate HOOK.md format. The YAML frontmatter must be properly formatted. A syntax error prevents discovery. Your frontmatter should look like:
---
name: my-custom-hook
description: What this hook does
metadata:
openclaw:
events:
- command:new
---
Check file permissions. OpenClaw needs read access to your hook directory and its files. Run ls -la to verify permissions.
Look in the right location. Global hooks go in ~/.openclaw/hooks/, workspace hooks in <workspace>/hooks/. Make sure you placed your hook in a scanned directory.
Hook Shows as Ineligible
An ineligible hook was discovered but can't be enabled because prerequisites aren't met. Use the verbose flag to see why:
openclaw hooks info my-hook --verbose
Common reasons for ineligibility:
Missing binary in PATH. If your hook requires a specific command-line tool, OpenClaw checks whether it's available before allowing enablement. Install the required binary or update your PATH.
Environment variables not set. Some hooks require configuration via environment variables. Set them in your shell profile or systemd service file.
Configuration paths don't exist. If a hook references a configuration file that doesn't exist, it's marked ineligible. Create the required files or update the hook's requirements.
Fix the underlying issue, then run openclaw hooks check to verify eligibility without enabling.
Hook Enabled But Not Executing
You enabled the hook, restarted the gateway, but the hook isn't running when its event fires.
Confirm it's truly enabled. Run openclaw hooks list and look for an explicit "enabled" marker. Sometimes enable commands fail silently.
Check gateway logs. Look for the registration message when the gateway starts:
openclaw logs --follow | grep "Registered hook"
No registration message means the hook didn't load. Check for TypeScript compilation errors in the logs.
Verify event type matches. Your HOOK.md declares which events trigger the hook. Make sure you're triggering the correct event type. A hook listening for command:new won't fire on gateway:startup.
Look for runtime errors. If the hook loads but fails during execution, errors appear in gateway logs. Read the full stack trace to identify the problem.
Changes Not Taking Effect
You updated a hook's handler code, restarted the gateway, but behavior didn't change.
Cache issues. TypeScript compilation might be cached. Try fully stopping the gateway, clearing any cache directories, then starting fresh.
Multiple gateway instances. If you accidentally have multiple gateway processes running, changes might load in one but you're interacting with another. Verify only one gateway is active.
Wrong hook executing. If you have multiple hooks with similar names, you might be editing one but enabling another. Double-check names exactly.
Performance Issues After Enabling Hooks
If OpenClaw becomes sluggish after enabling hooks, one of your hooks is probably doing expensive work synchronously.
Profile handler execution. Add timing logs to your handler functions to identify slow operations.
Move work to background. If a hook doesn't need to complete before the event finishes, spawn background work instead of blocking.
Disable hooks one by one. Systematically disable hooks until performance improves, identifying which one causes the problem.
What Are the Security Considerations When Enabling Hooks?
Hooks execute arbitrary TypeScript code in your gateway process with full access to your OpenClaw environment. This power requires careful security consideration.
Code Review Requirements
Review bundled hooks before enabling. Even though they're maintained by the core team, you should understand what code runs in your environment. Read the handler.ts file to see exactly what it does.
Scrutinize custom hooks intensely. Any hook you or your team writes needs the same code review rigor as production application code. A malicious or buggy hook can leak sensitive data, corrupt files, or crash your gateway.
Audit hook packs before installation. Third-party hook packs are the highest risk. Don't install hooks from untrusted sources. Review the package contents and verify the publisher's reputation before running openclaw hooks install.
Access Control
Limit who can enable hooks. On team systems, restrict the ability to modify hook configuration to administrators. Regular users shouldn't have write access to ~/.openclaw/config.json or the hooks directories.
Use workspace-specific hooks carefully. Workspace hooks give individual projects control over what runs, which is flexible but risky. A compromised project could inject malicious hooks.
Separate production and development hook configurations. Production environments should only run thoroughly tested hooks with minimal privileges. Development environments can be more permissive.
Data Handling
Assume hooks can access all session data. Any hook can read messages, tool results, and session metadata. Don't enable hooks in environments handling sensitive data unless you've audited their data handling practices.
Watch for data exfiltration. A malicious hook could send session data to external servers. Review any network calls in hook handlers.
Protect credentials. If hooks need credentials for external services, use environment variables or secure credential stores—never hardcode them in handler.ts files.
Webhook vs Hook Security
There's an important security distinction between hooks (internal event handlers) and webhooks (external HTTP endpoints).
Webhooks receive untrusted input from the internet and require authentication tokens, signature verification, and input validation. Hooks run trusted code within your gateway and don't face these external threats.
However, hooks have deeper access to your OpenClaw environment than webhooks, which are sandboxed to specific operations. A compromised hook is more dangerous than a compromised webhook.
Monitoring and Logging
Enable command-logger in production. This creates an audit trail showing which hooks executed and when. Essential for forensics if something goes wrong.
Monitor hook execution failures. Regularly review gateway logs for hook errors. A pattern of failures might indicate an attack or misconfiguration.
Set up alerting for suspicious patterns. If a hook suddenly starts making unexpected API calls or accessing unusual files, you want to know immediately.
Just as you'd think carefully about monetizing OpenClaw functionality with security in mind, treat hook enablement as a security decision requiring proper evaluation.
How Do Hooks Compare to Webhooks and Plugins in OpenClaw?
OpenClaw offers three extensibility mechanisms: hooks, webhooks, and plugins. Understanding when to use each prevents architectural mistakes.
Hooks: Internal Event Handlers
Hooks are TypeScript functions that run inside your gateway process in response to internal events. They execute synchronously (or near-synchronously) when their triggering event occurs.
Use hooks when:
- You need to respond to internal OpenClaw events (session start, command execution, tool results)
- The automation logic is simple and shouldn't require external services
- Latency matters—hooks execute faster than webhooks
- You want to modify or intercept data before it's persisted
Don't use hooks when:
- External systems need to trigger the automation (use webhooks instead)
- The operation takes significant time to complete (use plugins or async webhooks)
- You need complex dependency management (use plugins)
Webhooks: External HTTP Triggers
Webhooks are HTTP endpoints that external services call to trigger OpenClaw actions. They bridge external events (GitHub push, Stripe payment failure) with OpenClaw automations.
Use webhooks when:
- External services need to notify your OpenClaw instance
- You're integrating with SaaS platforms that support webhook delivery
- The triggering event happens outside your OpenClaw environment
- You need to receive events from multiple sources at a standard endpoint
Don't use webhooks when:
- The event originates inside OpenClaw (use hooks)
- You don't need internet accessibility
- Security requirements prohibit exposing HTTP endpoints
Plugins: Structured Extensions
Plugins are larger extensions that bundle related functionality, often including hooks, custom commands, and configuration. They're distributed as packages and managed through OpenClaw's plugin system.
Use plugins when:
- You're building a complete feature set rather than a single automation
- The extension needs its own configuration management
- You want version control and dependency management
- You're distributing functionality to other users
Don't use plugins when:
- A simple hook would suffice
- You only need one or two specific automations
- The extension is project-specific and won't be reused
Decision Matrix
| Scenario | Use This |
|---|---|
| Save context when session resets | Hook (bundled: session-memory) |
| Respond to GitHub pull request opened | Webhook + Hook |
| Add custom CLI command | Plugin |
| Log all commands to audit file | Hook (bundled: command-logger) |
| Integrate with internal API | Custom Hook or Plugin |
| Receive notifications from Stripe | Webhook |
| Transform tool results before saving | Hook (tool_result_persist event) |
| Run initialization logic at startup | Hook (bundled: boot-md) |
| Build complete feature for distribution | Plugin |
Combining Mechanisms
The most powerful automations combine multiple mechanisms. For example:
- External service sends webhook to OpenClaw
- Webhook endpoint receives and validates the request
- Webhook triggers an internal event
- Custom hook listens for that event and executes business logic
- Hook calls back to external service via API
This architecture separates concerns: webhooks handle external integration, hooks implement internal logic, and plugins provide structure when needed.
What Are the Best Practices for Managing Multiple Hooks?
As you enable more hooks, managing them becomes a task in itself. These practices keep your hook configuration maintainable.
Organization
Document which hooks are enabled and why. Keep a README in your OpenClaw configuration directory explaining the purpose of each enabled hook. This helps new team members understand the automation setup.
Use consistent naming conventions. If you build multiple custom hooks, name them systematically. Prefixes like audit-, integration-, or transform- group related hooks logically.
Keep workspace hooks minimal. Workspace-specific hooks should only contain project-specific logic that truly can't be global. Too many workspace hooks creates fragmentation.
Testing
Test hooks in isolation first. Enable one new hook at a time rather than several simultaneously. This makes it easier to identify problems.
Have a rollback plan. Before enabling hooks in production, document how to disable them quickly if they cause issues. Usually this means having the disable command ready: openclaw hooks disable problematic-hook.
Monitor performance impact. After enabling new hooks, watch gateway startup time, command latency, and memory usage. Hooks should have minimal overhead—if you notice degradation, investigate.
Configuration Management
Version control your hook configurations. Keep your OpenClaw config file in version control (with secrets removed). This lets you track which hooks were enabled when and roll back if needed.
Use environment-specific configurations. Development environments might enable debugging hooks that production doesn't need. Keep separate configs and deploy the right one for each environment.
Automate hook enablement. For team deployments, script the hook enablement process rather than relying on manual steps. This ensures consistency across environments.
Maintenance
Regularly review enabled hooks. Every quarter, audit which hooks are enabled and whether they're still necessary. Disable hooks that aren't providing value.
Update hook packs promptly. If you use hook packs from npm, keep them updated:
openclaw hooks update --all
Security patches and bug fixes in hook packs matter just like any other dependency.
Watch for deprecation notices. As OpenClaw evolves, some bundled hooks might be deprecated or replaced. Follow the release notes and migrate proactively.
Coordination
Communicate hook changes to the team. When you enable or disable hooks in shared environments, notify everyone affected. A sudden change in automation behavior can be confusing.
Document hook dependencies. If one hook assumes another is enabled, document that relationship. Breaking dependencies by disabling prerequisite hooks causes hard-to-debug failures.
How Can You Optimize Hook Performance for Production?
Poorly optimized hooks can degrade OpenClaw performance. These optimization strategies keep hooks fast and reliable.
Minimize Synchronous Work
Hooks execute in the gateway process, potentially blocking other operations. The faster your hook handler completes, the better.
Avoid blocking I/O. Don't make synchronous HTTP requests or read large files in your hook handler. Use async operations and return quickly.
Defer expensive operations. If your hook needs to do heavy processing, push a message to a queue and return immediately. Let a background worker handle the expensive operation.
Cache aggressively. If your hook needs external data that doesn't change often, cache it rather than fetching repeatedly.
Filter Early
Don't do unnecessary work. Many hooks only care about specific event conditions.
Check event details first. Before doing any heavy lifting, validate the event matches what you care about:
export default async function handler(event) {
// Filter early
if (event.action !== 'completed') return;
if (!event.sessionKey.includes('production')) return;
// Now do the actual work
// ...
}
Use event type filters in HOOK.md. Declare event filters in your hook metadata so OpenClaw doesn't even call your handler for unrelated events.
Resource Management
Limit memory usage. Don't accumulate unbounded state in your hook handlers. Clean up resources after use.
Close connections properly. If your hook opens database connections or HTTP clients, close them when done. Connection leaks exhaust resources over time.
Implement timeouts. External API calls should have reasonable timeouts so a slow service doesn't hang your hook indefinitely.
Monitoring
Add instrumentation. Emit timing metrics from your hook handlers so you can identify performance regressions:
const start = Date.now();
// Do work
const duration = Date.now() - start;
if (duration > 1000) {
console.warn(`Hook ${event.hookName} took ${duration}ms`);
}
Track error rates. Monitor how often your hooks fail. A high error rate indicates a problem that needs attention.
Set up alerting. In production, configure alerts when hook execution times exceed thresholds or error rates spike.
Load Testing
Before deploying hooks to production, test them under realistic load. Trigger events at the volume and frequency you expect in production and measure hook performance.
Test failure modes. What happens if your hook's dependencies (databases, APIs) are unavailable? Ensure graceful degradation rather than crashing the gateway.
Test concurrent execution. If the same hook might be triggered multiple times simultaneously, verify it handles concurrency correctly without race conditions.
When Should You Create Custom Hooks vs Using Bundled Ones?
The decision to build a custom hook versus using or adapting bundled hooks depends on specificity and reusability.
Use Bundled Hooks When
The functionality matches your needs. If a bundled hook does exactly what you want, there's no reason to build something custom. Session-memory, command-logger, and boot-md cover common scenarios well.
You can configure them to fit. Some bundled hooks accept configuration options. Check whether tweaking configuration achieves your goal before building from scratch.
You're new to OpenClaw. Start with bundled hooks to learn how the hook system works. Study their implementation before writing your own.
Your requirements are common. If lots of OpenClaw users probably need the same functionality, propose it as a new bundled hook rather than keeping it custom.
Build Custom Hooks When
You need organization-specific logic. Internal tools, proprietary APIs, or company-specific workflows require custom hooks. Bundled hooks can't predict your unique environment.
You need fine-grained control. Custom hooks give you complete control over behavior, error handling, and performance characteristics. Bundled hooks make reasonable defaults but can't optimize for every use case.
You're combining multiple tools. If your automation involves orchestrating several systems in a way specific to your setup, a custom hook provides the glue logic.
Security or compliance demands it. Sometimes you need to audit every line of code that runs in production. Custom hooks let you maintain that complete visibility.
When to Contribute Back
If you built a custom hook that others might find useful, consider contributing it to OpenClaw as a bundled hook or publishing it as a hook pack.
Generalize your implementation. Remove organization-specific details and add configuration options for common variations.
Write documentation. Explain what the hook does, when to use it, and how to configure it.
Test thoroughly. Contributed hooks should handle edge cases and errors gracefully since others will depend on them.
The OpenClaw community benefits when useful hooks are shared rather than duplicated across organizations.
FAQ
Can hooks communicate with each other?
Hooks run independently and don't have a direct communication mechanism. However, they can coordinate indirectly through files, databases, or message queues. For example, one hook might write state to a file that another hook reads.
What happens if a hook crashes?
Hook errors are logged but don't crash the gateway. OpenClaw isolates hook execution so a misbehaving hook affects only its own operation. The gateway continues running and processing events normally.
Do hooks work with older OpenClaw versions?
The hook system was introduced in OpenClaw 2.0. Older versions don't support hooks. Check your OpenClaw version with openclaw --version and upgrade if needed.
Can I temporarily disable a hook without removing it?
Yes. Use openclaw hooks disable [hook-name] to mark a hook as disabled without deleting its code. Re-enable it later with openclaw hooks enable [hook-name]. This is useful for debugging or maintenance.
How much overhead do hooks add?
Well-written hooks add minimal overhead—typically under 10ms per event. Poorly written hooks that do expensive synchronous work can add significant latency. Always profile hooks that run on high-frequency events.
Are there limits on how many hooks I can enable?
There's no hard limit, but practical constraints apply. Each enabled hook increases memory usage slightly and adds processing time when its events fire. Most installations run 5-10 hooks without issues.
Conclusion
Enabling hooks in OpenClaw unlocks powerful automation capabilities that transform how you interact with your AI coding assistant. Start with bundled hooks like session-memory and command-logger to solve common needs, then gradually add custom hooks as your automation requirements grow.
The key is to be intentional. Enable hooks that solve real problems you're experiencing, not hypothetical future needs. Monitor performance and security as you expand your hook usage, and don't hesitate to disable hooks that aren't providing value.
With proper enablement practices and thoughtful hook selection, you'll build a robust automation layer that makes OpenClaw work exactly the way you need—without manual intervention for repetitive tasks. The time invested in understanding and configuring hooks pays dividends in productivity and consistency across your development workflow.