CLI Reference

The hindclaw CLI manages Hindsight bank configurations using an infrastructure-as-code approach. Local bank config files are the source of truth. The CLI diffs local state against the server and applies changes.

Commands

hindclaw plan

Preview what will change on the server without modifying anything. Compares each local bank config file against the current server state and displays a diff.

Syntax:

hindclaw plan --all
hindclaw plan --agent <id>
hindclaw plan --agent <id> --config <path>
hindclaw plan --agent <id> --api-url <url>

Example output:

# bank.agent-1 (agent-1)

  + retain_strategies
      + {
      +   "detailed": {
      +     "retain_extraction_mode": "verbose",
      +     "retain_mission": "Extract financial metrics..."
      +   }
      + }

  ~ retain_mission
    "Extract financial data..." -> "Extract financial metrics, P&L, cashflow..."

  - old_directive
    "Deprecated instruction that will be removed"

Plan: 2 to add, 1 to change, 1 to destroy.

Diff symbols:

Symbol	Meaning
+	Field or value will be added
~	Field or value will be changed
-	Field or value will be removed

---

hindclaw apply

Show the plan, prompt for confirmation, then apply changes to the server. Equivalent to plan followed by execution.

Syntax:

hindclaw apply --all
hindclaw apply --agent <id>
hindclaw apply --agent <id> --auto-approve

With --auto-approve (or -y), the confirmation prompt is skipped. Use this in CI/CD pipelines or automation scripts.

Behavior:

• Server-side fields in the bank config are synced to the Hindsight API.
• Directives not present in the local file are deleted from the server.
• Strategies not present in the local file are removed from the server.
• If the bank does not exist on the server, it is created automatically.

---

hindclaw import

Pull the current server-side configuration for a bank into a local JSON5 file. Useful for bootstrapping local config from an existing server, or auditing server state.

Syntax:

hindclaw import --agent <id> --output <path>

Example:

hindclaw import --agent r4p17 --output ./banks/r4p17.json5

The generated file contains only server-side fields (missions, dispositions, entity labels, directives, strategies). Behavioral overrides are not included since they exist only in local config.

---

hindclaw init

Bootstrap the .openclaw/hindsight/ directory structure for access control configuration. Creates template files for banks, groups, and user permissions.

Syntax:

hindclaw init
hindclaw init --from-existing
hindclaw init --from-existing --force

Variant	Description
hindclaw init	Fresh setup with empty template files.
hindclaw init --from-existing	Migrate current inline plugin config and bank files into the new directory structure.
hindclaw init --from-existing --force	Same as above, but overwrite any existing .openclaw/hindsight/ directory.

Global Options

These options are available on all commands.

Option	Short	Description
--agent <id>		Target a single agent by its ID (as defined in the agents map).
--all		Target all configured agents.
--config <path>		Path to the OpenClaw config file. Defaults to the OPENCLAW_CONFIG_PATH environment variable, or .openclaw/openclaw.json.
--api-url <url>		Override the Hindsight API URL for this invocation. Takes precedence over both plugin config and bank config.
--auto-approve	-y	Skip the confirmation prompt (applies to apply only).
--from-existing		Migrate current config into the new directory structure (init only).
--force	-f	Overwrite an existing hindsight directory (init only).