OpenClaw 2026.10.2 update wipes agent workspace: identity, memory, and MEMORY.md reset to defaults

Updating OpenClaw to 2026.10.2 is resetting existing agent workspaces to fresh starter templates. On Windows (10.0.26200 x64, Node v24.18.0), a user's main agent at C:\Users\<user>\.openclaw\workspace lost its identity and all long-term memory after the update and a follow-up openclaw doctor run.

What gets wiped

After the update, the workspace contained only defaults:

• IDENTITY.md — empty placeholder
• SOUL.md — default content
• USER.md — empty placeholder
• MEMORY.md — deleted
• memory/ daily notes folder — deleted
• BOOTSTRAP.md — reappeared
• AGENTS.md — default
• .git — present

The agent identity in config was also reset to { name: "Main", emoji: robot }. In a fresh session the assistant no longer recognized itself — it had forgotten who it was.

Reproduction steps

1. Start with a configured agent and a populated workspace (IDENTITY/SOUL/USER/MEMORY.md plus memory/).
2. Run the 2026.10.2 update (and/or openclaw doctor afterwards).
3. Open a new session — the workspace now contains only starter templates.

The affected user's wizard config recorded lastRunVersion: 2026.10.2 and lastRunCommand: doctor.

Expected vs actual

The reporter argues an update must never overwrite or reset an existing agent workspace or its identity/memory files. First-run seeding belongs only to genuinely new workspaces. Impact: lost assistant identity and all long-term memory; they had to restore manually from a personal backup tarball.

Suggested fixes (from the report)

• Never re-seed the workspace if IDENTITY.md or agents.entries.*.identity already exists.
• Do not touch MEMORY.md or memory/ on update or doctor.
• Do not reset agents.entries.*.identity.
• Add an automatic pre-update workspace and memory backup with a printed restore path.

Workaround used

The user restored IDENTITY.md, SOUL.md, USER.md, MEMORY.md, and the memory/ folder from a backup tarball, then re-set the agent identity manually.

The report references related issue #26734 (bootstrap.md ran, wiping identity). If you rely on OpenClaw's persistent agent memory, back up your workspace before applying 2026.10.2 and verify IDENTITY.md and MEMORY.md are intact after running doctor.