feat(skills): compact skill paths with ~ to reduce prompt tokens by bitfish3 · Pull Request #14776 · openclaw/openclaw

bitfish3 · 2026-02-12T16:24:58Z

Problem

Skill <location> tags in the system prompt use absolute paths like:

/Users/alice/.bun/install/global/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md

Each path costs ~24 tokens. For a workspace with 90+ skills, this adds up to a significant chunk of the system prompt budget.

Solution

Add a compactSkillPaths() helper that replaces the home directory prefix with ~:

~/.bun/install/global/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md

This is applied in buildWorkspaceSkillSnapshot and buildWorkspaceSkillsPrompt before passing skills to formatSkillsForPrompt.

Why this is safe

Models understand ~ — Claude, GPT-4, Gemini all resolve ~/ to the home directory
The read tool resolves ~ — OpenClaw's file read tool already handles tilde expansion
System prompt already instructs path resolution — the skills section tells the model to "resolve it against the skill directory"
No behavioral change — skills still load and execute identically

Impact

~5–6 tokens saved per skill (home dir prefix like /Users/username → ~)
~400–600 tokens total for a typical 90-skill workspace
~3–4% reduction in system prompt size

Test

Added skills.compact-skill-paths.test.ts covering:

Home directory paths are compacted to ~/...
Paths outside home directory are preserved as-is

Greptile Overview

Greptile Summary

This PR introduces compactSkillPaths() in src/agents/skills/workspace.ts and applies it when building the skills prompt/snapshot so skill <location> tags replace the user’s home directory prefix with ~/ to save system-prompt tokens.

The core runtime change is isolated to prompt formatting (the Skill objects used for loading/frontmatter parsing remain untouched), but the newly added test file has issues that will prevent it from reliably validating the behavior across environments.

Confidence Score: 3/5

Mostly safe change, but tests need fixes before merge.
The production code change is small and limited to prompt formatting, but the new unit test likely fails to run due to an incorrect import path and the second test doesn’t actually assert the claimed behavior, reducing confidence in regression coverage.
src/agents/skills.compact-skill-paths.test.ts

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rmdmattingly · 2026-02-12T16:35:46Z

CI failing (check): oxfmt formatting issue in src/agents/skills/workspace.ts.

Fix: run ERR_PNPM_NO_IMPORTER_MANIFEST_FOUND No package.json (or package.yaml, or package.json5) was found in "/Users/raysopenclaw/.openclaw/workspace-dev-deploy". (oxfmt --write) and commit/push. Then CI should go green.

rmdmattingly · 2026-02-12T16:40:38Z

CI failing due to oxfmt formatting (real, not flaky): src/agents/skills/workspace.ts in run 21954976637.

Patch (oxfmt-only) that makes pnpm format:check pass:

diff --git a/src/agents/skills/workspace.ts b/src/agents/skills/workspace.ts
index 24d543a..05afcaf 100644
--- a/src/agents/skills/workspace.ts
+++ b/src/agents/skills/workspace.ts
@@ -287,7 +287,10 @@ export function buildWorkspaceSkillsPrompt(
     (entry) => entry.invocation?.disableModelInvocation !== true,
   );
   const remoteNote = opts?.eligibility?.remote?.note?.trim();
-  return [remoteNote, formatSkillsForPrompt(compactSkillPaths(promptEntries.map((entry) => entry.skill)))]
+  return [
+    remoteNote,
+    formatSkillsForPrompt(compactSkillPaths(promptEntries.map((entry) => entry.skill))),
+  ]
     .filter(Boolean)
     .join("\n");
 }

Fix locally with: pnpm exec oxfmt --write src/agents/skills/workspace.ts then push + re-run CI.

rmdmattingly · 2026-02-12T16:47:53Z

CI failure is from formatting:

check job fails at pnpm format:check (oxfmt) on src/agents/skills/workspace.ts.

Suggested fix: run pnpm format (or pnpm format:fix / oxfmt without --check) and push the resulting formatting-only change, then re-run CI.

greptile-apps

_{2 files reviewed, 2 comments}

_{Edit Code Review Agent Settings | Greptile}

greptile-apps · 2026-02-12T17:07:31Z

src/agents/skills.compact-skill-paths.test.ts

+import os from "node:os";
+import path from "node:path";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { buildWorkspaceSkillsPrompt } from "./skills.js";


Broken test import path

buildWorkspaceSkillsPrompt is imported from ./skills.js, but under src/agents/ the entrypoint is skills.ts (and this repo doesn’t appear to have a skills.js alongside the test). This will fail module resolution in Vitest/TS (can’t run the new test). Update the import to the correct module (e.g. the existing src/agents/skills.ts entrypoint).

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review. Path: src/agents/skills.compact-skill-paths.test.ts Line: 5:5 Comment: **Broken test import path** `buildWorkspaceSkillsPrompt` is imported from `./skills.js`, but under `src/agents/` the entrypoint is `skills.ts` (and this repo doesn’t appear to have a `skills.js` alongside the test). This will fail module resolution in Vitest/TS (can’t run the new test). Update the import to the correct module (e.g. the existing `src/agents/skills.ts` entrypoint). How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

greptile-apps · 2026-02-12T17:07:32Z

src/agents/skills.compact-skill-paths.test.ts

+  it("preserves paths outside home directory", async () => {
+    // Skills outside ~ should keep their absolute paths
+    const workspaceDir = await fs.mkdtemp(path.join(os.tmpdir(), "openclaw-compact-"));
+    const skillDir = path.join(workspaceDir, "skills", "ext-skill");


Test doesn’t match intent

This test claims it “preserves paths outside home directory”, but it creates the workspace under os.tmpdir() (which may or may not be under os.homedir() depending on platform) and never asserts that the <location> path stayed absolute vs compacted. As written it only checks that a <location>...SKILL.md</location> tag exists, so it won’t catch regressions in the compaction/preservation behavior.

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review. Path: src/agents/skills.compact-skill-paths.test.ts Line: 59:62 Comment: **Test doesn’t match intent** This test claims it “preserves paths outside home directory”, but it creates the workspace under `os.tmpdir()` (which may or may not be under `os.homedir()` depending on platform) and never asserts that the `<location>` path stayed absolute vs compacted. As written it only checks that a `<location>...SKILL.md</location>` tag exists, so it won’t catch regressions in the compaction/preservation behavior. How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

Replace absolute home directory prefix with ~ in skill <location> tags injected into the system prompt. Models understand ~ expansion and the read tool resolves it, so this is a safe, backward-compatible change. Saves ~5-6 tokens per skill path. For a workspace with 90+ skills, this reduces system prompt size by ~400-600 tokens. Changes: - Add compactSkillPaths() helper in workspace.ts - Apply in buildWorkspaceSkillSnapshot and buildWorkspaceSkillsPrompt - Add test for path compaction behavior Before: /Users/alice/.bun/install/global/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md After: ~/.bun/install/global/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md

steipete · 2026-02-18T00:35:53Z

Landed via temp rebase onto main.

Gate: pnpm lint && pnpm build && pnpm test (build currently fails on pre-existing TS2722 in src/media-understanding/runner.entries.ts)
Land commit: 97444f7
Merge commit: 7694900

Thanks @bitfish3!

HenryLoenwind · 2026-02-18T10:48:32Z

That's still a whole lot of tokens for those paths. Wouldn't it make sense to (on systems that support it*) add a symlink <openclawdir>/skills -> /node_modules/openclaw/skills`

/Users/alice/.bun/install/global/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md
         vvv
~/.bun/install/global/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md
         vvv
../skills/github/SKILL.md

and

/usr/local/lib/node_modules/openclaw/skills/github/SKILL.md
         vvv
../skills/github/SKILL.md

*) macOS, Linux, Windows w/ admin

(cherry picked from commit 7694900)

openclaw-barnacle bot added agents Agent runtime and tooling size: S labels Feb 12, 2026

greptile-apps bot reviewed Feb 12, 2026

View reviewed changes

thewilloftheshadow force-pushed the main branch from bfc1ccb to f92900f Compare February 15, 2026 18:46

mac26ai and others added 2 commits February 18, 2026 01:34

fix: compact skill paths in prompt (openclaw#14776) (thanks @bitfish3)

97444f7

steipete force-pushed the feat/compact-skill-paths branch from 2eb081d to 97444f7 Compare February 18, 2026 00:35

steipete merged commit 7694900 into openclaw:main Feb 18, 2026
3 checks passed

This was referenced Feb 18, 2026

📡 Upstream Digest — 2026-02-18 01:24 UTC curtismercier/openclaw-mods#55

Open

上游更新: v2026.2.17 — 16 P0 + 67 P1 待合并 jiulingyun/openclaw-cn#160

Open

sypherin pushed a commit to sypherin/openclaw that referenced this pull request Feb 18, 2026

fix: compact skill paths in prompt (openclaw#14776) (thanks @bitfish3)

256d3c2

treygoff24 pushed a commit to treygoff24/openclaw that referenced this pull request Feb 18, 2026

fix: compact skill paths in prompt (openclaw#14776) (thanks @bitfish3)

c631abf

(cherry picked from commit 7694900)

jun-planfit pushed a commit to planfit/openclaw that referenced this pull request Feb 19, 2026

fix: compact skill paths in prompt (openclaw#14776) (thanks @bitfish3)

0e81ddd

anschmieg pushed a commit to anschmieg/openclaw that referenced this pull request Feb 19, 2026

fix: compact skill paths in prompt (openclaw#14776) (thanks @bitfish3)

4740fcf

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feat(skills): compact skill paths with ~ to reduce prompt tokens#14776

feat(skills): compact skill paths with ~ to reduce prompt tokens#14776
steipete merged 2 commits intoopenclaw:mainfrom
bitfish3:feat/compact-skill-paths

bitfish3 commented Feb 12, 2026 •

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Problem

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Impact

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Greptile Overview

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Confidence Score: 3/5

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