fix(memory-core): prevent dreaming-narrative session leaks (#66358) by chiyouYCH · Pull Request #67023 · openclaw/openclaw

chiyouYCH · 2026-04-15T06:31:14Z

Problem

memory-core creates dreaming-narrative-* sub-sessions during the Dreaming sweep but they accumulate indefinitely because the deleteSession call in the finally block uses a different session key than what was created.

Root Cause

In runDreamingSweepPhases, params.nowMs is passed through to runLightDreaming / runRemDreaming without normalization. Each function recomputes Date.now() independently:

// runDreamingSweepPhases
await runLightDreaming({ ..., nowMs: params.nowMs }); // may be undefined

// runLightDreaming
const nowMs = Number.isFinite(params.nowMs) ? params.nowMs : Date.now(); // new timestamp

// generateAndAppendDreamNarrative
const sessionKey = `dreaming-narrative-${phase}-${nowMs}`; // yet another timestamp

The session key written at creation and the key used in deleteSession can differ by milliseconds, so the deletion hits a non-existent key and the session leaks.

Fix (2 files)

extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts

Normalize nowMs once at the top of runDreamingSweepPhases → sweepNowMs
Pass consistent sweepNowMs to all phases
Add defensive deleteSession call after each phase (safety net)

extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-narrative.ts

Guard the finally block with if (params.subagent) to prevent TypeError if the subagent runtime becomes unavailable mid-flight

Testing

Manual trigger of Dreaming sweep on a heavily-polluted system (251 leaking sessions) reduced the count to 0. Subsequent sweeps produce no new leaked sessions.

Full diff: chiyouYCH#1
Files changed: extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts, extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-narrative.ts

greptile-apps · 2026-04-15T06:34:10Z

Greptile Summary

This PR fixes the root cause of dreaming-narrative-* sub-session leaks by normalizing nowMs once to sweepNowMs in runDreamingSweepPhases, ensuring consistent timestamps flow through to generateAndAppendDreamNarrative. The if (params.subagent) guard added to the finally block in dreaming-narrative.ts is also correct and unproblematic.

The defensive deleteSession calls added at the runDreamingSweepPhases level (lines 1645 and 1669) construct keys as dreaming-narrative-{phase}-{sweepNowMs}, but buildNarrativeSessionKey always produces dreaming-narrative-{phase}-{workspaceHash}-{nowMs}. The workspace hash is missing, so both "safety net" deletions always target non-existent keys and silently no-op, leaving the intended redundant cleanup layer broken.

Confidence Score: 3/5

The primary timestamp-normalization fix is correct, but the two new defensive cleanup calls use the wrong session key format and will never delete anything.

Two P1 findings: the safety-net deleteSession calls in runDreamingSweepPhases omit the workspace hash, so they construct keys that don't match those created by buildNarrativeSessionKey. The defensive cleanup is entirely non-functional. This doesn't reintroduce the original leak (the primary finally-block cleanup in generateAndAppendDreamNarrative is correct), but it means the stated 'defensive cleanup' goal of the PR is unmet.

extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts — lines 1645 and 1669 (wrong session key format in defensive cleanup)

Prompt To Fix All With AI

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts
Line: 1645-1650

Comment:
**Defensive cleanup uses wrong session key format**

The defensive `deleteSession` calls construct keys like `dreaming-narrative-light-${sweepNowMs}`, but `buildNarrativeSessionKey` produces keys in the format `dreaming-narrative-${phase}-${workspaceHash}-${nowMs}`. The workspace hash segment is absent, so these calls always target a non-existent key — the safety net silently does nothing. The same mismatch exists for the REM cleanup at line 1669.

To fix, export `buildNarrativeSessionKey` from `dreaming-narrative.ts` (or re-inline the hash logic here) so the defensive cleanup constructs a key that actually matches what was created.

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

---

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts
Line: 1669-1674

Comment:
**Same wrong key format for REM cleanup**

`dreaming-narrative-rem-${sweepNowMs}` is missing the workspace hash, so this `deleteSession` call targets a non-existent key and the cleanup is a no-op, identical to the issue on the light-phase cleanup above.

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

_{Reviews (1): Last reviewed commit: "fix(memory-core): prevent dreaming-narra..." | Re-trigger Greptile}

greptile-apps · 2026-04-15T06:34:14Z

+      const lightSessionKey = `dreaming-narrative-light-${sweepNowMs}`;
+      await params.subagent
+        .deleteSession({ sessionKey: lightSessionKey })
+        .catch(() => {
+          // Swallow errors — this is best-effort cleanup.
+        });


Defensive cleanup uses wrong session key format

The defensive deleteSession calls construct keys like dreaming-narrative-light-${sweepNowMs}, but buildNarrativeSessionKey produces keys in the format dreaming-narrative-${phase}-${workspaceHash}-${nowMs}. The workspace hash segment is absent, so these calls always target a non-existent key — the safety net silently does nothing. The same mismatch exists for the REM cleanup at line 1669.

To fix, export buildNarrativeSessionKey from dreaming-narrative.ts (or re-inline the hash logic here) so the defensive cleanup constructs a key that actually matches what was created.

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review. Path: extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts Line: 1645-1650 Comment: **Defensive cleanup uses wrong session key format** The defensive `deleteSession` calls construct keys like `dreaming-narrative-light-${sweepNowMs}`, but `buildNarrativeSessionKey` produces keys in the format `dreaming-narrative-${phase}-${workspaceHash}-${nowMs}`. The workspace hash segment is absent, so these calls always target a non-existent key — the safety net silently does nothing. The same mismatch exists for the REM cleanup at line 1669. To fix, export `buildNarrativeSessionKey` from `dreaming-narrative.ts` (or re-inline the hash logic here) so the defensive cleanup constructs a key that actually matches what was created. How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

greptile-apps · 2026-04-15T06:34:15Z

+      const remSessionKey = `dreaming-narrative-rem-${sweepNowMs}`;
+      await params.subagent
+        .deleteSession({ sessionKey: remSessionKey })
+        .catch(() => {
+          // Swallow errors — this is best-effort cleanup.
+        });


Same wrong key format for REM cleanup

dreaming-narrative-rem-${sweepNowMs} is missing the workspace hash, so this deleteSession call targets a non-existent key and the cleanup is a no-op, identical to the issue on the light-phase cleanup above.

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review. Path: extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts Line: 1669-1674 Comment: **Same wrong key format for REM cleanup** `dreaming-narrative-rem-${sweepNowMs}` is missing the workspace hash, so this `deleteSession` call targets a non-existent key and the cleanup is a no-op, identical to the issue on the light-phase cleanup above. How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

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chatgpt-codex-connector · 2026-04-15T06:34:20Z

+    // Defensive cleanup: ensure the light-phase narrative session is deleted even if
+    // generateAndAppendDreamNarrative's primary cleanup was skipped due to an error.
+    if (params.subagent) {
+      const lightSessionKey = `dreaming-narrative-light-${sweepNowMs}`;


Use canonical narrative session key in fallback cleanup

The defensive deleteSession key here is constructed as dreaming-narrative-light-${sweepNowMs}, but narrative sessions are created with buildNarrativeSessionKey(...) in dreaming-narrative.ts, which includes a workspace hash (dreaming-narrative-<phase>-<workspaceHash>-<nowMs>). In any run where the primary in-function cleanup does not remove the session (the exact case this block is meant to cover), this fallback will always target the wrong key and leave the leaked session behind; the same mismatch is repeated for REM cleanup.

Useful? React with 👍 / 👎.

…enclaw#66358) Root cause: `runDreamingSweepPhases` passed `params.nowMs` through to each phase without normalizing it first. Each phase recomputed `Date.now()` at call time, producing a slightly different timestamp than the session key used by `generateAndAppendDreamNarrative`. The resulting session key mismatch meant the `deleteSession` call cleaned up a different (or non-existent) key than the one that was created. Fix: - Normalize `nowMs` once at the top of `runDreamingSweepPhases` and pass the consistent value to all phases. - Add a defensive `deleteSession` call in `runDreamingSweepPhases` for each phase after `runLightDreaming`/`runRemDreaming` completes. This acts as a safety net even if the narrative function's primary cleanup is skipped. - Guard the `finally` block in `generateAndAppendDreamNarrative` with `if (params.subagent)` to prevent TypeError if the subagent runtime becomes unavailable mid-flight. This fixes the observed session list pollution where `dreaming-narrative-*-<timestamp>` entries accumulated indefinitely.

jalehman · 2026-04-20T22:41:17Z

Merged via squash.

Prepared head SHA: 51f72b200c3a4f96a5dfc6adac3dc37f23dde53b
Merge commit: 2055e75f9ff64b4cc78ee374067f9b5c2d40e9bb

Thanks @chiyouYCH!

@jalehman

…66358) (openclaw#67023) Merged via squash. Prepared head SHA: 51f72b2 Co-authored-by: chiyouYCH <26790612+chiyouYCH@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: jalehman <550978+jalehman@users.noreply.github.com> Reviewed-by: @jalehman

openclaw-barnacle Bot added extensions: memory-core Extension: memory-core size: XS labels Apr 15, 2026

chiyouYCH mentioned this pull request Apr 15, 2026

[Bug] Dreaming creates redundant sessions in session list after sweep #66358

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greptile-apps Bot reviewed Apr 15, 2026

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chatgpt-codex-connector Bot reviewed Apr 15, 2026

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jalehman self-assigned this Apr 16, 2026

openclaw-barnacle Bot added size: S and removed size: XS labels Apr 16, 2026

jalehman force-pushed the fix/dreaming-session-leak-66358 branch from b3cd733 to c11d14f Compare April 16, 2026 19:08

Svtter mentioned this pull request Apr 18, 2026

[Feature]: Dream Mode — Periodic Memory Consolidation & Reflective Learning zeroclaw-labs/zeroclaw#5849

Open

jalehman force-pushed the fix/dreaming-session-leak-66358 branch 7 times, most recently from 3805afb to 88964cc Compare April 20, 2026 22:32

chiyouYCH and others added 6 commits April 20, 2026 15:39

fix: reuse hashed dreaming cleanup key

4aa4f77

fix: stop dreaming narrative session leaks

4dcb0c2

fix: tighten memory-core dreaming types

bf320fb

fix: stop dreaming narrative session leaks

d2a1290

fix: stop dreaming narrative session leaks

51f72b2

jalehman force-pushed the fix/dreaming-session-leak-66358 branch from 88964cc to 51f72b2 Compare April 20, 2026 22:40

jalehman merged commit 2055e75 into openclaw:main Apr 20, 2026
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fix(memory-core): prevent dreaming-narrative session leaks (#66358)#67023

fix(memory-core): prevent dreaming-narrative session leaks (#66358)#67023
jalehman merged 6 commits intoopenclaw:mainfrom
chiyouYCH:fix/dreaming-session-leak-66358

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chiyouYCH commented Apr 15, 2026

Problem

Root Cause

Fix (2 files)

extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-phases.ts

extensions/memory-core/src/dreaming-narrative.ts

Testing

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Greptile Summary

Confidence Score: 3/5

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