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Lobster

docs/tools/lobster.md

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Lobster is a workflow shell that lets OpenClaw run multi-step tool sequences as a single, deterministic operation with explicit approval checkpoints.

Lobster is one authoring layer above detached background work. For flow orchestration above individual tasks, see Task Flow (openclaw tasks flow). For the task activity ledger, see openclaw tasks.

Hook

Your assistant can build the tools that manage itself. Ask for a workflow, and 30 minutes later you have a CLI plus pipelines that run as one call. Lobster is the missing piece: deterministic pipelines, explicit approvals, and resumable state.

Why

Today, complex workflows require many back-and-forth tool calls. Each call costs tokens, and the LLM has to orchestrate every step. Lobster moves that orchestration into a typed runtime:

  • One call instead of many: OpenClaw runs one Lobster tool call and gets a structured result.
  • Approvals built in: Side effects (send email, post comment) halt the workflow until explicitly approved.
  • Resumable: Halted workflows return a token; approve and resume without re-running everything.

Why a DSL instead of plain programs?

Lobster is intentionally small. The goal is not "a new language," it's a predictable, AI-friendly pipeline spec with first-class approvals and resume tokens.

  • Approve/resume is built in: A normal program can prompt a human, but it can’t pause and resume with a durable token without you inventing that runtime yourself.
  • Determinism + auditability: Pipelines are data, so they’re easy to log, diff, replay, and review.
  • Constrained surface for AI: A tiny grammar + JSON piping reduces “creative” code paths and makes validation realistic.
  • Safety policy baked in: Timeouts, output caps, sandbox checks, and allowlists are enforced by the runtime, not each script.
  • Still programmable: Each step can call any CLI or script. If you want JS/TS, generate .lobster files from code.

How it works

OpenClaw runs Lobster workflows in-process using an embedded runner. No external CLI subprocess is spawned; the workflow engine executes inside the gateway process and returns a JSON envelope directly. If the pipeline pauses for approval, the tool returns a resumeToken so you can continue later.

Pattern: small CLI + JSON pipes + approvals

Build tiny commands that speak JSON, then chain them into a single Lobster call. (Example command names below — swap in your own.)

bash
inbox list --json
inbox categorize --json
inbox apply --json
json
{
  "action": "run",
  "pipeline": "exec --json --shell 'inbox list --json' | exec --stdin json --shell 'inbox categorize --json' | exec --stdin json --shell 'inbox apply --json' | approve --preview-from-stdin --limit 5 --prompt 'Apply changes?'",
  "timeoutMs": 30000
}

If the pipeline requests approval, resume with the token:

json
{
  "action": "resume",
  "token": "<resumeToken>",
  "approve": true
}

AI triggers the workflow; Lobster executes the steps. Approval gates keep side effects explicit and auditable.

Example: map input items into tool calls:

bash
gog.gmail.search --query 'newer_than:1d' \
  | openclaw.invoke --tool message --action send --each --item-key message --args-json '{"provider":"telegram","to":"..."}'

JSON-only LLM steps (llm-task)

For workflows that need a structured LLM step, enable the optional llm-task plugin tool and call it from Lobster. This keeps the workflow deterministic while still letting you classify/summarize/draft with a model.

Enable the tool:

json
{
  "plugins": {
    "entries": {
      "llm-task": { "enabled": true }
    }
  },
  "agents": {
    "list": [
      {
        "id": "main",
        "tools": { "alsoAllow": ["llm-task"] }
      }
    ]
  }
}

Use it in a pipeline:

lobster
openclaw.invoke --tool llm-task --action json --args-json '{
  "prompt": "Given the input email, return intent and draft.",
  "thinking": "low",
  "input": { "subject": "Hello", "body": "Can you help?" },
  "schema": {
    "type": "object",
    "properties": {
      "intent": { "type": "string" },
      "draft": { "type": "string" }
    },
    "required": ["intent", "draft"],
    "additionalProperties": false
  }
}'

See LLM Task for details and configuration options.

Workflow files (.lobster)

Lobster can run YAML/JSON workflow files with name, args, steps, env, condition, and approval fields. In OpenClaw tool calls, set pipeline to the file path.

yaml
name: inbox-triage
args:
  tag:
    default: "family"
steps:
  - id: collect
    command: inbox list --json
  - id: categorize
    command: inbox categorize --json
    stdin: $collect.stdout
  - id: approve
    command: inbox apply --approve
    stdin: $categorize.stdout
    approval: required
  - id: execute
    command: inbox apply --execute
    stdin: $categorize.stdout
    condition: $approve.approved

Notes:

  • stdin: $step.stdout and stdin: $step.json pass a prior step’s output.
  • condition (or when) can gate steps on $step.approved.

Install Lobster

Bundled Lobster workflows run in-process; no separate lobster binary is required. The embedded runner ships with the Lobster plugin.

If you need the standalone Lobster CLI for development or external pipelines, install it from the Lobster repo and ensure lobster is on PATH.

Enable the tool

Lobster is an optional plugin tool (not enabled by default).

Recommended (additive, safe):

json
{
  "tools": {
    "alsoAllow": ["lobster"]
  }
}

Or per-agent:

json
{
  "agents": {
    "list": [
      {
        "id": "main",
        "tools": {
          "alsoAllow": ["lobster"]
        }
      }
    ]
  }
}

Avoid using tools.allow: ["lobster"] unless you intend to run in restrictive allowlist mode.

<Note> Allowlists are opt-in for optional plugins. `alsoAllow` enables only the named optional plugin tools while preserving the normal core tool set. To restrict core tools, use `tools.allow` with the core tools or groups you want. </Note>

Example: Email triage

Without Lobster:

User: "Check my email and draft replies"
→ openclaw calls gmail.list
→ LLM summarizes
→ User: "draft replies to #2 and #5"
→ LLM drafts
→ User: "send #2"
→ openclaw calls gmail.send
(repeat daily, no memory of what was triaged)

With Lobster:

json
{
  "action": "run",
  "pipeline": "email.triage --limit 20",
  "timeoutMs": 30000
}

Returns a JSON envelope (truncated):

json
{
  "ok": true,
  "status": "needs_approval",
  "output": [{ "summary": "5 need replies, 2 need action" }],
  "requiresApproval": {
    "type": "approval_request",
    "prompt": "Send 2 draft replies?",
    "items": [],
    "resumeToken": "..."
  }
}

User approves → resume:

json
{
  "action": "resume",
  "token": "<resumeToken>",
  "approve": true
}

One workflow. Deterministic. Safe.

Tool parameters

run

Run a pipeline in tool mode.

json
{
  "action": "run",
  "pipeline": "gog.gmail.search --query 'newer_than:1d' | email.triage",
  "cwd": "workspace",
  "timeoutMs": 30000,
  "maxStdoutBytes": 512000
}

Run a workflow file with args:

json
{
  "action": "run",
  "pipeline": "/path/to/inbox-triage.lobster",
  "argsJson": "{\"tag\":\"family\"}"
}

resume

Continue a halted workflow after approval.

json
{
  "action": "resume",
  "token": "<resumeToken>",
  "approve": true
}

Optional inputs

  • cwd: Relative working directory for the pipeline (must stay within the gateway working directory).
  • timeoutMs: Abort the workflow if it exceeds this duration (default: 20000).
  • maxStdoutBytes: Abort the workflow if output exceeds this size (default: 512000).
  • argsJson: JSON string passed to lobster run --args-json (workflow files only).

Output envelope

Lobster returns a JSON envelope with one of three statuses:

  • ok → finished successfully
  • needs_approval → paused; requiresApproval.resumeToken is required to resume
  • cancelled → explicitly denied or cancelled

The tool surfaces the envelope in both content (pretty JSON) and details (raw object).

Approvals

If requiresApproval is present, inspect the prompt and decide:

  • approve: true → resume and continue side effects
  • approve: false → cancel and finalize the workflow

Use approve --preview-from-stdin --limit N to attach a JSON preview to approval requests without custom jq/heredoc glue. Resume tokens are now compact: Lobster stores workflow resume state under its state dir and hands back a small token key.

OpenProse

OpenProse pairs well with Lobster: use /prose to orchestrate multi-agent prep, then run a Lobster pipeline for deterministic approvals. If a Prose program needs Lobster, allow the lobster tool for sub-agents via tools.subagents.tools. See OpenProse.

Safety

  • Local in-process only — workflows execute inside the gateway process; no network calls from the plugin itself.
  • No secrets — Lobster doesn't manage OAuth; it calls OpenClaw tools that do.
  • Sandbox-aware — disabled when the tool context is sandboxed.
  • Hardened — timeouts and output caps enforced by the embedded runner.

Troubleshooting

  • lobster timed out → increase timeoutMs, or split a long pipeline.
  • lobster output exceeded maxStdoutBytes → raise maxStdoutBytes or reduce output size.
  • lobster returned invalid JSON → ensure the pipeline runs in tool mode and prints only JSON.
  • lobster failed → check gateway logs for the embedded runner error details.

Learn more

Case study: community workflows

One public example: a “second brain” CLI + Lobster pipelines that manage three Markdown vaults (personal, partner, shared). The CLI emits JSON for stats, inbox listings, and stale scans; Lobster chains those commands into workflows like weekly-review, inbox-triage, memory-consolidation, and shared-task-sync, each with approval gates. AI handles judgment (categorization) when available and falls back to deterministic rules when not.