docs: add Phase 0/1 implementation plan and feature gap analysis

2026-02-06 13:17:51 -08:00
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+# Flynn vs OpenClaw — Feature Gap Analysis
+
+**Date:** 2026-02-06
+**Purpose:** Comprehensive comparison of Flynn's current implementation against OpenClaw's feature set, to guide prioritisation of future work.
+
+## Legend
+
+- **MATCH** — Flynn has equivalent functionality
+- **PARTIAL** — Flynn has some implementation but incomplete
+- **MISSING** — Not implemented in Flynn
+
+---
+
+## 1. Channels / Frontends
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Telegram | grammY bot | grammY bot | **MATCH** |
+| WhatsApp | Baileys (WhatsApp Web) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Discord | discord.js | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Slack | Bolt SDK | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Signal | signal-cli | -- | **MISSING** |
+| iMessage / BlueBubbles | imsg + BlueBubbles | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Google Chat | Chat API | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Microsoft Teams | Bot Framework | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Matrix | Extension | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Zalo / Zalo Personal | Extension | -- | **MISSING** |
+| WebChat | Gateway-served | Gateway (stub) | **PARTIAL** |
+| TUI (terminal) | `openclaw tui` | Minimal + Fullscreen (React/Ink) | **MATCH** |
+| LINE / Feishu / Mattermost | Extensions/plugins | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+Flynn has **2 of ~15 channels**. The messaging channel ecosystem is the single biggest gap.
+
+---
+
+## 2. Model Providers
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Anthropic (Claude) | Full + OAuth | Full | **MATCH** |
+| OpenAI | Full + OAuth + Codex | Full | **MATCH** |
+| Ollama (local) | Supported | Full | **MATCH** |
+| Llama.cpp (local) | Supported | Basic | **PARTIAL** |
+| Gemini / Google | Full provider | Stub only | **PARTIAL** |
+| OpenRouter | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Amazon Bedrock | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| GLM / MiniMax / Moonshot | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Vercel AI Gateway | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Z.AI | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Synthetic provider | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| OAuth subscription auth | Anthropic + OpenAI | API keys only | **MISSING** |
+| Model failover chains | Full (fallback + rotation) | Fallback chains | **MATCH** |
+| Model tier routing | Per-agent, per-provider | default/fast/complex/local | **MATCH** |
+| Provider-specific tool policy | Per-provider tool filtering | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 3. Agent Runtime & Tools
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Tool loop with streaming | RPC mode + block streaming | Tool loop (max 10 iter) | **MATCH** |
+| `exec` / shell | Full (background, pty, timeout, elevated) | Basic (bash -c, timeout) | **PARTIAL** |
+| `read` / file read | Full (line ranges) | Full (line offset/limit) | **MATCH** |
+| `write` / file write | Full | Full (auto-mkdir) | **MATCH** |
+| `edit` / file edit | Full | Full (exact match, replace_all) | **MATCH** |
+| `apply_patch` | Multi-hunk structured patches | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `file.list` / glob | -- | Full (glob filtering) | **MATCH** |
+| `web_fetch` | Full (markdown/text extract, caching) | Basic HTTP GET | **PARTIAL** |
+| `web_search` | Brave Search API | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Browser control | Full CDP (Chromium profiles, snapshots, actions) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Canvas / A2UI | Agent-driven visual workspace | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `process` tool | Background exec management (poll/log/write/kill) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `image` tool | Image analysis with configurable model | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `message` tool | Cross-channel messaging + actions | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `cron` tool | Runtime cron management | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `gateway` tool | Restart/config management | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `sessions_*` tools | List/history/send/spawn across sessions | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `agents_list` tool | Sub-agent discovery | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Tool profiles | minimal/coding/messaging/full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Tool groups | `group:fs`, `group:runtime`, etc. | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Tool allow/deny lists | Global + per-agent + per-provider | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 4. Session Management
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Session persistence | JSONL files | SQLite | **MATCH** (different storage) |
+| Session isolation | Per-sender + group isolation | `{frontend}:{userId}` | **MATCH** |
+| Session transfer | Between channels | Between frontends | **MATCH** |
+| Multi-agent routing | Isolated workspaces per agent | Single backend | **MISSING** |
+| Session pruning | Tool result trimming (in-memory) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `/new` / `/reset` | Full | Full | **MATCH** |
+| `/status` | Full (model + tokens + cost) | Full (model + confirmations) | **MATCH** |
+
+---
+
+## 5. Context Window & Compaction
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Auto-compaction | Full (summarise older history) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Manual `/compact` | Full (with instructions) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Pre-compaction memory flush | Silent agentic turn | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Token tracking | Full (per-response, cost) | Input/output counters | **PARTIAL** |
+
+**Critical gap** — without compaction, long conversations will hit token limits and fail.
+
+---
+
+## 6. Memory System
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Markdown memory files | `MEMORY.md` + daily logs | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `memory_search` tool | Semantic vector search | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `memory_get` tool | Read memory files | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Vector embeddings | OpenAI/Gemini/local | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Hybrid search (BM25 + vector) | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Session memory indexing | Experimental | -- | **MISSING** |
+| QMD backend | Experimental | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+OpenClaw has a sophisticated memory system. Flynn has none.
+
+---
+
+## 7. MCP (Model Context Protocol)
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| MCP tool servers | Not emphasised | Full (stdio transport) | **MATCH** |
+| MCP tool bridging | Not emphasised | Full (`mcp:{server}:{tool}`) | **MATCH** |
+| MCP server lifecycle | Not emphasised | Full (start/stop/restart) | **MATCH** |
+
+Flynn actually has MCP support that OpenClaw doesn't emphasise — OpenClaw relies on its own native tool system and plugins instead.
+
+---
+
+## 8. Security & Safety
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Tool confirmation hooks | Full | Full (confirm/log/silent patterns) | **MATCH** |
+| Chat ID allowlists | Per-channel | Telegram only | **PARTIAL** |
+| DM pairing (unknown senders) | Full (pairing codes) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Docker sandboxing | Full (per-session/agent/shared) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Elevated mode | Host exec escape hatch | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Tool execution timeouts | Full (configurable) | 30s default | **MATCH** |
+| Output truncation | Full | 51KB | **MATCH** |
+| Gateway auth (token/password) | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 9. Automation & Scheduling
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Cron jobs | Full (runtime + config) | Full (YAML config) | **MATCH** |
+| Webhooks | Full (inbound triggers) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Gmail Pub/Sub | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Heartbeat | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 10. Apps & Companion Devices
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| macOS menu bar app | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| iOS node | Full (Canvas, Voice, Camera) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Android node | Full (Canvas, Talk, Camera) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Voice Wake / Talk Mode | Full (ElevenLabs) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Camera / screen capture | Via nodes | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Location access | Via nodes | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 11. Skills & Plugins
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Skills system | Bundled/managed/workspace | Bundled/managed/workspace | **MATCH** |
+| Skill manifest | Full | Full (requirements, versioning) | **MATCH** |
+| ClawHub registry | Community skill registry | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Plugin system | Full (register tools + CLI commands) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Workspace prompt injection | AGENTS.md, SOUL.md, TOOLS.md | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 12. Gateway & Infrastructure
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| WebSocket control plane | Full | WebSocket gateway (basic) | **PARTIAL** |
+| Control UI (web dashboard) | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Tailscale Serve/Funnel | Full integration | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Remote gateway access | SSH tunnels + tailnet | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Health checks / doctor | 10+ checks | 10 checks | **MATCH** |
+| `onboard` wizard | Full guided setup | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Docker deployment | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Nix deployment | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Fly.io / Railway / Render | Supported | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Bonjour/mDNS discovery | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Gateway lock | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## 13. Chat Commands
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| `/status` | Full | Full | **MATCH** |
+| `/new` / `/reset` | Full | Full | **MATCH** |
+| `/compact` | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `/think <level>` | Full (off to xhigh) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `/verbose` | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `/usage` | Full (off/tokens/full) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| `/local` / `/cloud` | -- | Full | Flynn-unique |
+| `/model` | -- | Full | Flynn-unique |
+
+---
+
+## 14. Miscellaneous
+
+| Feature | OpenClaw | Flynn | Status |
+|---------|----------|-------|--------|
+| Streaming & chunking | Full (per-channel limits) | Full (streaming responses) | **MATCH** |
+| Typing indicators | Full | Telegram only | **PARTIAL** |
+| Presence tracking | Full | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Usage tracking / cost | Full | Basic token counters | **PARTIAL** |
+| Markdown rendering | Per-channel formatting | Basic (TUI + Telegram) | **PARTIAL** |
+| Media pipeline | Images/audio/video/transcription | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Group chat support | Full (mention gating, routing) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| Retry policy | Full (configurable) | -- | **MISSING** |
+| System prompt templating | AGENTS.md, SOUL.md, IDENTITY.md, USER.md | -- | **MISSING** |
+
+---
+
+## Summary Scorecard
+
+| Category | Compared | Match | Partial | Missing |
+|----------|:--------:|:-----:|:-------:|:-------:|
+| Channels | 15 | 2 | 1 | 12 |
+| Model Providers | 14 | 5 | 2 | 7 |
+| Agent & Tools | 17 | 4 | 2 | 11 |
+| Sessions | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
+| Context/Compaction | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
+| Memory | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
+| MCP | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
+| Security | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
+| Automation | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
+| Companion Apps | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
+| Skills/Plugins | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
+| Gateway/Infra | 11 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
+| Chat Commands | 8 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
+| Misc | 9 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
+| **TOTAL** | **118** | **29 (25%)** | **11 (9%)** | **78 (66%)** |
+
+---
+
+## Top Priority Gaps (recommended order)
+
+### P0 — Functionally Critical
+
+1. **Context compaction** — Without this, long conversations hit token limits and break. Blocks real-world use for extended sessions.
+
+2. **Memory system** — OpenClaw's markdown-based memory with vector search gives the assistant persistent knowledge across sessions. Flynn has nothing persistent beyond session history.
+
+### P1 — High Impact
+
+3. **Messaging channels (WhatsApp, Discord, Slack)** — Flynn has 2 of 15 channels. Adding the top 3 popular channels covers the majority of use cases.
+
+4. **Web search tool** — `web_search` (Brave API) is a commonly-used agent capability Flynn lacks entirely.
+
+5. **Background exec / process management** — OpenClaw's `process` tool lets agents manage long-running commands. Flynn's shell tool is fire-and-forget.
+
+6. **Enhanced `web_fetch`** — Flynn's is basic HTTP GET; OpenClaw extracts markdown/text, caches responses, and handles JS-heavy sites via browser fallback.
+
+### P2 — Important for Production
+
+7. **Docker sandboxing** — Tool isolation for non-main sessions. Important for any multi-user or group-facing deployment.
+
+8. **Multi-agent routing** — Isolated agents per workspace/sender with sub-agent spawning.
+
+9. **Tool allow/deny and profiles** — Fine-grained control over which tools each agent/session can use.
+
+10. **System prompt templating** — AGENTS.md, SOUL.md, IDENTITY.md, USER.md workspace injection for personality and behaviour customisation.
+
+### P3 — Nice to Have
+
+11. **Browser control (CDP)** — Powerful but complex; depends on use case.
+12. **Gemini provider (full)** — Currently a stub.
+13. **Additional model providers** — OpenRouter, Bedrock, etc.
+14. **Gateway auth** — Token/password auth for the WebSocket control plane.
+15. **Companion apps** — macOS/iOS/Android nodes (huge scope, niche audience).
+
+---
+
+## What Flynn Has That OpenClaw Doesn't Emphasise
+
+- **Full MCP protocol support** with stdio transport, tool bridging, and server lifecycle management
+- **Model tier switching** via chat commands (`/local`, `/cloud`, `/model`)
+- **Gemini provider** (stub, but in the schema — OpenClaw removed non-Pi agent paths)
+- **SQLite session storage** (vs OpenClaw's JSONL files)