Description

The memory-core plugin's file watcher (ensureWatcher()) passes glob patterns like memory/**/*.md to chokidar v5. However, chokidar v5 removed built-in glob support (no picomatch/anymatch dependency). The path is treated as a literal file path, stat() fails silently, and the watcher never registers for the memory/ directory.

As a result, new .md files created in workspace/memory/ are never indexed into SQLite until a gateway restart or manual memory_search trigger.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Start gateway normally (memory-core registers, existing files indexed)
2. Create a new file: echo "# Test" > workspace/memory/test-new.md
3. Wait 60 seconds
4. Check: sqlite3 ~/.openclaw/memory/main.sqlite "SELECT path FROM files WHERE path LIKE '%test-new%';"
5. Result: empty — file not indexed

Root Cause

In manager-D8h-GoiI.js line ~2134:

watchPaths.add(path.join(this.workspaceDir, "memory", "**", "*.md"));

This creates a path like /path/to/workspace/memory/**/*.md.

Chokidar v5 (5.0.0) does NOT resolve globs — it passes this string directly to stat() which fails (no such file). The watcher is effectively a no-op for the memory directory.

Confirmed via test: watching the directory path works, watching the glob does not:

// Does NOT fire "add":
chokidar.watch("memory/**/*.md", { ignoreInitial: true })

// DOES fire "add":
chokidar.watch("memory/", { ignoreInitial: true })

Suggested Fix

Replace glob patterns with directory paths in ensureWatcher():

// Before (broken with chokidar v5):
watchPaths.add(path.join(this.workspaceDir, "memory", "**", "*.md"));

// After (works):
watchPaths.add(path.join(this.workspaceDir, "memory"));

Add .md extension filtering in the ignored option or in markDirty().

Environment

• OpenClaw: 2026.3.1
• chokidar: 5.0.0
• Node: v24.13.1
• OS: macOS 15.2 Sequoia (Darwin 24.2.0, Apple Silicon)