The five persona files explained

Updated: November 12, 2026 · By Brian Arrington, Founder, AI Consultant and Business Coach

Why agents split a persona into files

A personal agent needs to know several different things: who it is, how it should work, who it works for, what it is called and what it has learned. Some agents keep all of that in plain text files in a workspace folder, so you can read, edit, back up and version them like any other document. OpenClaw documents a set of these files that it loads into each session [1]. Hermes uses the same idea for its identity file, SOUL.md [2].

Keeping each job in its own file has a practical benefit. You can swap the persona without losing what the agent knows about you, or reset memory without rewriting the persona.

The five files, one by one

1. SOUL.md: who the agent is

SOUL.md holds the persona, tone and boundaries, and OpenClaw loads it every session [1]. In Hermes, SOUL.md is the "primary identity": it is the first thing in the system prompt and defines who the agent is [2]. Hermes loads it only from its home folder (usually ~/.hermes/SOUL.md), not from whatever folder you launch it in, so the personality belongs to the Hermes instance [2].

Put here: role, voice, values and hard limits that should follow the agent everywhere.

2. AGENTS.md: how the agent works

AGENTS.md holds operating instructions and how the agent should use memory, and OpenClaw loads it at the start of every session. Its docs call it a good place for rules, priorities and "how to behave" details [1]. OpenClaw also keeps local tool notes in a Tools section of AGENTS.md, and notes that this section is guidance only. It does not control which tools the agent can use [1]. For Hermes, put only project-specific instructions (commands, paths and repo conventions) in AGENTS.md. The persona's standing approval rules stay in SOUL.md [2].

Put here: only project-specific instructions (commands, paths and repo conventions). Keep standing approval rules, and any workflow that should follow the agent everywhere, in SOUL.md.

3. USER.md: who you are

In OpenClaw, USER.md is an optional user model: your stable preferences, communication style, relationships and active project context, written as dated directives and loaded every session [1].

Put here: facts about you that any persona should respect, such as time zone, preferred tone and who your key contacts are.

4. IDENTITY.md: name and vibe

IDENTITY.md stores the agent's name, vibe and emoji. OpenClaw creates or updates it during its first-run setup [1]. Muse covers similar ground: per Meta's help center, you can change Muse's name, personality and tone, communication style and memories about you, and update its avatar and tagline [4].

Put here: the display name and short tagline. Keep it small.

5. MEMORY.md: what the agent has learned

MEMORY.md is optional curated long-term memory in OpenClaw: durable facts, decisions and short summaries. Detailed day by day notes go in dated files under memory/, and OpenClaw only loads MEMORY.md in the main private session, not in shared or group contexts [1].

Put here: a short, edited summary of what matters. Not a raw chat log.

How a BotPlaybooks persona maps onto the five files

Every BotPlaybooks persona ships as a single Markdown file. It opens with a header (role, category, summary and the agents it works with), then four sections:

A persona does not include USER.md or MEMORY.md content. Those are about you, so you write them once and keep them when you switch personas.

Which platforms read which files

• OpenClaw: reads the workspace files above from your agent workspace (default ~/.openclaw/workspace) [1].
• Hermes: reads SOUL.md from its home folder as the agent's identity, and keeps project instructions in AGENTS.md [2].
• Grok Bot: does not use these file names. Each Bot has its own name and conversation [3]. In practice, you use the plus button in your main Grok Bot to give it the persona's Markdown file and tell it to build the persona as a new agent. See our setup guide.
• Muse: Meta's help center lists name, personality and tone, communication style, memories, and an avatar and tagline as things you can customize, and says Muse uses a file-based memory system [4]. See our Muse guide.
• OpenAI Dots: you give your dot the persona as working instructions in chat and map guardrails to Custom Rules. See our Dots guide.

Moving a persona between agents

1. Back up first. Copy your current SOUL.md (and any other files you plan to change) somewhere safe [1][2].
2. Collect your files. Gather SOUL.md, AGENTS.md, USER.md, IDENTITY.md and MEMORY.md, or whichever ones your old agent uses.
3. Condense memory. Turn long logs into a short MEMORY.md style summary of durable facts and decisions.
4. Load them into the new agent. - Hermes or OpenClaw: paste into the matching files, then start a new session so the agent loads them. - Grok Bot: Back up your Hermes SOUL.md and AGENTS.md. Then load the persona's original Markdown file the same way: in your main Grok Bot, use the plus button to give it the file and tell it to build the persona as a new agent. Give it facts from USER.md and MEMORY.md in its first conversation.
5. Redo connections by hand. Reconnect tools, logins and routines in the new agent.
6. Test with the persona's Example First Task.

Keep a master copy you own

Store your five files (and the BotPlaybooks persona file) in a folder you control, outside any platform. OpenClaw's docs suggest keeping the workspace in a private git repo for backup [1]. With a master copy, you can move in either direction and you are never starting from scratch.

FAQ

What is the best way to move my Hermes persona to Grok Bot? Back up your Hermes SOUL.md and AGENTS.md. Then load the persona's original Markdown file the same way: in your main Grok Bot, use the plus button to give it the file and tell it to build the persona as a new agent. Then test with a real task. People ask this often on X and in r/hermesagent [5][6].

Does Grok Bot's Import Bot bring in my Hermes or OpenClaw files? xAI's official docs describe Import Bot only as a way to create your own copy of a Bot listed in Marketplace [3]. We have not found official documentation that Import Bot imports Hermes or OpenClaw files.

Will my memories and past conversations come with me? Written files carry over: your persona, your USER.md facts and a MEMORY.md summary. Chat history generally does not. Even a duplicated Grok Bot does not copy conversation history or learned memory [3]. Condense what matters into a short summary and give it to the new agent. This is a common question [8][9].

Am I locked in if I move to a hosted agent? Not if you keep a master copy of your persona files outside the platform. Then you can rebuild in either direction. One person describes moving to Grok Bot and later back to Hermes [10].

How do I rebuild a Grok Bot on Hermes? Start from the persona's original Markdown file and load it the way your new tool expects. For Hermes, put the persona into ~/.hermes/SOUL.md (back up the old file first). Keep standing approval rules, and any workflow that should follow the agent everywhere, in SOUL.md. Put only project-specific instructions (commands, paths and repo conventions) in AGENTS.md. Then start a new session so Hermes loads the new identity [2]. This reverse question comes up in r/hermesagent [11].

Do I have to set up logins, tools and routines again? Yes, plan on it. Persona files describe behavior, not access. A shared or added Grok Bot, for example, does not bring your computer, logins or conversation history [3]. Reconnect only the tools the persona lists and recreate its routines.

What is the difference between SOUL.md and AGENTS.md? SOUL.md is who the agent is: persona, tone and boundaries. For OpenClaw, AGENTS.md is how it works: operating rules, priorities and workflow [1]. For Hermes, put the persona (including standing approval rules, and any workflow that should follow the agent everywhere) in SOUL.md, and put only project-specific instructions (commands, paths and repo conventions) in AGENTS.md. Hermes puts it simply: if it should follow the agent everywhere, it belongs in SOUL.md [2].

Where does a BotPlaybooks persona go? The Persona / System Prompt section goes in SOUL.md (or, in Grok Bot, use the plus button in your main Grok Bot to give it the Markdown file and tell it to build the persona as a new agent). Connect the listed tools, set up the routines and send the Example First Task. Full steps are on our setup page.

Which of your agent's files would you back up first?

Sources

1. OpenClaw: Agent workspace. https://docs.openclaw.ai/concepts/agent-workspace (read 2026-10-21)
2. Hermes Agent: Personality and SOUL.md. https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/docs/user-guide/features/personality (read 2026-10-21)
3. xAI: Create and manage Bots (Grok Bot). https://docs.x.ai/grok-bot/bots (read 2026-11-02)
4. Meta Help Center: How to customize Muse's personality and memories. https://www.meta.com/help/artificial-intelligence/995796179982326/
5. X post, 2026-10-17: https://x.com/bradmillscan/status/2111573402003849298
6. Reddit r/hermesagent, "How to turn Hermes to GrokBot?": https://www.reddit.com/r/hermesagent/comments/1w7bks8/how_to_turn_hermes_to_grokbot/
7. X post, 2026-10-13: https://x.com/BackCountryPP/status/2109885996942987341
8. X post, 2026-10-06: https://x.com/mteamisloading/status/2107530829618712964
9. X post, 2026-10-10: https://x.com/jaynailer/status/2108768574445641827
10. Reddit r/hermesagent, "New to Hermes, how do i build a GrokBot duplicate but on Hermes?": https://www.reddit.com/r/hermesagent/comments/1who31r/new_to_hermes_how_do_i_build_a_grokbot_duplicate/

BotPlaybooks is independent and not affiliated with xAI, Meta, OpenAI, Nous Research (Hermes) or OpenClaw.