reranking and query expansion on the first `qmd query` run.

</Info>

## Search performance and compatibility

OpenClaw keeps the QMD search path compatible with both current and older QMD

installs.

On startup, OpenClaw checks the installed QMD help text once per manager. If the

binary advertises support for multiple collection filters, OpenClaw searches all

same-source collections with one command:

```bash

qmd search "router notes" --json -n 10 -c memory-root-main -c memory-dir-main

```

This avoids starting one QMD subprocess for every durable-memory collection.

Session transcript collections stay in their own source group, so mixed

`memory` + `sessions` searches still give the result diversifier input from both

sources.

Older QMD builds only accept one collection filter. When OpenClaw detects one

of those builds, it keeps the compatibility path and searches each collection

separately before merging and deduplicating results.

To inspect the installed contract manually, run:

```bash

qmd --help | grep -i collection

```

Current QMD help says collection filters can target one or more collections.

Older help usually describes a single collection.

## Model overrides

QMD model environment variables pass through unchanged from the gateway

runs as a service, create a symlink:

`sudo ln -s ~/.bun/bin/qmd /usr/local/bin/qmd`.

If `qmd --version` works in your shell but OpenClaw still reports

`spawn qmd ENOENT`, the gateway process likely has a different `PATH` than your

interactive shell. Pin the binary explicitly:

```json5

{

memory: {

backend: "qmd",

qmd: {

command: "/absolute/path/to/qmd",

},

},

}

```

Use `command -v qmd` in the environment where QMD is installed, then recheck

with `openclaw memory status --deep`.

**First search very slow?** QMD downloads GGUF models on first use. Pre-warm

with `qmd query "test"` using the same XDG dirs OpenClaw uses.

**Many QMD subprocesses during search?** Update QMD if possible. OpenClaw uses

one process for same-source multi-collection searches only when the installed

QMD advertises support for multiple `-c` filters; otherwise it keeps the older

per-collection fallback for correctness.

**BM25-only QMD still trying to build llama.cpp?** Set

`memory.qmd.searchMode = "search"`. OpenClaw treats that mode as lexical-only,

does not run QMD vector status probes or embedding maintenance, and leaves