fix(memory): default qmd searchMode to search + scope search/vsearch to collections

docs/concepts/memory.md

@@ -139,8 +139,8 @@ out to QMD for retrieval. Key points:
 - Boot refresh now runs in the background by default so chat startup is not
   blocked; set `memory.qmd.update.waitForBootSync = true` to keep the previous
   blocking behavior.
-- Searches run via `memory.qmd.searchMode` (default `qmd query --json`; also
-  supports `search` and `vsearch`). If the selected mode rejects flags on your
+- Searches run via `memory.qmd.searchMode` (default `qmd search --json`; also
+  supports `vsearch` and `query`). If the selected mode rejects flags on your
   QMD build, OpenClaw retries with `qmd query`. If QMD fails or the binary is
   missing, OpenClaw automatically falls back to the builtin SQLite manager so
   memory tools keep working.
@@ -178,8 +178,8 @@ out to QMD for retrieval. Key points:
 **Config surface (`memory.qmd.*`)**
 
 - `command` (default `qmd`): override the executable path.
-- `searchMode` (default `query`): pick which QMD command backs
-  `memory_search` (`query`, `search`, `vsearch`).
+- `searchMode` (default `search`): pick which QMD command backs
+  `memory_search` (`search`, `vsearch`, `query`).
 - `includeDefaultMemory` (default `true`): auto-index `MEMORY.md` + `memory/**/*.md`.
 - `paths[]`: add extra directories/files (`path`, optional `pattern`, optional
   stable `name`).

src/memory/backend-config.test.ts

@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ describe("resolveMemoryBackendConfig", () => {
     expect(resolved.backend).toBe("qmd");
     expect(resolved.qmd?.collections.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(3);
     expect(resolved.qmd?.command).toBe("qmd");
-    expect(resolved.qmd?.searchMode).toBe("query");
+    expect(resolved.qmd?.searchMode).toBe("search");
     expect(resolved.qmd?.update.intervalMs).toBeGreaterThan(0);
     expect(resolved.qmd?.update.waitForBootSync).toBe(false);
     expect(resolved.qmd?.update.commandTimeoutMs).toBe(30_000);

src/memory/backend-config.ts

@@ -66,7 +66,9 @@ const DEFAULT_CITATIONS: MemoryCitationsMode = "auto";
 const DEFAULT_QMD_INTERVAL = "5m";
 const DEFAULT_QMD_DEBOUNCE_MS = 15_000;
 const DEFAULT_QMD_TIMEOUT_MS = 4_000;
-const DEFAULT_QMD_SEARCH_MODE: MemoryQmdSearchMode = "query";
+// Defaulting to `query` can be extremely slow on CPU-only systems (query expansion + rerank).
+// Prefer a faster mode for interactive use; users can opt into `query` for best recall.
+const DEFAULT_QMD_SEARCH_MODE: MemoryQmdSearchMode = "search";
 const DEFAULT_QMD_EMBED_INTERVAL = "60m";
 const DEFAULT_QMD_COMMAND_TIMEOUT_MS = 30_000;
 const DEFAULT_QMD_UPDATE_TIMEOUT_MS = 120_000;

src/memory/qmd-manager.test.ts

@@ -334,7 +334,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
     ).resolves.toEqual([]);
 
     const searchCall = spawnMock.mock.calls.find((call) => call[1]?.[0] === "search");
-    expect(searchCall?.[1]).toEqual(["search", "test", "--json"]);
+    expect(searchCall?.[1]).toEqual(["search", "test", "--json", "-c", "workspace"]);
     expect(spawnMock.mock.calls.some((call) => call[1]?.[0] === "query")).toBe(false);
     expect(maxResults).toBeGreaterThan(0);
     await manager.close();
@@ -388,7 +388,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
         (args): args is string[] => Array.isArray(args) && ["search", "query"].includes(args[0]),
       );
     expect(searchAndQueryCalls).toEqual([
-      ["search", "test", "--json"],
+      ["search", "test", "--json", "-c", "workspace"],
       ["query", "test", "--json", "-n", String(maxResults), "-c", "workspace"],
     ]);
     await manager.close();
@@ -535,7 +535,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
     } as OpenClawConfig;
 
     spawnMock.mockImplementation((_cmd: string, args: string[]) => {
-      if (args[0] === "query") {
+      if (args[0] === "search") {
         const child = createMockChild({ autoClose: false });
         emitAndClose(child, "stdout", "[]");
         return child;
@@ -549,24 +549,10 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
     if (!manager) {
       throw new Error("manager missing");
     }
-    const maxResults = resolved.qmd?.limits.maxResults;
-    if (!maxResults) {
-      throw new Error("qmd maxResults missing");
-    }
 
     await manager.search("test", { sessionKey: "agent:main:slack:dm:u123" });
-    const queryCall = spawnMock.mock.calls.find((call) => call[1]?.[0] === "query");
-    expect(queryCall?.[1]).toEqual([
-      "query",
-      "test",
-      "--json",
-      "-n",
-      String(maxResults),
-      "-c",
-      "workspace",
-      "-c",
-      "notes",
-    ]);
+    const searchCall = spawnMock.mock.calls.find((call) => call[1]?.[0] === "search");
+    expect(searchCall?.[1]).toEqual(["search", "test", "--json", "-c", "workspace", "-c", "notes"]);
     await manager.close();
   });
 
@@ -802,7 +788,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
 
   it("fails search when sqlite index is busy so caller can fallback", async () => {
     spawnMock.mockImplementation((_cmd: string, args: string[]) => {
-      if (args[0] === "query") {
+      if (args[0] === "search") {
         const child = createMockChild({ autoClose: false });
         emitAndClose(
           child,
@@ -839,7 +825,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
 
   it("treats plain-text no-results stdout as an empty result set", async () => {
     spawnMock.mockImplementation((_cmd: string, args: string[]) => {
-      if (args[0] === "query") {
+      if (args[0] === "search") {
         const child = createMockChild({ autoClose: false });
         emitAndClose(child, "stdout", "No results found.");
         return child;
@@ -862,7 +848,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
 
   it("treats plain-text no-results stdout without punctuation as empty", async () => {
     spawnMock.mockImplementation((_cmd: string, args: string[]) => {
-      if (args[0] === "query") {
+      if (args[0] === "search") {
         const child = createMockChild({ autoClose: false });
         emitAndClose(child, "stdout", "No results found\n\n");
         return child;
@@ -885,7 +871,7 @@ describe("QmdMemoryManager", () => {
 
   it("treats plain-text no-results stderr as an empty result set", async () => {
     spawnMock.mockImplementation((_cmd: string, args: string[]) => {
-      if (args[0] === "query") {
+      if (args[0] === "search") {
         const child = createMockChild({ autoClose: false });
         emitAndClose(child, "stderr", "No results found.\n");
         return child;

src/memory/qmd-manager.ts

@@ -262,9 +262,10 @@ export class QmdMemoryManager implements MemorySearchManager {
     }
     const qmdSearchCommand = this.qmd.searchMode;
     const args = this.buildSearchArgs(qmdSearchCommand, trimmed, limit);
-    if (qmdSearchCommand === "query") {
-      args.push(...collectionFilterArgs);
-    }
+
+    // Always scope to managed collections (default + custom). Even for `search`/`vsearch`,
+    // pass collection filters; if a given QMD build rejects these flags, we fall back to `query`.
+    args.push(...collectionFilterArgs);
     let stdout: string;
     let stderr: string;
     try {