From a3938d62f60df4f320bc07370cafb2fc2110d978 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Peter Steinberger <steipete@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 11:06:37 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] chore: raise heartbeat ack window

---
 CHANGELOG.md                           | 5 +++++
 docs/gateway/configuration-examples.md | 2 +-
 docs/gateway/configuration.md          | 2 +-
 docs/gateway/heartbeat.md              | 4 ++--
 src/auto-reply/heartbeat.ts            | 2 +-
 5 files changed, 10 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)

diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 4e1381b8e..c12fe6502 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,5 +1,10 @@
 # Changelog
 
+# 2026.1.12-1
+
+### Changes
+- Heartbeat: raise default `ackMaxChars` to 300 so any `HEARTBEAT_OK` replies with short padding stay internal (fewer noisy heartbeat posts on providers).
+
 ## 2026.1.11-5
 
 ### Fixes
diff --git a/docs/gateway/configuration-examples.md b/docs/gateway/configuration-examples.md
index 3c39c0bbd..3456077d8 100644
--- a/docs/gateway/configuration-examples.md
+++ b/docs/gateway/configuration-examples.md
@@ -239,7 +239,7 @@ Save to `~/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json` and you can DM the bot from that number.
         target: "last",
         to: "+15555550123",
         prompt: "HEARTBEAT",
-        ackMaxChars: 30
+        ackMaxChars: 300
       },
       sandbox: {
         mode: "non-main",
diff --git a/docs/gateway/configuration.md b/docs/gateway/configuration.md
index 3d82f475a..9ffb7c466 100644
--- a/docs/gateway/configuration.md
+++ b/docs/gateway/configuration.md
@@ -1463,7 +1463,7 @@ Z.AI models are available as `zai/<model>` (e.g. `zai/glm-4.7`) and require
 - `target`: optional delivery provider (`last`, `whatsapp`, `telegram`, `discord`, `slack`, `signal`, `imessage`, `none`). Default: `last`.
 - `to`: optional recipient override (provider-specific id, e.g. E.164 for WhatsApp, chat id for Telegram).
 - `prompt`: optional override for the heartbeat body (default: `Read HEARTBEAT.md if exists. Consider outstanding tasks. Checkup sometimes on your human during (user local) day time.`). Overrides are sent verbatim; include a `Read HEARTBEAT.md if exists` line if you still want the file read.
-- `ackMaxChars`: max chars allowed after `HEARTBEAT_OK` before delivery (default: 30).
+- `ackMaxChars`: max chars allowed after `HEARTBEAT_OK` before delivery (default: 300).
 
 Heartbeats run full agent turns. Shorter intervals burn more tokens; be mindful
 of `every`, keep `HEARTBEAT.md` tiny, and/or choose a cheaper `model`.
diff --git a/docs/gateway/heartbeat.md b/docs/gateway/heartbeat.md
index 0cb109216..4ee9d8f0a 100644
--- a/docs/gateway/heartbeat.md
+++ b/docs/gateway/heartbeat.md
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ custom body (sent verbatim).
 - If nothing needs attention, reply with **`HEARTBEAT_OK`**.
 - During heartbeat runs, Clawdbot treats `HEARTBEAT_OK` as an ack when it appears
   at the **start or end** of the reply. The token is stripped and the reply is
-  dropped if the remaining content is **≤ `ackMaxChars`** (default: 30).
+  dropped if the remaining content is **≤ `ackMaxChars`** (default: 300).
 - If `HEARTBEAT_OK` appears in the **middle** of a reply, it is not treated
   specially.
 - For alerts, **do not** include `HEARTBEAT_OK`; return only the alert text.
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ and logged; a message that is only `HEARTBEAT_OK` is dropped.
         target: "last",         // last | whatsapp | telegram | discord | slack | signal | imessage | none
         to: "+15551234567",     // optional provider-specific override
         prompt: "Read HEARTBEAT.md if exists. Consider outstanding tasks. Checkup sometimes on your human during (user local) day time.",
-        ackMaxChars: 30          // max chars allowed after HEARTBEAT_OK
+        ackMaxChars: 300         // max chars allowed after HEARTBEAT_OK
       }
     }
   }
diff --git a/src/auto-reply/heartbeat.ts b/src/auto-reply/heartbeat.ts
index b9d0ff13b..e1d4f6042 100644
--- a/src/auto-reply/heartbeat.ts
+++ b/src/auto-reply/heartbeat.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import { HEARTBEAT_TOKEN } from "./tokens.js";
 export const HEARTBEAT_PROMPT =
   "Consider outstanding tasks and HEARTBEAT.md guidance from the workspace context (if present). Checkup sometimes on your human during (user local) day time.";
 export const DEFAULT_HEARTBEAT_EVERY = "30m";
-export const DEFAULT_HEARTBEAT_ACK_MAX_CHARS = 30;
+export const DEFAULT_HEARTBEAT_ACK_MAX_CHARS = 300;
 
 export function resolveHeartbeatPrompt(raw?: string): string {
   const trimmed = typeof raw === "string" ? raw.trim() : "";