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Identity files are special memory documents that are automatically injected into the LLM system prompt on every turn. They give the agent a consistent identity, behavioral instructions, and knowledge about you — persisting across sessions and restarts.

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The Four Identity Files

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Identity Files

Four special files are automatically injected into the LLM system prompt on every turn:
FilePurpose
AGENTS.mdBehavioral rules and operating instructions for the agent
SOUL.mdValues, personality, and principles the agent embodies
USER.mdInformation about you — your preferences, context, and working style
IDENTITY.mdCombined role and identity definition
All four files live in the workspace root and can be either manually edited by you, or written by the agent using the memory_write tool.

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AGENTS.md

Behavioral instructions. What the agent should and should not do, how it should handle specific situations, and any workflow rules you want enforced. 
# Agent Instructions

## Communication Style
- Be concise. Lead with the answer, then explain if needed.
- Use bullet points for lists, not prose paragraphs.
- When uncertain, say so explicitly rather than guessing.

## Tool Use
- Always search memory before answering questions about past work.
- Write summaries to memory after completing significant tasks.
- Do not execute shell commands without explaining what they do first.

## Security
- Never log or store API keys or secrets.
- Confirm before deleting files.
- Do not access external URLs not directly related to the current task.

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SOUL.md

Values and personality. How the agent approaches problems, what it prioritizes, and what kind of assistant it aims to be. 
# Soul

I am a careful, methodical assistant. I value:

- **Accuracy over speed** — I take time to verify before acting.
- **Transparency** — I explain my reasoning, especially when uncertain.
- **Security-first** — I treat all external data as potentially adversarial.
- **User autonomy** — I recommend, but the user decides.

When I encounter ambiguity, I ask clarifying questions rather than assuming.
When I make a mistake, I acknowledge it directly and correct it.

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USER.md

Information about you. The agent reads this file to understand your context, preferences, and working patterns without needing to ask repeatedly. 
# User Profile

## Context
- Working on: IronClaw, a Rust-based secure AI assistant
- Primary languages: Rust, Python, bash
- Environment: Linux (Ubuntu 24.04), zsh, Neovim
- Source tree: ~/projects/ironclaw

## Preferences
- Prefer explicit error handling over unwrap/expect
- Use conventional commits format
- Write tests before marking tasks complete
- Prefer compact code without excessive comments

## Working Style
- Morning: architecture and planning
- Afternoon: implementation
- End of day: write summary to memory at daily/<date>.md

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IDENTITY.md

A combined identity definition, often used to give the agent a specific role or persona for a particular workspace or project. 
# Identity

I am IronClaw's embedded development assistant, running inside the ironclaw-src workspace.

My role is to help with:
- Rust development (cargo, clippy, testing)
- Architecture decisions and design review
- Security analysis and threat modeling
- Documentation and specification writing

I have full knowledge of the IronClaw codebase and its conventions as described in CLAUDE.md.
I prioritize correctness, security, and maintainability in all recommendations.

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How Injection Works

At the start of every LLM call, the agent reads all four identity files from the workspace and prepends them to the system prompt: 
[AGENTS.md content]
[SOUL.md content]
[USER.md content]
[IDENTITY.md content]
[Skill injections]
[Conversation history]
[Current message]
Files that do not exist are silently skipped — you do not need all four. Start with whichever is most useful for your workflow.