Auto-Delete

zaileys includes a built-in sweeper that periodically removes old messages from the local store. It runs on a configurable interval, always keeping the last maxAgeMs worth of messages — a true rolling/sliding retention window, not a one-shot purge. A message stored today is quietly removed approximately 30 days later (the default).

Auto-delete is enabled by default with a 1-month retention period. You do not need any configuration to get basic housekeeping.

import { Client } from 'zaileys'
 
// No config needed — sweeper is on, keeps the last 30 days.
const client = new Client()

How it works

Every intervalMs (default 60 s), the sweeper wakes up and computes a cutoff timestamp:

cutoff = now - maxAgeMs

It then calls the store’s pruneMessages method, passing the cutoff, any maxPerChat count cap, and the chats scope filter. Any message whose messageTimestamp is older than the cutoff is deleted. When maxPerChat is also set, only the newest N messages per chat are kept, regardless of age.

Because the window slides with the clock, messages are removed continuously — not all at once. There is no sudden spike of deletions at the 30-day mark.

Implementation details worth knowing:

• The interval timer is unref()’d — it will not keep the Node.js process alive on its own.
• A re-entrancy guard skips a tick if the previous sweep is still running (e.g. a slow DB).
• The sweeper starts after the client connects and stops when disconnect() is called.
• If the store exposes no pruneMessages and no deleteMessage, the sweeper logs a one-time warning and disables itself — it never throws or crashes the bot. See Custom stores.

Configuration

Pass autoDelete to the Client constructor to override any field. Your object is merged over the defaults — you only need to supply what you want to change.

import { Client } from 'zaileys'
 
const client = new Client({
  autoDelete: {
    maxAgeMs: 7 * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000, // 7 days
  },
})

To disable auto-delete entirely, pass false:

const client = new Client({ autoDelete: false })

AutoDeleteOptions

Examples

Default — do nothing

The sweeper is already running with 30-day retention. No config needed.

import { Client } from 'zaileys'
 
const client = new Client()
 
client.on('connect', () => {
  console.log('Connected — auto-delete running with 30-day retention.')
})

Custom retention window

Keep only the last 7 days of messages across all chats:

import { Client } from 'zaileys'
 
const client = new Client({
  autoDelete: {
    maxAgeMs: 7 * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000, // 7 days
  },
})

Count cap scoped to group chats

Keep at most 500 messages per group, sweeping every 5 minutes. maxAgeMs still defaults to 30 days — messages older than 30 days are also removed unless you override maxAgeMs: Infinity.

import { Client } from 'zaileys'
 
const client = new Client({
  autoDelete: {
    maxPerChat: 500,
    intervalMs: 5 * 60 * 1000, // 5 minutes
    chats: (jid) => jid.endsWith('@g.us'), // groups only
  },
})

Disable auto-delete

import { Client } from 'zaileys'
 
const client = new Client({ autoDelete: false })

Custom stores

The sweeper adapts to what the store exposes, in order of preference:

1. pruneMessages(opts) — the store handles pruning natively and returns a count of deleted messages. All 5 built-in adapters (Memory, SQLite, Postgres, Redis, Convex) implement this efficiently (e.g. a single SQL DELETE WHERE).
2. deleteMessage(key) — fallback for stores that have no native prune: the sweeper enumerates chats, lists messages, and deletes old ones one by one.
3. Neither — the sweeper logs a one-time warning and disables itself silently.

If you are building a custom store, implementing pruneMessages is the recommended path. See Pruning old messages for the full interface.

See also

• Storage Adapters — all five built-in adapters and the pruneMessages / deleteMessage interface.
• Configuration — the autoDelete ClientOption alongside all other connection options.