Linux App

Gateway is fully supported on Linux. Node is recommended as the runtime.

Bun is not recommended for running Gateway (compatibility issues with WhatsApp/Telegram).

A native Linux companion app is planned. Contributions are welcome if you'd like to participate.

1. Install Node 22+

2. ''npm i -g openclaw@latest''

3. ''openclaw onboard --install-daemon''

4. On your laptop: ''ssh -N -L 18789:127.0.0.1:18789 <user>@<host>''

5. Open ''http://127.0.0.1:18789/'' and paste your token

VPS step-by-step guide: ''exe.dev''

- ''Getting Started''

- ''Install & Updating''

- Optional flows: ''Bun (experimental)'', ''Nix'', ''Docker''

- ''Gateway runbook''

- ''Configuration''

Any of these works:

openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Or:

openclaw gateway install

Or:

openclaw configure

Choose Gateway service when prompted.

Repair/migrate:

openclaw doctor

OpenClaw installs a systemd ''user'' service by default. For shared or always-on servers, a ''system'' service is more appropriate. See ''Gateway runbook'' for complete unit examples and guidance.

Minimal example:

Create ''~/.config/systemd/user/openclaw-gateway[-<profile>].service'':

[Unit]
Description=OpenClaw Gateway (profile: '<profile>', v'<version>')
After=network-online.target
Wants=network-online.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/openclaw gateway --port 18789
Restart=always
RestartSec=5

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target

Enable:

systemctl --user enable --now openclaw-gateway[-'<profile>'].service