Windows (WSL2)

On Windows, we recommend running OpenClaw via WSL2 (Ubuntu recommended). The CLI + Gateway run inside Linux, keeping the runtime consistent and greatly improving toolchain compatibility (Node/Bun/pnpm, Linux binaries, skills, etc). Running natively on Windows is usually more work; WSL2 gives you a full Linux environment—install it with one command: wsl --install.

A native Windows companion app is planned.

- Getting Started (run inside WSL)

- Install & Updating

- Microsoft WSL install guide

- Gateway runbook

- Configuration

Inside WSL2:

openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Or:

openclaw gateway install

Or:

openclaw configure

When prompted, choose Gateway service.

Repair / migrate:

openclaw doctor

WSL uses a separate virtual network. If you need another machine to reach a service running inside WSL (SSH, a local TTS service, or the Gateway), you must forward a Windows port to the current WSL IP. The WSL IP changes after a reboot, so you may need to refresh the portproxy rule.

Example (run PowerShell as Administrator):

$Distro = "Ubuntu-24.04"
$ListenPort = 2222
$TargetPort = 22

$WslIp = (wsl -d $Distro -- hostname -I).Trim().Split(" ")[0]
if (-not $WslIp) { throw "WSL IP not found." }

netsh interface portproxy add v4tov4 listenaddress=0.0.0.0 listenport=$ListenPort `
  connectaddress=$WslIp connectport=$TargetPort

Allow through Windows Firewall (one-time):

New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "WSL SSH $ListenPort" -Direction Inbound `
  -Protocol TCP -LocalPort $ListenPort -Action Allow

Refresh portproxy after WSL restarts:

netsh interface portproxy delete v4tov4 listenport=$ListenPort listenaddress=0.0.0.0 | Out-Null
netsh interface portproxy add v4tov4 listenport=$ListenPort listenaddress=0.0.0.0 `
  connectaddress=$WslIp connectport=$TargetPort | Out-Null

Notes:

- When SSHing from another machine, connect to the Windows host IP (e.g. ssh user@windows-host -p 2222).

- Remote nodes must point at a reachable Gateway URL (not 127.0.0.1); check with openclaw status --all.

- listenaddress=0.0.0.0 exposes to LAN; 127.0.0.1 is local-only.

- To automate, register a scheduled task to run the refresh steps on login.

Follow these steps to install WSL2 + Ubuntu and set up OpenClaw.

Open PowerShell (Administrator):

wsl --install

wsl --list --online
wsl --install -d Ubuntu-24.04

If Windows asks you to reboot, reboot as instructed.

In the WSL terminal:

sudo tee /etc/wsl.conf >/dev/null <<'EOF'
[boot]
systemd=true
EOF

Then in PowerShell:

wsl --shutdown

Reopen Ubuntu and verify:

systemctl --user status

Inside WSL, follow the Linux Getting Started flow:

git clone https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw.git
cd openclaw
pnpm install
pnpm ui:build # First run will auto-install UI dependencies
pnpm build
openclaw onboard

Full guide: Getting Started

There is no Windows companion app yet. Contributions are welcome.