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Onboarding Wizard Reference

This is the full reference for the openclaw onboard CLI wizard. For a high-level overview, see Onboarding Wizard.

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Flow details (local mode)

1

Existing config detection

  • If ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json exists, choose Keep / Modify / Reset.
  • Re-running the wizard does not wipe anything unless you explicitly choose Reset (or pass --reset).
  • CLI --reset defaults to config+creds+sessions; use --reset-scope full to also remove workspace.
  • If the config is invalid or contains legacy keys, the wizard stops and asks you to run openclaw doctor before continuing.
  • Reset uses trash (never rm) and offers scopes:
    • Config only
    • Config + credentials + sessions
    • Full reset (also removes workspace)
2

Model/Auth

  • Anthropic API key: uses ANTHROPIC_API_KEY if present or prompts for a key, then saves it for daemon use.
  • Anthropic OAuth (Claude Code CLI): on macOS the wizard checks Keychain item “Claude Code-credentials” (choose “Always Allow” so launchd starts don’t block); on Linux/Windows it reuses ~/.claude/.credentials.json if present.
  • Anthropic token (paste setup-token): run claude setup-token on any machine, then paste the token (you can name it; blank = default).
  • OpenAI Code (Codex) subscription (Codex CLI): if ~/.codex/auth.json exists, the wizard can reuse it.
  • OpenAI Code (Codex) subscription (OAuth): browser flow; paste the code#state.
    • Sets agents.defaults.model to openai-codex/gpt-5.2 when model is unset or openai/*.
  • OpenAI API key: uses OPENAI_API_KEY if present or prompts for a key, then stores it in auth profiles.
  • xAI (Grok) API key: prompts for XAI_API_KEY and configures xAI as a model provider.
  • OpenCode Zen (multi-model proxy): prompts for OPENCODE_API_KEY (or OPENCODE_ZEN_API_KEY, get it at https://opencode.ai/auth).
  • API key: stores the key for you.
  • Vercel AI Gateway (multi-model proxy): prompts for AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY.
  • More detail: Vercel AI Gateway
  • Cloudflare AI Gateway: prompts for Account ID, Gateway ID, and CLOUDFLARE_AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY.
  • More detail: Cloudflare AI Gateway
  • MiniMax M2.5: config is auto-written.
  • More detail: MiniMax
  • Synthetic (Anthropic-compatible): prompts for SYNTHETIC_API_KEY.
  • More detail: Synthetic
  • Moonshot (Kimi K2): config is auto-written.
  • Kimi Coding: config is auto-written.
  • More detail: Moonshot AI (Kimi + Kimi Coding)
  • Skip: no auth configured yet.
  • Pick a default model from detected options (or enter provider/model manually). For best quality and lower prompt-injection risk, choose the strongest latest-generation model available in your provider stack.
  • Wizard runs a model check and warns if the configured model is unknown or missing auth.
  • API key storage mode defaults to plaintext auth-profile values. Use --secret-input-mode ref to store env-backed refs instead (for example keyRef: { source: "env", provider: "default", id: "OPENAI_API_KEY" }).
  • OAuth credentials live in ~/.openclaw/credentials/oauth.json; auth profiles live in ~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json (API keys + OAuth).
  • More detail: /concepts/oauth
Headless/server tip: complete OAuth on a machine with a browser, then copy ~/.openclaw/credentials/oauth.json (or $OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR/credentials/oauth.json) to the gateway host.
3

Workspace

  • Default ~/.openclaw/workspace (configurable).
  • Seeds the workspace files needed for the agent bootstrap ritual.
  • Full workspace layout + backup guide: Agent workspace
4

Gateway

  • Port, bind, auth mode, tailscale exposure.
  • Auth recommendation: keep Token even for loopback so local WS clients must authenticate.
  • In token mode, interactive onboarding offers:
    • Generate/store plaintext token (default)
    • Use SecretRef (opt-in)
    • Quickstart reuses existing gateway.auth.token SecretRefs across env, file, and exec providers for onboarding probe/dashboard bootstrap.
    • If that SecretRef is configured but cannot be resolved, onboarding fails early with a clear fix message instead of silently degrading runtime auth.
  • In password mode, interactive onboarding also supports plaintext or SecretRef storage.
  • Non-interactive token SecretRef path: --gateway-token-ref-env <ENV_VAR>.
    • Requires a non-empty env var in the onboarding process environment.
    • Cannot be combined with --gateway-token.
  • Disable auth only if you fully trust every local process.
  • Non‑loopback binds still require auth.
5

Channels

  • WhatsApp: optional QR login.
  • Telegram: bot token.
  • Discord: bot token.
  • Google Chat: service account JSON + webhook audience.
  • Mattermost (plugin): bot token + base URL.
  • Signal: optional signal-cli install + account config.
  • BlueBubbles: recommended for iMessage; server URL + password + webhook.
  • iMessage: legacy imsg CLI path + DB access.
  • DM security: default is pairing. First DM sends a code; approve via openclaw pairing approve <channel> <code> or use allowlists.
6

Web search

  • Pick a provider: Perplexity, Brave, Gemini, Grok, or Kimi (or skip).
  • Paste your API key (QuickStart auto-detects keys from env vars or existing config).
  • Skip with --skip-search.
  • Configure later: openclaw configure --section web.
7

Daemon install

  • macOS: LaunchAgent
    • Requires a logged-in user session; for headless, use a custom LaunchDaemon (not shipped).
  • Linux (and Windows via WSL2): systemd user unit
    • Wizard attempts to enable lingering via loginctl enable-linger <user> so the Gateway stays up after logout.
    • May prompt for sudo (writes /var/lib/systemd/linger); it tries without sudo first.
  • Runtime selection: Node (recommended; required for WhatsApp/Telegram). Bun is not recommended.
  • If token auth requires a token and gateway.auth.token is SecretRef-managed, daemon install validates it but does not persist resolved plaintext token values into supervisor service environment metadata.
  • If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, daemon install is blocked with actionable guidance.
  • If both gateway.auth.token and gateway.auth.password are configured and gateway.auth.mode is unset, daemon install is blocked until mode is set explicitly.
8

Health check

  • Starts the Gateway (if needed) and runs openclaw health.
  • Tip: openclaw status --deep adds gateway health probes to status output (requires a reachable gateway).
9

Skills (recommended)

  • Reads the available skills and checks requirements.
  • Lets you choose a node manager: npm / pnpm (bun not recommended).
  • Installs optional dependencies (some use Homebrew on macOS).
10

Finish

  • Summary + next steps, including iOS/Android/macOS apps for extra features.
If no GUI is detected, the wizard prints SSH port-forward instructions for the Control UI instead of opening a browser. If the Control UI assets are missing, the wizard attempts to build them; fallback is pnpm ui:build (auto-installs UI deps).

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Non-interactive mode

Use --non-interactive to automate or script onboarding:
Add --json for a machine‑readable summary. Gateway token SecretRef in non-interactive mode:
--gateway-token and --gateway-token-ref-env are mutually exclusive.
--json does not imply non-interactive mode. Use --non-interactive (and --workspace) for scripts.

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Add agent (non-interactive)

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Gateway wizard RPC

The Gateway exposes the wizard flow over RPC (wizard.start, wizard.next, wizard.cancel, wizard.status). Clients (macOS app, Control UI) can render steps without re‑implementing onboarding logic.

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Signal setup (signal-cli)

The wizard can install signal-cli from GitHub releases:
  • Downloads the appropriate release asset.
  • Stores it under ~/.openclaw/tools/signal-cli/<version>/.
  • Writes channels.signal.cliPath to your config.
Notes:
  • JVM builds require Java 21.
  • Native builds are used when available.
  • Windows uses WSL2; signal-cli install follows the Linux flow inside WSL.

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What the wizard writes

Typical fields in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:
  • agents.defaults.workspace
  • agents.defaults.model / models.providers (if Minimax chosen)
  • tools.profile (local onboarding defaults to "coding" when unset; existing explicit values are preserved)
  • gateway.* (mode, bind, auth, tailscale)
  • session.dmScope (behavior details: CLI Onboarding Reference)
  • channels.telegram.botToken, channels.discord.token, channels.signal.*, channels.imessage.*
  • Channel allowlists (Slack/Discord/Matrix/Microsoft Teams) when you opt in during the prompts (names resolve to IDs when possible).
  • skills.install.nodeManager
  • wizard.lastRunAt
  • wizard.lastRunVersion
  • wizard.lastRunCommit
  • wizard.lastRunCommand
  • wizard.lastRunMode
openclaw agents add writes agents.list[] and optional bindings. WhatsApp credentials go under ~/.openclaw/credentials/whatsapp/<accountId>/. Sessions are stored under ~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/sessions/. Some channels are delivered as plugins. When you pick one during onboarding, the wizard will prompt to install it (npm or a local path) before it can be configured.