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Troubleshooting

If you only have 2 minutes, use this page as a triage front door.

First 60 seconds

Run this exact ladder in order:

openclaw status
openclaw status --all
openclaw gateway probe
openclaw gateway status
openclaw doctor
openclaw channels status --probe
openclaw logs --follow

Good output in one line:

  • openclaw status → shows configured channels and no obvious auth errors.
  • openclaw status --all → full report is present and shareable.
  • openclaw gateway probe → expected gateway target is reachable.
  • openclaw gateway status → Runtime: running and RPC probe: ok.
  • openclaw doctor → no blocking config/service errors.
  • openclaw channels status --probe → channels report connected or ready.
  • openclaw logs --follow → steady activity, no repeating fatal errors.

Decision tree

flowchart TD
  A[OpenClaw is not working] --> B{What breaks first}
  B --> C[No replies]
  B --> D[Dashboard or Control UI will not connect]
  B --> E[Gateway will not start or service not running]
  B --> F[Channel connects but messages do not flow]
  B --> G[Cron or heartbeat did not fire or did not deliver]
  B --> H[Node is paired but camera canvas screen exec fails]
  B --> I[Browser tool fails]

  C --> C1[/No replies section/]
  D --> D1[/Control UI section/]
  E --> E1[/Gateway section/]
  F --> F1[/Channel flow section/]
  G --> G1[/Automation section/]
  H --> H1[/Node tools section/]
  I --> I1[/Browser section/]
No replies 
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw channels status --probe
    openclaw pairing list <channel>
    openclaw logs --follow
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - `Runtime: running`
    - `RPC probe: ok`
    - Your channel shows connected/ready in `channels status --probe`
    - Sender appears approved (or DM policy is open/allowlist)

    Common log signatures:

    - `drop guild message (mention required` → mention gating blocked the message in Discord.
    - `pairing request` → sender is unapproved and waiting for DM pairing approval.
    - `blocked` / `allowlist` in channel logs → sender, room, or group is filtered.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#no-replies](./gateway/troubleshooting#no-replies.md)
    - [/channels/troubleshooting](./channels/troubleshooting.md)
    - [/channels/pairing](./channels/pairing.md)

</details>

  <details>
<summary>Dashboard or Control UI will not connect</summary>

```bash
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw logs --follow
    openclaw doctor
    openclaw channels status --probe
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - `Dashboard: http://...` is shown in `openclaw gateway status`
    - `RPC probe: ok`
    - No auth loop in logs

    Common log signatures:

    - `device identity required` → HTTP/non-secure context cannot complete device auth.
    - `unauthorized` / reconnect loop → wrong token/password or auth mode mismatch.
    - `gateway connect failed:` → UI is targeting the wrong URL/port or unreachable gateway.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#dashboard-control-ui-connectivity](./gateway/troubleshooting#dashboard-control-ui-connectivity.md)
    - [/web/control-ui](./web/control-ui.md)
    - [/gateway/authentication](./gateway/authentication.md)

</details>

  <details>
<summary>Gateway will not start or service installed but not running</summary>

```bash
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw logs --follow
    openclaw doctor
    openclaw channels status --probe
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - `Service: ... (loaded)`
    - `Runtime: running`
    - `RPC probe: ok`

    Common log signatures:

    - `Gateway start blocked: set gateway.mode=local` → gateway mode is unset/remote.
    - `refusing to bind gateway ... without auth` → non-loopback bind without token/password.
    - `another gateway instance is already listening` or `EADDRINUSE` → port already taken.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#gateway-service-not-running](./gateway/troubleshooting#gateway-service-not-running.md)
    - [/gateway/background-process](./gateway/background-process.md)
    - [/gateway/configuration](./gateway/configuration.md)

</details>

  <details>
<summary>Channel connects but messages do not flow</summary>

```bash
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw logs --follow
    openclaw doctor
    openclaw channels status --probe
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - Channel transport is connected.
    - Pairing/allowlist checks pass.
    - Mentions are detected where required.

    Common log signatures:

    - `mention required` → group mention gating blocked processing.
    - `pairing` / `pending` → DM sender is not approved yet.
    - `not_in_channel`, `missing_scope`, `Forbidden`, `401/403` → channel permission token issue.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#channel-connected-messages-not-flowing](./gateway/troubleshooting#channel-connected-messages-not-flowing.md)
    - [/channels/troubleshooting](./channels/troubleshooting.md)

</details>

  <details>
<summary>Cron or heartbeat did not fire or did not deliver</summary>

```bash
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw cron status
    openclaw cron list
    openclaw cron runs --id <jobId> --limit 20
    openclaw logs --follow
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - `cron.status` shows enabled with a next wake.
    - `cron runs` shows recent `ok` entries.
    - Heartbeat is enabled and not outside active hours.

    Common log signatures:

    - `cron: scheduler disabled; jobs will not run automatically` → cron is disabled.
    - `heartbeat skipped` with `reason=quiet-hours` → outside configured active hours.
    - `requests-in-flight` → main lane busy; heartbeat wake was deferred.
    - `unknown accountId` → heartbeat delivery target account does not exist.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#cron-and-heartbeat-delivery](./gateway/troubleshooting#cron-and-heartbeat-delivery.md)
    - [/automation/troubleshooting](./automation/troubleshooting.md)
    - [/gateway/heartbeat](./gateway/heartbeat.md)

</details>

  <details>
<summary>Node is paired but tool fails camera canvas screen exec</summary>

```bash
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw nodes status
    openclaw nodes describe --node <idOrNameOrIp>
    openclaw logs --follow
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - Node is listed as connected and paired for role `node`.
    - Capability exists for the command you are invoking.
    - Permission state is granted for the tool.

    Common log signatures:

    - `NODE_BACKGROUND_UNAVAILABLE` → bring node app to foreground.
    - `*_PERMISSION_REQUIRED` → OS permission was denied/missing.
    - `SYSTEM_RUN_DENIED: approval required` → exec approval is pending.
    - `SYSTEM_RUN_DENIED: allowlist miss` → command not on exec allowlist.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#node-paired-tool-fails](./gateway/troubleshooting#node-paired-tool-fails.md)
    - [/nodes/troubleshooting](./nodes/troubleshooting.md)
    - [/tools/exec-approvals](./tools/exec-approvals.md)

</details>

  <details>
<summary>Browser tool fails</summary>

```bash
    openclaw status
    openclaw gateway status
    openclaw browser status
    openclaw logs --follow
    openclaw doctor
    ```

    Good output looks like:

    - Browser status shows `running: true` and a chosen browser/profile.
    - `openclaw` profile starts or `chrome` relay has an attached tab.

    Common log signatures:

    - `Failed to start Chrome CDP on port` → local browser launch failed.
    - `browser.executablePath not found` → configured binary path is wrong.
    - `Chrome extension relay is running, but no tab is connected` → extension not attached.
    - `Browser attachOnly is enabled ... not reachable` → attach-only profile has no live CDP target.

    Deep pages:

    - [/gateway/troubleshooting#browser-tool-fails](./gateway/troubleshooting#browser-tool-fails.md)
    - [/tools/browser-linux-troubleshooting](./tools/browser-linux-troubleshooting.md)
    - [/tools/chrome-extension](./tools/chrome-extension.md)

</details>