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Onboarding Wizard (CLI)

The onboarding wizard is the recommended way to set up OpenClaw on macOS, Linux, or Windows (via WSL2; strongly recommended). It configures a local Gateway or a remote Gateway connection, plus channels, skills, and workspace defaults in one guided flow.

openclaw onboard

ℹ️ Info:

Fastest first chat: open the Control UI (no channel setup needed). Run openclaw dashboard and chat in the browser. Docs: Dashboard.

To reconfigure later:

openclaw configure
openclaw agents add <name>

📝 Note:

--json does not imply non-interactive mode. For scripts, use --non-interactive.

💡 Tip:

Recommended: set up a Brave Search API key so the agent can use web_search (web_fetch works without a key). Easiest path: openclaw configure --section web which stores tools.web.search.apiKey. Docs: Web tools.

QuickStart vs Advanced

The wizard starts with QuickStart (defaults) vs Advanced (full control).

QuickStart (defaults):

  • Local gateway (loopback)

    • Workspace default (or existing workspace)
    • Gateway port 18789
    • Gateway auth Token (auto‑generated, even on loopback)
    • Tailscale exposure Off
    • Telegram + WhatsApp DMs default to allowlist (you’ll be prompted for your phone number) Advanced (full control):

  • Exposes every step (mode, workspace, gateway, channels, daemon, skills).

What the wizard configures

Local mode (default) walks you through these steps:

  1. Model/Auth — Anthropic API key (recommended), OpenAI, or Custom Provider (OpenAI-compatible, Anthropic-compatible, or Unknown auto-detect). Pick a default model.
  2. Workspace — Location for agent files (default ~/.openclaw/workspace). Seeds bootstrap files.
  3. Gateway — Port, bind address, auth mode, Tailscale exposure.
  4. Channels — WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Google Chat, Mattermost, Signal, BlueBubbles, or iMessage.
  5. Daemon — Installs a LaunchAgent (macOS) or systemd user unit (Linux/WSL2).
  6. Health check — Starts the Gateway and verifies it’s running.
  7. Skills — Installs recommended skills and optional dependencies.

📝 Note:

Re-running the wizard does not wipe anything unless you explicitly choose Reset (or pass --reset). If the config is invalid or contains legacy keys, the wizard asks you to run openclaw doctor first.

Remote mode only configures the local client to connect to a Gateway elsewhere. It does not install or change anything on the remote host.

Add another agent

Use openclaw agents add <name> to create a separate agent with its own workspace, sessions, and auth profiles. Running without --workspace launches the wizard.

What it sets:

  • agents.list[].name
  • agents.list[].workspace
  • agents.list[].agentDir

Notes:

  • Default workspaces follow ~/.openclaw/workspace-<agentId>.
  • Add bindings to route inbound messages (the wizard can do this).
  • Non-interactive flags: --model, --agent-dir, --bind, --non-interactive.

Full reference

For detailed step-by-step breakdowns, non-interactive scripting, Signal setup, RPC API, and a full list of config fields the wizard writes, see the Wizard Reference.