OpenClaw is moving fast (pre “1.0”). Treat updates like shipping infra: update → run checks → restart (or use openclaw update, which restarts) → verify.

The preferred update path is to re-run the installer from the website. It detects existing installs, upgrades in place, and runs openclaw doctor when needed.

curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

Notes:

• Add --no-onboard if you don’t want the onboarding wizard to run again.
• For source installs, use:

  curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash -s -- --install-method git --no-onboard

  The installer will git pull --rebase only if the repo is clean.
• For global installs, the script uses npm install -g openclaw@latest under the hood.
• Legacy note: openclaw remains available as a compatibility shim.

• Know how you installed: global (npm/pnpm) vs from source (git clone).
• Know how your Gateway is running: foreground terminal vs supervised service (launchd/systemd).
• Snapshot your tailoring:
  • Config: ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
  • Credentials: ~/.openclaw/credentials/
  • Workspace: ~/.openclaw/workspace

Global install (pick one):

npm i -g openclaw@latest

pnpm add -g openclaw@latest

We do not recommend Bun for the Gateway runtime (WhatsApp/Telegram bugs).

To switch update channels (git + npm installs):

openclaw update --channel beta
openclaw update --channel dev
openclaw update --channel stable

Use --tag <dist-tag|version> for a one-off install tag/version.

See Development channels for channel semantics and release notes.

Note: on npm installs, the gateway logs an update hint on startup (checks the current channel tag). Disable via update.checkOnStart: false.

Then:

openclaw doctor
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw health

Notes:

• If your Gateway runs as a service, openclaw gateway restart is preferred over killing PIDs.
• If you’re pinned to a specific version, see “Rollback / pinning” below.

For source installs (git checkout), prefer:

openclaw update

It runs a safe-ish update flow:

• Requires a clean worktree.
• Switches to the selected channel (tag or branch).
• Fetches + rebases against the configured upstream (dev channel).
• Installs deps, builds, builds the Control UI, and runs openclaw doctor.
• Restarts the gateway by default (use --no-restart to skip).

If you installed via npm/pnpm (no git metadata), openclaw update will try to update via your package manager. If it can’t detect the install, use “Update (global install)” instead.

The Control UI has Update & Restart (RPC: update.run). It:

1. Runs the same source-update flow as openclaw update (git checkout only).
2. Writes a restart sentinel with a structured report (stdout/stderr tail).
3. Restarts the gateway and pings the last active session with the report.

If the rebase fails, the gateway aborts and restarts without applying the update.

From the repo checkout:

Preferred:

openclaw update

Manual (equivalent-ish):

git pull
pnpm install
pnpm build
pnpm ui:build # auto-installs UI deps on first run
openclaw doctor
openclaw health

Notes:

• pnpm build matters when you run the packaged openclaw binary (openclaw.mjs) or use Node to run dist/.
• If you run from a repo checkout without a global install, use pnpm openclaw ... for CLI commands.
• If you run directly from TypeScript (pnpm openclaw ...), a rebuild is usually unnecessary, but config migrations still apply → run doctor.
• Switching between global and git installs is easy: install the other flavor, then run openclaw doctor so the gateway service entrypoint is rewritten to the current install.

Doctor is the “safe update” command. It’s intentionally boring: repair + migrate + warn.

Note: if you’re on a source install (git checkout), openclaw doctor will offer to run openclaw update first.

Typical things it does:

• Migrate deprecated config keys / legacy config file locations.
• Audit DM policies and warn on risky “open” settings.
• Check Gateway health and can offer to restart.
• Detect and migrate older gateway services (launchd/systemd; legacy schtasks) to current OpenClaw services.
• On Linux, ensure systemd user lingering (so the Gateway survives logout).

Details: Doctor

CLI (works regardless of OS):

openclaw gateway status
openclaw gateway stop
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw gateway --port 18789
openclaw logs --follow

If you’re supervised:

• macOS launchd (app-bundled LaunchAgent): launchctl kickstart -k gui/$UID/bot.molt.gateway (use bot.molt.<profile>; legacy com.openclaw.* still works)
• Linux systemd user service: systemctl --user restart openclaw-gateway[-<profile>].service
• Windows (WSL2): systemctl --user restart openclaw-gateway[-<profile>].service
  • launchctl/systemctl only work if the service is installed; otherwise run openclaw gateway install.

Runbook + exact service labels: Gateway runbook

Install a known-good version (replace <version> with the last working one):

npm i -g openclaw@<version>

pnpm add -g openclaw@<version>

Tip: to see the current published version, run npm view openclaw version.

Then restart + re-run doctor:

openclaw doctor
openclaw gateway restart

Pick a commit from a date (example: “state of main as of 2026-01-01”):

git fetch origin
git checkout "$(git rev-list -n 1 --before=\"2026-01-01\" origin/main)"

Then reinstall deps + restart:

pnpm install
pnpm build
openclaw gateway restart

If you want to go back to latest later:

git checkout main
git pull

• Run openclaw doctor again and read the output carefully (it often tells you the fix).
• Check: Troubleshooting
• Ask in Discord: https://discord.gg/clawd