clawdbot/docs/start/faq.md

summary

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Frequently asked questions about Clawdbot setup, configuration, and usage

FAQ

Quick answers plus deeper troubleshooting for real-world setups (local dev, VPS, multi-agent, OAuth/API keys, model failover). For the full config reference, see Configuration.

What is Clawdbot?

What is Clawdbot, in one paragraph?

Clawdbot is a personal AI assistant you run on your own devices. It replies on the messaging surfaces you already use (WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal, iMessage, WebChat) and can also do voice + a live Canvas on supported platforms. The Gateway is the always‑on control plane; the assistant is the product.

Quick start and first‑run setup

What’s the recommended way to install and set up Clawdbot?

The repo recommends running from source and using the onboarding wizard:

git clone https://github.com/clawdbot/clawdbot.git
cd clawdbot

pnpm install

# Optional if you want built output / global linking:
pnpm build

# If the Control UI assets are missing or you want the dashboard:
pnpm ui:install
pnpm ui:build

pnpm clawdbot onboard

The wizard can also build UI assets automatically. After onboarding, you typically run the Gateway on port 18789.

What runtime do I need?

Node >= 22 is required. pnpm is recommended; bun is optional.

What does the onboarding wizard actually do?

clawdbot onboard is the recommended setup path. In local mode it walks you through:

• Model/auth setup (Anthropic OAuth recommended, OpenAI Codex OAuth supported, API keys optional, LM Studio local models supported)
• Workspace location + bootstrap files
• Gateway settings (bind/port/auth/tailscale)
• Providers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Signal, iMessage)
• Daemon install (LaunchAgent on macOS; systemd user unit on Linux/WSL2)
• Health checks and skills selection

It also warns if your configured model is unknown or missing auth.

Can I use Bun?

Bun is supported for faster TypeScript execution, but WhatsApp requires Node in this ecosystem. The wizard lets you pick the runtime; choose Node if you use WhatsApp.

Where things live on disk

Where does Clawdbot store its data?

Everything lives under ~/.clawdbot/ (or $CLAWDBOT_STATE_DIR if you override the state dir):

Path	Purpose
~/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json	Main config (JSON5)
~/.clawdbot/credentials/oauth.json	Legacy OAuth import (copied into auth profiles on first use)
~/.clawdbot/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json	Auth profiles (OAuth + API keys)
~/.clawdbot/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth.json	Runtime auth cache (managed automatically)
~/.clawdbot/credentials/	Provider state (e.g. whatsapp/<accountId>/creds.json)
~/.clawdbot/agents/	Per‑agent state (agentDir + sessions)
~/.clawdbot/agents/<agentId>/sessions/	Conversation history & state (per agent)
~/.clawdbot/agents/<agentId>/sessions/sessions.json	Session metadata (per agent)

Legacy single‑agent path: ~/.clawdbot/agent/* (migrated by clawdbot doctor).

Your workspace (AGENTS.md, memory files, skills, etc.) is separate and configured via agent.workspace (default: ~/clawd).

Config basics

What format is the config? Where is it?

Clawdbot reads an optional JSON5 config from:

~/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json

If the file is missing, it uses safe‑ish defaults (including a default workspace of ~/clawd).

Do I have to restart after changing config?

The Gateway watches the config and supports hot‑reload:

• gateway.reload.mode: "hybrid" (default): hot‑apply safe changes, restart for critical ones
• hot, restart, off are also supported

A full restart is required for gateway, bridge, discovery, and canvasHost changes.

Is there an API / RPC way to apply config?

Yes. config.apply validates + writes the full config and restarts the Gateway as part of the operation.

What’s a minimal “sane” config for a first install?

{
  agent: { workspace: "~/clawd" },
  whatsapp: { allowFrom: ["+15555550123"] }
}

This sets your workspace and restricts who can trigger the bot.

Env vars and .env loading

How does Clawdbot load environment variables?

Clawdbot reads env vars from the parent process (shell, launchd/systemd, CI, etc.) and additionally loads:

• .env from the current working directory
• a global fallback .env from ~/.clawdbot/.env (aka $CLAWDBOT_STATE_DIR/.env)

Neither .env file overrides existing env vars.

“I started the Gateway via a daemon and my env vars disappeared.” What now?

Two common fixes:

1. Put the missing keys in ~/.clawdbot/.env so they’re picked up even when the daemon doesn’t inherit your shell env.
2. Enable shell import (opt‑in convenience):

{
  env: {
    shellEnv: {
      enabled: true,
      timeoutMs: 15000
    }
  }
}

This runs your login shell and imports only missing expected keys (never overrides). Env var equivalents: CLAWDBOT_LOAD_SHELL_ENV=1, CLAWDBOT_SHELL_ENV_TIMEOUT_MS=15000.

Models: defaults, selection, aliases, switching

What is the “default model”?

Clawdbot’s default model is whatever you set as:

agent.model.primary

Models are referenced as provider/model (example: anthropic/claude-opus-4-5). If you omit the provider, Clawdbot currently assumes anthropic as a temporary deprecation fallback — but you should still explicitly set provider/model.

How do I switch models on the fly (without restarting)?

Use the /model command as a standalone message:

/model sonnet
/model haiku
/model opus
/model gpt
/model gpt-mini
/model gemini
/model gemini-flash

You can list available models with /model, /model list, or /model status.

Are opus / sonnet / gpt built‑in shortcuts?

Yes. Clawdbot ships a few default shorthands (only applied when the model exists in agent.models):

• opus → anthropic/claude-opus-4-5
• sonnet → anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5
• gpt → openai/gpt-5.2
• gpt-mini → openai/gpt-5-mini
• gemini → google/gemini-3-pro-preview
• gemini-flash → google/gemini-3-flash-preview

If you set your own alias with the same name, your value wins.

How do I define/override model shortcuts (aliases)?

Aliases come from agent.models.<modelId>.alias. Example:

{
  agent: {
    model: { primary: "anthropic/claude-opus-4-5" },
    models: {
      "anthropic/claude-opus-4-5": { alias: "opus" },
      "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5": { alias: "sonnet" },
      "anthropic/claude-haiku-4-5": { alias: "haiku" }
    }
  }
}

Then /model sonnet (or /<alias> when supported) resolves to that model ID.

How do I add models from other providers like OpenRouter or Z.AI?

OpenRouter (pay‑per‑token; many models):

{
  agent: {
    model: { primary: "openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5" },
    models: { "openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5": {} }
  },
  env: { OPENROUTER_API_KEY: "sk-or-..." }
}

Z.AI (GLM models):

{
  agent: {
    model: { primary: "zai/glm-4.7" },
    models: { "zai/glm-4.7": {} }
  },
  env: { ZAI_API_KEY: "..." }
}

If you reference a provider/model but the required provider key is missing, you’ll get a runtime auth error (e.g. No API key found for provider "zai").

Model failover and “All models failed”

How does failover work?

Failover happens in two stages:

1. Auth profile rotation within the same provider.
2. Model fallback to the next model in agent.model.fallbacks.

Cooldowns apply to failing profiles (exponential backoff), so Clawdbot can keep responding even when a provider is rate‑limited or temporarily failing.

What does this error mean?

No credentials found for profile "anthropic:default"

It means the system attempted to use the auth profile ID anthropic:default, but could not find credentials for it in the expected auth store.

Fix checklist for No credentials found for profile "anthropic:default"

• Confirm where auth profiles live (new vs legacy paths)
  • Current: ~/.clawdbot/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json
  • Legacy: ~/.clawdbot/agent/* (migrated by clawdbot doctor)
• Confirm your env var is loaded by the Gateway
  • If you set ANTHROPIC_API_KEY in your shell but run the Gateway via systemd/launchd, it may not inherit it. Put it in ~/.clawdbot/.env or enable env.shellEnv.
• Make sure you’re editing the correct agent
  • Multi‑agent setups mean there can be multiple auth-profiles.json files.
• Sanity‑check model/auth status
  • Use /model status to see configured models and whether providers are authenticated.

Why did it also try Google Gemini and fail?

If your model config includes Google Gemini as a fallback (or you switched to a Gemini shorthand), Clawdbot will try it during model fallback. If you haven’t configured Google credentials, you’ll see No API key found for provider "google".

Fix: either provide Google auth, or remove/avoid Google models in agent.model.fallbacks / aliases so fallback doesn’t route there.

Auth profiles: what they are and how to manage them

What is an auth profile?

An auth profile is a named credential record (OAuth or API key) tied to a provider. Profiles live in:

~/.clawdbot/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json

What are typical profile IDs?

Clawdbot uses provider‑prefixed IDs like:

• anthropic:default (common when no email identity exists)
• anthropic:<email> for OAuth identities
• custom IDs you choose (e.g. anthropic:work)

Can I control which auth profile is tried first?

Yes. Config supports optional metadata for profiles and an ordering per provider (auth.order.<provider>). This does not store secrets; it maps IDs to provider/mode and sets rotation order.

OAuth vs API key: what’s the difference?

Clawdbot supports both:

• OAuth often leverages subscription access (where applicable).
• API keys use pay‑per‑token billing.

The wizard explicitly supports Anthropic OAuth and OpenAI Codex OAuth and can store API keys for you.

Gateway: ports, “already running”, and remote mode

What port does the Gateway use?

gateway.port controls the single multiplexed port for WebSocket + HTTP (Control UI, hooks, etc.).

Precedence:

--port > CLAWDBOT_GATEWAY_PORT > gateway.port > default 18789

What does “another gateway instance is already listening” mean?

Clawdbot enforces a runtime lock by binding the WebSocket listener immediately on startup (default ws://127.0.0.1:18789). If the bind fails with EADDRINUSE, it throws GatewayLockError indicating another instance is already listening.

Fix: stop the other instance, free the port, or run with clawdbot gateway --port <port>.

How do I run Clawdbot in remote mode (client connects to a Gateway elsewhere)?

Set gateway.mode: "remote" and point to a remote WebSocket URL, optionally with a token/password:

{
  gateway: {
    mode: "remote",
    remote: {
      url: "ws://gateway.tailnet:18789",
      token: "your-token",
      password: "your-password"
    }
  }
}

Notes:

• clawdbot gateway only starts when gateway.mode is local (or you pass the override flag).
• The macOS app watches the config file and switches modes live when these values change.

Can I run multiple Gateways on the same host?

Yes, but you must isolate:

• CLAWDBOT_CONFIG_PATH (per‑instance config)
• CLAWDBOT_STATE_DIR (per‑instance state)
• agent.workspace (workspace isolation)
• gateway.port (unique ports)

There are convenience CLI flags like --dev and --profile <name> that shift state dirs and ports.

Logging and debugging

Where are logs?

Default log file:

/tmp/clawdbot/clawdbot-YYYY-MM-DD.log

You can set a stable path via logging.file. File log level is controlled by logging.level. Console verbosity is controlled by --verbose and logging.consoleLevel.

What’s the fastest way to get more details when something fails?

Start the Gateway with --verbose to get more console detail. Then inspect the log file for provider auth, model routing, and RPC errors.

Security and access control

Is it safe to expose Clawdbot to inbound DMs?

Treat inbound DMs as untrusted input. Defaults are designed to reduce risk:

• Default behavior on DM‑capable providers is pairing:
  • Unknown senders receive a pairing code; the bot does not process their message.
  • Approve with: clawdbot pairing approve --provider <provider> <code>
• Opening DMs publicly requires explicit opt‑in (dmPolicy: "open" and allowlist "*").

Run clawdbot doctor to surface risky DM policies.

Chat commands, aborting tasks, and “it won’t stop”

How do I stop/cancel a running task?

Send any of these as a standalone message (no slash):

stop
abort
esc
wait
exit

These are abort triggers (not slash commands).

For background processes (from the bash tool), you can ask the agent to run:

process action:kill sessionId:XXX

Slash commands only run when the entire message is the command (must start with /). Inline text like hello /status is ignored.

Why does it feel like the bot “ignores” rapid‑fire messages?

Queue mode controls how new messages interact with an in‑flight run. Use /queue to change modes:

• steer — new messages redirect the current task
• followup — run messages one at a time
• collect — batch messages and reply once (default)
• steer-backlog — steer now, then process backlog
• interrupt — abort current run and start fresh

You can add options like debounce:2s cap:25 drop:summarize for followup modes.

Common troubleshooting

“All models failed” — what should I check first?

• Credentials present for the provider(s) being tried (auth profiles + env vars).
• Model routing: confirm agent.model.primary and fallbacks are models you can access.
• Gateway logs in /tmp/clawdbot/… for the exact provider error.
• /model status to see current configured models + shorthands.

WhatsApp logged me out. How do I re‑auth?

Run the login command again and scan the QR code:

clawdbot login

Build errors on main — what’s the standard fix path?

1. git pull origin main && pnpm install
2. pnpm clawdbot doctor
3. Check GitHub issues or Discord
4. Temporary workaround: check out an older commit

Answer the exact question from the screenshot/chat log

Q: “What’s the default model for Anthropic with an API key?”

A: In Clawdbot, credentials and model selection are separate. Setting ANTHROPIC_API_KEY (or storing an Anthropic API key in auth profiles) enables authentication, but the actual default model is whatever you configure in agent.model.primary (for example, anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5 or anthropic/claude-opus-4-5). If you see No credentials found for profile "anthropic:default", it means the Gateway couldn’t find Anthropic credentials in the expected auth-profiles.json for the agent that’s running.

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Still stuck? Ask in Discord or open a GitHub discussion.