This guide walks you through a secure setup. One step at a time.
1. Download a simple install script
2. Run it in Terminal (we'll show you how)
3. Answer a few questions
4. Start chatting with your AI
Estimated time: 15-20 minutes
1. Download a PowerShell installer
2. Right-click → Run as Administrator
3. Wait ~20-40 minutes (fully automatic)
4. Open Ubuntu and answer a few questions
5. Start chatting with your AI
OpenClaw runs inside Ubuntu (Linux) on Windows. After the installer finishes, a Ubuntu terminal will open — that's normal and expected. We'll walk you through it step by step.
Estimated time: 20-40 minutes
Make sure you have everything ready.
How do you want to run your AI?
Install OpenClaw in a separate Mac user account on your current Mac. Perfect for trying it out.
Why a second user? Keeps your bot isolated from your personal files. Easy to remove — just delete the user account and everything's gone.
⚠️ This Mac won't sleep while the bot runs (screen turns off to save power).
Use a Mac Mini or old MacBook dedicated to running OpenClaw 24/7. Best for always-on personal AI.
Recommended for production use.
Click the button below to download the install script.
File will download to your Downloads folder
If you prefer the one-line install, copy this command:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jeremyknows/clawstarter/main/openclaw-autosetup.sh | bash
Then skip to "Step 6: Run the Script".
openclaw-windows-setup.ps1 · Downloads to your Downloads folder
Terminal is a built-in Mac app. Here's how to find it. Right-click the downloaded file and run it as Administrator.
1. Hold ⌘ Command and press Space
2. Type "Terminal"
3. Press Enter
WSL2 installation requires Administrator access. The script will fail if you open it normally.
1. Open your Downloads folder in File Explorer
2. Find openclaw-windows-setup.ps1
3. Right-click the file
4. Select "Run with PowerShell"
5. When Windows asks "Do you want to allow changes?", click Yes
Windows shows this warning for scripts that haven't been digitally signed yet. This is normal for open-source installers.
To proceed safely:
Why is this safe? This script installs official Microsoft software (WSL2) and Ubuntu from Canonical. The script source code is open at github.com/jeremyknows/clawstarter.
Open PowerShell as Administrator manually:
Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser; cd ~\Downloads; .\openclaw-windows-setup.ps1
↑ This is what Terminal looks like
Copy and paste this command in Terminal, then press Enter:
cd ~/Downloads
Now we'll run the installer. The installer opened Ubuntu. Run one more command to finish.
Keep Terminal open until you see "SUCCESS!" — closing it or pressing ⌘ Command + C will cancel the installation.
bash install.sh
1. Make sure Terminal is active (click on it)
2. Hold ⌘ Command and press V to paste
3. Press Enter
The PowerShell window is automatically installing:
You don't need to do anything — just leave the PowerShell window open.
If this is the first time WSL2 is installed on your PC, Windows needs a restart to finish. The script will tell you and ask if you want to restart now (type y).
💾 Save any open work before clicking Next!
After restart, come back to this page — the installer will resume automatically.
Most of the time is downloading Ubuntu (~500MB). The PowerShell window shows progress.
Don't close the PowerShell window. You'll see a "Setup complete" message when it's done.
The script is running. Here's what you'll see. Almost there — two quick steps in the Ubuntu window.
The script will ask you to confirm each step. You'll see prompts like:
Type y and press Enter to continue. You'll do this ~5-6 times during setup.
When macOS asks for your password, YOU WON'T SEE ANYTHING when you type.
No dots, no stars, nothing. This is normal! Look for the 🔐 keyhole icon in your menu bar — that means macOS is waiting. Just type your password and press Enter.
You'll see text scrolling — that's the script installing Homebrew, Node.js, and OpenClaw.
Don't close Terminal. Just wait for the next prompt.
💡 Already have Homebrew or Node.js? The script will detect and skip those steps automatically.
Ubuntu is a mini Linux computer that lives inside Windows. OpenClaw runs inside it — this is totally normal and safe. You'll see a black terminal window; think of it like a command prompt with a different look.
When Ubuntu opens for the first time, it asks you to create a username and password inside Ubuntu. This is separate from your Windows password — you can use anything you like.
Note: When typing the password, nothing will appear on screen. This is normal — just type it and press Enter.
1. Look for the Ubuntu terminal window (black, with text like Enter new UNIX username:)
2. Type a username (e.g. your first name, lowercase, no spaces) → press Enter
3. Type a password → press Enter
4. Type the password again to confirm → press Enter
↑ Once you see your prompt like above, Ubuntu is ready.
Copy this command, paste it into the Ubuntu terminal, and press Enter:
openclaw onboard --install-daemon
1. Click inside the Ubuntu window
2. Press Ctrl+Shift+V (Shift+V — not just V)
3. Press Enter
It will ask for your AI provider API key and a few settings. For most questions, press Enter to accept the default.
Save the gateway token it shows you — you'll need it to connect to the dashboard.
Open Ubuntu manually:
Complete the username/password setup (Part 1 above), then run openclaw onboard --install-daemon
The OpenClaw setup wizard will ask you a few questions.
The wizard will guide you through setup. Here's what to expect:
For most questions: Press Enter to accept the default.
When you see a long random string (the gateway token), COPY IT SOMEWHERE SAFE.
You'll need this token to connect to the dashboard. Think of it like a password for your bot.
💡 Don't have a place to save it? Paste it into Notes, Messages, or take a screenshot.
Free models available (Kimi K2.5, MiniMax, GLM) — $0/month if you stick to free models, but a credit card is required to sign up.
💡 The default model (Kimi K2.5 Free) runs at $0/month until you choose to upgrade.
Best if you want access to GPT-4o, Claude, Gemini, and hundreds of other models.
sk-or-v1-)You control your budget — set a spending limit in OpenRouter settings.
Press ESC to skip it
The Config Wizard asks 20+ questions about tool permissions. ClawStarter already has a curated config — skipping saves 10 minutes and uses safer defaults.
Your bot is running. Here's what you'll see.
Your personal AI is now running.
1. Hold ⌘ Command and press A to select all the Terminal output
2. Hold ⌘ Command and press C to copy
3. Save it in Notes or a password manager
4. Click the dashboard URL or copy it to your browser:
http://127.0.0.1:18789/
Your bot is ready. Here's what to do next.
Your bot is running! It will ask you personalization questions to learn your preferences.
💡 If you created a separate user account: You can now log back into your main account. Your bot keeps running in the background — access it at http://127.0.0.1:18789/ from any account on this Mac.
💡 OpenClaw runs inside Ubuntu. To use it in the future:
openclaw gateway start if the gateway isn't runninghttp://127.0.0.1:18789 in your browserYour files live at \\wsl$\Ubuntu-22.04\home\[username]\.openclaw\ in Windows Explorer.
The terminal showed you a gateway token — think of it like a password that lets you control your bot.
http://127.0.0.1:18789Don't see the token?
jq -r '.gateway.token' ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
Dashboard shows "disconnected (1008): unauthorized"?
The token is missing or incorrect. Find it with the command above, then paste it in Control UI.
Dashboard won't load at all?
Check if the gateway is running:
openclaw gateway status
If not running, start it:
openclaw gateway start
Port not listening?
Wait 10-15 seconds for the gateway to start, then refresh. Still not working? Restart:
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw.json to gitopenclaw doctor --generate-gateway-tokenCurrent setup: Your API keys are stored in the LaunchAgent (as environment variables) and cached in openclaw.json for performance. File permissions (chmod 600) protect them, but they're readable if someone gets access to your account.
Enhanced security options:
op://vault/item/field (never written to disk)Both methods are covered in Foundation Playbook Phase 1 (included in the download). Setup takes ~5 minutes and eliminates plaintext credential storage.
For most personal use cases, the default setup is sufficient. Consider upgrading if you're handling sensitive data or deploying on a shared machine.
Get help, share tips, and connect with other OpenClaw users!
Join Discord →Read BOOTSTRAP.md and run through the setup questions with me.
This tells your bot to read the personalization file and ask you questions to learn who you are and how to help you.
Paste these prompts into your bot's chat (the web dashboard you just opened):
🎊 Congratulations! You've completed the setup.
← Back to HomeFix: Run the script with sudo:
sudo bash install.sh
You'll be asked for your password. Type it (you won't see it) and press Enter.
This means: Homebrew isn't in your PATH yet.
Fix: Close Terminal and open a new window, then try again.
If that doesn't work, run:
eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"
This means: The gateway didn't start.
Fix: Start it manually:
openclaw gateway start
Wait 10 seconds, then try opening the dashboard again.
Check if gateway is running:
openclaw gateway status
If stopped, start it:
openclaw gateway start
Check logs for errors:
tail -n 50 ~/.openclaw/logs/gateway.err.log
Common causes:
sk-or-v1- for OpenRouter or sk-ant- for Anthropic)Fix: Re-run the setup and paste the key carefully.
Complete uninstall steps:
openclaw gateway stop
npm uninstall -g openclaw
rm -rf ~/.openclaw
If none of the above works, copy this prompt and paste your error into Claude.ai:
I'm setting up OpenClaw on my Mac using ClawStarter and hit this error:
[paste error here]
I'm on macOS [your version]. Help me fix it.
Go to claude.ai, paste the prompt, replace [paste error here] with your actual error, and send.