Setup & Installation Guides
Step-by-step guides for deploying OpenClaw on Mac Mini, Docker, WSL2, and cloud VPS providers.
How to Set Up OpenClaw on Mac Mini
Setting up OpenClaw on a Mac Mini gives you a powerful, always-on AI agent system. This guide walks you through the complete installation process, from installing prerequisites with Homebrew to configuring auto-start with launchd. Whether you have an M1, M2, or M4 Mac Mini, you'll have a production-ready OpenClaw instance running in under an hour.
How to Install OpenClaw with Docker
Docker is the fastest way to get OpenClaw running with consistent, reproducible deployments. This guide covers everything from creating a docker-compose.yml file to configuring volume mounts and restart policies. You'll have a containerized OpenClaw instance running in under 30 minutes, with proper networking and data persistence.
How to Run OpenClaw on WSL2 (Windows)
Running OpenClaw on Windows requires WSL2 for optimal performance and compatibility. This comprehensive guide walks you through enabling WSL2, installing Ubuntu, configuring resource limits, and optimizing filesystem performance. You'll avoid common pitfalls like slow filesystem access and network bridging issues that plague most WSL2 setups.
How to Deploy OpenClaw on DigitalOcean
Deploying OpenClaw on DigitalOcean gives you a reliable, cloud-hosted AI agent accessible from anywhere. This guide covers creating a droplet, securing SSH access, installing Node.js, configuring a systemd service for automatic restarts, and setting up UFW firewall rules. You'll have a production-ready OpenClaw instance running in the cloud in under 2 hours.
How to Deploy OpenClaw on Railway
Railway is the fastest way to deploy OpenClaw to the cloud with zero infrastructure management. This guide walks you through connecting your GitHub repository, configuring environment variables, setting up a custom domain, and monitoring logs. You'll have OpenClaw running in production in under 30 minutes with automatic deployments on every git push.
How to Deploy OpenClaw on Vultr VPS
Vultr provides fast, affordable VPS hosting for OpenClaw with datacenters worldwide. This guide covers provisioning a Vultr instance, securing SSH access, installing Node.js, configuring systemd for automatic restarts, and setting up firewall rules. You'll have a production-ready OpenClaw deployment in the cloud in under 2 hours with excellent price-performance.
How to Configure OpenClaw Gateway with HTTPS
Securing your OpenClaw gateway with HTTPS is essential for production deployments. This guide walks you through installing nginx as a reverse proxy, obtaining free SSL certificates from Let's Encrypt using certbot, configuring automatic certificate renewal, and updating your OpenClaw gateway settings. You'll have a secure, HTTPS-enabled OpenClaw instance in under an hour.
How to Migrate from Clawdbot to OpenClaw
Migrating from legacy Clawdbot to modern OpenClaw unlocks better performance, active maintenance, and a growing ecosystem. This comprehensive guide walks you through exporting your Clawdbot configuration, mapping it to OpenClaw's format, migrating custom skills, transferring data, and safely cutting over. With proper planning, you'll complete the migration in 2-4 hours with minimal downtime.
How to Migrate from Moltbot to OpenClaw
Migrating from legacy Moltbot to modern OpenClaw gives you access to active development, better performance, and a thriving community. This guide covers exporting Moltbot configuration, converting it to OpenClaw's format, migrating custom modules, transferring data, and executing a safe cutover. With proper preparation, you'll complete the migration in 2-4 hours with minimal risk.
OpenClaw Node.js vs Bun: Which Runtime Should You Use?
OpenClaw officially supports both Node.js and Bun runtimes, but which should you choose? This guide compares performance, compatibility, ecosystem maturity, and installation differences. You'll learn when to use Node.js for stability and ecosystem support, and when Bun's speed and modern tooling make it the better choice for your deployment.
OpenClaw vs ChatGPT: Which Is Better for Your Use Case?
Choosing between OpenClaw and ChatGPT depends on your priorities: privacy, customization, cost control, or ease of use. This guide helps you evaluate both tools and make the right choice for your specific needs.
OpenClaw for Beginners: Your Complete Getting Started Guide
New to OpenClaw? This beginner-friendly guide walks you through what OpenClaw is, how to install it, and how to have your first productive conversation. No prior experience required.
How to Run OpenClaw on Raspberry Pi
Running OpenClaw on a Raspberry Pi turns a low-cost, low-power device into a self-hosted AI assistant. This guide covers setup, performance tuning, and common pitfalls for Pi 4 and Pi 5.
How to Migrate from ChatGPT to OpenClaw
Migrating from ChatGPT to OpenClaw gives you full control over your AI workflows, data, and integrations. This guide walks you through exporting your ChatGPT data, setting up OpenClaw, and recreating your custom GPTs as skills.
How to Backup and Restore OpenClaw
Backing up OpenClaw ensures you can recover from hardware failures, migration issues, or accidental deletions. This guide covers identifying critical data, automating backups, and testing restore procedures to keep your OpenClaw instance resilient.
How to Update OpenClaw Without Downtime
Keeping OpenClaw up to date ensures you get the latest features, security patches, and bug fixes. This guide walks through checking versions, backing up data, pulling updates, and rolling back if issues arise.
How to Run OpenClaw on AWS EC2
Running OpenClaw on AWS EC2 gives you cloud-based scalability and reliability. This guide covers launching an EC2 instance, configuring security, installing OpenClaw, and setting up HTTPS for production-ready deployments.
How to Run OpenClaw on Google Cloud
Google Cloud Platform offers reliable infrastructure for hosting OpenClaw with flexible pricing and global availability. This guide covers launching a Compute Engine VM, configuring networking, installing dependencies, and setting up HTTPS with Google-managed certificates.
OpenClaw Provider Configuration Guide
OpenClaw supports multiple cloud providers for hosting AI models, storage, and services. Providers are configured in the gateway to route requests to AWS Bedrock, Azure OpenAI, GCP Vertex AI, or local models. This guide covers provider setup, credential management, failover configuration, and cost optimization across multi-cloud deployments.
How to Deploy OpenClaw on AWS EC2
AWS EC2 provides scalable cloud infrastructure for OpenClaw. This guide walks you through launching EC2 instances, configuring security groups, attaching EBS volumes for persistent storage, setting up Elastic Load Balancing for high availability, and configuring systemd services for auto-recovery. You'll have a production-ready OpenClaw instance on AWS in under 2 hours.
Mac Mini Hardware Requirements for OpenClaw
Mac Mini is excellent for 24/7 OpenClaw deployments. This guide covers M1/M2/M4 chip comparisons, RAM recommendations for different workload levels, storage requirements, real-world performance benchmarks, and cost analysis. Find the right Mac Mini configuration for your needs.
Deploy OpenClaw on Railway
Railway is a modern PaaS that makes deploying OpenClaw effortless. With built-in CI/CD, automatic HTTPS, and one-click PostgreSQL, you can have a production-ready OpenClaw instance running in minutes. This guide covers everything from initial deployment to custom domains and zero-downtime updates.
Deploy OpenClaw on DigitalOcean
DigitalOcean offers simple, affordable cloud infrastructure perfect for OpenClaw deployments. This guide covers creating a Droplet, attaching block storage, configuring firewalls, and setting up automatic backups. DigitalOcean's straightforward pricing and intuitive interface make it ideal for small teams and solo developers.
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