OpenClaw Gateway Keepalive

Ensure the OpenClaw gateway process stays running across reboots, crashes, sleep, and network interruptions.

Quick Start (Recommended)

Register as a system service with one command (all platforms):

openclaw gateway install

Effects:

• ✅ Auto-start on boot — no terminal needed
• ✅ Runs in background — survives terminal close
• ✅ Survives screen lock — independent of user session
• ✅ Auto-restart on crash — OS-level process supervision

Verify:

openclaw gateway status

Expected output:

• Service: Scheduled Task (registered) ✅
• RPC probe: ok ✅
• Port: [127.0.0.1:18789] ✅

Commands

Platform Differences

Windows

• Registers via Task Scheduler (schtasks)
• Service name: OpenClaw Gateway
• Survives screen lock and user session disconnect

macOS

• Registers via launchd plist
• Supports KeepAlive=true for auto-restart

Linux

• Registers via systemd service
• Supports Restart=on-failure policy

Prevent Sleep (Critical)

The gateway requires the computer to stay awake. Configure power settings:

Windows

# List current power plans
powercfg /list

# Never sleep when plugged in
powercfg /change standby-timeout-ac 0

# Allow display off but keep system awake
powercfg /change monitor-timeout-ac 10

macOS

# Prevent system sleep
sudo pmset -a sleep 0

# Prevent disk sleep
sudo pmset -a disksleep 0

# Allow display off but keep system running
sudo pmset -a displaysleep 10

Linux

# Disable suspend
sudo systemctl mask sleep.target suspend.target hibernate.target hybrid-sleep.target

Network Recovery

The gateway's WebSocket connection auto-reconnects after network interruptions using exponential backoff (1s → 2s → 4s → ...).

Manual restart if needed:

openclaw gateway restart

Troubleshooting

Gateway Unresponsive

openclaw gateway status    # Check process status
openclaw logs --follow     # View real-time logs
openclaw gateway restart   # Attempt restart

Service Not Registered

openclaw gateway install   # Re-register
openclaw gateway status    # Verify

Frequent Crashes

1. Check logs with openclaw logs --follow for crash cause
2. Ensure sufficient memory (Node.js process needs at least 512MB free)
3. Check for port conflicts (default: 18789)
4. Update to latest version

Advanced: External Process Supervisors

If gateway install is not stable enough, use external tools:

Option A: pm2 (Recommended, Cross-Platform)

npm install -g pm2
pm2 start openclaw -- gateway start
pm2 save
pm2 startup  # Generate startup command

Option B: NSSM (Windows Only)

nssm install OpenClaw "C:\Program Files\nodejs\node.exe" "openclaw gateway start"
nssm set OpenClaw AppExit Default Restart
nssm start OpenClaw

Option C: Windows Task Scheduler (Manual)

# Create auto-start task with 1-minute restart on failure
schtasks /create /tn "OpenClaw Gateway" /tr "openclaw gateway start" /sc onstart /rl highest /f

# Or use Task Scheduler GUI for finer restart policies

Healthcheck Scripts

Schedule these with cron or Task Scheduler for periodic health checks with auto-restart.

Windows (healthcheck.cmd)

@echo off
REM OpenClaw Gateway Healthcheck Script (Windows)
REM Run periodically via Task Scheduler or cron
REM Exit code 0 = healthy, 1 = failed to recover

echo [%date% %time%] Checking OpenClaw Gateway status...

openclaw gateway status >nul 2>&1
if %errorlevel% neq 0 (
    echo [%date% %time%] Gateway not responding. Attempting restart...
    openclaw gateway restart >nul 2>&1
    timeout /t 5 >nul
    openclaw gateway status >nul 2>&1
    if %errorlevel% neq 0 (
        echo [%date% %time%] CRITICAL: Gateway failed to restart!
        exit /b 1
    ) else (
        echo [%date% %time%] Gateway restarted successfully.
        exit /b 0
    )
) else (
    echo [%date% %time%] Gateway is running normally.
    exit /b 0
)

Linux/macOS (healthcheck.sh)

#!/bin/bash
# OpenClaw Gateway Healthcheck Script (Linux/macOS)
# Usage: bash healthcheck.sh - can be scheduled via cron
# Example cron: */5 * * * * /path/to/healthcheck.sh >> /var/log/openclaw-healthcheck.log 2>&1

TIMESTAMP=$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S')

echo "[$TIMESTAMP] Checking OpenClaw Gateway status..."

if openclaw gateway status > /dev/null 2>&1; then
    echo "[$TIMESTAMP] Gateway is running normally."
    exit 0
else
    echo "[$TIMESTAMP] Gateway not responding. Attempting restart..."
    openclaw gateway restart > /dev/null 2>&1
    sleep 5
    
    if openclaw gateway status > /dev/null 2>&1; then
        echo "[$TIMESTAMP] Gateway restarted successfully."
        exit 0
    else
        echo "[$TIMESTAMP] CRITICAL: Gateway failed to restart!"
        exit 1
    fi
fi

Save to a location of your choice and schedule:

• Windows: Task Scheduler → Run every 5 minutes
• Linux/macOS: /5 * /path/to/healthcheck.sh >> /var/log/openclaw-healthcheck.log 2>&1