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OpenClaw CLI
Command Reference
Every terminal command you need to run, manage, and debug OpenClaw — organized by category and ready to copy. Bookmark this. You'll use it more than you expect.
OpenClaw is controlled entirely from the terminal. Whether you're checking gateway health, tailing logs, scheduling cron jobs, or pairing a new device — there's a command for it. This reference covers all of them, from the ones you'll run daily to the ones you'll forget exist until you need them most.
⚡ The ones you'll use every day
openclaw statusopenclaw logsopenclaw doctoropenclaw gateway restartsudo openclaw updatecat ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json | grep "token"🔧Gateway
openclaw gateway startStart the gateway daemonopenclaw gateway stopStop the gateway daemonopenclaw gateway restartRestart the gatewayopenclaw gateway statusCheck if the gateway is runningopenclaw healthQuick health check from the running gateway🤖Models
openclaw models listList all configured modelsopenclaw models set <model-name>Set the default model — e.g. openclaw models set anthropic/claude-3-5-sonnetopenclaw models auth addAdd or update API keys for Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, and other providers — interactiveopenclaw models statusShow current model stateopenclaw configureReview everything at once — API keys, models, and channel connections — via the full setup wizard🩺Doctor & Health
openclaw doctorRun health checks and surface quick fixesopenclaw doctor --fixAuto-apply all recommended repairsopenclaw doctor --deepDeep scan — finds extra gateway installs and conflictsopenclaw doctor --non-interactiveRun without prompts (safe for scripts)openclaw security auditAudit your config for security issuesopenclaw security audit --fixAuto-fix detected security issues📋Status & Logs
openclaw statusChannel health + recent session overviewopenclaw logsTail live gateway logsopenclaw channels statusShow channel-specific statusopenclaw channels logsShow recent channel activity logs⚙️Config & Setup
openclaw configureLaunch the interactive setup wizardopenclaw config getView your current configopenclaw config setSet a specific config valueopenclaw updateUpdate OpenClaw to the latest releaseopenclaw update --channel betaSwitch to the beta release channelopenclaw update --dry-runPreview what an update would do without applying itcat ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json | grep "token"Retrieve your Gateway token from the config file💬Messaging & Channels
openclaw message send --channel telegram --target @user --message "Hi"Send a message via a specific channelopenclaw channels listList all configured messaging channelsopenclaw channels addAdd a new channel interactivelyopenclaw directoryLook up contact and group IDs🤖Agent & Sessions
openclaw agent --message "do something"Run a single agent turn from the terminalopenclaw sessionsList all sessionsopenclaw sessions --active 120Show sessions active in the last 2 hoursopenclaw sessions cleanupClean up old session dataopenclaw tuiOpen the terminal UI — live chat in your terminal🧠Memory & Skills
openclaw memory search "query"Search across memory filesopenclaw skills listList all installed skills🖥️Nodes & Devices
openclaw nodes statusList paired nodes and their connection statusopenclaw nodes listList pending and paired nodesopenclaw nodes run --node <id> --raw "uname -a"Run a shell command on a paired nodeopenclaw nodes notify --node <id>Send a notification to a paired deviceopenclaw nodes camera snap --node <id>Take a photo from a paired node's camera🕐Cron
openclaw cron listList all scheduled cron jobsopenclaw cron addAdd a new cron job interactivelyopenclaw cron run <id>Trigger a cron job immediatelyopenclaw cron runs <id>View run history for a job🧩Plugins
openclaw plugins listList installed pluginsopenclaw plugins install <pkg>Install a plugin by package nameopenclaw plugins updateUpdate all installed pluginsopenclaw plugins doctorReport plugin load issues💾Backup
openclaw backup createBack up config, sessions, and workspacesopenclaw backup verify <file>Validate a backup archive🔍Other Handy Ones
openclaw dashboardOpen the Control UI in your browseropenclaw docsSearch the live OpenClaw docsopenclaw qrGenerate a QR code for iOS pairingopenclaw resetReset config and state (keeps the CLI installed)Want OpenClaw set up the right way?
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