AI Agent

How to Install OpenClaw: macOS, Windows & Linux Server (+ Skills Setup)

· 8 min read · YayaAgent Team

OpenClaw is the fastest-growing open-source AI agent in history — a personal assistant you run on your own machine and reach through apps you already use (Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp, and more). This guide gets you from zero to your first conversation in under 10 minutes, then shows you how to extend it with Skills.

Node.js 22+ required macOS · Windows · Linux Free & open source
Part 1 — Install OpenClaw
Open Terminal

Press Cmd + Space, type Terminal, hit Enter.

Run the one-line installer

This script detects whether you have Node.js, installs it if not, then installs OpenClaw and starts the setup wizard automatically.

# Paste and press Enter
curl -fsSL --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash
Tip: If you already have Homebrew, you can also install Node.js first with brew install node@22, then re-run the installer.
Follow the onboarding wizard

The wizard will ask you:

  • Which AI model to use (Claude, OpenAI, Gemini, or local via Ollama)
  • Your API key for that provider
  • Which messaging channel to connect (Telegram is easiest to start)
Not sure which model? Pick claude-sonnet-4-6 — good balance of speed and capability.
Verify it's running
openclaw status
# You should see: gateway: running

Open the dashboard in your browser anytime:

openclaw dashboard
Troubleshooting: "openclaw: command not found"

Your shell can't find the global npm binary. Add this to your ~/.zshrc (or ~/.bashrc):

export PATH="$(npm prefix -g)/bin:$PATH"

Then run source ~/.zshrc and try again.

Note: If you get a sharp error mentioning libvips, run:
SHARP_IGNORE_GLOBAL_LIBVIPS=1 npm install -g openclaw@latest
Heads-up: OpenClaw on Windows works best inside WSL2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux). It runs natively on Windows too, but WSL2 avoids most compatibility issues and is the officially recommended path.
Install WSL2 (recommended, one-time)

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

wsl --install

This installs Ubuntu by default. Restart when prompted, then open the Ubuntu app from the Start menu — that's your Linux terminal.

Already have WSL2? Skip straight to step 2 in your Ubuntu terminal.
Run the installer inside WSL2 (Ubuntu terminal)
curl -fsSL --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

Same script as macOS/Linux — it detects your environment automatically.

Native Windows (without WSL2)

If you prefer not to use WSL2, open PowerShell and run:

iwr -useb https://openclaw.ai/install.ps1 | iex
Note: Some features (voice, certain channels) may not work on native Windows. WSL2 is strongly preferred.
Follow the onboarding wizard

Same as macOS — choose your AI model, enter your API key, and connect a messaging channel.

Verify it's running
openclaw status

If openclaw isn't found, add the npm global bin to your PATH:

# In PowerShell (native Windows)
$env:PATH += ";$(npm prefix -g)"
Good news: Linux is the cleanest install experience. The one-line installer works on Ubuntu, Debian, and most distros without any extras.
SSH into your server
ssh your-user@your-server-ip
Run the one-line installer
curl -fsSL --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

The script installs Node.js 22+ if needed, then installs OpenClaw globally via npm.

Run the onboarding wizard

If the wizard didn't start automatically:

openclaw onboard --install-daemon

The --install-daemon flag sets OpenClaw to start automatically on server reboot — important for headless servers.

Keep it running after you close SSH

The daemon flag above handles this. Verify it's set up correctly:

openclaw status
# Look for: daemon: enabled, gateway: running
Connect via Telegram (recommended for servers)

Since there's no GUI on a server, Telegram is the easiest way to chat with your agent. During onboarding, choose Telegram as your channel. You'll get a bot link to message from your phone.

Tip: Use openclaw doctor to check for any config issues after setup.
Useful server management commands
openclaw status # check gateway status
openclaw doctor # diagnose config issues
openclaw dashboard # open browser UI (tunnels to local)
openclaw update # update to latest version

✅ Before moving on — quick sanity check

  • openclaw status shows gateway: running
  • You've entered an API key for at least one AI model
  • You can send a message to your agent and get a reply
Part 2 — Installing Skills

Skills are what turn OpenClaw from a chatbot into an actual agent. Each skill is a folder with a SKILL.md file — a plain-text instruction set that tells your agent how to use a specific tool or workflow. Install a skill, and your agent immediately knows how to use it. No restart needed.

📅 calendar-pro
Read and create Google Calendar events via chat
✉️ email
Manage Gmail — read, reply, archive, search
🔍 web-research
Search the web and summarize results on demand
🗂️ github
Create issues, review PRs, manage repos
📊 sql-toolkit
Query SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MySQL databases
🤖 blog-writer
Long-form SEO blog writing with keyword control
Install the ClawHub CLI

ClawHub is the official skill registry — over 13,000 community skills. Install its CLI once:

npm install -g clawhub
Search for a skill
clawhub search "email"
clawhub search "calendar"
clawhub search "github"

ClawHub uses vector search, so plain descriptions work just as well as exact names.

Install a skill
# Replace "email" with whichever skill slug you want
clawhub install email

Skills install into ./skills/ in your current directory by default. Your agent picks them up immediately — no restart needed.

Security tip: Before installing any community skill, check its page on clawhub.com. Look for the "benign" security rating and check its star count. Avoid skills flagged as "suspicious."
Test your new skill

Send a message to your agent that would trigger the skill. For example, after installing the email skill:

# In your Telegram / Discord / Terminal chat
Check my unread emails from today
Install from a GitHub repo

Any public GitHub repo with a SKILL.md at its root can be installed directly:

openclaw skills install github:username/repo-name
Create your own skill manually

A skill is just a folder with one required file:

mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/my-skill
touch ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md

Open SKILL.md in any editor and write your instructions in plain Markdown. The agent reads this file and follows whatever you write in it.

Structure tip: Start with a short description of when the skill activates, then list step-by-step instructions. Be specific — the more precise your SKILL.md, the more reliably your agent follows it.
List installed skills
clawhub list
Update all skills to latest versions
clawhub update --all
Remove a skill
clawhub uninstall skill-name
Where skills live on disk
# Default workspace location
~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/
Performance note: Having too many active skills increases response time because more context loads per request. Uninstall skills you don't use regularly.

🦞 You're all set

OpenClaw is evolving fast — run openclaw update regularly to stay current. When you're comfortable with the basics, explore ClawHub for community skills, and check the official docs for connecting more channels like WhatsApp, Discord, and Slack.