OpenClaw Setup: 6 Post-Install Steps to Your First Agent (2026)

After installing OpenClaw, the open-source AI assistant with over 310,000 GitHub stars, you might find yourself staring at a terminal thinking: “Now what?” The OpenClaw setup process does not end with installation — it actually begins there.

📑Table of Contents

1. OpenClaw Setup — Your Post-Installation Roadmap (2026)
2. Step 1 — Getting API Keys and Setting Environment Variables
3. Step 2 — Running openclaw onboard for Initial OpenClaw Setup
4. Step 3 — Connecting Channels
5. Step 4 — Building Your First Agent
6. Step 5 — Essential Commands for Daily OpenClaw Setup and Management
7. Step 6 — Verifying Security Settings
8. Related Articles
9. Frequently Asked Questions — OpenClaw Setup
10. Summary — Start Your OpenClaw Setup Today

I had the exact same experience. The install was effortless — a single curl command on my Mac — but I had no idea what to do next. After consulting the official documentation, I started by connecting Slack, then moved on to building my first agent. Within an hour, OpenClaw was genuinely useful.

This guide walks you through the complete OpenClaw setup after installation: API keys, channel connections, agent building, essential commands, and security hardening. Follow these steps and you will go from “installed but idle” to “productive AI assistant” in under an hour.

If you have not installed OpenClaw yet, start with our OpenClaw Installation Guide for macOS, Linux & Windows.

OpenClaw Setup — Your Post-Installation Roadmap (2026)

Before diving into details, here is the full OpenClaw setup roadmap at a glance. Each step builds on the previous one, so follow the order.

Step	What to Do	Time	Difficulty
1	Get API keys and set environment variables	5–10 min	Low
2	Run openclaw onboard for initial setup	5 min	Low
3	Connect channels (Slack / Discord / Teams / Telegram)	10–30 min	Medium
4	Build your first agent (SOUL.md)	15–30 min	Medium
5	Learn essential commands	10 min	Low
6	Verify security settings	10 min	Medium

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Getting Started

Step 1 — Getting API Keys and Setting Environment Variables

OpenClaw does not include its own language model. You need at least one LLM provider API key to power it.

Recommended Providers

Provider	Key Type	Notes
Anthropic	Pay-as-you-go API key	Recommended. Claude Pro/Max OAuth tokens cannot be used with third-party tools
OpenAI	API key	GPT-5.4 and newer models supported
Google AI	API key	Gemini models supported

How to Configure

The easiest way is through the interactive wizard (covered in Step 2):

openclaw onboard

Alternatively, you can write keys directly to ~/.openclaw/.env:

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...

After setting your keys, verify them:

openclaw doctor

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Setup

Step 2 — Running openclaw onboard for Initial OpenClaw Setup

The openclaw onboard command launches an interactive wizard that walks you through the essential OpenClaw setup steps: API key entry, channel selection, and background daemon configuration.

# Basic onboard
openclaw onboard

# With daemon auto-registration (recommended)
openclaw onboard --install-daemon

The --install-daemon flag registers OpenClaw as a background service — launchd on macOS, systemd on Linux — so the gateway starts automatically on boot.

Verify the Gateway

Once onboarding completes, open the web dashboard to confirm everything is running:

openclaw dashboard

This opens http://127.0.0.1:18789/ in your browser. You should see the gateway status, connected channels, and your agent list.

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Getting Started

Step 3 — Connecting Channels

Channels are how you communicate with OpenClaw. You can connect multiple channels simultaneously — Slack, Discord, Telegram, and Teams all running at once.

Slack (My Recommended Starting Point)

Slack was the first channel I connected, and I would recommend it as your starting point too. The setup is straightforward and the integration is solid.

1. Go to api.slack.com/apps and create a new app
2. Under OAuth & Permissions, add Bot Token Scopes: chat:write, app_mentions:read, im:history
3. Install the app to your workspace and copy the Bot User OAuth Token (xoxb-...)
4. Enable Socket Mode and generate an App-Level Token (xapp-...)
5. Under Event Subscriptions, subscribe to app_mention and message.im
6. Configure OpenClaw:

openclaw config set channels.slack.botToken "xoxb-..."
openclaw config set channels.slack.appToken "xapp-..."
openclaw gateway restart

Test it by mentioning @OpenClaw hello in any channel where the bot is invited.

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Slack Channel

Discord

1. Create a bot at the Discord Developer Portal and copy the token
2. Set the token in openclaw.json under channels.discord with enabled: true
3. Set DM policy to pairing (default and safest)
4. Set group policy to allowlist to restrict which channels the bot responds in

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Discord Channel

Telegram

1. Message @BotFather on Telegram and run /newbot to create a bot and obtain a token
2. Add the token to openclaw.json under channels.telegram
3. Internally, OpenClaw uses the grammY framework for Telegram integration

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Telegram Channel

Microsoft Teams

Teams requires additional setup compared to the other channels — it is best suited for enterprise environments.

1. Install the Teams plugin: openclaw plugins install @openclaw/msteams
2. Create an Azure Bot Resource (you need an App ID, Client Secret, and Tenant ID)
3. Expose port 3978 as a messaging endpoint

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — Microsoft Teams Channel

It is worth noting that Claude itself now offers a team collaboration feature called “Channels” as part of its autonomous agent ecosystem. While different from OpenClaw’s channel connections, it provides another approach to integrating AI agents into team workflows. For a comparison, see Claude autonomous agent features explained — Dispatch, Computer Use, Loop & Channels.

Step 4 — Building Your First Agent

With a channel connected, the next step in your OpenClaw setup is creating an agent. Agents are the brains behind OpenClaw — they define how the AI responds, what personality it has, and what tasks it can perform.

openclaw agents add my-assistant

This creates a directory structure for your agent. The most important file is SOUL.md.

SOUL.md — The Core of Your Agent

SOUL.md is a plain Markdown file where you define your agent’s behavior in natural language. No programming required.

# SOUL.md

You are a professional work assistant.

## Rules
- Respond concisely and clearly
- Use bullet points for lists
- When asked about schedules, always include dates and times
- Never share confidential information outside the workspace

## Tone
- Professional but approachable
- Use simple language, avoid jargon

Other Agent Files

File	Purpose	When to Use
SOUL.md	Personality, mission, and instructions	Always — this is the only required file
MEMORY.md	Long-term memory (fact-based)	When the agent needs to remember context across sessions
HEARTBEAT.md	Periodic autonomous thinking	For proactive task checking and notifications
CRON.md	Scheduled task execution	For recurring automated tasks (e.g., daily reports)

Adding Skills from ClawHub

Extend your agent’s capabilities by installing skills from ClawHub (over 5,400 available):

openclaw skills install github-integration
openclaw skills install web-browser

For a deeper dive into agent configuration — including SOUL.md writing techniques, multi-agent setups, and practical task automation — see our guide on automating daily tasks with OpenClaw and SOUL.md.

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — OpenClaw Agents

Step 5 — Essential Commands for Daily OpenClaw Setup and Management

Once your agent is running, these are the commands you will use most often.

Command	Purpose
openclaw onboard	Initial setup wizard
openclaw doctor	Health check for environment and API keys
openclaw gateway start	Start the gateway
openclaw gateway restart	Restart after configuration changes
openclaw dashboard	Open the web UI
openclaw status --all	Check connection status for all channels
openclaw logs --follow	Stream real-time logs
openclaw agent --agent <name> --message "..."	Send a message to a specific agent
openclaw cron list --all	List all scheduled tasks
openclaw config set <key> <value>	Change a configuration value
openclaw plugins install <pkg>	Install a plugin

Source: docs.openclaw.ai — CLI Reference

Step 6 — Verifying Security Settings

Security is the final — and arguably most critical — step of your OpenClaw setup. Run a full diagnostic first:

openclaw doctor

Key Security Checks

For a comprehensive security hardening guide — including dedicated environment setup, TCC permissions on macOS, and API key management — read our OpenClaw security and safe operation guide.

Related Articles

• 👉 How to Install OpenClaw — macOS, Linux & Windows Guide
• 👉 Is OpenClaw Dangerous? Safe Setup & Operation Guide
• 👉 Automate Your Daily Tasks with OpenClaw
• 👉 MCP vs CLI — How Should AI Agents Connect to External Tools?
• 👉 What Is an AI Agent? Capabilities and Essential Tools
• 👉 Best AI Tools for Automating Business Operations

Frequently Asked Questions — OpenClaw Setup

Are API keys free to use?

No. API keys from Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google are pay-as-you-go — you are billed based on usage. This is separate from subscription plans like Claude Pro or Max. Budget a few dollars for initial testing.

Can I use my Claude Pro or Max subscription instead of an API key?

No. Anthropic does not allow OAuth tokens from Pro/Max subscriptions to be used with third-party tools. You must generate a separate pay-as-you-go API key from the Anthropic Console.

What happens if my Node.js version is too old?

OpenClaw requires Node.js 22 or later (Node 24 recommended). Older versions will cause installation failures or runtime errors. Check your version with node -v and upgrade using nvm if needed.

Can I connect multiple channels at the same time?

Yes. OpenClaw supports running Slack, Discord, Telegram, and Teams simultaneously through a single gateway. You can also configure cross-platform ID mapping so the agent recognizes the same user across channels.

Can I create multiple agents?

Absolutely. In fact, splitting agents by purpose is recommended. For example, you might have one agent for information gathering, another for development assistance, and a third for chat responses. Use openclaw agents add <name> for each.

Does OpenClaw work on Windows?

Only through WSL2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux). Native Windows is not supported. There are also reports of WebSocket timeout issues on WSL2. If possible, macOS or Linux is the recommended platform.

What should I do if something goes wrong during setup?

Start with openclaw logs --follow to stream real-time logs and identify the error. Then run openclaw doctor for an environment diagnostic. On macOS, if you see “SDL2 headers not found,” install SDL2 with brew install sdl2.

Summary — Start Your OpenClaw Setup Today

The complete OpenClaw setup follows a clear path: get your API keys, run the onboard wizard, connect your first channel (I recommend starting with Slack), build an agent with SOUL.md, learn the essential commands, and lock down your security settings.

I made the mistake of thinking installation was the finish line — it is actually the starting line. Once I connected Slack and wrote my first SOUL.md, OpenClaw transformed from an idle process into a genuinely useful assistant that I now rely on daily.

Here are the resources to continue your journey:

• OpenClaw Installation Guide — macOS, Linux & Windows — if you have not installed yet
• Is OpenClaw Dangerous? Safe Setup & Operation Guide — for comprehensive security hardening
• Automate Daily Tasks with OpenClaw and SOUL.md — for advanced agent configuration and task automation