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Hosting

Docker VM runtime

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Shared runtime steps for VM-based Docker installs such as GCP, Hetzner, and similar VPS providers.

Bake required binaries into the image

Installing binaries inside a running container is a trap. Anything installed at runtime will be lost on restart.

All external binaries required by skills must be installed at image build time.

The examples below show three common binaries only:

  • gog (from gogcli) for Gmail access
  • goplaces for Google Places
  • wacli for WhatsApp

These are examples, not a complete list. You may install as many binaries as needed using the same pattern.

If you add new skills later that depend on additional binaries, you must:

  1. Update the Dockerfile
  2. Rebuild the image
  3. Restart the containers

Example Dockerfile

dockerfile
FROM node:24-bookworm RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y socat && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/* # Example binary 1: Gmail CLI (gogcli — installs as `gog`)# Copy the current Linux asset URL from https://github.com/steipete/gogcli/releasesRUN curl -L https://github.com/steipete/gogcli/releases/latest/download/gogcli_linux_amd64.tar.gz \  | tar -xzO gog > /usr/local/bin/gog; \  chmod +x /usr/local/bin/gog # Example binary 2: Google Places CLI# Copy the current Linux asset URL from https://github.com/steipete/goplaces/releasesRUN curl -L https://github.com/steipete/goplaces/releases/latest/download/goplaces_linux_amd64.tar.gz \  | tar -xzO goplaces > /usr/local/bin/goplaces; \  chmod +x /usr/local/bin/goplaces # Example binary 3: WhatsApp CLI# Copy the current Linux asset URL from https://github.com/steipete/wacli/releasesRUN curl -L https://github.com/steipete/wacli/releases/latest/download/wacli-linux-amd64.tar.gz \  | tar -xzO wacli > /usr/local/bin/wacli; \  chmod +x /usr/local/bin/wacli # Add more binaries below using the same pattern WORKDIR /appCOPY package.json pnpm-lock.yaml pnpm-workspace.yaml .npmrc ./COPY ui/package.json ./ui/package.jsonCOPY scripts ./scripts RUN corepack enableRUN pnpm install --frozen-lockfile COPY . .RUN pnpm buildRUN pnpm ui:installRUN pnpm ui:build ENV NODE_ENV=production CMD ["node","dist/index.js"]

Build and launch

bash
docker compose builddocker compose up -d openclaw-gateway

If build fails with Killed or exit code 137 during pnpm install --frozen-lockfile, the VM is out of memory. Use a larger machine class before retrying.

Verify binaries:

bash
docker compose exec openclaw-gateway which gogdocker compose exec openclaw-gateway which goplacesdocker compose exec openclaw-gateway which wacli

Expected output:

Code
/usr/local/bin/gog/usr/local/bin/goplaces/usr/local/bin/wacli

Verify Gateway:

bash
docker compose logs -f openclaw-gateway

Expected output:

Code
[gateway] listening on ws://0.0.0.0:18789

What persists where

OpenClaw runs in Docker, but Docker is not the source of truth. All long-lived state must survive restarts, rebuilds, and reboots.

Component Location Persistence mechanism Notes
Gateway config /home/node/.openclaw/ Host volume mount Includes openclaw.json, .env
Model auth profiles /home/node/.openclaw/agents/ Host volume mount agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json (OAuth, API keys)
Auth profile key /home/node/.config/openclaw/ Host volume mount Local encryption key for OAuth auth profile token material
Skill configs /home/node/.openclaw/skills/ Host volume mount Skill-level state
Agent workspace /home/node/.openclaw/workspace/ Host volume mount Code and agent artifacts
WhatsApp session /home/node/.openclaw/ Host volume mount Preserves QR login
Gmail keyring /home/node/.openclaw/ Host volume + password Requires GOG_KEYRING_PASSWORD
Plugin packages /home/node/.openclaw/npm, /home/node/.openclaw/git Host volume mount Downloadable plugin package roots
External binaries /usr/local/bin/ Docker image Must be baked at build time
Node runtime Container filesystem Docker image Rebuilt every image build
OS packages Container filesystem Docker image Do not install at runtime
Docker container Ephemeral Restartable Safe to destroy

Updates

To update OpenClaw on the VM:

bash
git pulldocker compose builddocker compose up -d
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