openclaw/scripts/shell-helpers

ClawDock

Stop typing docker-compose commands. Just type clawdock-start.

Inspired by Simon Willison's Running OpenClaw in Docker.

• Quickstart
• Available Commands
  • Basic Operations
  • Container Access
  • Web UI & Devices
  • Setup & Configuration
  • Maintenance
  • Utilities
• Common Workflows
  • Check Status and Logs
  • Set Up WhatsApp Bot
  • Troubleshooting Device Pairing
  • Fix Token Mismatch Issues
  • Permission Denied
• Requirements

Quickstart

Install:

mkdir -p ~/.clawdock && curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/openclaw/openclaw/main/scripts/shell-helpers/clawdock-helpers.sh -o ~/.clawdock/clawdock-helpers.sh

echo 'source ~/.clawdock/clawdock-helpers.sh' >> ~/.zshrc && source ~/.zshrc

See what you get:

clawdock-help

On first command, ClawDock auto-detects your OpenClaw directory:

• Checks common paths (~/openclaw, ~/workspace/openclaw, etc.)
• If found, asks you to confirm
• Saves to ~/.clawdock/config

First time setup:

clawdock-start

clawdock-fix-token

clawdock-dashboard

If you see "pairing required":

clawdock-devices

And approve the request for the specific device:

clawdock-approve <request-id>

Available Commands

Basic Operations

Command	Description
clawdock-start	Start the gateway
clawdock-stop	Stop the gateway
clawdock-restart	Restart the gateway
clawdock-status	Check container status
clawdock-logs	View live logs (follows output)

Container Access

Command	Description
clawdock-shell	Interactive shell inside the gateway container
clawdock-cli <command>	Run OpenClaw CLI commands
clawdock-exec <command>	Execute arbitrary commands in the container

Web UI & Devices

Command	Description
clawdock-dashboard	Open web UI in browser with authentication
clawdock-devices	List device pairing requests
clawdock-approve <id>	Approve a device pairing request

Setup & Configuration

Command	Description
clawdock-fix-token	Configure gateway authentication token (run once)

Maintenance

Command	Description
clawdock-rebuild	Rebuild the Docker image
clawdock-clean	Remove all containers and volumes (destructive!)

Utilities

Command	Description
clawdock-health	Run gateway health check
clawdock-token	Display the gateway authentication token
clawdock-cd	Jump to the OpenClaw project directory
clawdock-config	Open the OpenClaw config directory
clawdock-workspace	Open the workspace directory
clawdock-help	Show all available commands with examples

Common Workflows

Check Status and Logs

Restart the gateway:

clawdock-restart

Check container status:

clawdock-status

View live logs:

clawdock-logs

Set Up WhatsApp Bot

Shell into the container:

clawdock-shell

Inside the container, login to WhatsApp:

openclaw channels login --channel whatsapp --verbose

Scan the QR code with WhatsApp on your phone.

Verify connection:

openclaw status

Troubleshooting Device Pairing

Check for pending pairing requests:

clawdock-devices

Copy the Request ID from the "Pending" table, then approve:

clawdock-approve <request-id>

Then refresh your browser.

Fix Token Mismatch Issues

If you see "gateway token mismatch" errors:

clawdock-fix-token

This will:

1. Read the token from your .env file
2. Configure it in the OpenClaw config
3. Restart the gateway
4. Verify the configuration

Permission Denied

Ensure Docker is running and you have permission:

docker ps

Requirements

• Docker and Docker Compose installed
• Bash or Zsh shell
• OpenClaw project (from docker-setup.sh)

Development

Test with fresh config (mimics first-time install):

unset CLAWDOCK_DIR && rm -f ~/.clawdock/config && source scripts/shell-helpers/clawdock-helpers.sh

Then run any command to trigger auto-detect:

clawdock-start