Plugin Setup and Config

Plugin Setup and Config

Reference for plugin packaging (package.json metadata), manifests (openclaw.plugin.json), setup entries, and config schemas.

Looking for a walkthrough? The how-to guides cover packaging in context: Channel Plugins and Provider Plugins.

Package metadata

Your package.json needs an openclaw field that tells the plugin system what your plugin provides:

Channel plugin:

{
  "name": "@myorg/openclaw-my-channel",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "type": "module",
  "openclaw": {
    "extensions": ["./index.ts"],
    "setupEntry": "./setup-entry.ts",
    "channel": {
      "id": "my-channel",
      "label": "My Channel",
      "blurb": "Short description of the channel."
    }
  }
}

Provider plugin / ClawHub publish baseline:

openclaw-clawhub-package.json

{
  "name": "@myorg/openclaw-my-plugin",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "type": "module",
  "openclaw": {
    "extensions": ["./index.ts"],
    "compat": {
      "pluginApi": ">=2026.3.24-beta.2",
      "minGatewayVersion": "2026.3.24-beta.2"
    },
    "build": {
      "openclawVersion": "2026.3.24-beta.2",
      "pluginSdkVersion": "2026.3.24-beta.2"
    }
  }
}

If you publish the plugin externally on ClawHub, those compat and build fields are required. The canonical publish snippets live in docs/snippets/plugin-publish/.

openclaw fields

Field	Type	Description
extensions	string[]	Entry point files (relative to package root)
setupEntry	string	Lightweight setup-only entry (optional)
channel	object	Channel catalog metadata for setup, picker, quickstart, and status surfaces
providers	string[]	Provider ids registered by this plugin
install	object	Install hints: npmSpec, localPath, defaultChoice, minHostVersion, allowInvalidConfigRecovery
startup	object	Startup behavior flags

openclaw.channel

openclaw.channel is cheap package metadata for channel discovery and setup surfaces before runtime loads.

Field	Type	What it means
id	string	Canonical channel id.
label	string	Primary channel label.
selectionLabel	string	Picker/setup label when it should differ from label.
detailLabel	string	Secondary detail label for richer channel catalogs and status surfaces.
docsPath	string	Docs path for setup and selection links.
docsLabel	string	Override label used for docs links when it should differ from the channel id.
blurb	string	Short onboarding/catalog description.
order	number	Sort order in channel catalogs.
aliases	string[]	Extra lookup aliases for channel selection.
preferOver	string[]	Lower-priority plugin/channel ids this channel should outrank.
systemImage	string	Optional icon/system-image name for channel UI catalogs.
selectionDocsPrefix	string	Prefix text before docs links in selection surfaces.
selectionDocsOmitLabel	boolean	Show the docs path directly instead of a labeled docs link in selection copy.
selectionExtras	string[]	Extra short strings appended in selection copy.
markdownCapable	boolean	Marks the channel as markdown-capable for outbound formatting decisions.
showConfigured	boolean	Controls whether configured-channel listing surfaces show this channel.
quickstartAllowFrom	boolean	Opt this channel into the standard quickstart allowFrom setup flow.
forceAccountBinding	boolean	Require explicit account binding even when only one account exists.
preferSessionLookupForAnnounceTarget	boolean	Prefer session lookup when resolving announce targets for this channel.

Example:

{
  "openclaw": {
    "channel": {
      "id": "my-channel",
      "label": "My Channel",
      "selectionLabel": "My Channel (self-hosted)",
      "detailLabel": "My Channel Bot",
      "docsPath": "/channels/my-channel",
      "docsLabel": "my-channel",
      "blurb": "Webhook-based self-hosted chat integration.",
      "order": 80,
      "aliases": ["mc"],
      "preferOver": ["my-channel-legacy"],
      "selectionDocsPrefix": "Guide:",
      "selectionExtras": ["Markdown"],
      "markdownCapable": true,
      "quickstartAllowFrom": true
    }
  }
}

openclaw.install

openclaw.install is package metadata, not manifest metadata.

Field	Type	What it means
npmSpec	string	Canonical npm spec for install/update flows.
localPath	string	Local development or bundled install path.
defaultChoice	"npm" | "local"	Preferred install source when both are available.
minHostVersion	string	Minimum supported OpenClaw version in the form >=x.y.z.
allowInvalidConfigRecovery	boolean	Lets bundled-plugin reinstall flows recover from specific stale-config failures.

If minHostVersion is set, install and manifest-registry loading both enforce it. Older hosts skip the plugin; invalid version strings are rejected.

allowInvalidConfigRecovery is not a general bypass for broken configs. It is for narrow bundled-plugin recovery only, so reinstall/setup can repair known upgrade leftovers like a missing bundled plugin path or stale channels.<id> entry for that same plugin. If config is broken for unrelated reasons, install still fails closed and tells the operator to run openclaw doctor --fix.

Deferred full load

Channel plugins can opt into deferred loading with:

{
  "openclaw": {
    "extensions": ["./index.ts"],
    "setupEntry": "./setup-entry.ts",
    "startup": {
      "deferConfiguredChannelFullLoadUntilAfterListen": true
    }
  }
}

When enabled, OpenClaw loads only setupEntry during the pre-listen startup phase, even for already-configured channels. The full entry loads after the gateway starts listening.

Only enable deferred loading when your setupEntry registers everything the gateway needs before it starts listening (channel registration, HTTP routes, gateway methods). If the full entry owns required startup capabilities, keep the default behavior.

If your setup/full entry registers gateway RPC methods, keep them on a plugin-specific prefix. Reserved core admin namespaces (config.*, exec.approvals.*, wizard.*, update.*) stay core-owned and always resolve to operator.admin.

Plugin manifest

Every native plugin must ship an openclaw.plugin.json in the package root. OpenClaw uses this to validate config without executing plugin code.

{
  "id": "my-plugin",
  "name": "My Plugin",
  "description": "Adds My Plugin capabilities to OpenClaw",
  "configSchema": {
    "type": "object",
    "additionalProperties": false,
    "properties": {
      "webhookSecret": {
        "type": "string",
        "description": "Webhook verification secret"
      }
    }
  }
}

For channel plugins, add kind and channels:

{
  "id": "my-channel",
  "kind": "channel",
  "channels": ["my-channel"],
  "configSchema": {
    "type": "object",
    "additionalProperties": false,
    "properties": {}
  }
}

Even plugins with no config must ship a schema. An empty schema is valid:

{
  "id": "my-plugin",
  "configSchema": {
    "type": "object",
    "additionalProperties": false
  }
}

See Plugin Manifest for the full schema reference.

ClawHub publishing

For plugin packages, use the package-specific ClawHub command:

clawhub package publish your-org/your-plugin --dry-run
clawhub package publish your-org/your-plugin

The legacy skill-only publish alias is for skills. Plugin packages should always use clawhub package publish.

Setup entry

The setup-entry.ts file is a lightweight alternative to index.ts that OpenClaw loads when it only needs setup surfaces (onboarding, config repair, disabled channel inspection).

// setup-entry.ts
import { defineSetupPluginEntry } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/channel-core";
import { myChannelPlugin } from "./src/channel.js";

export default defineSetupPluginEntry(myChannelPlugin);

This avoids loading heavy runtime code (crypto libraries, CLI registrations, background services) during setup flows.

When OpenClaw uses setupEntry instead of the full entry:

• The channel is disabled but needs setup/onboarding surfaces
• The channel is enabled but unconfigured
• Deferred loading is enabled (deferConfiguredChannelFullLoadUntilAfterListen)

What setupEntry must register:

• The channel plugin object (via defineSetupPluginEntry)
• Any HTTP routes required before gateway listen
• Any gateway methods needed during startup

Those startup gateway methods should still avoid reserved core admin namespaces such as config.* or update.*.

What setupEntry should NOT include:

• CLI registrations
• Background services
• Heavy runtime imports (crypto, SDKs)
• Gateway methods only needed after startup

Narrow setup helper imports

For hot setup-only paths, prefer the narrow setup helper seams over the broader plugin-sdk/setup umbrella when you only need part of the setup surface:

Import path	Use it for	Key exports
plugin-sdk/setup-runtime	setup-time runtime helpers that stay available in setupEntry / deferred channel startup	createPatchedAccountSetupAdapter, createEnvPatchedAccountSetupAdapter, createSetupInputPresenceValidator, noteChannelLookupFailure, noteChannelLookupSummary, promptResolvedAllowFrom, splitSetupEntries, createAllowlistSetupWizardProxy, createDelegatedSetupWizardProxy
plugin-sdk/setup-adapter-runtime	environment-aware account setup adapters	createEnvPatchedAccountSetupAdapter
plugin-sdk/setup-tools	setup/install CLI/archive/docs helpers	formatCliCommand, detectBinary, extractArchive, resolveBrewExecutable, formatDocsLink, CONFIG_DIR

Use the broader plugin-sdk/setup seam when you want the full shared setup toolbox, including config-patch helpers such as moveSingleAccountChannelSectionToDefaultAccount(...).

The setup patch adapters stay hot-path safe on import. Their bundled single-account promotion contract-surface lookup is lazy, so importing plugin-sdk/setup-runtime does not eagerly load bundled contract-surface discovery before the adapter is actually used.

Channel-owned single-account promotion

When a channel upgrades from a single-account top-level config to channels.<id>.accounts.*, the default shared behavior is to move promoted account-scoped values into accounts.default.

Bundled channels can narrow or override that promotion through their setup contract surface:

• singleAccountKeysToMove: extra top-level keys that should move into the promoted account
• namedAccountPromotionKeys: when named accounts already exist, only these keys move into the promoted account; shared policy/delivery keys stay at the channel root
• resolveSingleAccountPromotionTarget(...): choose which existing account receives promoted values

Matrix is the current bundled example. If exactly one named Matrix account already exists, or if defaultAccount points at an existing non-canonical key such as Ops, promotion preserves that account instead of creating a new accounts.default entry.

Config schema

Plugin config is validated against the JSON Schema in your manifest. Users configure plugins via:

{
  plugins: {
    entries: {
      "my-plugin": {
        config: {
          webhookSecret: "abc123",
        },
      },
    },
  },
}

Your plugin receives this config as api.pluginConfig during registration.

For channel-specific config, use the channel config section instead:

{
  channels: {
    "my-channel": {
      token: "bot-token",
      allowFrom: ["user1", "user2"],
    },
  },
}

Building channel config schemas

Use buildChannelConfigSchema from openclaw/plugin-sdk/core to convert a Zod schema into the ChannelConfigSchema wrapper that OpenClaw validates:

import { z } from "zod";
import { buildChannelConfigSchema } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/core";

const accountSchema = z.object({
  token: z.string().optional(),
  allowFrom: z.array(z.string()).optional(),
  accounts: z.object({}).catchall(z.any()).optional(),
  defaultAccount: z.string().optional(),
});

const configSchema = buildChannelConfigSchema(accountSchema);

Setup wizards

Channel plugins can provide interactive setup wizards for openclaw onboard. The wizard is a ChannelSetupWizard object on the ChannelPlugin:

import type { ChannelSetupWizard } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/channel-setup";

const setupWizard: ChannelSetupWizard = {
  channel: "my-channel",
  status: {
    configuredLabel: "Connected",
    unconfiguredLabel: "Not configured",
    resolveConfigured: ({ cfg }) => Boolean((cfg.channels as any)?.["my-channel"]?.token),
  },
  credentials: [
    {
      inputKey: "token",
      providerHint: "my-channel",
      credentialLabel: "Bot token",
      preferredEnvVar: "MY_CHANNEL_BOT_TOKEN",
      envPrompt: "Use MY_CHANNEL_BOT_TOKEN from environment?",
      keepPrompt: "Keep current token?",
      inputPrompt: "Enter your bot token:",
      inspect: ({ cfg, accountId }) => {
        const token = (cfg.channels as any)?.["my-channel"]?.token;
        return {
          accountConfigured: Boolean(token),
          hasConfiguredValue: Boolean(token),
        };
      },
    },
  ],
};

The ChannelSetupWizard type supports credentials, textInputs, dmPolicy, allowFrom, groupAccess, prepare, finalize, and more. See bundled plugin packages (for example the Discord plugin src/channel.setup.ts) for full examples.

For DM allowlist prompts that only need the standard note -> prompt -> parse -> merge -> patch flow, prefer the shared setup helpers from openclaw/plugin-sdk/setup: createPromptParsedAllowFromForAccount(...), createTopLevelChannelParsedAllowFromPrompt(...), and createNestedChannelParsedAllowFromPrompt(...).

For channel setup status blocks that only vary by labels, scores, and optional extra lines, prefer createStandardChannelSetupStatus(...) from openclaw/plugin-sdk/setup instead of hand-rolling the same status object in each plugin.

For optional setup surfaces that should only appear in certain contexts, use createOptionalChannelSetupSurface from openclaw/plugin-sdk/channel-setup:

import { createOptionalChannelSetupSurface } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/channel-setup";

const setupSurface = createOptionalChannelSetupSurface({
  channel: "my-channel",
  label: "My Channel",
  npmSpec: "@myorg/openclaw-my-channel",
  docsPath: "/channels/my-channel",
});
// Returns { setupAdapter, setupWizard }

plugin-sdk/channel-setup also exposes the lower-level createOptionalChannelSetupAdapter(...) and createOptionalChannelSetupWizard(...) builders when you only need one half of that optional-install surface.

The generated optional adapter/wizard fail closed on real config writes. They reuse one install-required message across validateInput, applyAccountConfig, and finalize, and append a docs link when docsPath is set.

For binary-backed setup UIs, prefer the shared delegated helpers instead of copying the same binary/status glue into every channel:

• createDetectedBinaryStatus(...) for status blocks that vary only by labels, hints, scores, and binary detection
• createCliPathTextInput(...) for path-backed text inputs
• createDelegatedSetupWizardStatusResolvers(...), createDelegatedPrepare(...), createDelegatedFinalize(...), and createDelegatedResolveConfigured(...) when setupEntry needs to forward to a heavier full wizard lazily
• createDelegatedTextInputShouldPrompt(...) when setupEntry only needs to delegate a textInputs[*].shouldPrompt decision

Publishing and installing

External plugins: publish to ClawHub or npm, then install:

openclaw plugins install @myorg/openclaw-my-plugin

OpenClaw tries ClawHub first and falls back to npm automatically. You can also force ClawHub explicitly:

openclaw plugins install clawhub:@myorg/openclaw-my-plugin   # ClawHub only

There is no matching npm: override. Use the normal npm package spec when you want the npm path after ClawHub fallback:

openclaw plugins install @myorg/openclaw-my-plugin

In-repo plugins: place under the bundled plugin workspace tree and they are automatically discovered during build.

Users can install:

openclaw plugins install <package-name>

For npm-sourced installs, openclaw plugins install runs npm install --ignore-scripts (no lifecycle scripts). Keep plugin dependency trees pure JS/TS and avoid packages that require postinstall builds.

Related

• SDK Entry Points — definePluginEntry and defineChannelPluginEntry
• Plugin Manifest — full manifest schema reference
• Building Plugins — step-by-step getting started guide