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Remote gateway setup

docs/gateway/remote-gateway-readme.md

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This content has been merged into Remote Access. See that page for the current guide.

Running OpenClaw.app with a Remote Gateway

OpenClaw.app uses SSH tunneling to connect to a remote gateway. This guide shows you how to set it up.

Overview

mermaid
flowchart TB
    subgraph Client["Client Machine"]
        direction TB
        A["OpenClaw.app"]
        B["ws://127.0.0.1:18789\n(local port)"]
        T["SSH Tunnel"]

        A --> B
        B --> T
    end
    subgraph Remote["Remote Machine"]
        direction TB
        C["Gateway WebSocket"]
        D["ws://127.0.0.1:18789"]

        C --> D
    end
    T --> C

Quick setup

Step 1: Add SSH Config

Edit ~/.ssh/config and add:

ssh
Host remote-gateway
    HostName <REMOTE_IP>          # e.g., 172.27.187.184
    User <REMOTE_USER>            # e.g., jefferson
    LocalForward 18789 127.0.0.1:18789
    IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa

Replace <REMOTE_IP> and <REMOTE_USER> with your values.

Step 2: Copy SSH Key

Copy your public key to the remote machine (enter password once):

bash
ssh-copy-id -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa <REMOTE_USER>@<REMOTE_IP>

Step 3: Configure Remote Gateway Auth

bash
openclaw config set gateway.remote.token "<your-token>"

Use gateway.remote.password instead if your remote gateway uses password auth. OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN is still valid as a shell-level override, but the durable remote-client setup is gateway.remote.token / gateway.remote.password.

Step 4: Start SSH Tunnel

bash
ssh -N remote-gateway &

Step 5: Restart OpenClaw.app

bash
# Quit OpenClaw.app (⌘Q), then reopen:
open /path/to/OpenClaw.app

The app will now connect to the remote gateway through the SSH tunnel.

Auto-Start Tunnel on Login

To have the SSH tunnel start automatically when you log in, create a Launch Agent.

Create the PLIST file

Save this as ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ai.openclaw.ssh-tunnel.plist:

xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>Label</key>
    <string>ai.openclaw.ssh-tunnel</string>
    <key>ProgramArguments</key>
    <array>
        <string>/usr/bin/ssh</string>
        <string>-N</string>
        <string>remote-gateway</string>
    </array>
    <key>KeepAlive</key>
    <true/>
    <key>RunAtLoad</key>
    <true/>
</dict>
</plist>

Load the Launch Agent

bash
launchctl bootstrap gui/$UID ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ai.openclaw.ssh-tunnel.plist

The tunnel will now:

  • Start automatically when you log in
  • Restart if it crashes
  • Keep running in the background

Legacy note: remove any leftover com.openclaw.ssh-tunnel LaunchAgent if present.

Troubleshooting

Check if tunnel is running:

bash
ps aux | grep "ssh -N remote-gateway" | grep -v grep
lsof -i :18789

Restart the tunnel:

bash
launchctl kickstart -k gui/$UID/ai.openclaw.ssh-tunnel

Stop the tunnel:

bash
launchctl bootout gui/$UID/ai.openclaw.ssh-tunnel

How it works

ComponentWhat It Does
LocalForward 18789 127.0.0.1:18789Forwards local port 18789 to remote port 18789
ssh -NSSH without executing remote commands (just port forwarding)
KeepAliveAutomatically restarts tunnel if it crashes
RunAtLoadStarts tunnel when the agent loads

OpenClaw.app connects to ws://127.0.0.1:18789 on your client machine. The SSH tunnel forwards that connection to port 18789 on the remote machine where the Gateway is running.