openclaw/docs/start/wizard.md

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CLI onboarding wizard: guided setup for gateway, workspace, channels, and skills	Running or configuring the onboarding wizard Setting up a new machine	Onboarding Wizard (CLI)	Wizard (CLI)

Onboarding Wizard (CLI)

The CLI onboarding wizard is the recommended setup path for OpenClaw on macOS, Linux, and Windows (via WSL2). It configures a local gateway or a remote gateway connection, plus workspace defaults, channels, and skills.

openclaw onboard

Fastest first chat: open the Control UI (no channel setup needed). Run `openclaw dashboard` and chat in the browser. Docs: [Dashboard](/web/dashboard).

QuickStart vs Advanced

The wizard starts with QuickStart (defaults) vs Advanced (full control).

- Local gateway on loopback - Existing workspace or default workspace - Gateway port `18789` - Gateway auth token auto-generated (even on loopback) - Tailscale exposure off - Telegram and WhatsApp DMs default to allowlist (you may be prompted for your phone number) - Exposes full prompt flow for mode, workspace, gateway, channels, daemon, and skills

CLI onboarding details

Full local and remote flow, auth and model matrix, config outputs, wizard RPC, and signal-cli behavior. Non-interactive onboarding recipes and automated `agents add` examples.

Common follow-up commands

openclaw configure
openclaw agents add <name>

`--json` does not imply non-interactive mode. For scripts, use `--non-interactive`. Recommended: set up a Brave Search API key so the agent can use `web_search` (`web_fetch` works without a key). Easiest path: `openclaw configure --section web` which stores `tools.web.search.apiKey`. Docs: [Web tools](/tools/web).

Related docs

• CLI command reference: openclaw onboard
• macOS app onboarding: Onboarding
• Agent first-run ritual: Agent Bootstrapping