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Overview

After completing the setup script and onboarding, you need to finalize the installation by reloading your shell environment, starting the background service, and ensuring it stays running.

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Final Steps

Follow these steps in order to complete your installation:
1

Reload Shell Environment

The setup script added several environment variables to ~/.bashrc. Activate them by sourcing the file:
source ~/.bashrc
What this does:
  • Loads TMPDIR, TMP, and TEMP variables pointing to $PREFIX/tmp
  • Exports SVDIR for the runit service manager
  • Updates PATH if needed
You can also close and reopen Termux instead of running source ~/.bashrc, but sourcing is faster.
2

Start the OpenClaw Service

Use the sv command (from runit) to start the background service:
sv up openclaw
Expected output:
ok: run: openclaw: (pid 12345) 0s
The service is now running in the background.
The sv command manages services through runit. It’s similar to systemctl on traditional Linux but designed for lightweight supervision.
3

Verify Service is Running

Check the service status:
sv status openclaw
Healthy output:
run: openclaw: (pid 12345) 15s; run: log: (pid 12346) 15s
This confirms both the main process and logging are active.If the service is down:
# Check the logs for errors
tail -f $PREFIX/var/log/openclaw/current

# Try starting again
sv up openclaw
4

Apply Wake Lock

Critical for Android: Prevent the system from killing the process when Termux is minimized:
termux-wake-lock
What this does:
  • Acquires a CPU wake lock
  • Keeps OpenClaw running even when Termux is in the background
  • Prevents Android from aggressively killing the process
Without termux-wake-lock, Android’s battery optimization will terminate the OpenClaw service when you switch apps or lock your screen.
To check wake lock status:
termux-wake-lock status
To release the wake lock (stops background operation):
termux-wake-unlock
5

Access the Web UI

Open your browser and navigate to:
http://localhost:18789
You should see the OpenClaw web interface.
The default port is 18789. If you changed this during onboarding, use your custom port instead.
From other devices on the same network:Find your device’s IP address:
ifconfig wlan0 | grep inet
Then access from another device using:
http://[your-device-ip]:18789

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Post-Installation Checklist

Confirm everything is working correctly: 
sv status openclaw
Should show:
  • run: openclaw: (pid XXXX)
  • Running for at least a few seconds
  • Log service also running
termux-wake-lock status
Should indicate wake lock is held
echo $TMPDIR
echo $SVDIR
Should output:
  • TMPDIR: /data/data/com.termux/files/usr/tmp
  • SVDIR: /data/data/com.termux/files/usr/var/service
tail -n 20 $PREFIX/var/log/openclaw/current
Should show recent log entries without critical errors

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Service Management Commands

Use these commands to manage your OpenClaw service:

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Check Status

sv status openclaw
Shows current state: running, stopped, or restarting.

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Stop Service

sv down openclaw
Gracefully stops the service.

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Start Service

sv up openclaw
Starts the service if stopped.

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Restart Service

sv restart openclaw
Stops and starts the service (useful after configuration changes).

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View Logs

# View last 50 lines
tail -n 50 $PREFIX/var/log/openclaw/current

# Follow logs in real-time
tail -f $PREFIX/var/log/openclaw/current

# Search logs for errors
grep -i error $PREFIX/var/log/openclaw/current

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Troubleshooting

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Service won’t start

Check the run script: 
cat $PREFIX/var/service/openclaw/run
Ensure it contains: 
#!/data/data/com.termux/files/usr/bin/sh
export PATH=$PREFIX/bin:$PATH
export TMPDIR=$PREFIX/tmp
exec openclaw gateway 2>&1
Check permissions: 
ls -la $PREFIX/var/service/openclaw/run
Should be executable (-rwxr-xr-x). Try starting manually: 
openclaw gateway
This runs the gateway in foreground mode and shows errors directly.

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Web UI not accessible

Verify the service is actually running: 
sv status openclaw
Check if port 18789 is listening: 
netstat -an | grep 18789
Should show LISTEN on port 18789. Try accessing with explicit localhost: 
http://127.0.0.1:18789

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Process keeps getting killed

Ensure wake lock is active: 
termux-wake-lock
termux-wake-lock status
Disable battery optimization for Termux:
  1. Go to Android Settings
  2. Apps → Termux
  3. Battery → Unrestricted
Keep Termux notification visible: The Termux persistent notification helps prevent the system from killing the app.

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”Permission denied” when accessing files

Check TMPDIR: 
echo $TMPDIR
Should be $PREFIX/tmp, not /tmp. Verify the path patch was applied: 
grep "$PREFIX/tmp/openclaw" $PREFIX/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/entry.js
If this returns nothing, the patch wasn’t applied. Re-run the setup script.

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Keeping the Service Running

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Automatic startup on Termux launch

Add to ~/.bashrc: 
# Start OpenClaw if not already running
if ! sv status openclaw | grep -q "^run:"; then
    sv up openclaw
    termux-wake-lock
fi

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Using Termux:Boot

Install Termux:Boot from F-Droid to start OpenClaw when Android boots:
  1. Install Termux:Boot
  2. Create ~/.termux/boot/start-openclaw:
#!/data/data/com.termux/files/usr/bin/bash
termux-wake-lock
sv up openclaw
  1. Make it executable:
chmod +x ~/.termux/boot/start-openclaw

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Next Steps

Your OpenClaw installation is complete! Explore these topics:

Service Management

Learn how to control and monitor the OpenClaw service

Commands Reference

Explore OpenClaw CLI commands and options

Updating OpenClaw

Keep your installation up to date safely

Troubleshooting

Solve common problems
Congratulations! You now have OpenClaw running on your Android device. Your phone is now a powerful AI assistant and automation hub.

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