130 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
130 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
---
|
|
summary: "Host OpenClaw on a DigitalOcean Droplet"
|
|
read_when:
|
|
- Setting up OpenClaw on DigitalOcean
|
|
- Looking for a simple paid VPS for OpenClaw
|
|
title: "DigitalOcean"
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
# DigitalOcean
|
|
|
|
Run a persistent OpenClaw Gateway on a DigitalOcean Droplet.
|
|
|
|
## Prerequisites
|
|
|
|
- DigitalOcean account ([signup](https://cloud.digitalocean.com/registrations/new))
|
|
- SSH key pair (or willingness to use password auth)
|
|
- About 20 minutes
|
|
|
|
## Setup
|
|
|
|
<Steps>
|
|
<Step title="Create a Droplet">
|
|
<Warning>
|
|
Use a clean base image (Ubuntu 24.04 LTS). Avoid third-party Marketplace 1-click images unless you have reviewed their startup scripts and firewall defaults.
|
|
</Warning>
|
|
|
|
1. Log into [DigitalOcean](https://cloud.digitalocean.com/).
|
|
2. Click **Create > Droplets**.
|
|
3. Choose:
|
|
- **Region:** Closest to you
|
|
- **Image:** Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
|
|
- **Size:** Basic, Regular, 1 vCPU / 1 GB RAM / 25 GB SSD
|
|
- **Authentication:** SSH key (recommended) or password
|
|
4. Click **Create Droplet** and note the IP address.
|
|
|
|
</Step>
|
|
|
|
<Step title="Connect and install">
|
|
```bash
|
|
ssh root@YOUR_DROPLET_IP
|
|
|
|
apt update && apt upgrade -y
|
|
|
|
# Install Node.js 24
|
|
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_24.x | bash -
|
|
apt install -y nodejs
|
|
|
|
# Install OpenClaw
|
|
curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash
|
|
openclaw --version
|
|
```
|
|
|
|
</Step>
|
|
|
|
<Step title="Run onboarding">
|
|
```bash
|
|
openclaw onboard --install-daemon
|
|
```
|
|
|
|
The wizard walks you through model auth, channel setup, gateway token generation, and daemon installation (systemd).
|
|
|
|
</Step>
|
|
|
|
<Step title="Add swap (recommended for 1 GB Droplets)">
|
|
```bash
|
|
fallocate -l 2G /swapfile
|
|
chmod 600 /swapfile
|
|
mkswap /swapfile
|
|
swapon /swapfile
|
|
echo '/swapfile none swap sw 0 0' >> /etc/fstab
|
|
```
|
|
</Step>
|
|
|
|
<Step title="Verify the gateway">
|
|
```bash
|
|
openclaw status
|
|
systemctl --user status openclaw-gateway.service
|
|
journalctl --user -u openclaw-gateway.service -f
|
|
```
|
|
</Step>
|
|
|
|
<Step title="Access the Control UI">
|
|
The gateway binds to loopback by default. Pick one of these options.
|
|
|
|
**Option A: SSH tunnel (simplest)**
|
|
|
|
```bash
|
|
# From your local machine
|
|
ssh -L 18789:localhost:18789 root@YOUR_DROPLET_IP
|
|
```
|
|
|
|
Then open `http://localhost:18789`.
|
|
|
|
**Option B: Tailscale Serve**
|
|
|
|
```bash
|
|
curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
|
|
tailscale up
|
|
openclaw config set gateway.tailscale.mode serve
|
|
openclaw gateway restart
|
|
```
|
|
|
|
Then open `https://<magicdns>/` from any device on your tailnet.
|
|
|
|
**Option C: Tailnet bind (no Serve)**
|
|
|
|
```bash
|
|
openclaw config set gateway.bind tailnet
|
|
openclaw gateway restart
|
|
```
|
|
|
|
Then open `http://<tailscale-ip>:18789` (token required).
|
|
|
|
</Step>
|
|
</Steps>
|
|
|
|
## Troubleshooting
|
|
|
|
**Gateway will not start** -- Run `openclaw doctor --non-interactive` and check logs with `journalctl --user -u openclaw-gateway.service -n 50`.
|
|
|
|
**Port already in use** -- Run `lsof -i :18789` to find the process, then stop it.
|
|
|
|
**Out of memory** -- Verify swap is active with `free -h`. If still hitting OOM, use API-based models (Claude, GPT) rather than local models, or upgrade to a 2 GB Droplet.
|
|
|
|
## Next steps
|
|
|
|
- [Channels](/channels) -- connect Telegram, WhatsApp, Discord, and more
|
|
- [Gateway configuration](/gateway/configuration) -- all config options
|
|
- [Updating](/install/updating) -- keep OpenClaw up to date
|