Runing any commands takes forever | Friends of the Crustacean 🦞🤝 | Page 1

wide jungle Apr 30, 2026, 1:07 AM

#

When I run any command I takes about 3-5 minutes to respond
even "openclaw tui"

fresh jayBOT Apr 30, 2026, 1:08 AM

#

That usually means OpenClaw CLI startup/bootstrap is blocking, not just the TUI.

First thing: please paste:

openclaw --version
node --version
time openclaw --version
time openclaw status --all
openclaw gateway status

If you’re on a small VPS / ARM / Raspberry Pi, try this temporary shell-session test:

export NODE_COMPILE_CACHE=/var/tmp/openclaw-compile-cache

#

mkdir -p /var/tmp/openclaw-compile-cache
export OPENCLAW_NO_RESPAWN=1
time openclaw --version
time openclaw tui

If that makes later runs much faster, it’s the Node startup/module compile cache issue. Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai/vps#startup-tuning-for-small-vms-and-arm-hosts

If it’s still 3–5 minutes, run a startup trace and paste the slow phase lines:

OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_STARTUP_TRACE=1 openclaw gateway run --verbose

Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai/cli/gateway#startup-profiling

wide jungle Apr 30, 2026, 1:13 AM

#

C:\Users\X4Lo>openclaw --version
OpenClaw 2026.4.8 (9ece252)

C:\Users\X4Lo>node --version
v22.14.0

C:\Users\X4Lo>openclaw gateway status
Config warnings:\n- plugins.entries.github-copilot: plugin disabled (bundled (disabled by default)) but config is present

🦞 OpenClaw 2026.4.8 (9ece252) — Your personal assistant, minus the passive-aggressive calendar reminders.

│
◇
Service: Scheduled Task (registered)
File logs: ~\AppData\Local\Temp\openclaw\openclaw-2026-04-30.log
Command: C:\Tools\nvm4w\nodejs\node.exe C:\Users\X4Lo\AppData\Roaming\nvm\v22.14.0\node_modules\openclaw\dist\index.js gateway --port 18789
Service file: ~\.openclaw\gateway.cmd
Service env: OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=18789

Config (cli): ~\.openclaw\openclaw.json
Config (service): ~\.openclaw\openclaw.json

Gateway: bind=loopback (127.0.0.1), port=18789 (service args)
Probe target: ws://127.0.0.1:18789
Dashboard: http://127.0.0.1:18789/
Probe note: Loopback-only gateway; only local clients can connect.

Runtime: running (last run 267009, last run time 2026-04-30 1:47:38 AM)
Warm-up: launch agents can take a few seconds. Try again shortly.
RPC probe: failed
RPC target: ws://127.0.0.1:18789
  timeout

Port 18789 is already in use.
- pid 34956: C:\Tools\nvm4w\nodejs\node.exe  C:\Users\X4Lo\AppData\Roaming\nvm\v22.14.0\node_modules\openclaw\dist\index.js gateway --port 18789 (127.0.0.1:18789)
- Gateway already running locally. Stop it (openclaw gateway stop) or use a different port.
Listening: 127.0.0.1:18789
Troubles: run openclaw status
Troubleshooting: https://docs.openclaw.ai/troubleshooting

fresh jayBOT Apr 30, 2026, 1:14 AM

#

That output is useful: this is not a normal port conflict. Your gateway process owns 18789, but the RPC probe times out, so it’s likely hung/stalled during startup. The github-copilot warning is probably harmless.

Also: 2026.4.8 is old enough that I’d update first.

In PowerShell:

openclaw gateway stop
openclaw update
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw gateway status --deep

If gateway stop also hangs, stop the stuck PID from your output:

#

Stop-Process -Id 34956 -Force
openclaw update
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw gateway status --deep

If it’s still timing out after update/restart, grab the log tail:

Get-Content "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Temp\openclaw\openclaw-2026-04-30.log" -Tail 120

Docs for update flow: https://docs.openclaw.ai/install/updating

wide jungle Apr 30, 2026, 1:29 AM

#

C:\Users\X4Lo>openclaw update
│
◇  Config warnings ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│                                                                                         │
│  - plugins.entries.github-copilot: plugin disabled (bundled (disabled by default)) but  │
│    config is present                                                                    │
│                                                                                         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯
Updating OpenClaw...

│
◇  ✓ Updating via package manager (138.74s)
│
◇  ✓ Running doctor checks (248.6s)

Update Result: ERROR
  Root: C:\Tools\nvm4w\nodejs\node_modules\openclaw
  Reason: global install verify
  Before: 2026.4.8
  After: 2026.4.27

Total time: 388.12s

fresh jayBOT Apr 30, 2026, 1:31 AM

#

Yep — that means the update downloaded/installed 2026.4.27, but the global install verification failed. Usually that’s a stale/partial npm global package tree.

Since you’re in cmd.exe, run this recovery command:

openclaw gateway stop
powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command "& ([scriptblock]::Create((iwr -useb https://openclaw.ai/install.ps1))) -InstallMethod npm -NoOnboard"
openclaw --version
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw gateway status --deep

Docs explicitly recommend re-running the installer when openclaw update fails after the npm package phase: https://docs.openclaw.ai/install/updating

If that still takes minutes or errors, paste the openclaw --version + gateway status --deep output after the installer.

wide jungle Apr 30, 2026, 1:48 AM

#

C:\Users\X4Lo>openclaw gateway status --deep
Config warnings:
- plugins.entries.github-copilot: plugin disabled (bundled (disabled by default)) but config is present

🦞 OpenClaw 2026.4.27 (cbc2ba0) — I'm not magic—I'm just extremely persistent with retries and coping strategies.

│
◇
Service: Scheduled Task (registered)
File logs: ~\AppData\Local\Temp\openclaw\openclaw-2026-04-30.log
Command: C:\Tools\nvm4w\nodejs\node.exe C:\Tools\nvm4w\nodejs\node_modules\openclaw\dist\index.js gateway --port 18789
Service file: ~\.openclaw\gateway.cmd
Service env: OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=18789

Config (cli): ~\.openclaw\openclaw.json
Config (service): ~\.openclaw\openclaw.json

Gateway: bind=loopback (127.0.0.1), port=18789 (service args)
Probe target: ws://127.0.0.1:18789
Dashboard: http://127.0.0.1:18789/
Probe note: Loopback-only gateway; only local clients can connect.

Runtime: unknown (state Ready, last run -1073741510, last run time 2026-04-30 2:42:57 AM, Task status is locale-dependent and no numeric Last Run Result was available.)
Connectivity probe: failed
Probe target: ws://127.0.0.1:18789
  connect ECONNREFUSED 127.0.0.1:18789
Capability: unknown

Other gateway-like services detected (best effort):
- \OpenClaw Gateway (system, task: \OpenClaw Gateway, run: C:\Users\X4Lo\.openclaw\gateway.cmd)
Cleanup hint: schtasks /Delete /TN "OpenClaw Gateway" /F

Recommendation: run a single gateway per machine for most setups. One gateway supports multiple agents (see docs: /gateway#multiple-gateways-same-host).
If you need multiple gateways (e.g., a rescue bot on the same host), isolate ports + config/state (see docs: /gateway#multiple-gateways-same-host).

Troubles: run openclaw status
Troubleshooting: https://docs.openclaw.ai/troubleshooting


C:\Users\X4Lo>

fresh jayBOT Apr 30, 2026, 1:48 AM

#

Update worked — you’re on 2026.4.27 now. The new issue is: gateway isn’t running/listening (ECONNREFUSED), and it also detected another OpenClaw Gateway scheduled task. Let’s clean that up.

If you did not intentionally set up multiple gateways, open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

schtasks /End /TN "OpenClaw Gateway"
schtasks /Delete /F /TN "OpenClaw Gateway"

Then close the admin shell, open a normal terminal as your user, and run:

openclaw gateway install --force
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw gateway status --deep

#

If it still refuses connection, paste this log tail:

powershell -NoProfile -Command "Get-Content $env:LOCALAPPDATA\Temp\openclaw\openclaw-2026-04-30.log -Tail 120"

The github-copilot config warning is not the main problem here.

#Runing any commands takes forever