Skip to content

Experiment: OpenClaw Setup on WSL2

Status

  • optional
  • experiment
  • not required for the default document flow

Goal

Validate OpenClaw installation and basic operation on Windows 11 with WSL2 Ubuntu.

This is an optional experiment, not the default setup path.


Environment

Item Value
OS Windows 11 Pro
WSL Version WSL2
Distribution Ubuntu
Type optional experiment

Setup Steps

Step 1: Enter WSL2 Ubuntu

wsl -d Ubuntu

Step 2: Install Node.js 24

curl -fsSL https://fnm.vercel.app/install | bash
source ~/.bashrc

fnm install 24
fnm use 24
node -v
npm -v

Step 3: Install OpenClaw

curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

Step 4: Authenticate Claude CLI

If Claude CLI is used, authentication is required.

Reference:

Option A:

cp /mnt/c/Users/ahyuo/.claude/.credentials ~/.claude/.credentials

Option B:

echo 'export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="sk-ant-..."' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Step 5: Onboarding

General:

openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Skip channels:

openclaw onboard --install-daemon --skip-channels

Step 6: Verify Gateway

openclaw config get gateway.token
openclaw gateway status --token <token>

Step 7: Open Dashboard

openclaw dashboard

Checklist

  • confirm WSL2 Ubuntu
  • install Node.js 24
  • install OpenClaw
  • authenticate Claude CLI
  • complete openclaw onboard
  • verify openclaw gateway status
  • confirm dashboard access

Notes

  • optional setup
  • experiment only
  • not required for the default documentation flow