OpenClaw Companion is a comprehensive Windows companion suite designed to integrate seamlessly with OpenClaw, an AI-powered personal assistant. It provides users with a modern and intuitive interface to manage and interact with their OpenClaw setup directly from their Windows system.
Key Features:
System Tray Application: A WinUI 3-based system tray app that offers quick access to OpenClaw's features.
Quick Send Functionality: Enables sending messages via a global hotkey (Ctrl+Alt+Shift+C).
Embedded Web Chat: An integrated chat window powered by WebView2 for direct interaction with OpenClaw.
Real-time Status Monitoring: Displays live session, channel, and usage statistics for enhanced visibility.
Command Center: A diagnostic hub providing detailed insights into gateway, channel health, usage, and node status.
Audience & Benefit:
Ideal for Windows users seeking a seamless integration with OpenClaw, this suite enhances productivity by offering direct access to AI-driven functionalities. It is particularly beneficial for those who need real-time monitoring, quick messaging, and comprehensive system diagnostics, ensuring efficient and informed interactions with their personal assistant.
Installed via winget, OpenClaw Companion simplifies the management of your OpenClaw setup, making it an essential tool for anyone leveraging this powerful AI assistant on Windows.
README
🦞 OpenClaw Windows Hub
A native Windows companion suite for OpenClaw - the AI-powered personal assistant.
Made with 🦞 love by Scott Hanselman and Molty
Projects
This monorepo contains the Windows hub, shared client libraries, and CLI utilities:
Project
Description
OpenClaw.Tray.WinUI
System tray application (WinUI 3) for quick access to OpenClaw
OpenClaw.Connection
Gateway registry, credential resolution, and connection manager
OpenClaw.Shared
Shared gateway client library, capabilities, and MCP bridge
OpenClaw.Chat
Native chat model and timeline reducer
OpenClaw.Cli
CLI validator for WebSocket connect/send/probe using tray settings
OpenClaw.WinNode.Cli
winnode CLI for invoking local Windows node/MCP capabilities
OpenClaw.SetupEngine
Local gateway setup, WSL installation, and setup-code support
OpenClaw.SetupEngine.UI
WinUI setup wizard pages hosted by the tray app
OpenClawTray.FunctionalUI
In-repo declarative WinUI helper used by native chat and newer UI surfaces
🚀 Quick Start
> End-user installer? Download the latest stable x64 or ARM64 installer from the , or see for step-by-step installation (no build required).
>
> Local setup creates a locked-down app-owned distro. See for editing as the user and using root for protected-file administration.
>
> Start with for the beginner-facing glossary of gateway, operator, node, pairing, reapproval, and allowlisted node capabilities.
Use the setup script to install or verify local Windows build prerequisites:
# Install missing prerequisites with winget, trust the checkout, and verify setup
.\scripts\setup-dev.ps1
# Check only; do not install packages or change git safe.directory
.\scripts\setup-dev.ps1 -CheckOnly
# Install/verify prerequisites without adding the checkout to git safe.directory
.\scripts\setup-dev.ps1 -NoTrustRepository
# Setup and run the required build/test validation
.\scripts\setup-dev.ps1 -RunValidation
Build
Use the build script to check prerequisites and build:
# Check prerequisites
.\build.ps1 -CheckOnly
# Build all projects
.\build.ps1
# Build specific project
.\build.ps1 -Project WinUI
# Build and launch the unpackaged WinUI tray app
.\run-app-local.ps1
# If you already built, skip rebuild and launch the existing Debug output
.\run-app-local.ps1 -NoBuild
# Run isolated from your normal tray settings so multiple worktrees can run together
.\run-app-local.ps1 -Isolated
# Opt into side-by-side dev identity (separate mutex, protocol, gateway distro, and port)
.\run-app-local.ps1 -Dev -Isolated
# Alpha update testing from a Release build
.\run-app-local.ps1 -Configuration Release -Isolated -UpdateChannel alpha
# Optional: launch through WinAppCLI with Package.appxmanifest
.\run-app-local.ps1 -UseWinApp -NoBuild
The default path starts the unpackaged executable directly. -UseWinApp requires
Microsoft WinAppCLI (winget install Microsoft.WinAppCLI) and is only needed when
you want manifest/MSIX-adjacent launch validation.
Run CLI WebSocket Validator
Use the CLI to validate gateway connectivity and chat.send outside the tray UI.
# Show help
dotnet run --project src/OpenClaw.Cli -- --help
# Use tray settings from %APPDATA%\OpenClawTray\settings.json and send one message
dotnet run --project src/OpenClaw.Cli -- --message "quick send validation"
# Loop sends and also probe sessions/usage/nodes APIs
dotnet run --project src/OpenClaw.Cli -- --repeat 5 --delay-ms 1000 --probe-read --verbose
# Override gateway URL/token for isolated testing
dotnet run --project src/OpenClaw.Cli -- --url ws://127.0.0.1:18789 --token "" --message "override test"
📦 OpenClaw.Tray (Molty)
Modern Windows 11-style system tray companion that connects to your local OpenClaw gateway.
Features
🎨 OpenClaw branding - OpenClaw tray icon with status colors
🎨 Modern UI - Windows 11 flyout menu with dark/light mode support
💬 Quick Send - Send messages via global hotkey (Ctrl+Alt+Shift+C)
🔄 Auto-updates - Automatic updates from GitHub Releases
🌐 Web Chat - Embedded chat window with WebView2
📊 Live Status - Real-time sessions, channels, and usage display
🧭 Command Center - Dense gateway, channel, usage, node, pairing, and allowlist diagnostics from one window
⚡ Activity Stream - Command Center page for live session, usage, node, and notification events
🔔 Toast Notifications - Clickable Windows notifications with smart categorization
📡 Channel Control - Start/stop Telegram & WhatsApp from the menu
🖥️ Node Observability - Node inventory with online/offline state and copyable summary
⏱ Cron Jobs - Quick access to scheduled tasks
🚀 Auto-start - Launch with Windows
⚙️ Settings - Full configuration page
🎯 First-run onboarding — native WSL gateway setup with capability, permission, install, onboard, and completion screens
Quick Send scope requirement
Quick Send uses the gateway chat.send method and requires the operator device to have operator.write scope.
If Quick Send fails with missing scope: operator.write, Molty now copies identity + remediation guidance to your clipboard, including:
operator role and client.id used by the tray app
gateway-reported operator device id (if provided)
currently granted scopes (if provided)
For this specific error (missing scope: operator.write), the cause is an operator token scope issue. Update the token used by the tray app so it includes operator.write, then retry Quick Send.
If Quick Send fails with pairing required / NOT_PAIRED, that is a device approval issue. Approve the tray device in gateway pairing approvals, reconnect, and retry.
Menu Sections
Status - Gateway connection status with click-to-view details
Command Center - Hub with diagnostics, channel health, usage, sessions, nodes, and copyable repair commands
Sessions - Active agent sessions with preview and per-session controls
Usage - Provider/cost summary with quick jump to activity details
Channels - Telegram/WhatsApp status with toggle control
Nodes - Online/offline node inventory and copyable summary
Recent Activity - Timestamped event stream for sessions, usage, nodes, and notifications
Actions - Dashboard, Web Chat, Quick Send, Activity Stream, History
Support & Debug - Logs, config, diagnostics folder, redacted support context, browser setup, port/capability/node/channel/activity summaries, and managed SSH tunnel restart
Capture screenshots and fixed-duration MP4 screen recordings
Camera
camera.list, camera.snap, camera.clip
Enumerate cameras and capture still photos or short video clips
Speech-to-text
stt.transcribe
Capture audio from the default microphone for a bounded duration and return transcribed text. Default-off; opt-in via Settings. When enabled, advertised to both gateway callers (subject to gateway allowlist) and local MCP clients (subject to bearer token).
Location
location.get
Return Windows geolocation when permission is available
Device
device.info, device.status
Return Windows host/app metadata and lightweight status
Text-to-speech
tts.speak
Speak text aloud through Windows speech synthesis, or ElevenLabs when configured
Packaged installs declare camera, microphone, and location capabilities. Windows may ask for consent the first time a node capability uses one of those protected resources.
Node Setup
Enable Node Mode in Settings (enabled by default)
First connection creates a pairing request on the gateway
Approve the device on your gateway:
openclaw devices list # Find your Windows device
openclaw devices approve # Approve it
Configure gateway allowCommands - Add the commands you want to allow under gateway.nodes in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:
> ⚠️ Important: The gateway has a server-side allowlist. Commands must be listed explicitly - wildcards like canvas.* don't work! Privacy-sensitive commands such as screen.record and agent-driven audio playback via tts.speak should only be added to allowCommands when you explicitly want to allow them.
Test it from your Mac/gateway:
# Show a notification
openclaw nodes notify --node --title "Hello" --body "From Mac!"
# Open a canvas window
openclaw nodes canvas present --node --url "https://example.com"
# Execute JavaScript (note: CLI sends "javaScript" param)
openclaw nodes canvas eval --node --javaScript "document.title"
# Render A2UI JSONL in the canvas (pass the file contents as a string)
openclaw nodes canvas a2ui push --node --jsonl "$(cat ./ui.jsonl)"
# Take a screenshot
openclaw nodes invoke --node --command screen.snapshot --params '{"screenIndex":0,"format":"png"}'
# Record a short screen clip (requires explicitly allowing screen.record on the gateway)
openclaw nodes screen record --node --duration 3000 --fps 10 --screen 0 --no-audio --out /tmp/openclaw-windows-screen-record-test.mp4 --json
# List cameras
openclaw nodes invoke --node --command camera.list
# Take a photo (NV12/MediaCapture fallback)
openclaw nodes invoke --node --command camera.snap --params '{"deviceId":"","format":"jpeg","quality":80}'
# Speak text aloud on the Windows node (requires TTS enabled in Settings and tts.speak allowed on the gateway)
openclaw nodes invoke --node --command tts.speak --params '{"text":"Hello from OpenClaw","provider":"windows"}'
# Execute a command on the Windows node (raw node.invoke requires canonical argv)
openclaw gateway call node.invoke --params '{"nodeId":"","command":"system.run","params":{"command":["cmd.exe","/d","/s","/c","echo hello"],"rawCommand":"echo hello","timeoutMs":10000}}' --json
# View exec approval policy
openclaw nodes invoke --node --command system.execApprovals.get
# Update exec approvals using baseHash from the preceding get response
openclaw nodes invoke --node --command system.execApprovals.set --params '{"baseHash":"","file":{"version":1,"defaults":{"security":"allowlist","ask":"on-miss","askFallback":"deny","autoAllowSkills":false},"agents":{"main":{"security":"allowlist","ask":"on-miss","askFallback":"deny","autoAllowSkills":false,"allowlist":[]}}}}'
> 📷 Camera permission: Desktop builds rely on Windows Privacy settings. Packaged MSIX builds will show the system consent prompt.
> 🔒 Exec approvals: system.run is gated by the V2 approval coordinator and %APPDATA%\OpenClawTray\exec-approvals.json. The file uses the same defaults/agents/allowlist model as the macOS node host. system.execApprovals.set requires the current baseHash and rejects stale or unsafe remote updates.
>
> Allowlist rules match resolved executable paths, using path-aware wildcards such as **/git.exe. Script interpreters and command hosts cannot receive reusable grants. Non-empty custom environments are rejected until they can be identity-bound and displayed safely.
>
> V2 caller migration: raw MCP, direct node.invoke, plugin, and winnode callers must replace string-form {"command":"echo hello","shell":"cmd"} with canonical {"command":["cmd.exe","/d","/s","/c","echo hello"],"rawCommand":"echo hello"}. The normal gateway exec host=node path already performs this wrapping. Remove custom env; non-empty environments are rejected.
Command Center diagnostics
Open the status detail/Command Center from the tray menu or with openclaw://commandcenter. It shows:
channel health from gateway health events, including node-mode health received without a separate operator connection
active sessions, usage/cost data, node inventory, declared commands, and Mac parity notes
allowlist diagnostics that separate safe companion commands from privacy-sensitive opt-ins like screen.record, camera.snap, and camera.clip
copyable repair commands for safe allowlist fixes and pending pairing approval
recent activity and node invoke results through the Activity Stream, storing command names/status/duration only (not payloads, screenshots, recordings, or secrets)
>
> bash > openclaw nodes invoke --node --command system.execApprovals.set --params '{"baseHash":"","file":{"version":1,"defaults":{"security":"allowlist","ask":"off","askFallback":"deny","autoAllowSkills":false},"agents":{"main":{"security":"allowlist","ask":"off","askFallback":"deny","autoAllowSkills":false,"allowlist":[]}}}}' >
> 🔐 Web Chat secure context: Remote web chat requires https:// (or localhost). If using a self-signed cert, trust it in Windows (Trusted Root Certification Authorities) or use an SSH tunnel to localhost.
Node Status in Tray Menu
The tray menu shows node connection status:
🔌 Node Mode section appears when enabled
⏳ Waiting for approval... - Device needs approval on gateway
✅ Paired & Connected - Ready to receive commands
Click the device ID to copy it for the approval command
Deep Links
OpenClaw registers the openclaw:// URL scheme for automation and integration:
Link
Description
openclaw://settings
Open the Settings page
openclaw://setup
Open Setup Wizard
openclaw://chat
Open the Chat page
openclaw://commandcenter
Open Command Center diagnostics
openclaw://activity
Open the Activity page
openclaw://history
Open the Activity page filtered to notification history
openclaw://dashboard
Open Dashboard in browser
openclaw://dashboard/sessions
Open specific dashboard page
openclaw://dashboard/channels
Open Channels dashboard page
openclaw://dashboard/skills
Open Skills dashboard page
openclaw://dashboard/cron
Open Cron dashboard page
openclaw://healthcheck
Run a manual health check
openclaw://check-updates
Run a manual update check
openclaw://logs
Open the current tray log file
openclaw://log-folder
Open the logs folder
openclaw://config
Open the config folder
openclaw://diagnostics
Open the diagnostics JSONL folder
openclaw://support-context
Copy redacted support context
openclaw://debug-bundle
Copy a combined debug bundle for support
openclaw://browser-setup
Copy browser.proxy/browser-control setup guidance
openclaw://port-diagnostics
Copy gateway/browser/tunnel port diagnostics with owner PID stop hints
openclaw://capability-diagnostics
Copy permissions, allowlist, and parity diagnostics
openclaw://node-inventory
Copy node capabilities, commands, and policy status
openclaw://channel-summary
Copy channel health and start/stop availability
openclaw://activity-summary
Copy recent tray activity for troubleshooting
openclaw://extensibility-summary
Copy channel, skills, and cron dashboard surface guidance
openclaw://restart-ssh-tunnel
Restart the tray-managed SSH tunnel when enabled
openclaw://send?message=Hello
Open Quick Send with pre-filled text
openclaw://agent?message=Hello
Send message directly to the connected gateway
Deep links work even when Molty is already running - they're forwarded via IPC.
📦 OpenClaw.Shared
Shared library containing:
OpenClawGatewayClient - WebSocket client for gateway protocol
IOpenClawLogger - Logging interface
Data models (SessionInfo, ChannelHealth, etc.)
Channel control (start/stop channels via gateway)
Development
Project Structure
See DEVELOPMENT.md for the complete and current src/ and tests/ project inventory.
