Summary

The 2026.2.26 update broke Matrix connectivity for users who had previously installed the Matrix plugin locally. Two separate issues compound each other.

Issue 1: Bundled Matrix extension missing @vector-im/matrix-bot-sdk

The newly bundled extensions/matrix plugin requires @vector-im/matrix-bot-sdk but this dependency is not installed as part of the OpenClaw update.

Error from openclaw plugins list:

matrix failed to load from .../openclaw/extensions/matrix/index.ts: Error: Cannot find module '@vector-im/matrix-bot-sdk'
Require stack:
- .../openclaw/extensions/matrix/src/matrix/client/config.ts

Fix that worked:

cd /path/to/.npm-global/lib/node_modules/openclaw/extensions/matrix
npm install

Issue 2: Duplicate plugin conflict for users with local Matrix extension

Prior to this update, Matrix was only available as a local/community extension installed under ~/.openclaw/extensions/matrix/. The update bundled Matrix as a stock plugin, creating a duplicate plugin ID conflict with no migration guidance.

Warning from openclaw gateway status:

plugin matrix: duplicate plugin id detected; later plugin may be overridden
(/home/juno/.npm-global/lib/node_modules/openclaw/extensions/matrix/index.ts)

The conflict caused Matrix messages to stop being received entirely — the plugin failed silently with no actionable error in the UI.

Fix that worked:

mv ~/.openclaw/extensions/matrix ~/.openclaw/extensions/matrix.bak

Then restart the gateway. The bundled plugin (once its deps are installed) takes over cleanly.

Side effect: Control UI instability

The Matrix plugin load failure appeared to destabilize the gateway, causing the Control UI to behave erratically. After applying both fixes above and restarting, the Control UI returned to normal.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Have Matrix configured and working prior to 2026.2.26 update (with local extension)
2. Run openclaw update / update via npm
3. Restart gateway
4. Matrix messages stop being received
5. openclaw plugins list shows matrix: error
6. openclaw gateway status shows duplicate plugin warning

Environment

• OpenClaw: 2026.2.26
• OS: Linux 6.17.0-14-generic (x64)
• Node: v22.22.0
• Install method: npm global (npm-global)
• Matrix homeserver: Synapse (self-hosted)

Suggested Fixes

1. Ensure @vector-im/matrix-bot-sdk is included in the bundled extension's dependencies and installed during openclaw update
2. Detect and warn users with a local ~/.openclaw/extensions/matrix/ when the bundled version is available, with migration instructions
3. Consider a openclaw plugins migrate command or at minimum a deprecation notice in the update changelog