Summary

After upgrading to OpenClaw v2026.3.2, gateway token auth appears broken in one environment: when gateway.auth.mode is token, connection attempts fail with token_mismatch even when using the configured gateway token.

As a temporary workaround, setting auth to none works (gateway is loopback-only in this case).

Environment

• OpenClaw version: 2026.3.2
• Host: macOS (Mac mini)
• Client: openclaw tui from another machine (MacBook)
• Gateway reachable and otherwise functional
• Issue started after reboot (was working before the upgrade/reboot)

Expected behavior

When gateway.auth.mode = "token", the gateway should accept the configured token from:

• --token CLI flag
• OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN env var
• config token in openclaw.json

Actual behavior

All tested combinations fail with auth token mismatch / token_mismatch.
Only auth.mode = "none" (or equivalent no-auth mode) allows connection.

What was tested

• Explicit openclaw tui --token <gateway-token>
• OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=<same-token>
• Matching token value across local config/state files (openclaw.json, plist env, and local identity files)
• Repeated restarts after changes

Result: token-based auth still rejected.

Logs / signals

Observed errors include:

• gateway token mismatch
• token_mismatch
• In some paths, AUTH_DEVICE_TOKEN_MISMATCH surfaced in UI diagnostics while auth mode was set to token.

Notes

There may be an interaction/regression between shared token auth and stored device token fallback/selection after reboot in v2026.3.2.

If useful, we can provide sanitized logs and a minimal repro config.