Bug type

Behavior bug (incorrect output/state without crash)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

The exec tool on Windows produces garbled Chinese characters (乱码). This is the same issue as #50519, but I'm confirming it still exists in version 2026.3.24.

Steps to reproduce

1. Use OpenClaw exec tool on Windows
2. Execute: Write-Output "这是中文测试 - 26批次教学资料"
3. Observe garbled output

Expected behavior

Chinese characters should display correctly: 这是中文测试 - 26批次教学资料

Actual behavior

Chinese characters appear as garbled text: �����IJ��� - 26����ѧ����

OpenClaw version

2026.3.24

Operating system

Windows 11 (Windows_NT 10.0.22631)

Install method

npm

Model

volcengine-plan/ark-code-latest

Provider / routing chain

openclaw

Additional provider/model setup details

Using default agent configuration with volcengine-plan provider.
No special overrides or custom routing.

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

### Test Comparison

**Without workaround (garbled):**
Write-Output "这是中文测试 - 26批次教学资料"
Output: �����IJ��� - 26����ѧ����

**With workaround (correct):**

$OutputEncoding = [Console]::InputEncoding = [Console]::OutputEncoding = [System.Text.Encoding]::UTF8; chcp 65001 | Out-Null; Write-Output "这是中文测试 - 26批次教学资料" 2>&1
Output: 这是中文测试 - 26批次教学资料

Environment Check:
PSVersion: 5.1.0
Console Code Page: 936 (GBK) by default, 65001 (UTF-8) with workaround

Impact and severity

Affected users/systems/channels

• All Windows users of OpenClaw exec tool
• Specifically affects users working with Chinese, Japanese, Korean (CJK) and other non-ASCII characters
• All channels (webchat, Discord, Telegram, etc.) when using exec on Windows

Severity

blocks workflow - Critical issue for Chinese users; cannot reliably use exec tool for any commands involving Chinese text

Frequency

always - Happens 100% of the time when exec tool outputs Chinese characters on Windows

Consequence

• Cannot view Chinese file paths, directory listings, or command output
• Requires manual workaround for every exec command
• Inability to automate tasks involving Chinese text
• Extra time spent applying workarounds instead of being productive

Additional information

Additional information

This is NOT a regression - the issue has existed since at least 2026.3.13 (confirmed in issue #50519) and still exists in 2026.3.24.

What we tried that didn't work:

• Setting environment variables (NODE_OPTIONS, LANG, LC_ALL) before starting OpenClaw
• Upgrading from Windows PowerShell 5.1 to PowerShell 7.6.0
• Configuring PowerShell $PROFILE to set UTF-8 encoding on startup

What does work:

• The command template workaround mentioned above (setting encodings + chcp 65001 + 2>&1)
• This workaround must be applied to EVERY exec command, which is cumbersome but functional

Technical observation:

• Manual PowerShell works fine with Chinese output
• Only OpenClaw's exec tool has this issue, suggesting the problem is in how OpenClaw captures/decodes the output