Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

Browser attachOnly mode fails with "profile openclaw is not running" even though Chrome CDP endpoint at ws://127.0.0.1:9222 is alive and reachable.

Steps to reproduce

1. Configure OpenClaw with:
   • browser.attachOnly: true
   • browser.cdpUrl: ws://127.0.0.1:9222
2. Start Chrome manually with remote debugging enabled on port 9222.
3. Start OpenClaw gateway.
4. Run:
   openclaw browser start
5. Run:
   openclaw browser open https://example.com

Expected behavior

OpenClaw should attach to the existing Chrome instance via the configured CDP endpoint and allow browser commands such as opening a URL.

Actual behavior

openclaw browser start fails immediately with:

GatewayClientRequestError: Browser attachOnly is enabled and profile "openclaw" is not running.

Browser status shows:

• running: false
• cdpUrl: ws://127.0.0.1:9222
• detectedBrowser: chrome

Gateway logs show:
errorCode=INVALID_REQUEST errorMessage=Browser attachOnly is enabled and profile "openclaw" is not running.

The failure occurs before any observable attempt to connect to the CDP endpoint.

OpenClaw version

2026.4.15 (041266a)

Operating system

Ubuntu (Oracle Linux kernel 5.15.0-1081-oracle)

Install method

npm global

Model

openai-codex/gpt-5.4-mini

Provider / routing chain

openclaw -> openai-codex (OAuth)

Additional provider/model setup details

Default configuration. No custom routing layers or external gateways configured.

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

Relevant observations:

- Chrome CDP endpoint is reachable at:
  http://127.0.0.1:9222/json/version

- Gateway status:
  - running: true
  - RPC probe: ok

- Browser status:
  - running: false
  - cdpUrl: ws://127.0.0.1:9222
  - detectedBrowser: chrome

- Gateway log:
  errorCode=INVALID_REQUEST errorMessage=Browser attachOnly is enabled and profile "openclaw" is not running.

- No DevToolsActivePort file is present in managed profile directory.

- No Chrome process is launched by OpenClaw during attach attempt.

Impact and severity

Affected: Local OpenClaw browser usage with attachOnly mode
Severity: High (blocks browser automation entirely)
Frequency: 100% reproducible
Consequence: OpenClaw cannot attach to an existing Chrome instance, making browser tool unusable in attachOnly mode

Additional information

• Issue persists after:

  • gateway reinstall (--force)
  • systemd restart with new PID
  • removing ~/.openclaw/browser/openclaw profile directory
  • openclaw update (no version change)

• Alternate profile ("user" existing-session) does not use cdpUrl and fails with DevToolsActivePort lookup instead.

• Behavior suggests that attachOnly + default "openclaw" profile is rejected before CDP connection attempt.