Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

Environment

• OpenClaw version: 2026.4.15 (041266a)
• OS: Windows
• Install method: npm global install
• Gateway service: Scheduled Task
• State dir: C:\Users\Wapapapow\.openclaw
• Workspace: F:\openclaw\workspace

Problem

OpenClaw startup is very slow, replies are also slow, and I saw a session write lock being held far longer than expected.

Observed startup timing

Example startup:
text
19:05:44 [gateway] loading configuration…
19:05:45 [gateway] resolving authentication…
19:05:45 [gateway] starting...
19:06:29 [gateway] starting HTTP server...
19:06:30 [gateway] ready (7 plugins: acpx, browser, device-pair, memory-core, phone-control, talk-voice, whatsapp; 44.1s)
19:06:30 [gateway] starting channels and sidecars...
19:09:14 [whatsapp] [default] starting provider (+xxxx)
19:09:16 [whatsapp] Listening for personal WhatsApp inbound messages.
So even after config cleanup/tests, total usable startup is still about 3m32s.

Earlier runs were worse, around 4m53s total.

Relevant lock warning

text
[session-write-lock] releasing lock held for 191457ms (max=15000ms): C:\Users\Wapapapow.openclaw\agents\main\sessions\sessions.json.lock

Notes

• I have already run openclaw doctor --fix many times
• That did not solve the issue
• This does not look like only a stale dead lock file, because the warning says the lock was actively held and then released
• Same model/provider works fast in Claude Code, so the slowdown appears to be OpenClaw-side rather than provider-side

Extra context

There is also a stale config warning on startup:
text
plugins.entries.minimax-portal-auth: plugin not found: minimax-portal-auth (stale config entry ignored; remove it from plugins config)
I can remove that, but it does not seem to explain the long startup or long-held session lock.