Bug type
Regression (worked before, now fails)
Beta release blocker
No
Summary
After upgrading a Linux OpenClaw installation that previously worked on 2026.4.2 to the 2026.4.26 plugin set, the gateway became effectively unusable: many bundled plugins were enabled/loaded by default, and the bonjour advertiser repeatedly stayed in probing, triggered watchdog restarts, and coincided with repeated gateway restart/timeout behavior; after reducing the enabled plugin set to only the plugins actually needed, startup and normal operation recovered.
Steps to reproduce
- Start from an existing OpenClaw installation that was working on 2026.4.2.
- Upgrade through the 2026.4.26 release/plugin set on Linux.
- Start the gateway with the expanded/default bundled plugin set.
- Observe startup/restart churn and plugin-related errors/timeouts in the gateway/system logs.
- Reduce the enabled plugin set to the required plugins only.
- Start the gateway again and observe that it reaches ready with a small plugin set.
Expected behavior
A version upgrade should not enable a large set of unused bundled plugins in a way that can block gateway startup or normal message handling. Optional discovery/provider/voice plugins should not make the gateway effectively unusable if the user does not configure or use them.
Actual behavior
On this host, after the upgrade, logs show repeated bonjour advertiser watchdog cycles stuck in probing, repeated gateway starts, systemd timeout failure, bundled channel/plugin load errors, and later task/session lock timeouts while OpenClaw was effectively not working. After trimming to the needed plugins, the gateway reached ready consistently with 3 plugins.
OpenClaw version
Last known good: 2026.4.2. First observed bad upgrade target/plugin set: 2026.4.26. Current local package after recovery/downgrade: OpenClaw 2026.4.24 (cbcfdf6); local plugin runtime deps and plugin index still include 2026.4.26 artifacts.
Operating system
Debian GNU/Linux 13 (trixie), Linux 6.12.63+deb13-amd64 x86_64, Node.js v22.22.1.
Install method
npm global, user systemd gateway service.
Model
Not model-specific. Observed with the normal local OpenClaw agent/provider setup.
Provider / routing chain
Not provider-specific. The failure is in gateway startup/plugin loading before normal agent/provider operation.
Additional provider/model setup details
NOT_ENOUGH_INFO
Logs, screenshots, and evidence
# Current package/status after workaround
$ openclaw --version
OpenClaw 2026.4.24 (cbcfdf6)
$ openclaw gateway status
OpenClaw 2026.4.24 (cbcfdf6)
Runtime: running (pid 2919662, state active, sub running, last exit 0, reason 0)
Connectivity probe: ok
File logs: /tmp/openclaw/openclaw-2026-04-29.log
# Current package manager state after recovery/downgrade
$ npm list -g openclaw --depth=0
openclaw@2026.4.24
# 2026.4.26 plugin/runtime artifacts are present locally even though the current package is 2026.4.24:
# - ~/.openclaw/plugin-runtime-deps/openclaw-2026.4.26-*/...
# - ~/.openclaw/plugins/installs.json contained hostContractVersion: 2026.4.26 in a prior read-only inspection.
# systemd showed a gateway timeout during the broken period
$ systemctl status openclaw --no-pager
openclaw.service
Active: failed (Result: timeout) since Mon 2026-04-27 22:21:47 EDT
Main PID: 2882282 (code=killed, signal=KILL)
Mem peak: 1.3G
CPU: 4min 31.523s
Apr 27 22:18:08 [gateway] loading configuration…
Apr 27 22:18:08 [gateway] resolving authentication…
Apr 27 22:18:08 [gateway] starting...
Apr 27 22:18:29 [gateway] starting HTTP server...
Apr 27 22:18:29 [health-monitor] started (interval: 300s, startup-grace: 60s, channel-connect-grace: 120s)
# Repeated bonjour probing/watchdog/restart cycle from journalctl -u openclaw --since 2026-04-24
Apr 27 19:58:34 [plugins] bonjour: watchdog detected non-announced service; attempting re-advertise (gateway fqdn=... state=probing)
Apr 27 19:58:49 [plugins] bonjour: restarting advertiser (service stuck in probing for 15120ms (... state=probing))
Apr 27 19:58:49 [plugins] bonjour: advertised gateway ... state=unannounced
Apr 27 20:01:08 [plugins] bonjour: watchdog detected non-announced service; attempting re-advertise (... state=probing)
Apr 27 20:01:23 [plugins] bonjour: restarting advertiser (service stuck in probing for 15161ms (... state=probing))
Apr 27 20:03:42 [plugins] bonjour: watchdog detected non-announced service; attempting re-advertise (... state=probing)
Apr 27 20:03:57 [plugins] bonjour: restarting advertiser (service stuck in probing for 15150ms (... state=probing))
# This pattern repeated many times between about 19:58 and 21:39 on Apr 27.
# Plugin/channel load errors during the same broken window
Apr 27 21:00:23 [channels] failed to load bundled channel bluebubbles: ENOTEMPTY: directory not empty, rmdir '.../plugin-runtime-deps/openclaw-2026.4.24-.../dist/extensions/node_modules/openclaw/plugin-sdk'
Apr 27 21:00:36 [channels] failed to load bundled channel zalouser: ENOTEMPTY: directory not empty, rmdir '.../plugin-runtime-deps/openclaw-2026.4.24-.../dist/extensions/node_modules/openclaw/plugin-sdk'
Apr 27 21:03:06 [channels] failed to load bundled channel mattermost: ENOTEMPTY: directory not empty, rmdir '.../plugin-runtime-deps/openclaw-2026.4.24-.../dist/extensions/node_modules/openclaw/plugin-sdk'
# Other observed gateway failure symptoms during recovery attempts
Apr 27 21:53:50 Gateway failed to start: another gateway instance is already listening on ws://0.0.0.0:18789 | listen EADDRINUSE: address already in use 0.0.0.0:18789
Apr 27 22:02:25 Gateway failed to start: another gateway instance is already listening on ws://0.0.0.0:18789 | listen EADDRINUSE: address already in use 0.0.0.0:18789
Apr 27 22:17:51 Gateway failed to start: another gateway instance is already listening on ws://0.0.0.0:18789 | listen EADDRINUSE: address already in use 0.0.0.0:18789
# Read-only plugin inspection captured default/enabled plugin expansion:
# - current plugin index effective enabled plugins: 69
# - local 2026.4.24 runtime deps marked enabledByDefault/recommended: 61
# - current status after partial trimming still printed "Plugins (10/13 loaded)"
# The gateway now reaches ready after trimming to the required plugins:
2026-04-29T02:47:58-04:00 [gateway] ready (3 plugins: acpx, browser, nextcloud-talk; 18.6s)
2026-04-29T02:51:19-04:00 [gateway] ready (3 plugins: acpx, browser, nextcloud-talk; 18.4s)
2026-04-29T04:01:43-04:00 [gateway] ready (3 plugins: acpx, browser, nextcloud-talk; 18.4s)
Impact and severity
Affected: at least this Linux/npm-global OpenClaw gateway after upgrading from a known-good 2026.4.2 installation through the 2026.4.26 plugin set.
Severity: High / workflow-blocking. During the broken period OpenClaw was effectively not usable: the service hit timeouts/restart churn, gateway starts conflicted, and agent work later produced session/write-lock timeouts instead of normal replies.
Frequency: Repeatedly observed during the broken window; the bonjour stuck-in-probing watchdog cycle repeated many times.
Consequence: The gateway can appear started or repeatedly restarting while actual agent/channel work is blocked. Recovery required reducing the plugin set to only needed plugins.
Additional information
This looks like a regression in plugin default enablement/isolation rather than a single provider/model issue. Suggested triage direction:
- Do not enable optional bundled plugins by default unless they are needed for core operation or explicitly configured.
bonjour should be opt-in or fully non-blocking; mDNS probing/advertising should never block gateway readiness or normal agent/channel work.- Plugin/channel dependency setup should be isolated so unused bundled channels such as
bluebubbles, zalouser, or mattermost cannot affect users who did not configure them.
- Consider a startup mode that loads only configured channels/providers plus a minimal core, and reports optional plugin failures without blocking readiness.
Bug type
Regression (worked before, now fails)
Beta release blocker
No
Summary
After upgrading a Linux OpenClaw installation that previously worked on 2026.4.2 to the 2026.4.26 plugin set, the gateway became effectively unusable: many bundled plugins were enabled/loaded by default, and the
bonjouradvertiser repeatedly stayed inprobing, triggered watchdog restarts, and coincided with repeated gateway restart/timeout behavior; after reducing the enabled plugin set to only the plugins actually needed, startup and normal operation recovered.Steps to reproduce
Expected behavior
A version upgrade should not enable a large set of unused bundled plugins in a way that can block gateway startup or normal message handling. Optional discovery/provider/voice plugins should not make the gateway effectively unusable if the user does not configure or use them.
Actual behavior
On this host, after the upgrade, logs show repeated
bonjouradvertiser watchdog cycles stuck inprobing, repeated gateway starts,systemdtimeout failure, bundled channel/plugin load errors, and later task/session lock timeouts while OpenClaw was effectively not working. After trimming to the needed plugins, the gateway reached ready consistently with 3 plugins.OpenClaw version
Last known good: 2026.4.2. First observed bad upgrade target/plugin set: 2026.4.26. Current local package after recovery/downgrade:
OpenClaw 2026.4.24 (cbcfdf6); local plugin runtime deps and plugin index still include 2026.4.26 artifacts.Operating system
Debian GNU/Linux 13 (trixie), Linux 6.12.63+deb13-amd64 x86_64, Node.js v22.22.1.
Install method
npm global, user systemd gateway service.
Model
Not model-specific. Observed with the normal local OpenClaw agent/provider setup.
Provider / routing chain
Not provider-specific. The failure is in gateway startup/plugin loading before normal agent/provider operation.
Additional provider/model setup details
NOT_ENOUGH_INFO
Logs, screenshots, and evidence
Impact and severity
Affected: at least this Linux/npm-global OpenClaw gateway after upgrading from a known-good 2026.4.2 installation through the 2026.4.26 plugin set.
Severity: High / workflow-blocking. During the broken period OpenClaw was effectively not usable: the service hit timeouts/restart churn, gateway starts conflicted, and agent work later produced session/write-lock timeouts instead of normal replies.
Frequency: Repeatedly observed during the broken window; the
bonjourstuck-in-probing watchdog cycle repeated many times.Consequence: The gateway can appear started or repeatedly restarting while actual agent/channel work is blocked. Recovery required reducing the plugin set to only needed plugins.
Additional information
This looks like a regression in plugin default enablement/isolation rather than a single provider/model issue. Suggested triage direction:
bonjourshould be opt-in or fully non-blocking; mDNS probing/advertising should never block gateway readiness or normal agent/channel work.bluebubbles,zalouser, ormattermostcannot affect users who did not configure them.