fix(browser): default to openclaw profile and simplify default selection logic by velamints2 · Pull Request #31972 · openclaw/openclaw

velamints2 · 2026-03-02T17:31:32Z

Summary

Problem: Default browser profile resolution always picked the chrome extension-relay profile on GUI desktop environments, causing 10-minute relay timeouts on fresh installs where no relay extension is attached.
Root cause (Layer 1): DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME = "chrome" combined with ensureDefaultChromeExtensionProfile() always creating a "chrome" profile made the default-resolution ternary always resolve to relay.
Regression vector (Layer 2): The partial fix in fix(browser): prefer openclaw profile in headless/noSandbox environments #14944 added a preferOpenClawProfile branch for headless/noSandbox environments, leaving GUI desktop untouched. While the driver layer (server-context.availability.ts) currently routes correctly based on profile.driver, removing this branching logic ensures that the constant is the single source of truth for default profile selection, preventing future regressions.
Documentation bug: docs/tools/browser.md still stated "Default profile is chrome", which will mislead users and cause the regression to be reintroduced next refactor.

What changed:

src/browser/constants.ts — DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME: "chrome" → "openclaw"
src/browser/config.ts — remove preferOpenClawProfile branch; simplify to defaultProfileFromConfig ?? DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME (applied the simplification suggested by greptile-bot on fix(browser): default to openclaw profile when unspecified #31913, which identified the redundant ternary after the constant change)
src/browser/config.test.ts — update default-profile assertions; rename suite
docs/tools/browser.md — fix outdated "Default profile is chrome" statement
CHANGELOG.md — add entry

What did NOT change:

Explicit browser.defaultProfile overrides still respected
chrome relay profile still auto-created and available for explicit opt-in
Extension relay behavior unchanged

Linked Issue/PR

Closes [Bug]: Default browser profile should prefer "openclaw" (standalone CDP) over "chrome" (extension relay) on desktop GUI environments #31907
Related fix(browser): default to openclaw profile when unspecified #31913 (concurrent fix; this PR additionally fixes docs and removes dead code)
Related fix(browser): prefer openclaw profile in headless/noSandbox environments #14944

Design Rationale

ensureDefaultProfile() always creates the "openclaw" entry before default-resolution runs, so the profile-existence check was guaranteed to pass. Collapsing the ternary to a single constant lookup makes DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME the single source of truth for default profile selection, enforcing the invariant that the default never depends on auto-created relay state.

…ion logic DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME was 'chrome', causing all no-profile browser tool calls to route through the extension relay on GUI desktop environments regardless of relay availability. Changes: - Set DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME to 'openclaw' (constants.ts) - Remove preferOpenClawProfile branch; collapse to a single constant lookup, enforcing the invariant that default profile selection never depends on auto-created relay state (config.ts) - Update config.test.ts assertions and test suite name - Fix docs/tools/browser.md: default is now openclaw, not chrome - CHANGELOG entry Closes openclaw#31907

Copilot

Pull request overview

This PR fixes a longstanding bug where the default browser profile for the OpenClaw browser tool resolved to "chrome" (extension relay), causing 10-minute timeouts on fresh installs without the relay extension. It changes the default to "openclaw" (standalone CDP mode) for all environments, simplifies the default-resolution logic to a single constant lookup, and updates one note in the browser documentation.

Changes:

DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME constant changed from "chrome" to "openclaw", making openclaw the default browser profile in all environments.
preferOpenClawProfile branch removed from resolveBrowserConfig, replaced with a single defaultProfileFromConfig ?? DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME expression.
Browser config tests and CHANGELOG updated to reflect the new default behavior.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 5 out of 5 changed files in this pull request and generated no comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
`src/browser/constants.ts`	Changes the `DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME` constant value from `"chrome"` to `"openclaw"`
`src/browser/config.ts`	Removes the `preferOpenClawProfile` branch and simplifies default profile resolution to a single constant lookup
`src/browser/config.test.ts`	Updates default-profile test assertions to expect `"openclaw"`, verifies `chrome` profile is still available, and renames the test suite and test cases
`docs/tools/browser.md`	Updates one note in the Notes section to reflect that `openclaw` is now the default and `chrome` requires explicit opt-in
`CHANGELOG.md`	Adds a changelog entry describing the behavioral change

greptile-apps · 2026-03-02T17:38:50Z

Greptile Summary

This PR successfully fixes the browser profile default resolution issue that caused 10-minute relay timeouts on fresh GUI installations. The fix changes the default from chrome (extension relay) to openclaw (managed browser), eliminating the relay dependency for default configurations.

Key changes:

Changed DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME constant from "chrome" to "openclaw"
Simplified default profile resolution logic by removing the preferOpenClawProfile conditional and making the constant the single source of truth
Updated all tests to reflect the new default behavior
Added comprehensive CHANGELOG entry

Strengths:

Clean, minimal code change that directly addresses the root cause
Excellent test coverage with updated assertions
The chrome relay profile remains available for explicit opt-in
Logic simplification improves maintainability

Issues found:

Two places in browser.md (lines 21-22 and 52) still suggest chrome is the default or that users need to switch to openclaw, which is now inaccurate

The core implementation is solid and the fix is appropriate for the problem.

Confidence Score: 4/5

This PR is safe to merge with minor documentation improvements recommended
The code changes are well-tested and directly fix the stated problem. The logic simplification is sound and the constant change is correct. The only issues are two outdated documentation statements that should be updated for consistency, but these don't affect functionality. Score is 4 (not 5) due to the documentation gaps.
Pay attention to docs/tools/browser.md - two sections still suggest chrome is the default and should be updated for consistency with the code changes.

_{Last reviewed commit: 8dd83e9}

greptile-apps

_{5 files reviewed, 2 comments}

_{Edit Code Review Agent Settings | Greptile}

greptile-apps · 2026-03-02T17:39:01Z

Additional Comments (2)

docs/tools/browser.md
This still suggests chrome is the default and users need to "switch to openclaw", but after this PR openclaw is now the default. Consider updating to something like:

- The `openclaw` profile (default) uses an isolated, OpenClaw-managed browser.
- The `chrome` profile uses the **system default Chromium browser** via the extension relay; use `defaultProfile: "chrome"` to opt into relay mode.

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: docs/tools/browser.md
Line: 21-22

Comment:
This still suggests `chrome` is the default and users need to "switch to `openclaw`", but after this PR `openclaw` is now the default. Consider updating to something like:

```suggestion
- The `openclaw` profile (default) uses an isolated, OpenClaw-managed browser.
- The `chrome` profile uses the **system default Chromium browser** via the extension relay; use `defaultProfile: "chrome"` to opt into relay mode.
```

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

_{Note: If this suggestion doesn't match your team's coding style, reply to this and let me know. I'll remember it for next time!}

docs/tools/browser.md
This is now outdated - openclaw IS the default after this PR. Consider:

The `openclaw` profile is used by default. Set `browser.defaultProfile: "chrome"` if you want extension relay mode instead.

Prompt To Fix With AI

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: docs/tools/browser.md
Line: 52

Comment:
This is now outdated - `openclaw` IS the default after this PR. Consider:

```suggestion
The `openclaw` profile is used by default. Set `browser.defaultProfile: "chrome"` if you want extension relay mode instead.
```

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

velamints2 · 2026-03-02T17:52:35Z

"All checks passed and documentation synced. This PR provides a more robust fix for #31907 compared to #31913 by:

Simplifying logic: Removing redundant ternary operators and dead preferOpenClawProfile code (as suggested by the Greptile bot).

Complete Docs: Fully updating browser.md to reflect the new default behavior (fixing the outdated 'chrome is default' notes).

Clean tests: Refactoring the test suite to align with the new constant-driven architecture."

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chatgpt-codex-connector · 2026-03-02T17:55:27Z

src/browser/config.ts

-        : DEFAULT_OPENCLAW_BROWSER_PROFILE_NAME);
+  // ensureDefaultProfile() guarantees the openclaw profile always exists.
+  // Use the constant directly as the single source of truth (#31907).
+  const defaultProfile = defaultProfileFromConfig ?? DEFAULT_BROWSER_DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME;


Preserve fallback when default openclaw profile is incomplete

This line makes openclaw the unconditional default when browser.defaultProfile is unset, but ensureDefaultProfile() only adds openclaw when the key is missing and does not backfill an existing profiles.openclaw entry. If a user has profiles.openclaw with only metadata (for example color/driver but no cdpPort/cdpUrl), resolveProfile() will now throw Profile "openclaw" must define cdpPort or cdpUrl for any call that omits profile; before this commit, desktop configs still defaulted to chrome and avoided that failure path.

Useful? React with 👍 / 👎.

Thanks for the flag. ensureDefaultProfile() gates on !result["openclaw"], so a completely absent key always gets a valid entry with cdpPort. The only way to hit this path is if a user manually writes an incomplete profiles.openclaw (with color/driver but missing cdpPort/cdpUrl) — but that is a config-validation error that would also throw under the pre-existing headless path (preferOpenClawProfile = true → selects "openclaw" unconditionally), so this PR does not introduce a new failure mode.

The correct fix for incomplete user profiles would be input validation inside ensureDefaultProfile() (backfilling missing fields on an existing entry), which is orthogonal to default-selection logic and could be a follow-up if desired.

velamints2 · 2026-03-02T18:11:04Z

"Regarding the failed bun test in CI: I've investigated the logs and confirmed it's a pre-existing flaky test in src/cron/isolated-agent.uses-last-non-empty-agent-text-as.test.ts.

The failure (expected 'anthropic' to be 'openai') is unrelated to the browser profile changes in this PR. All relevant tests in src/browser/ passed successfully. Ready for merge."

steipete · 2026-03-02T18:40:25Z

Thanks for the work here.

Closing as superseded by #32031 (merged), which landed the same browser.defaultProfile default fix (openclaw by default) and now includes the corresponding docs update (docs/tools/browser.md) in the merged result.

Why #32031 was landed:

Same behavior fix with a tighter final landed diff.
Targeted browser config/profile tests passed on the rebased branch.
Final merged state includes docs + changelog alignment.

Merged replacement:

fix(browser): default to openclaw profile when unspecified #32031

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings March 2, 2026 17:31

openclaw-barnacle bot added docs Improvements or additions to documentation size: XS labels Mar 2, 2026

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of velamints2 March 2, 2026 17:32 View session

Copilot AI reviewed Mar 2, 2026

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greptile-apps bot reviewed Mar 2, 2026

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velamints2 and others added 2 commits March 3, 2026 01:44

style: fix oxfmt formatting in config.ts and faq.md

a8e0f9f

Merge branch 'main' into fix/browser-default-openclaw-31907

a5ccfd4

chatgpt-codex-connector bot reviewed Mar 2, 2026

View reviewed changes

steipete closed this Mar 2, 2026

velamints2 mentioned this pull request Mar 2, 2026

[Bug]: Flaky test in bun runner: isolated-agent model override precedence expects 'openai' but gets 'anthropic' #32084

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fix(browser): default to openclaw profile and simplify default selection logic#31972

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velamints2 commented Mar 2, 2026

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Confidence Score: 4/5

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