Docker Deployment for OpenClaw

Why Docker?

Docker packages OpenClaw and its dependencies into a portable container. Benefits:

• Consistent environment across machines
• Easy deployment and updates
• Isolation from host system
• Simple rollbacks

Quick Start

Using Docker Compose

Create docker-compose.yml:

version: '3.8'
services:
  openclaw:
    image: openclaw/openclaw:latest
    container_name: openclaw
    restart: always
    volumes:
      - ./openclaw-data:/root/.openclaw
    environment:
      - OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-...
      - TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=...
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"

Run:

docker compose up -d

Using Docker Run

docker run -d \
  --name openclaw \
  --restart always \
  -v $(pwd)/openclaw-data:/root/.openclaw \
  -e OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-... \
  -e TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=... \
  openclaw/openclaw:latest

Custom Dockerfile

If you need customization:

FROM node:20-slim

RUN npm install -g openclaw

WORKDIR /root/.openclaw

COPY openclaw.json .
COPY skills/ ./skills/

CMD ["openclaw", "start"]

Build and run:

docker build -t my-openclaw .
docker run -d --name openclaw --restart always my-openclaw

Data Persistence

Mount a volume for persistent data:

• /root/.openclaw — Configuration, memory, history, skills

Without a volume mount, data is lost when the container restarts.

Updating

docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

Or for docker run:

docker pull openclaw/openclaw:latest
docker stop openclaw && docker rm openclaw
# Re-run the docker run command

Monitoring

docker logs -f openclaw          # View logs
docker stats openclaw             # Resource usage
docker exec -it openclaw sh       # Shell into container

Tips

• Use .env files for secrets instead of inline environment variables
• Pin to specific version tags for production stability
• Set memory limits to prevent runaway usage
• Use Docker health checks for automatic restart on failure