Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

After upgrading to OpenClaw 2026.4.24, browser starts correctly, webpage opening works, and snapshot works. However, Playwright-based browser actions such as click, fill, type, and navigate still fail with "Playwright is not available in this gateway build" even after running openclaw doctor --fix and restarting the gateway.

Steps to reproduce

1. Upgrade OpenClaw to 2026.4.24.
2. Run openclaw doctor --fix.
3. Restart gateway with openclaw gateway restart.
4. Confirm gateway is reachable with openclaw gateway probe.
5. Use the browser plugin to open https://example.com.
6. Confirm webpage opening and snapshot work.
7. Try a Playwright-based browser action such as click, fill, type, or navigate.
8. Observe that the action fails with "Playwright is not available in this gateway build".
9. Confirm playwright-core exists under bundled plugin runtime deps.
10. Try importing the Playwright browser module directly: node -e "import('/opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js').then(()=>console.log('import ok')).catch(e=>{console.error('import failed'); console.error(e.stack||e); process.exit(1)})"

Expected behavior

After openclaw doctor --fix installs the bundled browser plugin runtime dependencies and the gateway is restarted, Playwright-based browser actions such as click, fill, type, and navigate should work.

Actual behavior

Browser starts successfully, opening webpages works, and snapshot works. However, Playwright-based actions such as click, fill, type, and navigate fail with:

Playwright is not available in this gateway build; '<feature>' is unsupported. Repair the bundled browser plugin runtime dependencies so playwright-core is installed, then restart the gateway.

Direct import test also fails with:

Error [ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND]: Cannot find package 'playwright-core' imported from /opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js

OpenClaw version

2026.4.24 (cbcfdf6)

Operating system

macOS 26.2 arm64

Install method

npm global via Homebrew Node

Model

N/A - browser plugin issue, not model-related

Provider / routing chain

N/A - browser plugin issue, not provider/routing-related

Additional provider/model setup details

N/A. This issue is unrelated to model/provider routing. It reproduces at the browser control / Playwright runtime layer.

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

doctor --fix reports bundled plugin runtime deps installed, including [email protected].

Confirmed dependency exists:

~/.openclaw/plugin-runtime-deps/openclaw-2026.4.24-da6bdffc3d96/node_modules/playwright-core

Browser plugin package declares the dependency:

/opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/extensions/browser/package.json

Relevant dependency:

"playwright-core": "1.59.1"

The error is generated from:

/opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/routes-CpJeVyjj.js

The Playwright module uses a static ESM import from:

/opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js

Relevant line:

import { chromium, devices } from "playwright-core";

Direct import reproduction command:

node -e "import('/opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js').then(()=>console.log('import ok')).catch(e=>{console.error('import failed'); console.error(e.stack||e); process.exit(1)})"

Output:

import failed
Error [ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND]: Cannot find package 'playwright-core' imported from /opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js

Also tested with NODE_PATH pointing to bundled runtime deps:

NODE_PATH="$HOME/.openclaw/plugin-runtime-deps/openclaw-2026.4.24-da6bdffc3d96/node_modules" node -e "import('/opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js').then(()=>console.log('import ok')).catch(e=>{console.error('import failed'); console.error(e.stack||e); process.exit(1)})"

Output:

Error [ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND]: Cannot find package 'playwright-core' imported from /opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js
Did you mean to import "playwright-core/index.js"?

Impact and severity

Affected subsystem: browser plugin / browser control.

Severity: medium.

Basic browser functions still work, including starting the browser, opening webpages, and snapshot.

However, Playwright-based interaction features are unavailable, including click, fill, type, navigate, and related browser automation actions.

Consequence: browser automation workflows that require interaction with page elements cannot be completed.

Additional information

This does not appear to be the original HTTP_PROXY / HTTPS_PROXY issue.

Browser startup works, webpage opening works, and snapshot works.

The issue appears to be that bundled runtime deps are installed under:

~/.openclaw/plugin-runtime-deps/.../node_modules

but pw-ai-BDOHNhdx.js uses a static Node ESM import of playwright-core from the OpenClaw install tree.

Node ESM resolution does not resolve this package from NODE_PATH, so the import fails even after doctor --fix.

Please advise the official fix. Should doctor --fix make this ESM import resolvable, or is another supported repair command required?