openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix [Bug]: CLI fails to start: Cannot find module 'openclaw.mjs' after global npm install leaves package directory empty [1 comments, 2 participants]

Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

After npm install -g [email protected] on Windows, the global package directory is missing openclaw.mjs and all source files, so the openclaw launcher exits immediately with MODULE_NOT_FOUND.

Steps to reproduce

On Windows 11 with Node.js v24.14.0 and npm prefix C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm, install the package globally: npm install -g openclaw (resolved version [email protected]). From any shell, run openclaw.

Expected behavior

The openclaw binary starts the CLI. The shim C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm\openclaw.cmd (line 17) invokes node "%dp0%\node_modules\openclaw\openclaw.mjs", so a correctly installed package must contain openclaw.mjs at C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\openclaw\openclaw.mjs. The npm registry metadata for [email protected] declares bin: openclaw with an unpacked size of 74.5 MB, confirming the entry file is expected to be present after install

Actual behavior

Running openclaw produces:

node:internal/modules/cjs/loader:1459 throw err; ^ Error: Cannot find module 'C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\openclaw\openclaw.mjs' at Module._resolveFilename (node:internal/modules/cjs/loader:1456:15) ... code: 'MODULE_NOT_FOUND', requireStack: [] } Node.js v24.14.0 Listing the install directory shows that C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\openclaw\ contains only a single nested entry node_modules@mariozechner\clipboard-win32-x64-msvc. No openclaw.mjs, no package.json, and none of the 58 declared dependencies are present at the top level of the package.

Directory timestamp on the broken install: May 5 11:38 (2026-05-05).

OpenClaw version

2026.5.4 (resolved by npm view openclaw version)

Operating system

Windows 11 Home, build 10.0.26200

Install method

default

Model

Deepseek

Provider / routing chain

opencode

Additional provider/model setup details

No response

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

Launcher (C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm\openclaw.cmd, line 17):

endLocal & goto #_undefined_# 2>NUL || title %COMSPEC% & "%_prog%"  "%dp0%\node_modules\openclaw\openclaw.mjs" %*
Directory contents of C:\Users\Zalex\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\openclaw\ (ls -la):

drwxr-xr-x 1 Zalex 197121 0 May  5 11:38 .
drwxr-xr-x 1 Zalex 197121 0 May  5 11:38 ..
drwxr-xr-x 1 Zalex 197121 0 May  5 11:38 node_modules
Nested contents — only one transitive dep was extracted:

node_modules\@mariozechner\clipboard-win32-x64-msvc
Full runtime error: see Actual behavior above.

Impact and severity

Affected users/systems: Any Windows user who ends up with this partial install state on [email protected] via global npm install. Severity: Blocks workflow — the CLI cannot start at all; user-level config in C:\Users\Zalex.openclaw\ is intact but unreachable through the binary. Frequency: NOT_ENOUGH_INFO (observed once on this machine; reproducibility across environments not established from the available evidence). Consequence: openclaw is unusable until the package is reinstalled.

Additional information

The launcher openclaw.cmd and its sibling openclaw / openclaw.ps1 shims are correct and unchanged; the failure is entirely on the package payload side. The user-config tree at C:\Users\Zalex.openclaw\ (openclaw.json, agents/, memory/, plugins/, etc.) is unaffected. Last-known-good and first-known-bad versions: NOT_ENOUGH_INFO.