Bug: Discord message delete works in guild channels but fails in DMs

Summary

OpenClaw can delete bot-authored messages in Discord guild channels, but the same message delete action fails in Discord DMs.

Observed errors:

• Cannot execute action on a DM channel
• sometimes guildId required

This looks like a DM-specific routing/guard bug in OpenClaw’s Discord message-action layer, not a Discord API limitation.

Expected behavior

Discord message delete should be able to delete a bot-authored message in:

• guild channels / threads
• DM channels

as long as the bot is deleting its own message and has normal API access to that channel.

Actual behavior

Guild channels

Deletion succeeds.

Discord DMs

Deletion fails with:

Cannot execute action on a DM channel

And in some diagnostic attempts:

guildId required

Reproduction

Using the message tool / equivalent CLI action:

{
  "action": "delete",
  "channel": "discord",
  "channelId": "channel:<dm-channel-id>",
  "messageId": "<bot-message-id>"
}

Result

In a Discord DM:

Cannot execute action on a DM channel

In a guild channel:

• same deletion flow works

Why this appears to be an OpenClaw bug

1. Docs indicate Discord delete is supported

Local docs for openclaw message list:

• delete
• Channels: Discord/Slack/Telegram
• Required: --message-id, --target

No note was found saying Discord delete is guild-only or unsupported in DMs.

2. Discord channel docs describe Discord as supporting DMs and guild channels

Local docs say Discord is ready for:

• DMs
• guild channels

3. Discord API itself supports deleting bot-authored messages in DMs

The low-level Discord REST path is the standard channel message delete route:

DELETE /channels/{channel.id}/messages/{message.id}

In the built OpenClaw runtime, the low-level delete function is:

async function deleteMessageDiscord(channelId, messageId, opts = {}) {
  await resolveDiscordRest(opts).delete(Routes.channelMessage(channelId, messageId));
  return { ok: true };
}

This function is not guild-specific.

4. Guild deletion works

This rules out:

• Discord deletion being globally broken
• token/auth being generally invalid
• delete capability being disabled everywhere

The failure is specifically DM-context-sensitive.

Likely fault area

The issue appears to be in the higher-level Discord message-action dispatch / validation layer, where DM delete is being incorrectly treated as guild-scoped.

Likely possibilities:

1. Discord delete is routed through a guild-only path in DM context.
2. A DM guard rejects the action before it reaches deleteMessageDiscord(...).
3. Provider/action resolution incorrectly classifies delete as requiring guild context.

Diagnostic notes

From local inspection of the built runtime:

Low-level delete exists and looks fine:

async function deleteMessageDiscord(channelId, messageId, opts = {}) {
  await resolveDiscordRest(opts).delete(Routes.channelMessage(channelId, messageId));
  return { ok: true };
}

A Discord message-action handler also maps delete to deleteMessage at one layer:

if (action === "delete") {
  const messageId = readStringParam(params, "messageId", { required: true });
  return await handleDiscordAction({
    action: "deleteMessage",
    accountId: accountId ?? void 0,
    channelId: resolveChannelId(),
    messageId
  }, cfg, actionOptions);
}

Despite that, the live tool call in a DM still returns:

Cannot execute action on a DM channel

So the failing guard appears to be upstream or in a different active dispatch path.

Suggested acceptance test

1. Send a bot-authored message in a Discord DM.
2. Call message delete with the DM channelId and that messageId.
3. Expect success.
4. Verify guild channel deletion still works.

Environment

• OpenClaw: local install
• Surface: Discord
• DM delete fails
• Guild delete succeeds
• No local patch remained in place after rollback during diagnosis