openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix [Bug] Gateway crashes during npm upgrade - SIGUSR1 arrives before files are written [1 comments, 2 participants]

Gateway failed to start: Error [ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND]: Cannot find module '/home/tim/.npm-global/lib/node_modules/openclaw/dist/server-startup-log-B9JxhIZA.js'

TL;DR

The Gateway crash loop during npm install -g openclaw@latest can be fixed by modifying the update.run script to wait for npm install to complete before sending the SIGUSR1 signal.

Guidance

• Modify the update.run script to execute npm install and SIGUSR1 sequentially, ensuring that the SIGUSR1 signal is only sent after npm install has completed.
• Consider adding a brief safety buffer (e.g., await sleep(5)) after npm install to account for any potential delays.
• Alternatively, explore using npm's --install-links flag to achieve atomic file replacement and prevent the ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND error.
• Verify the fix by running openclaw update.run and observing that the Gateway no longer enters a crash loop.

Example

The provided code snippet in the issue body demonstrates the modified update.run script:

await exec(npm install);  // waits for completion
await sleep(5);           // brief safety buffer
send SIGUSR1;             // safe to restart

Notes

This fix assumes that the issue is solely caused by the parallel execution of npm install and SIGUSR1. If other factors contribute to the crash loop, additional debugging may be necessary.

Recommendation

Apply the workaround by modifying the update.run script to execute npm install and SIGUSR1 sequentially, as this approach directly addresses the identified root cause of the issue.