openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix [Bug]: npm install -g openclaw@latest fails with missing module '@larksuiteoapi/node-sdk' and 'nostr-tools' on fresh macOS and Ubuntu environments [26 comments, 20 participants]

Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

Fresh installation using npm install -g openclaw@latest fails during initial setup because required extension dependencies such as @larksuiteoapi/node-sdk and nostr-tools are missing from the global package installation.

Steps to reproduce

1. Prepare a clean environment on macOS or Ubuntu 22.04.

2. Install Node.js using nvm (tested with Node v22.22.2 and v24.15.0).

3. Run:

   npm install -g openclaw@latest

4. Start OpenClaw:

   openclaw onboard --install-daemon

5. Complete the model provider setup (tested with Z.AI / GLM-5.1).

6. Observe the startup failure:

   Error: Cannot find module '@larksuiteoapi/node-sdk'

or

Error: Cannot find module 'nostr-tools'

Expected behavior

OpenClaw should complete initialization successfully after installation without requiring manual installation of hidden extension dependencies.

Actual behavior

OpenClaw crashes during startup after model configuration and fails with missing module errors from extension loaders.

Examples:

Error: Cannot find module '@larksuiteoapi/node-sdk'

Require stack: .../openclaw/dist/extensions/feishu/client-*.js

and

Error: Cannot find module 'nostr-tools'

Require stack: .../openclaw/dist/extensions/nostr/setup-surface-*.js

OpenClaw version

2026.4.21 (f788c88)

Operating system

macOS + Ubuntu 22.04

Install method

npm global installation

Model

zai/glm-5.1

Provider / routing chain

openclaw -> Z.AI

Additional provider/model setup details

Issue occurs before actual model usage. The failure happens immediately after model configuration during OpenClaw initialization.

This issue is unrelated to API key validity and reproduces consistently across different Node.js versions and clean environments.

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

macOS and Ubuntu both reproduce the same issue.

macOS:
Error: Cannot find module '@larksuiteoapi/node-sdk'

Ubuntu:
Error: Cannot find module '@larksuiteoapi/node-sdk'

Additional reproduction also shows:

Error: Cannot find module 'nostr-tools'

This strongly suggests the published npm package is missing extension dependencies required by default startup.

Impact and severity

Affected: all users installing OpenClaw via npm global install

Severity: High (blocks first-time setup)

Frequency: 100% reproducible across multiple fresh environments

Consequence: users cannot complete initial setup or launch OpenClaw successfully without manually debugging hidden dependency issues

Additional information

Tested across:

• macOS fresh environment

• Ubuntu 22.04 fresh environment

• Node.js v22.22.2

• Node.js v24.15.0

Changing Node.js version does not resolve the issue.

I inspected the published global package at $(npm root -g)/openclaw/package.json.

package.json

The installed package does not declare @larksuiteoapi/node-sdk or nostr-tools in dependencies, while runtime code in dist/extensions/feishu/* and dist/extensions/nostr/* requires them.

Additionally, the published package explicitly excludes extension-local node_modules via:

• !dist/extensions/node_modules/**

• !dist/extensions/*/node_modules/**

This appears to be a package publishing issue where extension dependencies are not included correctly in the npm release.

Manual installation of missing dependencies partially works, which further suggests this is caused by missing dependency declarations in the published npm package rather than a local environment issue.