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openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix [Bug] Plugin Bridge processes fail to start - All plugins affected

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Error Message

Regardless of which plugin is enabled (claw-mem, claw-rl, neoclaw), the Bridge process never actually starts, but Gateway keeps attempting to connect and produces a large amount of error logs.

Error Logs

| Error Type | Count | Description | | claw-mem | ❌ Error | 0 | | claw-rl | ❌ Error | 0 | | neoclaw | ❌ Error | 0 | 4. Communication fails immediately - Parse error within seconds after startup

Root Cause

Root Cause Analysis

Fix Action

Fix / Workaround

  1. Confirm if this is a known issue
  2. Any temporary workaround
  3. Expected fix timeline

Code Example

[claw-mem bridge] Failed to parse response: 🔄 Attempting recovery from backup...
[neoclaw bridge] exited with code null
[hooks] agent_end handler from claw-mem failed: timed out after 30000ms

---

"plugins": {
  "entries": {
    "claw-mem": {
      "enabled": true,
      "config": {
        "autoRecall": true,
        "autoCapture": true,
        "topK": 2,
        "workspaceDir": "/Users/liantian/.openclaw"
      }
    },
    "claw-rl": { "enabled": false },
    "neoclaw": { "enabled": false },
    "claw-cog": { "enabled": false }
  }
}
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Bug Description

Plugin Bridge processes fail to start, causing all plugin features to fail

Regardless of which plugin is enabled (claw-mem, claw-rl, neoclaw), the Bridge process never actually starts, but Gateway keeps attempting to connect and produces a large amount of error logs.

Environment

ItemValue
Gateway VersionOpenClaw 2026.5.22 (a374c3a)
macOS VersionDarwin 20.6.0 (x64)
Node Versionv22.22.0
Report Date2026-05-25

Error Logs

Error TypeCountDescription
Failed to parse response87+Bridge communication failed
query.trim is not a function18Plugin code bug (already fixed)
exited with code null52Bridge did not exit properly
agent_end timed out4Hook timeout

Key Log Examples

[claw-mem bridge] Failed to parse response: 🔄 Attempting recovery from backup...
[neoclaw bridge] exited with code null
[hooks] agent_end handler from claw-mem failed: timed out after 30000ms

Reproduction Steps

  1. Start OpenClaw Gateway (any version)
  2. Enable any plugin in openclaw.json (e.g., claw-mem: { enabled: true })
  3. Observe logs: Bridge process does not start (ps aux | grep claw returns empty)
  4. Gateway continuously reports Failed to parse response
  5. Restart Gateway - problem persists
  6. Try disabling other plugins, keeping only one - same problem

Impact

PluginStatusBridge Process
claw-mem❌ Error0
claw-rl❌ Error0
neoclaw❌ Error0
claw-cog❌ Disabled0

Root Cause Analysis

Preliminary Judgment: OpenClaw Core Bridge lifecycle management bug

Evidence:

  1. All plugins fail - Not a single plugin issue
  2. Bridge process does not exist - ps aux shows no Python bridge processes
  3. Gateway claims startup succeeded - Logs show "[xxx bridge] Started successfully"
  4. Communication fails immediately - Parse error within seconds after startup

Possible causes:

  • Bridge process exits immediately after startup (not properly waited on)
  • stdin/stdout pipe configuration issues
  • Process spawn not properly associated with parent process

Attempted Solutions

SolutionResult
Fixed plugin code (stdin.write, query.trim)Code fix completed, problem persists
Disabled plugins, kept only oneProblem persists
Gateway restart (via gateway tool)Did not take effect
Gateway forced restart (launchctl)Temporarily effective, then fails again

Current Status

  • Gateway running normally
  • Plugin config: Only claw-mem enabled, others disabled
  • Bridge process: 0 (not started)
  • Errors: Continuously generated

Additional Info

Configuration (openclaw.json)

"plugins": {
  "entries": {
    "claw-mem": {
      "enabled": true,
      "config": {
        "autoRecall": true,
        "autoCapture": true,
        "topK": 2,
        "workspaceDir": "/Users/liantian/.openclaw"
      }
    },
    "claw-rl": { "enabled": false },
    "neoclaw": { "enabled": false },
    "claw-cog": { "enabled": false }
  }
}

Related File Paths

  • Gateway: /usr/local/bin/node .../openclaw/dist/index.js gateway
  • Log: /tmp/openclaw/openclaw-2026-05-25.log
  • claw-mem: /Users/liantian/workspace/osprojects/claw-mem/
  • claw-rl: /Users/liantian/workspace/osprojects/claw-rl/
  • neoclaw: /Users/liantian/workspace/osprojects/neoclaw/

Requests

  1. Confirm if this is a known issue
  2. Any temporary workaround
  3. Expected fix timeline

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openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix [Bug] Plugin Bridge processes fail to start - All plugins affected