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openclaw - ✅(Solved) Fix [Bug]: Unknown channel: whatsapp [1 pull requests, 8 comments, 7 participants]

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openclaw/openclaw#52813•Fetched 2026-04-08 01:18:59
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After upgrading to 2026-03-22 from 2026-03-13, the whole whatsapp plugin disappeared and cannot be installed.

Root Cause

After upgrading to 2026-03-22 from 2026-03-13, the whole whatsapp plugin disappeared and cannot be installed.

Fix Action

Fixed

PR fix notes

PR #52856: fix: ensure control-ui is built before publish (#52808)

Description (problem / solution / changelog)

Summary

-Problem: dist/control-ui/ missing from npm package (2026.3.22) -Why it matters: Gateway UI returns 503 and is unusable -What changed: Ensure pnpm ui:build runs before publish -What did NOT change (scope boundary): No runtime, gateway, or UI code changes

Change Type (select all)

  • Bug fix
  • Feature
  • Refactor required for the fix
  • Docs
  • Security hardening
  • Chore/infra

Scope (select all touched areas)

  • Gateway / orchestration
  • Skills / tool execution
  • Auth / tokens
  • Memory / storage
  • Integrations
  • API / contracts
  • UI / DX
  • CI/CD / infra

Linked Issue/PR

-Closes #52808 -Related #52813

User-visible / Behavior Changes

Control UI is now available again after install. Previously returned 503 due to missing assets.

Security Impact (required)

  • New permissions/capabilities? (No)
  • Secrets/tokens handling changed? (No)
  • New/changed network calls? (No)
  • Command/tool execution surface changed? (No)
  • Data access scope changed? (No)

Repro + Verification

###Environment OS: Ubuntu 24.04 Runtime/container: Node.js v22 Model/provider: N/A Integration/channel: N/A Relevant config: default install via npm

Steps

npm install -g [email protected] openclaw gateway start open dashboard

Expected

UI loads successfully

Actual

503 error: "Control UI assets not found"

Evidence

Attach at least one:

  • Failing test/log before + passing after
  • Trace/log snippets
  • Screenshot/recording
  • Perf numbers (if relevant)

2026.3.13 → includes dist/control-ui/ 2026.3.22 → missing dist/control-ui/

Human Verification (required)

What you personally verified (not just CI), and how:

-Verified scenarios: npm pack includes dist/control-ui/ UI loads after install

-Edge cases checked: Fresh install Global npm install path

-What you did not verify: All extensions packaging (e.g. WhatsApp)

Review Conversations

  • I replied to or resolved every bot review conversation I addressed in this PR.
  • I left unresolved only the conversations that still need reviewer or maintainer judgment.

If a bot review conversation is addressed by this PR, resolve that conversation yourself. Do not leave bot review conversation cleanup for maintainers.

Compatibility / Migration

  • Backward compatible? (Yes)
  • Config/env changes? (No)
  • Migration needed? (No)

Failure Recovery (if this breaks)

-How to disable/revert this change quickly: revert commit or publish previous version

-Files/config to restore: dist/control-ui/

-Known bad symptoms reviewers should watch for: Missing UI assets 503 on dashboard

Risks and Mitigations

-Risk: UI build step fails silently again

-Mitigation: enforce build in prepack and fail if missing

Changed files

  • package.json (modified, +1/-0)
RAW_BUFFERClick to expand / collapse

Bug type

Regression (worked before, now fails)

Summary

After upgrading to 2026-03-22 from 2026-03-13, the whole whatsapp plugin disappeared and cannot be installed.

Actual behavior

Config warnings appear in doctor and other operations. <img width="832" height="139" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/c60485ce-8f2a-4f75-9c57-ff5231108080" />

Installation handbook in docs failed as the package @openclaw/whatsapp does not exist.

Plugin cannot be found upon listing via openclaw plugins list. The item is totally removed, not just shown as disabled.

Onboarding still shows whatsapp is configured but plugin not installed.

Unknown channel: whatsapp is returned when attempting openclaw channels add --channel whatsapp.

OpenClaw version

2026-03-22

Operating system

Windows 11

Install method

npm global

extent analysis

Fix Plan

The fix involves reinstalling the @openclaw/whatsapp package and updating the OpenClaw configuration.

Step-by-Step Solution

  • Uninstall the current OpenClaw version: npm uninstall -g openclaw
  • Install the previous working version (2026-03-13): npm install -g openclaw@2026-03-13
  • Reinstall the @openclaw/whatsapp package: npm install -g @openclaw/whatsapp
  • Update the OpenClaw configuration to include the WhatsApp plugin:
// config.json
{
  "plugins": {
    "whatsapp": {
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
  • Restart OpenClaw and verify the WhatsApp plugin is installed: openclaw plugins list

Verification

  • Check the OpenClaw plugins list to ensure the WhatsApp plugin is installed and enabled: openclaw plugins list
  • Verify that the @openclaw/whatsapp package is installed: npm ls -g @openclaw/whatsapp

Extra Tips

  • Before upgrading OpenClaw in the future, ensure that all plugins are compatible with the new version.
  • Consider locking the OpenClaw version to prevent unexpected upgrades: npm install -g openclaw@2026-03-13

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openclaw - ✅(Solved) Fix [Bug]: Unknown channel: whatsapp [1 pull requests, 8 comments, 7 participants]