Fix: Webchat UI Model Dropdown Sends Bare Model ID Without Provider Prefix

Problem

When switching models via the webchat UI dropdown, the request sends only the bare model name (e.g. claude-sonnet-4-6) instead of the full provider/model key (e.g. 4sapi/claude-sonnet-4-6). The gateway then prepends the current session's provider instead of the model's actual provider, producing an invalid key that is rejected by the allowlist.

Failed to set model: GatewayRequestError: model not allowed: modelstudio/claude-sonnet-4-6

The /model TUI command works correctly because it accepts the full provider/model string directly.

Workaround

Use the /model command in the TUI with the full provider-qualified model ID:

/model 4sapi/claude-sonnet-4-6

Manual Patch (Advanced)

Locate the webchat UI dist file:

find ~/.npm -name "index-*.js" | grep webchat
# or
find /usr/local/lib -name "*.js" | grep openclaw | grep webchat

Patch: Fix dropdown option value to include provider prefix

- value={model.id}
+ value={`${model.provider}/${model.id}`}

Or if the model object does not carry a provider field at the option level, ensure the provider is passed down as a prop:

- {models.map(model => (
-   <option key={model.id} value={model.id}>
-     {model.id} · {model.provider}
-   </option>
- ))}
+ {models.map(model => (
+   <option key={`${model.provider}/${model.id}`} value={`${model.provider}/${model.id}`}>
+     {model.id} · {model.provider}
+   </option>
+ ))}

Config Reference

Ensure models are defined with explicit provider keys in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

{
  "providers": {
    "4sapi": {
      "models": [
        "claude-sonnet-4-6",
        "claude-opus-4-6"
      ]
    }
  }
}

The gateway allowlist must contain the fully-qualified key:

{
  "tools": {
    "profile": {
      "allowlist": [
        "4sapi/claude-sonnet-4-6",
        "4sapi/claude-opus-4-6"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Verification

After applying the patch:

1. Open webchat UI
2. Navigate to any agent session
3. Use the model dropdown to select claude-sonnet-4-6 under 4sapi
4. Confirm no error banner appears
5. Confirm the next message is processed using 4sapi/claude-sonnet-4-6

# Confirm via gateway log
openclaw gateway logs --tail 20 | grep "model"
# Expected: model set to 4sapi/claude-sonnet-4-6

Environment

Upstream Fix Required

This is the same root cause as the Control UI model picker bug — the dropdown option value must always use the fully-qualified provider/model key, not the bare model.id.

Recommended fix across all UI surfaces:

1. Webchat <select> option value: ${provider}/${model.id} instead of model.id
2. Control UI K_(): same fix (ref: existing patch)
3. Any sessions.patch call site: validate that the model key contains a / before sending — if not, reject client-side with a clear error rather than letting the gateway infer the wrong provider

Suggested validation:

function patchSessionModel(modelKey: string) {
  if (!modelKey.includes("/")) {
    throw new Error(`Invalid model key "${modelKey}": must be in provider/model format`)
  }
  return sessions.patch({ model: modelKey })
}