openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix Docker gateway container restart loop when OPENCLAW_SANDBOX=1 and OPENCLAW_HOME=/mnt/...

Bug type

Behavior bug (incorrect output/state without crash)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

On Windows, the OpenClaw gateway container is caught in a restart loop (visible in Docker Desktop) when OPENCLAW_SANDBOX=1 and OPENCLAW_HOME=/mnt/c/Users/You.

Steps to reproduce

1. From a Windows cmd or Powershell console, run command: wsl -e bash -c OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=stored in .env (not printed) OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/Trevor/.openclaw OPENCLAW_CONFIG_PATH=/mnt/c/Users/Trevor/.openclaw/openclaw.json OPENCLAW_HOME=/mnt/c/Users/Trevor OPENCLAW_AUTH_PROFILE_SECRET_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/Trevor/.openclaw-auth-profile-secrets OPENAI_API_KEY=ollama-local DOCKER_GID=1001 COMPOSE_IGNORE_ORPHANS=true OPENCLAW_CONFIG_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/Trevor/.openclaw OPENCLAW_WORKSPACE_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/Trevor/.openclaw/workspace OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=18789 OPENCLAW_BRIDGE_PORT=18790 OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_BIND=lan OPENCLAW_IMAGE=openclaw:local OPENCLAW_SANDBOX=1 OPENCLAW_EXTENSIONS= OPENCLAW_IMAGE_APT_PACKAGES= OPENCLAW_IMAGE_PIP_PACKAGES= OPENCLAW_INSTALL_DOCKER_CLI=0 OPENCLAW_INSTALL_BROWSER=0 OPENCLAW_SKIP_ONBOARDING=true scripts/docker/setup.sh
2. Navigate to Docker Desktop containers to review the openclaw-gateway container running status

Expected behavior

The openclaw-gateway Docker container should be shown as started and running.

Actual behavior

The openclaw-gateway Docker container is shown as continuously attempting to start. It starts and immediately fails with this logged output on each attempted start: 2026-05-25T17:53:26.056+00:00 [gateway] loading configuration… 2026-05-25T17:53:26.085+00:00 [gateway] resolving authentication… 2026-05-25T17:53:26.087+00:00 Missing config. Run openclaw setup or set gateway.mode=local (or pass --allow-unconfigured).

OpenClaw version

2026.5.24

Operating system

Windows 11

Install method

Docker compose

Model

Ollama

Provider / routing chain

openclaw

Additional provider/model setup details

No response

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

Impact and severity

Affected: users/systems/channels Severity: blocks workflow Frequency: always Consequence: Gateway not started, solution unusable

Additional information

The build output: AI-Suite: INFO Running command: wsl -e bash -c OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=stored in .env (not printed) OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw OPENCLAW_CONFIG_PATH=/mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw/openclaw.json OPENCLAW_HOME=/mnt/c/Users/You OPENCLAW_AUTH_PROFILE_SECRET_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw-auth-profile-secrets OPENAI_API_KEY=ollama-local DOCKER_GID=1001 COMPOSE_IGNORE_ORPHANS=true OPENCLAW_CONFIG_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw OPENCLAW_WORKSPACE_DIR=/mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw/workspace OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=18789 OPENCLAW_BRIDGE_PORT=18790 OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_BIND=lan OPENCLAW_IMAGE=openclaw:local OPENCLAW_SANDBOX=1 OPENCLAW_EXTENSIONS= OPENCLAW_IMAGE_APT_PACKAGES= OPENCLAW_IMAGE_PIP_PACKAGES= OPENCLAW_INSTALL_DOCKER_CLI=0 OPENCLAW_INSTALL_BROWSER=0 OPENCLAW_SKIP_ONBOARDING=true scripts/docker/setup.sh ==> Building Docker image: openclaw:local

==> Fixing data-directory permissions Container ai-suite-openclaw-gateway-run-040a5e2adbb0 Creating Container ai-suite-openclaw-gateway-run-040a5e2adbb0 Created

==> Skipping onboarding (OPENCLAW_SKIP_ONBOARDING is set)

==> Docker gateway defaults Control UI allowlist already configured; leaving gateway.controlUi.allowedOrigins unchanged. Container ai-suite-openclaw-gateway-run-1aa0be3718d2 Creating Container ai-suite-openclaw-gateway-run-1aa0be3718d2 Created Config warnings:

• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Config warnings:
• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Pinned gateway.mode=local and gateway.bind=lan for Docker setup.

==> Provider setup (optional) WhatsApp (QR): docker compose -p ai-suite -f /mnt/c/Users/You/Projects/ai-suite/openclaw/docker-compose.yml run --rm openclaw-cli channels login Telegram (bot token): docker compose -p ai-suite -f /mnt/c/Users/You/Projects/ai-suite/openclaw/docker-compose.yml run --rm openclaw-cli channels add --channel telegram --token <token> Discord (bot token): docker compose -p ai-suite -f /mnt/c/Users/You/Projects/ai-suite/openclaw/docker-compose.yml run --rm openclaw-cli channels add --channel discord --token <token> Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai/channels

==> Starting gateway [+] up 1/1 ✔ Container openclaw-gateway Started 0.6s

==> Sandbox setup Building sandbox image: openclaw-sandbox:bookworm-slim ==> Sandbox: added Docker socket mount Container ai-suite-openclaw-cli-run-97505c99c6a4 Creating Container ai-suite-openclaw-cli-run-97505c99c6a4 Created Config warnings:

• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Config warnings:
• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Container ai-suite-openclaw-cli-run-3ee5d55b3c3a Creating Container ai-suite-openclaw-cli-run-3ee5d55b3c3a Created Config warnings:
• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Config warnings:
• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Container ai-suite-openclaw-cli-run-f9eb2e22369f Creating Container ai-suite-openclaw-cli-run-f9eb2e22369f Created Config warnings:
• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Config warnings:
• plugins.entries.whatsapp: plugin not installed: whatsapp — install the official external plugin with: openclaw plugins install clawhub:@openclaw/whatsapp Sandbox enabled: mode=non-main, scope=agent, workspaceAccess=none Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai/gateway/sandboxing [+] up 1/1 ✔ Container openclaw-gateway Started 1.7s

Gateway running with host port mapping. Access from tailnet devices via the host's tailnet IP. Config: /mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw Workspace: /mnt/c/Users/You/.openclaw/workspace Token: stored in Docker environment/config (not printed).

Commands: docker compose -p ai-suite -f /mnt/c/Users/You/Projects/ai-suite/openclaw/docker-compose.yml logs -f openclaw-gateway docker compose -p ai-suite -f /mnt/c/Users/You/Projects/ai-suite/openclaw/docker-compose.yml exec openclaw-gateway sh -lc 'node dist/index.js health --token "$OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN"'