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openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix exec-approvals.json defaults.ask / defaults.security not documented [1 participants]

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openclaw/openclaw#60062•Fetched 2026-04-08 02:36:54
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Dr-AgenticDr-Agentic
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Dr-AgenticDr-Agentic

Fix Action

Fix / Workaround

Workaround that does NOT work

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Problem

The exec-approvals documentation describes settings like defaults.ask and defaults.security but these are not mentioned anywhere in the main Configuration Reference or the exec-approvals.md doc itself.

Users hitting exec approval prompts (with timeout errors like Exec denied (approval-timeout)) have no clear path to disable these prompts via config.

What I found

The exec approval system is controlled by ~/.openclaw/exec-approvals.json (not openclaw.json). The key settings are:

```json { "defaults": { "security": "full", // allow all exec without approval "ask": "off", // never prompt "askFallback": "full" // if no UI reachable, allow anyway } } ```

These are different from tools.elevated.enabled in openclaw.json which only controls elevated exec.

Suggested docs fix

Add to exec-approvals.md a prominent "Quick Configuration" section at the top with the above settings, and link to it from the Configuration Reference.

Workaround that does NOT work

Setting security.exec.ask: "off" in openclaw.json — this key does not exist and is flagged as unrecognized. The config validation issue masks the real solution.

Environment

  • OpenClaw: 2026.4.1
  • macOS
  • Gateway mode

extent analysis

TL;DR

Modify the ~/.openclaw/exec-approvals.json file to adjust settings like defaults.ask and defaults.security to control exec approval prompts.

Guidance

  • Check the ~/.openclaw/exec-approvals.json file for existing settings and modify them as needed to disable exec approval prompts.
  • Verify that the defaults.ask and defaults.security settings are correctly configured to achieve the desired behavior.
  • Be aware that settings in openclaw.json, such as tools.elevated.enabled, do not control exec approval prompts and may cause confusion.
  • Consider updating the documentation to reflect the correct configuration settings for exec approvals.

Example

{
  "defaults": {
    "security": "full",
    "ask": "off",
    "askFallback":full  }
}

Notes

The provided workaround of setting security.exec.ask: "off" in openclaw.json does not work and may mask the real solution. The correct configuration file is ~/.openclaw/exec-approvals.json.

Recommendation

Apply workaround by modifying the ~/.openclaw/exec-approvals.json file, as this is the correct configuration file for controlling exec approval prompts.

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openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix exec-approvals.json defaults.ask / defaults.security not documented [1 participants]