openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix feat: time-bounded exec approvals (approve for N minutes/hours) [1 participants]

Summary

Add a time-bounded approval mode so users can approve a command pattern for a specified duration (e.g. 30 minutes, 1 hour) without having to approve every single invocation or permanently allow it.

Motivation

The current approval modes are:

• once — approve this command once, prompt again next time
• off — never prompt (YOLO)
• on — always prompt

This leaves a gap for active work sessions: approving systemctl restart or git push --force 10 times in a row is noisy, but permanently allowing them reduces security visibility.

A timed approval (e.g. /approve 30m) lets users stay productive during an active session while ensuring approvals expire automatically when they walk away.

Proposed Design

New approval action: duration

When an agent requests exec approval, the approval card shows:

✅ Allow once   ⏱ Allow 30m   🕐 Allow 1h   ⚠️ Always allow   ❌ Deny

Or via slash command:

/approve        → allow once (existing behavior)
/approve 30m    → allow for 30 minutes
/approve 1h     → allow for 1 hour  
/approve 4h     → allow for 4 hours
/approve always → permanent allow (existing behavior)

Storage

Add approvedUntil?: number (Unix ms timestamp) to approval store entries:

type TimedApproval = {
  commandPattern: string;
  agentId?: string;
  approvedUntil: number; // Date.now() + durationMs
};

Resolution logic

Before prompting for approval:

1. Check if command matches a timed approval entry
2. If approvedUntil > Date.now(): skip prompt, execute
3. If expired: remove entry, prompt as normal

CLI visibility

openclaw approvals get should show active timed approvals with time remaining:

Timed approvals (active):
  systemctl --user restart *  →  expires in 24m (scottgl9, agent: general-agent)
  git push --force*           →  expires in 47m (scottgl9, agent: general-worker)

Config default duration

Optional config to set the default duration when user presses the timed-approve button:

{
  tools: {
    exec: {
      approvals: {
        defaultDuration: "30m"  // default: "30m"
      }
    }
  }
}

Implementation scope

• src/tools/exec-approvals.ts — add approvedUntil to store, check expiry
• src/auto-reply/reply/commands/approve.ts — parse /approve <duration> syntax
• Approval card UI — add timed option buttons
• openclaw approvals get CLI — show active timed approvals with countdown
• Type: ApprovalDuration = string (e.g. "30m", "1h", "4h")

Non-goals

• Per-command-argument granularity (approve git push origin main specifically) — out of scope
• Cross-session persistence of timed approvals — timed approvals should not survive gateway restart