openclaw - 💡(How to fix) Fix openclaw update does not sync embedded openclaw copy in ~/.openclaw/extensions/node_modules/ [1 participants]

Error: session file locked (timeout 10000ms): unknown /path/to/sessions.json.lock

TL;DR

Manually updating the embedded openclaw copy used by the extensions runtime using npm update openclaw in the ~/.openclaw/extensions directory resolves the version gap issue.

Guidance

• The version gap between the global openclaw installation and the embedded copy in ~/.openclaw/extensions/node_modules/openclaw causes the session write-lock contention errors.
• To verify the fix, check the versions of openclaw in both locations after running the update command: npm ls openclaw in the global directory and ~/.openclaw/extensions.
• Restart the gateway after updating the embedded openclaw copy to ensure the changes take effect.
• Consider adding the manual update step to the upgrade process to prevent similar issues in the future.

Example

cd ~/.openclaw/extensions && npm update openclaw

This command updates the embedded openclaw copy to the latest version, matching the global installation.

Notes

The issue seems to be specific to the upgrade process of openclaw, and the provided workaround resolves the version gap. However, it is unclear why the global installation does not automatically update the embedded copy.

Recommendation

Apply the workaround by manually updating the embedded openclaw copy using npm update openclaw in the ~/.openclaw/extensions directory, as this resolves the version gap and prevents session write-lock contention errors.