configure-openclaw

Configure OpenClaw

Set up OpenClaw so OMC can wake external gateways — triggering automations, workflows, or AI agents — when hook events fire during Claude sessions.

OpenClaw is NOT a notification system. It sends structured instruction payloads to programmable HTTPS endpoints. This makes it ideal for triggering n8n workflows, custom AI agents, webhook automations, or any HTTPS-capable system.

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How This Skill Works

This is an interactive, natural-language configuration skill. Walk the user through setup by asking questions with AskUserQuestion. Write the result to ~/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json.

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Step 1: Detect Existing Configuration

CONFIG_FILE="${OMC_OPENCLAW_CONFIG:-$HOME/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json}"

if [ -f "$CONFIG_FILE" ]; then
  IS_ENABLED=$(jq -r '.enabled // false' "$CONFIG_FILE" 2>/dev/null)
  GATEWAY_COUNT=$(jq -r '.gateways | keys | length' "$CONFIG_FILE" 2>/dev/null)
  HOOK_COUNT=$(jq -r '[.hooks | to_entries[] | select(.value.enabled == true)] | length' "$CONFIG_FILE" 2>/dev/null)

  if [ "$IS_ENABLED" = "true" ]; then
    echo "EXISTING_CONFIG=true"
    echo "GATEWAY_COUNT=$GATEWAY_COUNT"
    echo "HOOK_COUNT=$HOOK_COUNT"
  else
    echo "EXISTING_CONFIG=false"
  fi
else
  echo "NO_CONFIG_FILE"
fi

If existing config is found, show the user what's currently configured and ask if they want to update or reconfigure.

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Step 2: Collect Gateway URL

Use AskUserQuestion:

Question: "What is your OpenClaw gateway URL? (Must be HTTPS, e.g. https://my-gateway.example.com/wake)"

The user will type their URL in the "Other" field.

Validate the URL:

• Must start with https://
• Must be a valid URL
• If invalid, explain the requirement and ask again

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Step 3: Collect Auth Header (Optional)

Use AskUserQuestion:

Question: "Does your gateway require an Authorization header?"

Options:

1. Yes, Bearer token - I'll provide a Bearer token (e.g., Bearer sk-...)
2. Yes, custom header value - I'll type the full header value
3. No auth required - The gateway is open or uses a different auth method

If user selects option 1 or 2, ask:

Question: "Paste your Authorization header value (e.g., Bearer sk-mytoken123)"

The user will type the value in the "Other" field.

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Step 4: Configure Hook Events

Use AskUserQuestion with multiSelect:

Question: "Which hook events should trigger your OpenClaw gateway?"

Options (multiSelect: true):

1. session-start - When a new Claude session begins. Variables: {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{projectPath}}
2. session-end - When a session ends. Variables: {{contextSummary}}, {{reason}}, {{sessionId}}
3. stop - When Claude stops (idle/completion). Variables: {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}
4. pre-tool-use - Before each tool call (high frequency). Variables: {{toolName}}, {{sessionId}}
5. post-tool-use - After each tool call (high frequency). Variables: {{toolName}}, {{sessionId}}
6. keyword-detector - On every prompt submission. Variables: {{prompt}}, {{sessionId}}
7. ask-user-question - When Claude needs user input. Variables: {{question}}, {{sessionId}}

Default selection: session-start, session-end, stop.

Note: pre-tool-use, post-tool-use, and keyword-detector fire very frequently. Only enable them if your gateway can handle the volume.

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Step 5: Collect Instruction Templates

For each selected event, ask the user for an instruction template. Show the available template variables for that event type.

Use AskUserQuestion for each event:

Example for session-start:

Question: "Instruction template for session-start events. Available variables: {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{projectPath}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "Session started for project {{projectName}}"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

Example for session-end:

Question: "Instruction template for session-end events. Available variables: {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{contextSummary}}, {{reason}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "Session ended. Summary: {{contextSummary}}"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

Example for stop:

Question: "Instruction template for stop events. Available variables: {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{projectPath}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "Session stopping for project {{projectName}}"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

Example for pre-tool-use:

Question: "Instruction template for pre-tool-use events. Available variables: {{toolName}}, {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "Tool {{toolName}} about to be used"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

Example for post-tool-use:

Question: "Instruction template for post-tool-use events. Available variables: {{toolName}}, {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "Tool {{toolName}} completed"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

Example for keyword-detector:

Question: "Instruction template for keyword-detector events. Available variables: {{prompt}}, {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "Keyword detected: {{prompt}}"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

Example for ask-user-question:

Question: "Instruction template for ask-user-question events. Available variables: {{question}}, {{sessionId}}, {{projectName}}, {{timestamp}}"

Options:

1. Use default - "User input requested: {{question}}"
2. Custom - Enter my own instruction text

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Step 6: Write Configuration

Build and write the config to ~/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json:

CONFIG_FILE="${OMC_OPENCLAW_CONFIG:-$HOME/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json}"
mkdir -p "$(dirname "$CONFIG_FILE")"

# GATEWAY_URL, AUTH_HEADER, and per-event instructions are collected from user
# SELECTED_EVENTS is the list of enabled hook events
# Build the JSON using jq

# Example: session-start and session-end selected, bearer auth
jq -n \
  --arg gateway_url "$GATEWAY_URL" \
  --arg auth_header "$AUTH_HEADER" \
  --arg session_start_instruction "$SESSION_START_INSTRUCTION" \
  --arg session_end_instruction "$SESSION_END_INSTRUCTION" \
  --arg stop_instruction "$STOP_INSTRUCTION" \
  '{
    enabled: true,
    gateways: {
      "my-gateway": {
        url: $gateway_url,
        headers: (if $auth_header != "" then {"Authorization": $auth_header} else {} end),
        method: "POST",
        timeout: 10000
      }
    },
    hooks: {
      "session-start": {gateway: "my-gateway", instruction: $session_start_instruction, enabled: true},
      "session-end": {gateway: "my-gateway", instruction: $session_end_instruction, enabled: true},
      "stop": {gateway: "my-gateway", instruction: $stop_instruction, enabled: true}
    }
  }' > "$CONFIG_FILE"

Adjust the hooks object to include only the events the user selected, with their chosen instructions.

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Step 7: Test the Gateway

After writing config, offer to send a test wake call:

Use AskUserQuestion:

Question: "Send a test wake call to your gateway to verify the connection?"

Options:

1. Yes, test now (Recommended) - Send a test HTTP POST to the gateway
2. No, I'll test later - Skip testing

If testing:

GATEWAY_URL="USER_PROVIDED_URL"
AUTH_HEADER="USER_PROVIDED_AUTH_HEADER"  # may be empty

# Build auth header arg
AUTH_ARG=""
if [ -n "$AUTH_HEADER" ]; then
  AUTH_ARG="-H \"Authorization: $AUTH_HEADER\""
fi

RESPONSE=$(eval curl -s -w "\n%{http_code}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  $AUTH_ARG \
  -d '{"event":"session-start","instruction":"OpenClaw test wake from OMC configure wizard","timestamp":"'$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)'","context":{}}' \
  "$GATEWAY_URL")

HTTP_CODE=$(echo "$RESPONSE" | tail -1)
BODY=$(echo "$RESPONSE" | head -1)

if [ "$HTTP_CODE" = "200" ] || [ "$HTTP_CODE" = "201" ] || [ "$HTTP_CODE" = "202" ] || [ "$HTTP_CODE" = "204" ]; then
  echo "Test wake succeeded (HTTP $HTTP_CODE)!"
else
  echo "Test wake failed (HTTP $HTTP_CODE):"
  echo "$BODY"
fi

Report success or failure. Common issues:

• 401 Unauthorized: Auth header is missing or incorrect
• 403 Forbidden: Token does not have permission
• 404 Not Found: Gateway URL path is incorrect
• SSL error: URL must be HTTPS with a valid certificate
• Connection refused: Gateway is not running or URL is wrong

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Step 8: Confirm

Display the final configuration summary:

OpenClaw Gateway Configured!

  Gateway:  https://my-gateway.example.com/wake
  Auth:     Bearer *** (configured)
  Events:   session-start, session-end, stop

Config saved to: ~/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json

To activate OpenClaw, use one of:
  omc --openclaw                  (per-session flag)
  export OMC_OPENCLAW=1           (environment variable)

Debug logging:
  export OMC_OPENCLAW_DEBUG=1     (logs wake results to stderr)

Custom config path:
  export OMC_OPENCLAW_CONFIG=/path/to/config.json

To reconfigure: /oh-my-claudecode:configure-openclaw

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Template Variables Reference

Event	Available Variables
session-start	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}
session-end	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{contextSummary}}, {{reason}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}
pre-tool-use	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{toolName}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}
post-tool-use	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{toolName}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}
stop	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}
keyword-detector	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{prompt}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}
ask-user-question	{{sessionId}}, {{projectPath}}, {{projectName}}, {{question}}, {{timestamp}}, {{event}}

Unresolved variables (e.g., {{unknown}}) are left as-is in the instruction text.

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Environment Variable Alternative

Users can skip this wizard entirely by setting env vars and writing the config manually:

# Enable OpenClaw
export OMC_OPENCLAW=1

# Optional: override config file path
export OMC_OPENCLAW_CONFIG="$HOME/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json"

# Optional: enable debug logging
export OMC_OPENCLAW_DEBUG=1

The config file path defaults to ~/.claude/omc_config.openclaw.json. Use OMC_OPENCLAW_CONFIG to override.