Node Connect

Goal: find the one real route from node -> gateway, verify OpenClaw is advertising that route, then fix pairing/auth.

Topology first

Decide which case you are in before proposing fixes:

• same machine / emulator / USB tunnel
• same LAN / local Wi-Fi
• same Tailscale tailnet
• public URL / reverse proxy

Do not mix them.

• Local Wi-Fi problem: do not switch to Tailscale unless remote access is actually needed.
• VPS / remote gateway problem: do not keep debugging

  localhost

  or LAN IPs.

If ambiguous, ask first

If the setup is unclear or the failure report is vague, ask short clarifying questions before diagnosing.

Ask for:

• which route they intend: same machine, same LAN, Tailscale tailnet, or public URL
• whether they used QR/setup code or manual host/port
• the exact app text/status/error, quoted exactly if possible
• whether

  openclaw devices list

  shows a pending pairing request

Do not guess from

can't connect

.

Canonical checks

Prefer

openclaw qr --json

. It uses the same setup-code payload Android scans.

openclaw config get gateway.mode
openclaw config get gateway.bind
openclaw config get gateway.tailscale.mode
openclaw config get gateway.remote.url
openclaw config get gateway.auth.mode
openclaw config get gateway.auth.allowTailscale
openclaw config get plugins.entries.device-pair.config.publicUrl
openclaw qr --json
openclaw devices list
openclaw nodes status

If this OpenClaw instance is pointed at a remote gateway, also run:

openclaw qr --remote --json

If Tailscale is part of the story:

tailscale status --json

Read the result, not guesses

openclaw qr --json

success means:

• gatewayUrl

  : this is the actual endpoint the app should use.

• urlSource

  : this tells you which config path won.

Common good sources:

• gateway.bind=lan

  : same Wi-Fi / LAN only

• gateway.bind=tailnet

  : direct tailnet access

• gateway.tailscale.mode=serve

  or

  gateway.tailscale.mode=funnel

  : Tailscale route

• plugins.entries.device-pair.config.publicUrl

  : explicit public/reverse-proxy route

• gateway.remote.url

  : remote gateway route

Root-cause map

If

openclaw qr --json

says

Gateway is only bound to loopback

:

• remote node cannot connect yet
• fix the route, then generate a fresh setup code

• gateway.bind=auto

  is not enough if the effective QR route is still loopback
• same LAN: use

  gateway.bind=lan

• same tailnet: prefer

  gateway.tailscale.mode=serve

  or use

  gateway.bind=tailnet

• public internet: set a real

  plugins.entries.device-pair.config.publicUrl

  or

  gateway.remote.url

If

gateway.bind=tailnet set, but no tailnet IP was found

:

• gateway host is not actually on Tailscale

If

qr --remote requires gateway.remote.url

:

• remote-mode config is incomplete

If the app says

pairing required

:

• network route and auth worked
• approve the pending device

openclaw devices list
openclaw devices approve --latest

If the app says

bootstrap token invalid or expired

:

• old setup code
• generate a fresh one and rescan
• do this after any URL/auth fix too

If the app says

unauthorized

:

• wrong token/password, or wrong Tailscale expectation
• for Tailscale Serve,

  gateway.auth.allowTailscale

  must match the intended flow
• otherwise use explicit token/password

Fast heuristics

• Same Wi-Fi setup + gateway advertises

  127.0.0.1

  ,

  localhost

  , or loopback-only config: wrong.
• Remote setup + setup/manual uses private LAN IP: wrong.
• Tailnet setup + gateway advertises LAN IP instead of MagicDNS / tailnet route: wrong.
• Public URL set but QR still advertises something else: inspect

  urlSource

  ; config is not what you think.

• openclaw devices list

  shows pending requests: stop changing network config and approve first.

Fix style

Reply with one concrete diagnosis and one route.

If there is not enough signal yet, ask for setup + exact app text instead of guessing.

Good:

• The gateway is still loopback-only, so a node on another network can never reach it. Enable Tailscale Serve, restart the gateway, run openclaw qr again, rescan, then approve the pending device pairing.

Bad:

• Maybe LAN, maybe Tailscale, maybe port forwarding, maybe public URL.