clawbox

Run OpenClaw on your Mac with a safer default.

clawbox launches OpenClaw workloads inside isolated Linux VMs and limits host access to only the folder you choose.

Launch Focus: OpenClaw, But Safer

OpenClaw is powerful. The risk is usually not OpenClaw itself, it is the environment around it.

clawbox is built to solve that by default:

• Isolated VM per OpenClaw workspace.
• Explicit single-folder host mount (--mount /path).
• Localhost-safe Control UI access (clawbox ui) to avoid common gateway/websocket issues.
• Optional keep-awake mode for long OpenClaw runs.

Who This Is For

• OpenClaw users who do not want bots touching their whole laptop.
• Teams running multiple OpenClaw projects and needing clean separation.
• Security-minded builders who want practical isolation without complex infra.

Safety Model

What clawbox protects:

• OpenClaw runs in a VM, not directly on your host.
• Only mounted host paths are accessible from inside the VM.
• You can isolate every OpenClaw bot/project in its own VM.

What it does not magically protect:

• Anything inside mounted folders is intentionally accessible to that VM.
• If you mount sensitive files, OpenClaw can read them.

Best practice:

• Mount one narrow project folder.
• Keep secrets outside mounted paths.
• Use one VM per trust boundary (project/client/env).

Requirements

• macOS 26+ (Darwin 25+)
• Apple Silicon (arm64)
• Apple container CLI installed
• Node.js 18+

Install

npm install -g clawbox-package

OpenClaw Safe Start (5 Minutes)

1. Validate host/runtime:

clawbox doctor

2. Create an OpenClaw VM with one mounted folder:

clawbox create openclaw-main --mount ~/work/my-openclaw-project

clawbox create will ask whether to keep the Mac awake while this VM runs.

3. Start VM and open shell:

clawbox start openclaw-main
clawbox shell openclaw-main

4. Inside the VM, install OpenClaw (helper is preinstalled):

openclaw-install

5. From your Mac, open OpenClaw Control UI safely:

clawbox ui openclaw-main
# or pick interactively:
clawbox ui

Use the localhost URL it prints.

Live Preview GIFs

Safe Start

Daily Session

Power Policy

Workflow Blocks

Block 1: New OpenClaw Workspace (safe-by-default)

clawbox doctor
clawbox create openclaw-main --mount ~/work/my-openclaw-project
clawbox start openclaw-main
clawbox shell openclaw-main
# inside VM:
openclaw-install

Block 2: Daily OpenClaw Session

clawbox start openclaw-main
clawbox shell openclaw-main
clawbox ui openclaw-main

Block 3: Change Power Mode (long jobs vs battery)

clawbox power openclaw-main --keep-awake
# or
clawbox power openclaw-main --allow-sleep

Block 4: End Session / Cleanup

clawbox pause openclaw-main
# when fully done with this workspace:
clawbox delete openclaw-main --yes --confirm-name openclaw-main

Why clawbox ui Matters

OpenClaw Control UI is most reliable when accessed through localhost.

clawbox ui creates a localhost proxy and opens:

• http://127.0.0.1:<port>/

This avoids the typical LAN-IP websocket/auth failures people hit with direct VM IP browsing. If you omit a name, clawbox ui will let you pick an instance interactively.

Power Policy For Long OpenClaw Sessions

Set at create time:

clawbox create openclaw-main --keep-awake
# or
clawbox create openclaw-main --allow-sleep

Change later anytime:

clawbox power openclaw-main --keep-awake
clawbox power openclaw-main --allow-sleep

OpenClaw-Centric Daily Workflow

clawbox ls
clawbox start openclaw-main
clawbox shell openclaw-main
clawbox ui openclaw-main
clawbox inspect openclaw-main
clawbox pause openclaw-main

Delete a VM safely:

clawbox delete openclaw-main --yes --confirm-name openclaw-main

Commands

clawbox about [--watch|--once]
clawbox doctor
clawbox create [name] [--ram <gb>] [--mount <path>] [--keep-awake|--allow-sleep] [--yes]
clawbox ls
clawbox start <name>
clawbox pause <name>
clawbox power <name> [--keep-awake|--allow-sleep]
clawbox shell <name> [--yes] [--new-terminal]
clawbox ui [name] [--port 18789] [--yes] [--no-open]
clawbox inspect <name>
clawbox delete <name> [--yes --confirm-name <name>]

Troubleshooting

If runtime is down:

container system start
clawbox doctor

If Control UI fails:

• Use clawbox ui <name> instead of direct VM LAN IP.
• Keep the clawbox ui process running while using the dashboard.
• If OpenClaw gateway auth is token-based, clawbox now auto-bootstraps a VM-local gateway token and retries startup.

Development

npm install
npm run typecheck
npm run test
npm run build
node dist/cli.js about --once

License

MIT