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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://upstash.com/docs/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

This guide walks you through setting up OpenClaw inside an Upstash Box.

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1. Create a Box

Create a keep-alive box with default settings. See the quickstart if you haven’t created one before.

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2. Connect via SSH

Once the box is running, connect to it via SSH from your terminal. The -L flag forwards the OpenClaw dashboard port to your local machine. Use your Box API key as the password when prompted. 
ssh -L 18789:127.0.0.1:18789 <box-id>@us-east-1.box.upstash.com
The box-id is the name of your box (e.g. right-flamingo-14486).

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3. Install OpenClaw

Install the OpenClaw CLI globally inside the box. 
sudo npm install -g openclaw

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4. Run Onboarding

Start the interactive onboarding wizard. The CLI will guide you through provider selection, authentication, and gateway configuration. 
openclaw onboard --install-daemon
Follow the prompts to complete your setup. Once onboarding is complete, copy the dashboard URL with its token — you will need it in step 6.

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5. Start the Gateway

Configure the gateway to bind on the LAN interface, then start it. 
openclaw config set gateway.bind lan
openclaw gateway run

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6. Open the Dashboard

Navigate to the dashboard URL you copied in step 4. Because the SSH tunnel is active, the dashboard is accessible on your local machine and will look like: 
http://127.0.0.1:18789/#token=<your-token>
Congratulations! You have successfully set up OpenClaw on your Upstash Box. Your AI gateway is now running and accessible through the secure SSH tunnel.