How to Set Up OpenClaw on Windows — WSL Setup Guide

Windows isn't the first platform people think of for running AI agents, but with WSL2 it's actually a solid setup. I'd run on it if I had to. Here's the right way to do it.

Enable WSL2

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

wsl --install
# Restart when prompted

If WSL is already installed but you're on WSL1:

wsl --set-default-version 2

Install Ubuntu

Open the Microsoft Store and search for "Ubuntu 22.04 LTS". Install it and launch it. You'll be prompted to create a username and password — this is your Linux account.

Install Node.js Inside WSL

Inside your Ubuntu terminal:

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs
node --version

Install OpenClaw

sudo npm install -g openclaw
openclaw init

Configure Your API Key

openclaw config set llm.provider anthropic
openclaw config set llm.apiKey YOUR_KEY

Or use OpenRouter to access multiple models:

openclaw config set llm.provider openrouter
openclaw config set llm.apiKey YOUR_OPENROUTER_KEY
openclaw config set llm.model anthropic/claude-opus-4

Start OpenClaw

openclaw gateway start

For persistent background operation in WSL, you can use a tmux session:

sudo apt-get install tmux
tmux new -s openclaw
openclaw gateway start
# Detach with Ctrl+B, then D

The tmux session persists even when you close the WSL window, as long as WSL itself stays running. To make WSL stay running when you close terminal windows, open PowerShell and run:

wsl --set-default Ubuntu-22.04

Windows Integration Tips

You can call OpenClaw from PowerShell using wsl command:

wsl openclaw gateway status
wsl openclaw cron list

And if you want to use VS Code, install the "Remote - WSL" extension. It lets you edit your workspace files with full IDE support while they live inside WSL.

The OpenClaw Playbook has a Windows-specific troubleshooting section covering common WSL path issues and how to handle file permissions correctly when your workspace is accessed from both Windows and Linux.