Render

Deploy OpenClaw on Render using Infrastructure as Code. The included render.yaml Blueprint defines your entire stack declaratively, service, disk, environment variables, so you can deploy with a single click and version your infrastructure alongside your code.

Prerequisites

• A Render account (free tier available)
• An API key from your preferred model provider

Deploy with a Render Blueprint

Deploy to Render

Clicking this link will:

1. Create a new Render service from the render.yaml Blueprint at the root of this repo.
2. Build the Docker image and deploy

Once deployed, your service URL follows the pattern https://<service-name>.onrender.com.

Understanding the Blueprint

Render Blueprints are YAML files that define your infrastructure. The render.yaml in this repository configures everything needed to run OpenClaw:

services:
  - type: web
    name: openclaw
    runtime: docker
    plan: starter
    healthCheckPath: /health
    envVars:
      - key: OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT
        value: "8080"
      - key: OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR
        value: /data/.openclaw
      - key: OPENCLAW_WORKSPACE_DIR
        value: /data/workspace
      - key: OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN
        generateValue: true # auto-generates a secure token
    disk:
      name: openclaw-data
      mountPath: /data
      sizeGB: 1

Key Blueprint features used:

Feature	Purpose
runtime: docker	Builds from the repo’s Dockerfile
healthCheckPath	Render monitors /health and restarts unhealthy instances
generateValue: true	Auto-generates a cryptographically secure value
disk	Persistent storage that survives redeploys

Choosing a plan

Plan	Spin-down	Disk	Best for
Free	After 15 min idle	Not available	Testing, demos
Starter	Never	1GB+	Personal use, small teams
Standard+	Never	1GB+	Production, multiple channels

The Blueprint defaults to starter. To use free tier, change plan: free in your fork’s render.yaml (but note: no persistent disk means config resets on each deploy).

After deployment

Access the Control UI

The web dashboard is available at https://<your-service>.onrender.com/.

Connect using the OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN value that was auto-generated during deploy (find it in Dashboard → your service → Environment).

Render Dashboard features

Logs

View real-time logs in Dashboard → your service → Logs. Filter by:

• Build logs (Docker image creation)
• Deploy logs (service startup)
• Runtime logs (application output)

Shell access

For debugging, open a shell session via Dashboard → your service → Shell. The persistent disk is mounted at /data.

Environment variables

Modify variables in Dashboard → your service → Environment. Changes trigger an automatic redeploy.

Auto-deploy

If you use the original OpenClaw repository, Render will not auto-deploy your OpenClaw. To update it, run a manual Blueprint sync from the dashboard.

Custom domain

1. Go to Dashboard → your service → Settings → Custom Domains
2. Add your domain
3. Configure DNS as instructed (CNAME to *.onrender.com)
4. Render provisions a TLS certificate automatically

Scaling

Render supports horizontal and vertical scaling:

• Vertical: Change the plan to get more CPU/RAM
• Horizontal: Increase instance count (Standard plan and above)

For OpenClaw, vertical scaling is usually sufficient. Horizontal scaling requires sticky sessions or external state management.

Backups and migration

Export your configuration and workspace at any time using the shell access in the Render Dashboard:

openclaw backup create

This creates a portable backup archive you can restore on any OpenClaw host. See Backup for details.

Troubleshooting

Service will not start

Check the deploy logs in the Render Dashboard. Common issues:

• Missing OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN — verify it is set in Dashboard → Environment
• Port mismatch — ensure OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=8080 is set so the gateway binds to the port Render expects

Slow cold starts (free tier)

Free tier services spin down after 15 minutes of inactivity. The first request after spin-down takes a few seconds while the container starts. Upgrade to Starter plan for always-on.

Data loss after redeploy

This happens on free tier (no persistent disk). Upgrade to a paid plan, or regularly export your config via openclaw backup create in the Render shell.

Health check failures

Render expects a 200 response from /health within 30 seconds. If builds succeed but deploys fail, the service may be taking too long to start. Check:

• Build logs for errors
• Whether the container runs locally with docker build && docker run

Next steps

• Set up messaging channels: Channels
• Configure the Gateway: Gateway configuration
• Keep OpenClaw up to date: Updating