Why We Chose the Native Route Over WSL2 #

On Windows 11, WSL2 and Ubuntu can be installed with a single wsl --install command,
so normally the WSL2 route is overwhelmingly easier.
We chose the native route anyway because we had the goal of wanting to operate the Windows machine itself.

Environment Configuration #

Installation Steps #

1. Install Git for Windows #

   Git is required for npm dependency resolution. Run in administrator PowerShell.

   curl.exe -L -o git.exe "https://github.com/git-for-windows/git/releases/download/v2.47.1.windows.1/Git-2.47.1-64-bit.exe"
   .\git.exe /VERYSILENT /NORESTART
   Start-Sleep -Seconds 30

   Close and reopen PowerShell, then verify with git --version.

2. Install Node.js 22 LTS #

   curl.exe -L -o nodejs.msi "https://nodejs.org/dist/v22.14.0/node-v22.14.0-x64.msi"
   msiexec /i nodejs.msi /quiet /norestart
   Start-Sleep -Seconds 30

   Close and reopen PowerShell. Verify with node --version showing v22.x.x.

3. Script Execution Policy and pnpm Setup #

   Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser -Force
   npm install -g pnpm
   pnpm setup

   Close and reopen PowerShell.

4. Install OpenClaw with pnpm #

   $env:NODE_OPTIONS=""
   pnpm add -g openclaw@2026.4.5

   After download completes, approve the build script.

   pnpm approve-builds -g
   # Select all with spacebar → Enter → y
   pnpm add -g openclaw@2026.4.5

   Building OpenClaw takes approximately 2 minutes.

5. Persist PATH at Machine Level #

   Prevents PATH from disappearing each time you open a new PowerShell.

   $paths = @(
     'C:\Program Files\nodejs',
     "$env:APPDATA\npm",
     "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\pnpm"
   )
   $current = [System.Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable('PATH','Machine')
   $entries = ($current -split ';') + $paths | Select-Object -Unique
   [System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable('PATH', ($entries -join ';'), 'Machine')
   $env:PATH = ($entries -join ';')
   Write-Host "openclaw:" (Get-Command openclaw -EA SilentlyContinue).Source

6. Onboarding #

   $env:NODE_OPTIONS=""
   openclaw onboard

   Configure the following in the wizard:

   • Security Warning: Continue with Yes
   • Setup mode: QuickStart
   • Config handling (if existing config is detected): Reset to start fresh
   • Model Provider: Custom Provider
   • Base URL: http://<GPUStack IP>/v1
   • API Key Delivery Method: Paste API key now
   • Endpoint Compatibility: OpenAI-compatible
   • Model ID: Model name running on GPUStack
   • Channel: Skip for now
   • Skill Dependencies: Skip for now
   • Web Search: SearXNG Search → Enter URL
   • Hooks: Enable session-memory only
   If “Config handling” screen appears
   If configuration files created on another machine or from previous installation are detected,
   the Existing config detected → Config handling option will appear at the start of onboarding.
   If starting fresh, select Reset.

7. Manually Fix contextWindow #

   After onboarding completes, OpenClaw may misdetect the model’s context length.
   Edit the configuration file directly (change provider name to match your environment).

   $config = Get-Content "$env:USERPROFILE\.openclaw\openclaw.json" | ConvertFrom-Json
   $config.models.providers.'custom-10-255-253-205'.models[0].contextWindow = 32768
   $config.models.providers.'custom-10-255-253-205'.models[0].maxTokens = 8192
   $config | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 20 | Set-Content "$env:USERPROFILE\.openclaw\openclaw.json" -Encoding UTF8

8. Start Gateway & Verify Operation #

   $env:NODE_OPTIONS=""
   openclaw gateway run

   When [gateway] ready appears in the log, open the dashboard in another window.

   $env:NODE_OPTIONS=""
   openclaw dashboard

   Installation is complete if you can chat in the main session.

9. Save ocstart.ps1 to Desktop #

   Create a shortcut to eliminate the need to set PATH and NODE_OPTIONS every time.

   $script = @'
   param([switch]$Stop)
   $env:NODE_OPTIONS=""
   $paths = @('C:\Program Files\nodejs', "$env:APPDATA\npm", "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\pnpm")
   foreach ($p in $paths) {
     if (($env:PATH -split ';') -notcontains $p) { $env:PATH += ";$p" }
   }
   if ($Stop) { openclaw gateway stop; exit }
   $action = Read-Host "[1] Start Gateway  [2] Stop  [3] Dashboard  [4] TUI  [5] Status`n> "
   switch ($action) {
     '1' { openclaw gateway run }
     '2' { openclaw gateway stop }
     '3' { openclaw dashboard }
     '4' { openclaw tui }
     '5' { openclaw gateway status; openclaw doctor }
   }
   '@
   $script | Out-File "$env:USERPROFILE\Desktop\ocstart.ps1" -Encoding UTF8
   
   $ws = New-Object -ComObject WScript.Shell
   $sc = $ws.CreateShortcut("$env:USERPROFILE\Desktop\OpenClaw Start.lnk")
   $sc.TargetPath = "powershell.exe"
   $sc.Arguments = "-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File `"$env:USERPROFILE\Desktop\ocstart.ps1`""
   $sc.Save()
   Write-Host "Complete"

GPUStack Configuration #

Add the following to the model backend parameters in the GPUStack admin panel and restart the model.

--max-model-len 32768
--generation-config vllm
--enable-auto-tool-choice
--tool-call-parser hermes

Comparison with Server 2019 #

Operation Verification Checklist #

• openclaw --version displays output
• [gateway] ready appears in the log
• Dashboard (http://127.0.0.1:18789) opens in browser
• Chat returns responses in the main session
• GPUStack log displays POST /v1/chat/completions HTTP/1.1" 200 OK
• Session screen TOKENS shows xxxxx / 32768
• SearXNG search functions

Summary #

Native installation on Windows 11 can reuse the procedure established for Server 2019 almost as-is.
Use pnpm, persist PATH, and clear NODE_OPTIONS—these three principles remain unchanged on Windows 11.

A key difference from Server 2019 is that Windows 11 offers WSL2 as an option,
allowing you to choose routes based on your use case.
Use native if you want to operate Windows itself,
and use WSL2 for general AI agent purposes—choose based on your goals.