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Run a personal agent (OpenClaw)

Tested 2026-10-01 on the agent-full template with OpenClaw 2026.9.7 (sbx.agent-next.com, e2b Python 2.40.0). Everything below was run as written, without a model key: it covers install, gateway, public URL and pause/resume. Model keys and chat channels are not covered. The same flow was re-run end to end on 2026-10-12 with OpenClaw 2026.10.2 and e2b Python 2.55.1: see the receipt.

Summary

1. Create the sandbox

Set auto_resume so the data plane is allowed to resume the sandbox on a request (without it the URL answers 502 with error_code: sandbox_paused and the message The sandbox is paused and autoResume is disabled). A sandbox pauses when its keep-alive lapses (the default); opt out with lifecycle={"on_timeout": "kill"} to delete at expiry instead: see limits.

export E2B_DOMAIN=sbx.agent-next.com   # plus E2B_API_KEY
python3 - <<'PY'
from e2b import Sandbox
sbx = Sandbox.create(template="agent-full", timeout=3600,
                     lifecycle={"on_timeout": "pause", "auto_resume": True})
print(sbx.sandbox_id)
PY

2. Install OpenClaw (inside the sandbox)

Source: the OpenClaw README. --no-onboard --no-prompt keeps the installer non-interactive.

curl -fsSL --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 https://openclaw.ai/install.sh \
  | bash -s -- --no-onboard --no-prompt
openclaw --version      # OpenClaw 2026.9.7 (run it in a new shell: the installer adds openclaw to the PATH in ~/.bashrc)

3. Start the gateway in the background

The gateway listens on 18789 by default (docs/gateway/index.md). It must bind beyond loopback for the sandbox URL to reach it, which requires a token. State lives in ~/.openclaw (OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR).

echo "OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=$(head -c 32 /dev/urandom | od -An -tx1 | tr -d ' \n')" > $HOME/gw.env
set -a; . $HOME/gw.env; set +a
nohup setsid openclaw gateway --port 18789 --bind lan --allow-unconfigured \
  > $HOME/gateway.log 2>&1 &
sleep 30                                      # give it time to start; step 4 checks it

4. Reach it from outside

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN" \
  -i https://18789-<sandboxId>.sbx.agent-next.com/health     # HTTP 2xx: 204 on 2026.9.7, 200 on 2026.10.2

Requests without the token (for example the Control UI page at /) get 403 proxy_attribution_required. OpenClaw sees the data plane as an unlisted proxy and asks for gateway.trustedProxies. We did not configure it, so the browser Control UI was not exercised (not tested). Authenticated API routes work as shown.

5. Pause and resume

sbx.pause()                               # ~2.6 s
sbx = Sandbox.connect(sandbox_id)         # resumes; 3.2-4.6 s measured

After connect, in the same sandbox: the openclaw-gateway process kept its PID, $HOME/marker.txt and ~/.openclaw were intact, and /health answered again.

What survives pause

Measured gaps. A loop writing date +%s every 5 s: last tick before pause 1790887123, next tick 1790887378, a 255 s gap that matches the pause. A * * * * * cron entry (note: % must be written \% in a crontab): ticks every 60 s until 1790888074, then none until 1790888254 (180 s gap, the pause); on resume cron wrote three lines at the same second, 1790888254. The template does not ship cron: apt-get install -y cron, then start it with service cron start.

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