Star Office Helper

Star Office Helper

Guide users from zero to usable visualization integration in Aion. Prefer Star-Office-UI first, then provide alternatives only when requested or when Star Office does not fit.

What is Star Office

Star Office UI is a third-party open-source local visualization companion for OpenClaw / Aion.

• Project: https://github.com/ringhyacinth/Star-Office-UI
• It turns chat-side agent status (idle / writing / researching / executing / syncing / error) into a live, interactive office-themed monitor view.
• It is not built-in to Aion - it runs as a separate local service (default http://127.0.0.1:19000).
• OpenClaw works independently without Star Office; Star Office only animates when its own backend+frontend and event bridge are active.

Capabilities when connected:

• Real-time visualization of conversation state changes
• Interactive office scene that reflects agent activity
• Live monitor accessible via the TV icon in the chat header

When a user asks "what is Star Office" or triggers the install flow, introduce it clearly with the above context before proceeding.

Connection Guidance

When Star Office is already detected on the local machine:

1. Confirm the detected URL (e.g. http://127.0.0.1:19000).
2. Guide the user to click the TV icon in the chat header to open the live monitor.
3. Explain available interactions: real-time status view, office scene animation.
4. If connection fails despite detection, enter troubleshooting (check port, process, auth, logs).

When Star Office is not detected:

1. Follow the Install Workflow below.
2. After install completes, guide the user to verify via the TV icon.

Workflow

1. Confirm objective:

• Install and run a visualization companion locally (default: Star-Office-UI).
• Connect Aion preview/monitor URL to a running visualizer service.
• Diagnose why UI does not animate or shows Unauthorized.

2. Run environment diagnosis first:

• Execute skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_doctor.sh.
• If python3 -m pip install fails with externally-managed-environment, switch to venv flow.

3. Install/repair setup:

• Execute skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_setup.sh.
• This creates .venv, installs backend dependencies, and ensures state.json exists.

4. Start services and verify:

• Start backend and frontend from Star-Office-UI repo.
• Confirm preview URL (default recommend http://127.0.0.1:19000).
• Re-run doctor to verify port and HTTP response.

5. Connect in Aion:

• Open OpenClaw mode preview panel (TV icon).
• Input URL and save.
• If still blank/Unauthorized, inspect backend auth and state config with doctor output.

6. Recommend alternatives when needed:

• If user asks for "similar/open-source alternatives", follow references/discovery.md.
• Keep Star-Office-UI as the baseline option in comparison.
• Return 3-5 candidate projects with:
  • repo link
  • integration mechanism match (event/state bridge + web preview)
  • setup complexity
  • maintenance signals (recent commits/issues activity)
  • risk notes

Install Mode Rules

When the user triggers one-stop install/repair (e.g. via the TV icon), follow these rules:

• Star Office UI is a THIRD-PARTY local project. It is NOT built-in to Aion/OpenClaw and NOT a required core service.
• The user has already consented to automated install/repair actions; do not re-ask for permission.
• Stay focused on installing, starting, detecting, repairing, uninstalling, and reconnecting Star Office UI.
• Your job is to DO it, not to TEACH it. Execute every command yourself using your tools. Your response must never contain commands for the user to copy-paste or steps for the user to follow. If the user sees a shell command in your reply, you have failed. The only exception is when an OS-level permission dialog (e.g. sudo password) strictly requires user action - in that case, explain exactly what to approve and why.
• After each major step, tell the user whether they can click the TV icon to verify live monitor.
• Stream concise progress updates in real time. At minimum output one short line before and after each major step.

Verification Rules (Strict)

• Treat Star Office as running only if at least one strict signal matches:
  1. Local port 19000 is listening, OR
  2. Health endpoint responds from candidate URL, OR
  3. Process command/path clearly points to Star-Office-UI repo/backend.
• If strict signals are absent, report Star Office as not running/uninstalled; do not claim residual runtime based only on generic Python workers.
• Do NOT treat generic python/python3 processes as Star Office residuals unless their command/path explicitly references Star-Office-UI or its backend app.
• Do NOT claim "openclaw-gateway/Aion auto-restarts Star Office app.py" unless you have explicit evidence from process parent chain, Aion config, or logs in this session.
• Never claim Star Office is "built-in", "bound to Aion", or "cannot be independently uninstalled" without explicit product evidence from this repo.

Install Workflow

You MUST execute every step yourself. Each step should include a short progress message.

1. Checking environment - Run bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_doctor.sh, report findings.
2. Installing / repairing - Run bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_setup.sh, report success or failure.
3. Starting service - Execute these commands yourself (run them for the user, rather than asking them to):
   • Backend: cd ~/Star-Office-UI/backend && nohup ../.venv/bin/python app.py > /dev/null 2>&1 &
   • Frontend: cd ~/Star-Office-UI/frontend && npm install && nohup npm run dev > /dev/null 2>&1 &
   • Wait a few seconds, then verify both processes are running.
4. Detecting port - Verify http://127.0.0.1:19000/health responds. Report detected URL.
5. Troubleshooting (if needed) - Diagnose unauthorized, port conflict, missing process. Auto-fix and retry.
6. Completed - Confirm service is reachable. You MUST explicitly tell the user that installation is complete and the service is running at http://127.0.0.1:19000. Do NOT end your response without confirming the final URL.

Uninstall Workflow

"Uninstall" means stop all services AND remove all files. You MUST run the uninstall script - do NOT manually delete the directory without stopping services first.

1. Run uninstall script - Execute bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_uninstall.sh. This script handles the full sequence: kill processes, free ports, remove directory, and verify cleanup.
2. Check script output - The script performs 4 verification checks:
   • No Star-Office-UI processes remain
   • Ports 19000 and 18791 are free
   • ~/Star-Office-UI directory is removed
   • If any check reports FAIL, diagnose and retry the failing step manually.
3. Report result - Tell the user whether uninstall succeeded or failed based on script output. If all checks pass, confirm: "Star Office has been completely uninstalled."

Ground Rules

• Do not use pip --break-system-packages unless user explicitly asks for system-wide install.
• Prefer venv install on macOS/Homebrew Python.
• Treat OpenClaw task execution and Star Office animation as two systems:
  • OpenClaw can work without Star Office.
  • Star Office only animates when its own backend/frontend and event path are active.

Quick Commands

# Diagnose current machine and ports
bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_doctor.sh

# Bootstrap Star-Office-UI in ~/Star-Office-UI
bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_setup.sh

# Bootstrap in a custom folder
bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_setup.sh /path/to/Star-Office-UI

# Uninstall Star-Office-UI (stop services + remove files + verify)
bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_uninstall.sh

# Uninstall from a custom folder
bash skills/star-office-helper/scripts/star_office_uninstall.sh /path/to/Star-Office-UI

References

• Read references/troubleshooting.md for:
  • Unauthorized root causes
  • wrong port (18791 vs 19000)
  • why "connected but not moving"
  • Aion preview URL mapping checklist
• Read references/discovery.md for:
  • how to find similar visualization open-source projects
  • filtering rules for mechanism compatibility
  • recommendation output format