Upgrade Openclaw

Upgrade OpenClaw

Stay on the edge. Update, audit, discover, propose. Latest features, always.

Trigger

This skill activates when the user says:

• "upgrade openclaw"
• "update openclaw"
• "check for openclaw updates"
• "what's new in openclaw"

Settings

On first run, prompt user for preferred sub-agent model and save to settings.json:

{
  "subagentModel": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6"
}

⚠️ Privacy note: If you choose an external provider (e.g. gpt-4o, claude-*), your local OpenClaw config and environment details will be sent to that provider during the upgrade run. Prefer a locally-hosted model or your primary trusted provider.

Procedure

1. Check Settings

Look for settings.json in this skill's directory. If subagentModel not set, ask:

"Which model for upgrade sub-agents? (e.g., claude-sonnet-4-6, deepseek-chat). Note: external providers will receive your config data."

Save choice to settings.json.

2. Check Prerequisites

Verify required binaries are present before proceeding:

which openclaw && openclaw --version
which curl
which clawhub && clawhub -V

Abort and instruct the user to install missing binaries if any are not found.

3. Run Update

openclaw update

4. Discover What's New

openclaw --version
curl -s https://docs.openclaw.ai/llms.txt | head -100

Check:

• Config templates: github.com/openclaw/openclaw/tree/main/docs/reference/templates
• Changelog: GitHub releases

5. Audit Current Setup

openclaw hooks list
openclaw doctor --non-interactive

Look for:

• New hooks not enabled
• Doctor recommendations not applied
• Unused config options
• Relevant new ClawHub skills

6. Present Findings

## 🔍 Post-Upgrade Report

### New Features
- [Feature]: Description

### Recommended Config Changes
| Setting | Current | Recommended | Why |
|---------|---------|-------------|-----|

### New Hooks Available
- hook-name: Description

### New Skills Worth Installing
- skill-name: Description

### Doctor Recommendations
- [Items from openclaw doctor]

---
**Apply these improvements?** (yes/no/select)

7. Apply with Approval

Never apply without explicit user approval.

Wait for the user to reply "yes", "apply", or select specific items. Do not proceed on ambiguous input.

Spawn sub-agent (using model from settings.json) to:

• Config changes via gateway config.patch
• Hook enablement via openclaw hooks enable <hook>
• Skill install via clawhub install <skill>