🖥️ VPS Deployment

OpenClaw on VPS

Run OpenClaw on a Linux VPS from $4/month. Full control, great price.

VPS Providers

Hetzner

$4.50/mo

2 vCPU, 4GB RAM, 40GB SSD

📍 EU, US

✓ Best value
✓ Fast network
✓ Good support

Visit Hetzner →

Contabo

$5.00/mo

4 vCPU, 8GB RAM, 50GB SSD

📍 EU, US, Asia

✓ Most RAM for price
✓ OpenClaw landing page

Visit Contabo →

DigitalOcean

$6.00/mo

1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB SSD

📍 Global

✓ Easy UI
✓ Great docs
✓ Reliable

Visit DigitalOcean →

Vultr

$5.00/mo

1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB SSD

📍 Global

✓ Hourly billing
✓ Many locations

Visit Vultr →

Our pick: Hetzner for best value, Contabo for most RAM.

Minimum Requirements

Hardware

• 1 vCPU (2+ recommended)
• 2GB RAM (4GB recommended)
• 20GB storage
• Public IP address

Software

• Ubuntu 22.04+ or Debian 12+
• Node.js 20+
• npm or yarn

Installation Guide

Create VPS & SSH In

Spin up your server and connect

Create a VPS with Ubuntu 22.04 at your chosen provider, then SSH in:

ssh root@your-server-ip

Update & Install Dependencies

Get the system ready

# Update system
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

# Install Node.js 20
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install -y nodejs

# Verify
node --version  # Should be 20+
npm --version

Create Non-Root User

Security best practice

# Create user
adduser openclaw
usermod -aG sudo openclaw

# Switch to new user
su - openclaw

Install OpenClaw

Download and set up

# Install OpenClaw
npm install -g openclaw

# Run setup wizard
openclaw setup

Enter your API key and configure channels when prompted.

Set Up systemd Service

Auto-start on boot

# Create service file
sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/openclaw.service << 'EOF'
[Unit]
Description=OpenClaw AI Assistant
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=openclaw
WorkingDirectory=/home/openclaw
ExecStart=/usr/bin/openclaw start
Restart=always
RestartSec=10
Environment=NODE_ENV=production

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

# Enable and start
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable openclaw
sudo systemctl start openclaw

# Check status
sudo systemctl status openclaw

Configure Firewall

Secure your server

# Allow SSH
sudo ufw allow ssh

# Allow OpenClaw web UI (optional)
# sudo ufw allow 3000

# Enable firewall
sudo ufw enable

# Check status
sudo ufw status

Useful Commands

# View logs
sudo journalctl -u openclaw -f

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart openclaw

# Stop service
sudo systemctl stop openclaw

# Check OpenClaw status
openclaw status

# Update OpenClaw
npm update -g openclaw
sudo systemctl restart openclaw

Security Checklist

Use SSH keys instead of passwordsssh-keygen && ssh-copy-id

Disable root loginEdit /etc/ssh/sshd_config

Enable automatic security updatesapt install unattended-upgrades

Set up fail2banapt install fail2ban

Keep API keys in environment variablesNever commit to git

VPS vs Mac Mini Hosting

	Linux VPS	Mac Mini Cloud
Price	$4-6/mo	$21/mo
Setup	20+ min	10 min
Native macOS	No	Yes
Browser integration	Limited	Full
Best for	Budget-conscious	Best experience

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