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TroubleshootingCommon Errors

Common Error Messages

Quick reference for error messages you might encounter.

Cloudflare Workers Errors

”Invalid config at /root/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json”

Invalid config at /root/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json:
- channels.telegram: Unrecognized key: "dm"

Cause: Deprecated config fields from older versions.

Fix:

# Clear the cached config
npx wrangler r2 object delete moltbot-data/clawdbot/clawdbot.json --remote
npx wrangler r2 object delete moltbot-data/.last-sync --remote
 
# Redeploy
npm run deploy

“There is already an application with the name X…”

There is already an application with the name your-worker-name deployed
that is associated with a different durable object namespace

Cause: Orphaned Durable Object from a previously deleted worker.

Fix:

  1. Change worker name in wrangler.jsonc:
{
  "name": "your-new-worker-name"
}
  1. Update migration tag:
"migrations": [
  {
    "new_sqlite_classes": ["Sandbox"],
    "tag": "v3"  // Increment this
  }
]
  1. Clean build and deploy:
rm -rf dist .wrangler/deploy
npm run build
npx wrangler deploy

“401 Unauthorized” on webhook endpoints

Cause: Using official moltworker without public webhook routes.

Fix: Use the strataga/moltworker  fork which adds public routes for webhooks.

”502 Bad Gateway”

Cause: Container hasn’t started yet or crashed.

Check:

npx wrangler tail your-worker-name

Fix: Wait for container to start (can take 1-2 minutes on cold start).

”CF_ACCESS_AUD is not configured”

Cause: Missing Cloudflare Access configuration.

Fix:

# Set the Access Application Audience
npx wrangler secret put CF_ACCESS_AUD
# Enter the AUD from your Zero Trust dashboard
 
npx wrangler secret put CF_ACCESS_TEAM_DOMAIN
# Enter your team domain (e.g., yourteam.cloudflareaccess.com)

VPS / Docker Errors

”Port 8080 already in use”

Error starting userland proxy: listen tcp4 0.0.0.0:8080:
bind: address already in use

Fix:

# Find what's using the port
lsof -i :8080
 
# Stop the conflicting service, or change the port in docker-compose.yml
ports:
  - "8081:8080"  # Use port 8081 instead

“Container keeps restarting”

Check logs:

docker logs openclaw

Common causes:

  • Invalid ANTHROPIC_API_KEY
  • Corrupted config file
  • Insufficient memory

Fix corrupted config:

docker exec openclaw rm /root/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json
docker restart openclaw

“Permission denied” on volume

Error response from daemon: error while creating mount source path:
mkdir /var/lib/docker/volumes/openclaw-data: permission denied

Fix:

sudo docker compose up -d

Or fix permissions:

sudo chown -R $USER:docker /var/lib/docker/volumes/

Telegram Errors

”Gateway crashes when Telegram starts”

FATAL ERROR: clawdbot process exited with code 1

Cause: TELEGRAM_DM_POLICY environment variable is set.

Fix: Remove the TELEGRAM_DM_POLICY secret/environment variable:

# For Cloudflare Workers - secrets can't be deleted, set to empty
npx wrangler secret put TELEGRAM_DM_POLICY
# Press Enter without typing anything
 
# For VPS - remove from docker-compose.yml

This is a known bug. Do not set TELEGRAM_DM_POLICY on Cloudflare Workers.

”Telegram bot doesn’t respond”

On Cloudflare Workers: This is a known limitation due to container hibernation. Use Slack or Discord instead, or deploy on VPS.

On VPS: Check if the bot token is correct:

docker exec openclaw clawdbot config get telegram.botToken

Slack Errors

”Slack URL verification failed”

Cause: Slack can’t reach your webhook endpoint.

Check:

curl -X POST https://YOUR-WORKER.workers.dev/slack/events \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"type": "url_verification", "challenge": "test"}'

Should return {"challenge": "test"}.

Fix: Ensure you’re using the strataga fork with public webhook routes.

”OAuth token expired”

Fix: Reinstall the Slack app to your workspace to get a new token.

Anthropic API Errors

”Invalid API key”

Error: Invalid API key provided

Fix: Verify your API key at console.anthropic.com .

# Update the secret
npx wrangler secret put ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

”Rate limit exceeded”

Cause: Too many API requests.

Fix: Wait a few minutes, or upgrade your Anthropic plan for higher limits.

”Model not available”

Error: The model `claude-3-opus-20240229` is not available

Cause: Using a model that requires higher tier access.

Fix: Use a supported model like claude-3-sonnet-20240229 or upgrade your Anthropic account.

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