The Tool Desk
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Install Playwright and Chromium for OpenClaw
OpenClaw exposes browser control through its Gateway and browser plugin. Its documented advanced actions—including navigation, acting on pages, AI snapshots, element screenshots and PDF generation—require Playwright. In the Node project or environment used by your OpenClaw installation, run:
npm i -D playwright
npx playwright install chromiumThe first command installs the full Playwright package; the second downloads the Chromium binary that Playwright will manage. Installing only playwright-core is not sufficient for OpenClaw’s documented advanced browser features.
On a fresh Linux host or Linux CI
If the host is missing browser system dependencies, install Chromium and those dependencies together:
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npx playwright install --with-deps chromiumPlaywright keeps browser binaries matched to its versions. After upgrading Playwright, rerun its browser installation command so the required browser binary is available. On Linux, the documented browser cache is ~/.cache/ms-playwright; other operating systems use their corresponding cache directories.
If OpenClaw says Playwright is unavailable
OpenClaw’s browser documentation says that for the error Playwright is not available in this gateway build, install the full Playwright package rather than playwright-core, then restart the Gateway, or reinstall OpenClaw with browser support. Make sure Playwright is installed in the environment the Gateway actually runs in; installing it only in a separate local project will not make it available to a Gateway running elsewhere.
Choose the right browser profile
The default openclaw profile launches an isolated Chrome-family browser with a dedicated user-data directory. That separation keeps the agent’s managed browsing apart from your everyday browser profile. OpenClaw can discover Chrome, Brave, Edge, Chromium and Playwright-managed Chromium.
Use a user or existing-session profile when the task needs an already signed-in browser context. An existing-session or extension-based setup requires the relevant local pairing and authentication steps; do not assume the isolated managed profile shares your normal browser’s logins.
Verify that browser control works
Run the checks in order from an environment that can reach the OpenClaw Gateway:
openclaw browser profiles— confirm the available profiles.openclaw browser --browser-profile openclaw doctor— diagnose the managed profile’s browser setup.openclaw browser --browser-profile openclaw start— start the browser.openclaw browser --browser-profile openclaw tabs— confirm the browser is reachable and can report its tabs.openclaw browser --browser-profile openclaw open https://example.com— test navigation.
If the browser command is unknown
Check whether the bundled browser plugin is allowed. If it is excluded by the plugin allowlist, explicitly allow it or activate it with a root browser configuration block, then retry the command.
If startup or navigation fails
- If startup reports that the browser is “not reachable after start,” check CDP readiness first. A browser process can start without its Chrome DevTools Protocol endpoint being ready for control.
- If
startandtabswork butopenfails, inspect OpenClaw’s SSRF policy, which can restrict navigation to a URL. - If the Gateway still reports that Playwright is unavailable, verify that the full package is present in the Gateway’s runtime environment and restart the Gateway after installing it.
Make browser support work in Docker
For a new Docker deployment, use OpenClaw’s browser-equipped image. To build a local image with browser support, use:
OPENCLAW_INSTALL_BROWSER=1 ./scripts/docker/setup.shThe browser-equipped image supplies Chromium, and OpenClaw can auto-detect the Playwright-managed browser on Linux. The important deployment detail is the browser cache: a mounted /home/node volume can hide /home/node/.cache/ms-playwright. Preserve that cache or provision Chromium inside the mounted location.
Also check that browser control is enabled, any configured executable path exists inside the container (not just on the host), and headless operation is set for a headless host.
Install Chromium in an existing Docker setup
For a Docker Gateway where Playwright is missing, OpenClaw documents this bundled CLI command for installing Chromium:
docker compose run --rm openclaw-cli
node /app/node_modules/playwright-core/cli.js install chromiumThis command provisions the browser binary; it is not a substitute for OpenClaw’s requirement for the full Playwright package. If the Gateway reports that Playwright itself is unavailable, install the full package in the Gateway environment and restart the Gateway.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Can you use Puppeteer instead?
Puppeteer is a separate Node automation stack with its own Chrome installer. For Puppeteer-based automation, install the package and Chrome for Testing with:
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npx @puppeteer/browsers install chrome@stableOn Ubuntu or Debian, where system dependencies are needed, Puppeteer documents this installer form:
npx puppeteer browsers install chrome --install-depsThese commands set up Puppeteer’s browser automation; they do not switch OpenClaw’s documented advanced browser controls from Playwright to Puppeteer. Use Puppeteer for a separate script or a custom integration only when the relevant OpenClaw extension explicitly supports it.
| Choice | OpenClaw support | Browser installation | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Playwright | Documented backend for OpenClaw’s advanced browser actions | npm i -D playwright, then npx playwright install chromium; rerun the browser install after upgrading Playwright |
OpenClaw browser control, especially its managed isolated profile |
| Puppeteer | Separate automation dependency; not the documented default backend for OpenClaw browser actions | npm i puppeteer, then npx @puppeteer/browsers install chrome@stable |
Separate Puppeteer scripts or an explicitly supported custom integration |
Or skip the browser setup: capture a website screenshot with ScreenshotNeo
If your task only needs a website screenshot or PDF—not OpenClaw’s browser control, signed-in session or page interactions—you can use ScreenshotNeo instead of installing a browser stack. It provides a website screenshot API and MCP server; it does not install or enable OpenClaw browser support. See the ScreenshotNeo API documentation.
Quick Recap
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