Create an Ubuntu or Debian VPS in Hetzner.

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Connect as root:

```bash}
ssh root@YOUR_VPS_IP
```

This guide assumes the VPS is stateful.
Do not treat it as disposable infrastructure.

```bash} apt-get update apt-get install -y git curl ca-certificates curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh ```

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Verify:

```bash}
docker --version
docker compose version
```

```bash} git clone https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw.git cd openclaw ```

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This guide assumes you will build a custom image to guarantee binary persistence.

Docker containers are ephemeral. All long-lived state must live on the host.

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```bash}
mkdir -p /root/.openclaw/workspace

# Set ownership to the container user (uid 1000):
chown -R 1000:1000 /root/.openclaw
```

Create `.env` in the repository root.

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```bash}
OPENCLAW_IMAGE=openclaw:latest
OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=
OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_BIND=lan
OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=18789

OPENCLAW_CONFIG_DIR=/root/.openclaw
OPENCLAW_WORKSPACE_DIR=/root/.openclaw/workspace

GOG_KEYRING_PASSWORD=
XDG_CONFIG_HOME=/home/node/.openclaw
```

Leave `OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN` blank unless you explicitly want to
manage it through `.env`; OpenClaw writes a random gateway token to
config on first start. Generate a keyring password and paste it into
`GOG_KEYRING_PASSWORD`:

```bash}
openssl rand -hex 32
```

**Do not commit this file.**

This `.env` file is for container/runtime env such as `OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN`.
Stored provider OAuth/API-key auth lives in the mounted
`~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json`.

Create or update `docker-compose.yml`.

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```yaml}
services:
  openclaw-gateway:
    image: ${OPENCLAW_IMAGE}
    build: .
    restart: unless-stopped
    env_file:
      - .env
    environment:
      - HOME=/home/node
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - TERM=xterm-256color
      - OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_BIND=${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_BIND}
      - OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT=${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT}
      - OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN}
      - GOG_KEYRING_PASSWORD=${GOG_KEYRING_PASSWORD}
      - XDG_CONFIG_HOME=${XDG_CONFIG_HOME}
      - PATH=/home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew/bin:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin
    volumes:
      - ${OPENCLAW_CONFIG_DIR}:/home/node/.openclaw
      - ${OPENCLAW_WORKSPACE_DIR}:/home/node/.openclaw/workspace
    ports:
      # Recommended: keep the Gateway loopback-only on the VPS; access via SSH tunnel.
      # To expose it publicly, remove the `127.0.0.1:` prefix and firewall accordingly.
      - "127.0.0.1:${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT}:18789"
    command:
      [
        "node",
        "dist/index.js",
        "gateway",
        "--bind",
        "${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_BIND}",
        "--port",
        "${OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PORT}",
        "--allow-unconfigured",
      ]
```

`--allow-unconfigured` is only for bootstrap convenience, it is not a replacement for a proper gateway configuration. Still set auth (`gateway.auth.token` or password) and use safe bind settings for your deployment.

Use the shared runtime guide for the common Docker host flow:

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* [Bake required binaries into the image](/install/docker-vm-runtime#bake-required-binaries-into-the-image)
* [Build and launch](/install/docker-vm-runtime#build-and-launch)
* [What persists where](/install/docker-vm-runtime#what-persists-where)
* [Updates](/install/docker-vm-runtime#updates)

After the shared build and launch steps, complete the following setup to open the tunnel:

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**Prerequisite:** Ensure your VPS sshd config allows TCP forwarding. If you
have hardened your SSH config, check `/etc/ssh/sshd_config` and set:

```
AllowTcpForwarding local
```

`local` allows `ssh -L` local forwards from your laptop while blocking
remote forwards from the server. Setting it to `no` will fail the tunnel
with:
`channel 3: open failed: administratively prohibited: open failed`

After confirming TCP forwarding is enabled, restart the SSH service
(`systemctl restart ssh`) and run the tunnel from your laptop:

```bash}
ssh -N -L 18789:127.0.0.1:18789 root@YOUR_VPS_IP
```

Open:

`http://127.0.0.1:18789/`

Paste the configured shared secret. This guide uses the gateway token by
default; if you switched to password auth, use that password instead.