OpenClaw 2026.1.8 — What Shipped (Operator Guide)

This post covers what shipped in v2026.1.8 and what it means for OpenClaw VPS operators.

What shipped

2026.1.8

Highlights

• Security: DMs locked down by default across providers; pairing-first + allowlist guidance.
• Sandbox: per-agent scope defaults + workspace access controls; tool/session isolation tuned.
• Agent loop: compaction, pruning, streaming, and error handling hardened.
• Providers: Telegram/WhatsApp/Discord/Slack reliability, threading, reactions, media, and retries improved.
• Control UI: logs tab, streaming stability, focus mode, and large-output rendering fixes.
• CLI/Gateway/Doctor: daemon/logs/status, auth migration, and diagnostics significantly expanded.

Breaking

• SECURITY (update ASAP): inbound DMs are now locked down by default on Telegram/WhatsApp/Signal/iMessage/Discord/Slack.

- Previously, if you didn’t configure an allowlist, your bot could be open to anyone (especially discoverable Telegram bots). - New default: DM pairing (dmPolicy="pairing" / discord.dm.policy="pairing" / slack.dm.policy="pairing"). - To keep old “open to everyone” behavior: set dmPolicy="open" and include "*" in the relevant allowFrom (Discord/Slack: discord.dm.allowFrom / slack.dm.allowFrom). - Approve requests via clawdbot pairing list --provider <provider> + clawdbot pairing approve --provider <provider> <code> (Telegram also supports clawdbot telegram pairing ...).

• Sandbox: default agent.sandbox.scope to "agent" (one container/workspace per agent). Use "session" for per-session isolation; "shared" disables cross-session isolation.
• Timestamps in agent envelopes are now UTC (compact YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mmZ); removed messages.timestampPrefix. Add agent.userTimezone to tell the model the user’s local time (system prompt only).
• Model config schema changes (auth profiles + model lists); doctor auto-migrates and the gateway rewrites legacy configs on startup.
• Commands: gate all slash commands to authorized senders; add /compact to manually compact session context.
• Groups: whatsapp.groups, telegram.groups, and imessage.groups now act as allowlists when set. Add "*" to keep allow-all behavior.
• Auto-reply: removed autoReply from Discord/Slack/Telegram channel configs; use requireMention instead (Telegram topics now support requireMention overrides).
• CLI: remove update, gateway-daemon, gateway {install|uninstall|start|stop|restart|daemon status|wake|send|agent}, and telegram commands; move login/logout to providers login/logout (top-level aliases hidden); use daemon for service control, send/agent/wake for RPC, and nodes canvas for canvas ops.

Fixes

• CLI/Gateway/Doctor: daemon runtime selection + improved logs/status/health/errors; auth/password handling for local CLI; richer close/timeout details; auto-migrate legacy config/sessions/state; integrity checks + repair prompts; --yes/--non-interactive; --deep gateway scans; better restart/service hints.
• Agent loop + compaction: compaction/pruning tuning, overflow handling, safer bootstrap context, and per-provider threading/confirmations; opt-in tool-result pruning + compact tracking.
• Sandbox + tools: per-agent sandbox overrides, workspaceAccess controls, session tool visibility, tool policy overrides, process isolation, and tool schema/timeout/reaction unification.
• Providers (Telegram/WhatsApp/Discord/Slack/Signal/iMessage): retry/backoff, threading, reactions, media groups/attachments, mention gating, typing behavior, and error/log stability; long polling + forum topic isolation for Telegram.
• Gateway/CLI UX: clawdbot logs, cron list colors/aliases, docs search, agents list/add/delete flows, status usage snapshots, runtime/auth source display, and /status/commands auth unification.
• Control UI/Web: logs tab, focus mode polish, config form resilience, streaming stability, tool output caps, windowed chat history, and reconnect/password URL auth.
• macOS/Android/TUI/Build: macOS gateway races, QR bundling, JSON5 config safety, Voice Wake hardening; Android EXIF rotation + APK naming/versioning; TUI key handling; tooling/bundling fixes.
• Packaging/compat: npm dist folder coverage, Node 25 qrcode-terminal import fixes, Bun/Playwright/WebSocket patches, and Docker Bun install.
• Docs: new FAQ/ClawdHub/config examples/showcase entries and clarified auth, sandbox, and systemd docs.

Maintenance

• Skills additions (Himalaya email, CodexBar, 1Password).
• Dependency refreshes (pi-* stack, Slack SDK, discord-api-types, file-type, zod, Biome, Vite).
• Refactors: centralized group allowlist/mention policy; lint/import cleanup; switch tsx → bun for TS execution.

2026.1.5

What matters for hosted operators

• Validate channel delivery behavior (web chat + Telegram).
• Verify model/provider settings and fallback behavior.
• Run a smoke test after deploy: message flow, tool call, and response quality.

Post-upgrade checklist

1. Send/receive test messages in active channels.
2. Confirm bot settings and auth paths still behave as expected.
3. Check billing/usage visibility and dashboard status.
4. Log regressions immediately and keep rollback notes.

Related reading

• OpenClaw Release Notes Hub (2026)
• Best OpenClaw Hosting in 2026
• Pricing · Why OpenClaw VPS · FAQ

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Source

• https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/releases/tag/v2026.1.8