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[Bug]: Gateway repeatedly restarts under launchd after crash, making it difficult to debug #73673

Description

@oldsix-cell

Bug type

Behavior bug (incorrect output/state without crash)

Beta release blocker

No

Summary

When running under launchd, gateway crashes cause immediate restarts, leading to continuous restart loops and making debugging difficult.

Steps to reproduce

  1. Configure OpenClaw to run via launchd (LaunchAgent)

  2. Introduce a startup failure (e.g. invalid hostname)

  3. Start the service via launchd

  4. Observe repeated restarts

Expected behavior

System should allow users to observe and debug startup failures without continuous restarts.

Actual behavior

Gateway restarts immediately after each crash:

process exited → restarting...
process exited → restarting...

This repeats continuously without pause.

OpenClaw version

2026.4.24

Operating system

macOS 15.4

Install method

launchd (LaunchAgent)

Model

NOT_RELEVANT

Provider / routing chain

NOT_RELEVANT

Additional provider/model setup details

NOT_RELEVANT

Logs, screenshots, and evidence

Repeated restart behavior observed:

process exited → restarting...
(repeats continuously)

Impact and severity

Affected: macOS users running via launchd
Severity: Medium–High (difficult to debug failures)
Frequency: Always when startup fails
Consequence: Logs scroll rapidly and root cause is hard to inspect

Additional information

Service must be manually stopped using launchctl unload to inspect failures.

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    P2Normal backlog priority with limited blast radius.bugSomething isn't workingbug:behaviorIncorrect behavior without a crashclawsweeper:needs-maintainer-reviewClawSweeper marked this issue as needing maintainer review before automation.clawsweeper:needs-product-decisionClawSweeper marked this issue as needing a product or behavior decision.clawsweeper:no-new-fix-prClawSweeper does not recommend queueing a new automated fix PR for this issue.clawsweeper:source-reproClawSweeper found a high-confidence source-level issue reproduction.impact:crash-loopCrash, hang, restart loop, or process-level availability failure.issue-rating: 🦞 diamond lobsterVery strong issue quality with high-confidence source-level or clear reproduction.

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