fix(ui): install devDependencies during ui:build (closes #53027) by juliabush · Pull Request #59267 · openclaw/openclaw

juliabush · 2026-04-01T22:02:43Z

Summary

Problem: ui:build installs production-only dependencies (--prod + NODE_ENV=production), which strips devDependencies required for Vite/PostCSS.
Why it matters: Fresh installs fail to build the Control UI, breaking gateway startup unless users manually reinstall dependencies.
What changed: Removed production-only install logic and always run pnpm install with full dependency set.
What did NOT change (scope boundary): No changes to UI code, build config, or dependency versions.

Change Type (select all)

Scope (select all touched areas)

Linked Issue/PR

Closes ui:build installs production-only deps and breaks Control UI asset generation #53027
This PR fixes a bug or regression

Root Cause / Regression History (if applicable)

Root cause: scripts/ui.js conditionally installs dependencies with --prod and NODE_ENV=production during build, removing required devDependencies.
Missing detection / guardrail: No check ensuring required UI build tooling (vite, postcss) remains available after install.
Prior context: Introduced as an optimization to reduce install size, but incompatible with build-time tooling requirements.
Why this regressed now: UI build depends on devDependencies; production-only install breaks modern Vite pipeline.
If unknown, what was ruled out: N/A

Regression Test Plan (if applicable)

Coverage level that should have caught this:
- Unit test
- Seam / integration test
- End-to-end test
Target test or file: UI bootstrap / gateway startup flow
Scenario the test should lock in: Fresh clone → ui:build succeeds without manual install
Why this is the smallest reliable guardrail: Requires full install + build pipeline validation
Existing test that already covers this (if any): None
If no new test is added, why not: Out of scope for minimal fix

User-visible / Behavior Changes

Fresh installs no longer fail during UI build
No manual pnpm install workaround required

Diagram (if applicable)

Before:
ui:build -> install --prod -> missing dev deps -> build fails

After:
ui:build -> install -> full deps -> build succeeds

Security Impact (required)

New permissions/capabilities? No
Secrets/tokens handling changed? No
New/changed network calls? No
Command/tool execution surface changed? No
Data access scope changed? No

Repro + Verification

Environment

OS: Linux (Ubuntu)
Runtime/container: local
Model/provider: N/A
Integration/channel: CLI
Relevant config (redacted): default

Steps

Fresh clone repo
Run pnpm ui:build
Observe build

Expected

UI builds successfully

Actual

Fails due to missing devDependencies

Evidence

Trace/log snippets

Human Verification (required)

Verified scenarios:
- Fresh install + build succeeds
- Gateway no longer errors on missing UI assets
Edge cases checked:
- Re-running build does not reinstall unnecessarily
What you did not verify:
- CI environments
- Windows-specific behavior

Review Conversations

I replied to or resolved every bot review conversation I addressed in this PR.
I left unresolved only the conversations that still need reviewer or maintainer judgment.

Compatibility / Migration

Backward compatible? Yes
Config/env changes? No
Migration needed? No

Risks and Mitigations

Risk: Slightly larger dependency install footprint
- Mitigation: Required for correct build; aligns with standard Vite workflows

greptile-apps · 2026-04-01T22:05:01Z

Greptile Summary

This PR fixes a real bug where ui:build ran pnpm install --prod with NODE_ENV=production, stripping the devDependencies (e.g. vite, postcss) required for the build step, causing fresh installs to fail. The approach — removing --prod and the NODE_ENV override — is correct in spirit, but the implementation is incomplete: installEnv = process.env still passes any NODE_ENV=production that the caller's environment already has set (common in CI). pnpm treats an ambient NODE_ENV=production the same as --prod, so the root cause would regress in CI even without the explicit flag.

Key changes:

Removes --prod flag from pnpm install during ui:build — correct.
Removes explicit NODE_ENV: "production" injection — correct.
Does not neutralize a pre-existing NODE_ENV=production from the calling environment — this leaves the fix incomplete for CI pipelines.

The suggested fix is to destructure NODE_ENV out of process.env before passing it to runSync, so the install always sees a clean environment regardless of the caller.

Confidence Score: 4/5

Safe to merge for local development, but the P1 NODE_ENV passthrough means the bug will regress in any CI environment where NODE_ENV=production is already set.
The fix is directionally correct and solves the local development case. One P1 finding remains: process.env is passed as-is to pnpm install, so an ambient NODE_ENV=production from the calling environment (standard in CI) would still cause pnpm to omit devDependencies — the exact failure mode the PR intends to fix. The PR author explicitly noted CI environments were not verified. A one-line destructuring fix resolves this cleanly.
scripts/ui.js — specifically the installEnv assignment at line 187.

Prompt To Fix All With AI

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: scripts/ui.js
Line: 187-188

Comment:
**`NODE_ENV=production` passthrough still skips devDependencies in CI**

The fix removes the explicit `{ ...process.env, NODE_ENV: "production" }` override and the `--prod` flag, which is correct. However, `installEnv = process.env` is a direct reference to the current environment — meaning that if the caller already has `NODE_ENV=production` set (which CI pipelines routinely do), pnpm will still install production-only dependencies and skip `devDependencies` like `vite` and `postcss`. The original bug would regress in any environment where `NODE_ENV` is already `"production"`.

The fix should explicitly neutralize `NODE_ENV` for the install step:

```suggestion
    const { NODE_ENV: _stripped, ...installEnv } = process.env;
    const installArgs = ["install"];
```

This removes `NODE_ENV` from the environment passed to `pnpm install` without mutating `process.env`, ensuring devDependencies are always installed regardless of the calling environment. The actual build step (`run(runner.cmd, ...)`) still inherits the full `process.env` (including any `NODE_ENV=production`), so production-mode bundling behaviour is preserved.

Note: The PR description explicitly acknowledges "What you did NOT verify: CI environments" — this is likely why the regression would only surface there.

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

_{Reviews (1): Last reviewed commit: "fix(ui): install devDependencies during ..." | Re-trigger Greptile}

obviyus

Reviewed latest changes; landing now.

…iabush

…iabush)

obviyus · 2026-04-02T09:05:41Z

Landed on main.

Landed source commit: 956b838
Merge commit: 5c36c2d

Thanks @juliabush.

@juliabush

) * fix(ui): install devDependencies during ui:build * fix: keep ui:build self-heal documented (#59267) (thanks @juliabush) --------- Co-authored-by: Ayaan Zaidi <[email protected]>

…juliabush