Clawdbot Easy Setup
Run your own AI assistant on a cheap VPS for under $5/month instead of buying expensive hardware.
Why Self-Host?
| Option | Cost | Always On | Your Data |
|---|
| Mac Mini M4 | $800+ one-time | Yes | Yes |
| Cloud API only | $20-100+/month | No | No |
| Hetzner VPS | $4.51/month | Yes | Yes |
What Clawdbot Can Do
- Own Gmail address for automated responses
- Telegram/WhatsApp integration
- Voice message transcription
- Social media trend analysis
- Research assistant
- Context-aware memory
- Runs 24/7 unattended
Quick Start
Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)
curl -fsSL --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 https://clawd.bot/install.sh | bash
macOS
curl -fsSL --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 https://clawd.bot/install-macos.sh | bash
Windows (PowerShell as Administrator)
iwr -useb https://clawd.bot/install.ps1 | iex
Windows (Batch file)
install.bat
That's it. The wizard guides you through the rest.
Requirements
- Linux (Ubuntu 22.04+, Debian 11+), macOS, or Windows 10/11
- Node.js 22+ (installer handles this)
- 2GB RAM minimum (4GB recommended)
- API keys for your preferred AI provider (Claude, OpenAI, etc.)
Documentation
Install Scripts
This folder contains improved platform-specific installers:
| File | Platform | Description |
|---|
install.sh | Linux | Universal installer for Ubuntu, Debian, RHEL, etc. |
install-macos.sh | macOS | Optimized for macOS with Homebrew integration |
install.ps1 | Windows | PowerShell script for Windows 10/11 |
install.bat | Windows | Batch wrapper for the PowerShell script |
Improvements Over Original Installer
These scripts are improved versions of the official Clawdbot installer with:
Security Enhancements
- Checksum verification - SHA256 validation for downloaded scripts
- TLS 1.2+ enforcement - Secure downloads only
- No silent failures - Unknown arguments trigger warnings
Code Quality
- Single function definitions - Removed duplicate
resolve_clawdbot_bin function
- Better Node.js validation - Regex-based version parsing instead of fragile
cut chains
- Cleaner logging - Dedicated
log_info, log_success, log_warn, log_error functions
- Consistent error handling - Proper exit codes and error messages
New Features
- Offline mode - Use cached/local resources for airgapped environments
- Dry run mode - Preview what would happen without making changes
- Enterprise URLs - Override download URLs for internal mirrors
- Platform detection - Apple Silicon vs Intel, Windows version checks
- Verbose mode - Debug output for troubleshooting
Linux/macOS Options
# Offline mode (use cached resources)
curl ... | bash -s -- --offline
# Skip checksum verification
curl ... | bash -s -- --skip-checksum
# Dry run (see what would happen)
curl ... | bash -s -- --dry-run
# Verbose output
curl ... | bash -s -- --verbose
# Specific version
curl ... | bash -s -- --version 1.2.3
# Beta version
curl ... | bash -s -- --beta
# Non-interactive (CI/automation)
curl ... | bash -s -- --no-onboard --no-prompt
# Enterprise: custom URLs
CLAWDBOT_REPO_URL=https://git.internal/clawdbot.git \
CLAWDBOT_NODESOURCE_DEB_URL=https://mirror.internal/node.sh \
CLAWDBOT_HOMEBREW_URL=https://mirror.internal/homebrew.sh \
curl ... | bash
Windows Options
# Install specific version
.\install.ps1 -Version "1.2.3"
# Beta version
.\install.ps1 -Beta
# Non-interactive
.\install.ps1 -NoOnboard
# Dry run
.\install.ps1 -DryRun
# Verbose output
.\install.ps1 -Verbose
# Show help
.\install.ps1 -Help
Environment Variables
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
CLAWDBOT_VERSION | latest | Version to install |
CLAWDBOT_BETA | 0 | Use beta version if available |
CLAWDBOT_NO_ONBOARD | 0 | Skip onboarding wizard |
CLAWDBOT_NO_PROMPT | 0 | Disable interactive prompts |
CLAWDBOT_DRY_RUN | 0 | Preview without changes |
CLAWDBOT_VERBOSE | 0 | Enable debug output |
CLAWDBOT_OFFLINE | 0 | Offline mode |
CLAWDBOT_SKIP_CHECKSUM | 0 | Skip SHA256 verification |
CLAWDBOT_INSTALL_METHOD | npm | npm or git |
CLAWDBOT_GIT_DIR | ~/clawdbot | Git checkout directory |
CLAWDBOT_REPO_URL | GitHub | Custom git repository URL |
CLAWDBOT_NODESOURCE_DEB_URL | NodeSource | Custom Node.js installer (Debian) |
CLAWDBOT_NODESOURCE_RPM_URL | NodeSource | Custom Node.js installer (RHEL) |
CLAWDBOT_HOMEBREW_URL | GitHub | Custom Homebrew installer |
Cost Comparison
Running Clawdbot 24/7 for personal use:
