Managing Chat Channels with OpenClaw

Managing multiple chat platforms usually means switching between different tabs or hunting for API keys across various dashboards. It gets messy fast when you try to track which bot is active or why a specific account isn’t responding. I find that having a single place to handle these connections makes development much easier.

What You’ll Need

• Gateway configuration
• Channel guides

Quick Start

To see what is currently running on your Gateway, I use the list and status commands. These give you a clear view of your active accounts and their runtime status.

openclaw channels list
openclaw channels status

Adding and Removing Accounts

Adding a new account, like Telegram, requires the channel type and your token. If you aren’t sure which flags to use for a specific platform, openclaw channels add --help shows the specific requirements like app tokens or signal-cli paths.

openclaw channels add --channel telegram --token <bot-token>
openclaw channels remove --channel telegram --delete

Interactive Login

For platforms like WhatsApp that require interactive steps, use the login command:

openclaw channels login --channel whatsapp
openclaw channels logout --channel whatsapp

Finding IDs and Capabilities

I often need to check what a channel can actually do or find specific IDs for users and groups. To see feature support and provider-specific scopes:

openclaw channels capabilities
openclaw channels capabilities --channel discord --target channel:123

To resolve names into IDs using the provider directory:

openclaw channels resolve --channel slack "#general" "@jane"
openclaw channels resolve --channel discord "My Server/docs/support" "@someone"
openclaw channels resolve --channel matrix "Project Room"

Troubleshooting

When a connection fails, I recommend these two commands first:

• Run openclaw status --deep for a broad probe.
• Use openclaw doctor for guided fixes.

If openclaw channels list prints a Claude: HTTP 403 ... user:profile error, your usage snapshot needs the user:profile scope. You can resolve this by using the --no-usage flag, providing a session key via CLAUDE_WEB_SESSION_KEY or CLAUDE_WEB_COOKIE, or re-authenticating through the Claude Code CLI.

Still stuck? Ask the AI Setup Assistant.

What’s Next

• Channel guides
• Gateway configuration