OpenClaw agent availability — external HTTP checks
OpenClaw runs a local Gateway that agents and tools talk to. By default it listens on port 18789 and exposes a lightweight GET /health endpoint so you can confirm the process is up. That is perfect on your laptop. It is not, by itself, a 24/7 external signal when you step away, lose Wi‑Fi, or need customer-facing uptime history.
The built-in openclaw health CLI answers “is my gateway responding right now?” from the same machine or network. StillOnline answers “did the rest of the internet see my agent stack as up, on a schedule, with alerts and a status page?” Those are complementary, not identical jobs.
What OpenClaw exposes
Typical local check:
curl -sS http://127.0.0.1:18789/health
You should get a fast HTTP 200 while the Gateway is healthy. StillOnline (and any external monitor) needs a public HTTPS URL that reaches that same path through your edge — not 127.0.0.1 on your desk.
Make /health reachable externally
Pick one pattern that matches how you run agents:
- Reverse proxy (nginx, Caddy, Traefik) on a VPS or home server — terminate TLS, proxy
https://agents.example.com/health→http://127.0.0.1:18789/health, restrict other routes if possible. - SSH tunnel or Cloudflare Tunnel — expose only
/health(or a dedicated subdomain) instead of the full Gateway admin surface. - Dedicated health subdomain — e.g.
https://openclaw-health.yourdomain.com/healthwith IP allowlisting or basic auth in front if your threat model requires it.
Security note: exposing the Gateway broadly increases attack surface. Prefer a narrow path, TLS, and network controls. StillOnline only performs GET checks; it does not authenticate to your agent APIs.
Five steps in StillOnline
- Start free — sign in (Google on v1).
- Create a project (name + public status slug).
- Add an HTTP check pointing at your public health URL (expect 200, 5‑minute interval on Free).
- Confirm the auto status page shows green after a few minutes.
- Subscribe to email alerts on the status page if you want off-machine notifications.
Free includes 1 project, 1 URL check, 24h history. Need more checks, 90d history, private pages, REST API, or MCP for Cursor/Claude? See Pricing — Pro is $9/mo.
openclaw health CLI vs external monitoring
openclaw health | StillOnline HTTP check | |
|---|---|---|
| Runs from | Your shell / CI on your network | External probes on a schedule |
| Best for | Local debugging, pre-deploy smoke | 24/7 uptime, status page, email subscribers |
| History | Session output | 24h (Free) or 90d (Pro+) |
| Status page | No | Yes, tied to the project |
Use the CLI when you are actively developing. Add StillOnline when “agent gateway down while I sleep” should page someone or show on a public status URL.
Honest limits
StillOnline is not a replacement for full observability (logs, traces, on-call rotations). It will not introspect OpenClaw queues or tool errors — only whether your health URL returns success. If you need dozens of free monitors and no status page, compare UptimeRobot or self-hosted Uptime Kuma.
Related: MCP status monitoring for AI agents · Health check URL quickstart · MCP docs.
FAQ
Can StillOnline monitor http://127.0.0.1:18789/health directly?
No. Probes run from the public internet. Publish /health behind HTTPS via tunnel or reverse proxy, then point the check at that URL.
Does StillOnline replace openclaw health?
No. Keep the CLI for local verification. Use StillOnline when you need scheduled external checks, history, and a status page.
What happens on the Free plan if I have two agents?
Free is 1 URL check per account. Combine health behind one proxy URL, upgrade to Pro ($9) for more checks, or run a second tool for extra endpoints.
Will a tunnel flap look like downtime?
Yes. If your tunnel or VPS is down, external checks fail even when OpenClaw is fine locally — which is usually what you want for “can users reach my agent stack?”
Is MCP required for OpenClaw monitoring?
No. MCP (/en/docs/mcp) is optional on Pro+ for creating checks from Cursor/Claude. The dashboard is enough for a single health URL.