fix(installer): fail fast on missing Homebrew Node

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -101,6 +101,7 @@ Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai
 - Gateway/Linux: include fnm `aliases/default/bin` in generated service PATHs and let doctor accept either modern fnm aliases or the legacy `current/bin` symlink, avoiding false PATH repair prompts. Fixes #68169. Thanks @richard-scott.
 - Installer/Linux: run apt installs with noninteractive dpkg and needrestart settings so fresh Ubuntu 24.04 `curl | bash` installs do not hang while installing Node.js, Git, or build tools. Fixes #41146. Thanks @iht76, @alexcarv318, @cs3gallery, @firofame, and @cgdusek.
 - Providers/Bedrock: defer the AWS SDK import until Bedrock discovery actually runs so plugin registration and setup stay lightweight on cold start. Fixes #71690. Thanks @jarvis-ai-gregmoser.
+- Installer/macOS: stop immediately when Homebrew `node@24` installation fails and avoid printing PATH advice for missing Homebrew Node installs. Fixes #70411. Thanks @1fanwang.
 - WhatsApp: remove ack reactions after a visible reply when `messages.removeAckAfterReply` is enabled, matching other reaction-capable channels. Fixes #26183. Thanks @MrUnforsaken.
 - Providers/Z.AI: map OpenClaw thinking controls to Z.AI's `thinking` payload and add opt-in preserved thinking replay via `params.preserveThinking`, so GLM 5.x can keep prior `reasoning_content` when requested. Fixes #58680. Thanks @xuanmingguo.
 - Channels/status: keep read-only channel lists on manifest and package metadata by default, loading setup runtime only for explicit fallback callers. Thanks @shakkernerd.

scripts/install.sh

@@ -1353,13 +1353,16 @@ ensure_macos_default_node_active() {
     active_path="$(command -v node 2>/dev/null || echo "not found")"
     active_version="$(node -v 2>/dev/null || echo "missing")"
 
-    ui_error "Node.js v${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR} was installed but this shell is using ${active_version} (${active_path})"
-    if [[ -n "$brew_node_prefix" ]]; then
-        echo "Add this to your shell profile and restart shell:"
-        echo "  export PATH=\"${brew_node_prefix}/bin:\$PATH\""
-    else
-        echo "Ensure Homebrew node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR} is first on PATH, then rerun installer."
+    if [[ -z "$brew_node_prefix" || ! -x "${brew_node_prefix}/bin/node" ]]; then
+        ui_error "Homebrew node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR} is not installed on disk"
+        echo "The previous 'brew install' step appears to have failed."
+        echo "Re-run 'brew install node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}' directly or rerun the installer with --verbose to see the underlying error."
+        return 1
     fi
+
+    ui_error "Node.js v${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR} was installed but this shell is using ${active_version} (${active_path})"
+    echo "Add this to your shell profile and restart shell:"
+    echo "  export PATH=\"${brew_node_prefix}/bin:\$PATH\""
     return 1
 }
 
@@ -1423,7 +1426,10 @@ check_node() {
 install_node() {
     if [[ "$OS" == "macos" ]]; then
         ui_info "Installing Node.js via Homebrew"
-        run_quiet_step "Installing node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}" brew install "node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}"
+        if ! run_quiet_step "Installing node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}" brew install "node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}"; then
+            echo "Re-run with --verbose or run 'brew install node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}' directly, then rerun the installer."
+            exit 1
+        fi
         brew link "node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}" --overwrite --force 2>/dev/null || true
         if ! ensure_macos_default_node_active; then
             exit 1

test/scripts/install-sh.test.ts

@@ -1,8 +1,19 @@
+import { spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
 const SCRIPT_PATH = "scripts/install.sh";
 
+function runInstallShell(script: string) {
+  return spawnSync("bash", ["-c", script], {
+    encoding: "utf8",
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      OPENCLAW_INSTALL_SH_NO_RUN: "1",
+    },
+  });
+}
+
 describe("install.sh apt behavior", () => {
   const script = readFileSync(SCRIPT_PATH, "utf8");
 
@@ -29,3 +40,87 @@ describe("install.sh apt behavior", () => {
     );
   });
 });
+
+describe("install.sh macOS Homebrew Node behavior", () => {
+  const script = readFileSync(SCRIPT_PATH, "utf8");
+
+  it("stops when Homebrew node installation fails", () => {
+    expect(script).toContain(
+      'if ! run_quiet_step "Installing node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}" brew install "node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}"; then',
+    );
+
+    const failedInstallIndex = script.indexOf(
+      'if ! run_quiet_step "Installing node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}" brew install "node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}"; then',
+    );
+    const brewLinkIndex = script.indexOf(
+      'brew link "node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR}" --overwrite --force',
+    );
+    expect(failedInstallIndex).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0);
+    expect(brewLinkIndex).toBeGreaterThan(failedInstallIndex);
+  });
+
+  it("aborts before brew link when Homebrew node installation fails at runtime", () => {
+    const result = runInstallShell(`
+      set -euo pipefail
+      source "${SCRIPT_PATH}"
+      OS=macos
+      run_quiet_step() { echo "run_quiet_step:$*"; return 1; }
+      brew() { echo "brew:$*"; return 0; }
+      ensure_macos_default_node_active() { echo "ensure-called"; return 0; }
+      if install_node; then
+        echo "install_node returned success"
+      else
+        echo "install_node returned failure"
+      fi
+    `);
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe(1);
+    expect(result.stdout).toContain(
+      "Re-run with --verbose or run 'brew install node@24' directly, then rerun the installer.",
+    );
+    expect(result.stdout).not.toContain("brew:link");
+    expect(result.stdout).not.toContain("ensure-called");
+  });
+
+  it("separates missing Homebrew node from PATH shadowing", () => {
+    const missingNodeGuardIndex = script.indexOf(
+      'if [[ -z "$brew_node_prefix" || ! -x "${brew_node_prefix}/bin/node" ]]; then',
+    );
+    const pathAdviceIndex = script.indexOf("Add this to your shell profile and restart shell:");
+
+    expect(missingNodeGuardIndex).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0);
+    expect(script).toContain(
+      'ui_error "Homebrew node@${NODE_DEFAULT_MAJOR} is not installed on disk"',
+    );
+    expect(script).toContain('echo "  export PATH=\\"${brew_node_prefix}/bin:\\$PATH\\""');
+    expect(pathAdviceIndex).toBeGreaterThan(missingNodeGuardIndex);
+  });
+
+  it("does not print PATH advice when Homebrew node is missing at runtime", () => {
+    const result = runInstallShell(`
+      set -euo pipefail
+      source "${SCRIPT_PATH}"
+      OS=macos
+      missing_prefix="$(mktemp -d)/node@24"
+      brew() {
+        if [[ "$1" == "--prefix" ]]; then
+          echo "$missing_prefix"
+          return 0
+        fi
+        return 0
+      }
+      node_major_version() { echo 16; }
+      if ensure_macos_default_node_active; then
+        echo "ensure returned success"
+      else
+        echo "ensure returned failure"
+      fi
+    `);
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+    expect(result.stdout).toContain("Homebrew node@24 is not installed on disk");
+    expect(result.stdout).toContain("ensure returned failure");
+    expect(result.stdout).not.toContain("Node.js v24 was installed");
+    expect(result.stdout).not.toContain("Add this to your shell profile");
+  });
+});