Gateway: add SecretRef support for gateway.auth.token with auth-mode guardrails (#35094)

2026-03-12 07:20:45 +00:00 · 2026-03-05 12:53:56 -06:00
parent bc66a8fa81
commit 72cf9253fc
112 changed files with 5750 additions and 465 deletions
--- a/docs/cli/configure.md
+++ b/docs/cli/configure.md
@@ -24,6 +24,9 @@ Notes:

 - Choosing where the Gateway runs always updates `gateway.mode`. You can select "Continue" without other sections if that is all you need.
 - Channel-oriented services (Slack/Discord/Matrix/Microsoft Teams) prompt for channel/room allowlists during setup. You can enter names or IDs; the wizard resolves names to IDs when possible.
+- If you run the daemon install step, token auth requires a token, and `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, configure validates the SecretRef but does not persist resolved plaintext token values into supervisor service environment metadata.
+- If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, configure blocks daemon install with actionable remediation guidance.
+- If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, configure blocks daemon install until mode is set explicitly.

 ## Examples

--- a/docs/cli/daemon.md
+++ b/docs/cli/daemon.md
@@ -38,6 +38,13 @@ openclaw daemon uninstall
 - `install`: `--port`, `--runtime <node|bun>`, `--token`, `--force`, `--json`
 - lifecycle (`uninstall|start|stop|restart`): `--json`

+Notes:
+
+- `status` resolves configured auth SecretRefs for probe auth when possible.
+- When token auth requires a token and `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, `install` validates that the SecretRef is resolvable but does not persist the resolved token into service environment metadata.
+- If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, install fails closed.
+- If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, install is blocked until mode is set explicitly.
+
 ## Prefer

 Use [`openclaw gateway`](/cli/gateway) for current docs and examples.
--- a/docs/cli/dashboard.md
+++ b/docs/cli/dashboard.md
@@ -14,3 +14,9 @@ Open the Control UI using your current auth.
 openclaw dashboard
 openclaw dashboard --no-open
 ```
+
+Notes:
+
+- `dashboard` resolves configured `gateway.auth.token` SecretRefs when possible.
+- For SecretRef-managed tokens (resolved or unresolved), `dashboard` prints/copies/opens a non-tokenized URL to avoid exposing external secrets in terminal output, clipboard history, or browser-launch arguments.
+- If `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed but unresolved in this command path, the command prints a non-tokenized URL and explicit remediation guidance instead of embedding an invalid token placeholder.
--- a/docs/cli/gateway.md
+++ b/docs/cli/gateway.md
@@ -105,6 +105,11 @@ Options:
 - `--no-probe`: skip the RPC probe (service-only view).
 - `--deep`: scan system-level services too.

+Notes:
+
+- `gateway status` resolves configured auth SecretRefs for probe auth when possible.
+- If a required auth SecretRef is unresolved in this command path, probe auth can fail; pass `--token`/`--password` explicitly or resolve the secret source first.
+
 ### `gateway probe`

 `gateway probe` is the “debug everything” command. It always probes:
@@ -162,6 +167,10 @@ openclaw gateway uninstall
 Notes:

 - `gateway install` supports `--port`, `--runtime`, `--token`, `--force`, `--json`.
+- When token auth requires a token and `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, `gateway install` validates that the SecretRef is resolvable but does not persist the resolved token into service environment metadata.
+- If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, install fails closed instead of persisting fallback plaintext.
+- In inferred auth mode, shell-only `OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_PASSWORD`/`CLAWDBOT_GATEWAY_PASSWORD` does not relax install token requirements; use durable config (`gateway.auth.password` or config `env`) when installing a managed service.
+- If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, install is blocked until mode is set explicitly.
 - Lifecycle commands accept `--json` for scripting.

 ## Discover gateways (Bonjour)
--- a/docs/cli/index.md
+++ b/docs/cli/index.md
@@ -359,6 +359,7 @@ Options:
 - `--gateway-bind <loopback|lan|tailnet|auto|custom>`
 - `--gateway-auth <token|password>`
 - `--gateway-token <token>`
+- `--gateway-token-ref-env <name>` (non-interactive; store `gateway.auth.token` as an env SecretRef; requires that env var to be set; cannot be combined with `--gateway-token`)
 - `--gateway-password <password>`
 - `--remote-url <url>`
 - `--remote-token <token>`
--- a/docs/cli/onboard.md
+++ b/docs/cli/onboard.md
@@ -61,6 +61,28 @@ Non-interactive `ref` mode contract:
 - Do not pass inline key flags (for example `--openai-api-key`) unless that env var is also set.
 - If an inline key flag is passed without the required env var, onboarding fails fast with guidance.

+Gateway token options in non-interactive mode:
+
+- `--gateway-auth token --gateway-token <token>` stores a plaintext token.
+- `--gateway-auth token --gateway-token-ref-env <name>` stores `gateway.auth.token` as an env SecretRef.
+- `--gateway-token` and `--gateway-token-ref-env` are mutually exclusive.
+- `--gateway-token-ref-env` requires a non-empty env var in the onboarding process environment.
+- With `--install-daemon`, when token auth requires a token, SecretRef-managed gateway tokens are validated but not persisted as resolved plaintext in supervisor service environment metadata.
+- With `--install-daemon`, if token mode requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, onboarding fails closed with remediation guidance.
+- With `--install-daemon`, if both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, onboarding blocks install until mode is set explicitly.
+
+Example:
+
+```bash
+export OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN="your-token"
+openclaw onboard --non-interactive \
+  --mode local \
+  --auth-choice skip \
+  --gateway-auth token \
+  --gateway-token-ref-env OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN \
+  --accept-risk
+```
+
 Interactive onboarding behavior with reference mode:

 - Choose **Use secret reference** when prompted.
--- a/docs/cli/qr.md
+++ b/docs/cli/qr.md
@@ -35,7 +35,10 @@ openclaw qr --url wss://gateway.example/ws --token '<token>'

 - `--token` and `--password` are mutually exclusive.
 - With `--remote`, if effectively active remote credentials are configured as SecretRefs and you do not pass `--token` or `--password`, the command resolves them from the active gateway snapshot. If gateway is unavailable, the command fails fast.
- Without `--remote`, local `gateway.auth.password` SecretRefs are resolved when password auth can win (explicit `gateway.auth.mode="password"` or inferred password mode with no winning token from auth/env), and no CLI auth override is passed.
+- Without `--remote`, local gateway auth SecretRefs are resolved when no CLI auth override is passed:
+  - `gateway.auth.token` resolves when token auth can win (explicit `gateway.auth.mode="token"` or inferred mode where no password source wins).
+  - `gateway.auth.password` resolves when password auth can win (explicit `gateway.auth.mode="password"` or inferred mode with no winning token from auth/env).
+- If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured (including SecretRefs) and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, setup-code resolution fails until mode is set explicitly.
 - Gateway version skew note: this command path requires a gateway that supports `secrets.resolve`; older gateways return an unknown-method error.
 - After scanning, approve device pairing with:
  - `openclaw devices list`
--- a/docs/cli/tui.md
+++ b/docs/cli/tui.md
@@ -14,6 +14,10 @@ Related:

 - TUI guide: [TUI](/web/tui)

+Notes:
+
+- `tui` resolves configured gateway auth SecretRefs for token/password auth when possible (`env`/`file`/`exec` providers).
+
 ## Examples

 ```bash
--- a/docs/gateway/configuration-reference.md
+++ b/docs/gateway/configuration-reference.md
@@ -2431,6 +2431,7 @@ See [Plugins](/tools/plugin).
 - **Legacy bind aliases**: use bind mode values in `gateway.bind` (`auto`, `loopback`, `lan`, `tailnet`, `custom`), not host aliases (`0.0.0.0`, `127.0.0.1`, `localhost`, `::`, `::1`).
 - **Docker note**: the default `loopback` bind listens on `127.0.0.1` inside the container. With Docker bridge networking (`-p 18789:18789`), traffic arrives on `eth0`, so the gateway is unreachable. Use `--network host`, or set `bind: "lan"` (or `bind: "custom"` with `customBindHost: "0.0.0.0"`) to listen on all interfaces.
 - **Auth**: required by default. Non-loopback binds require a shared token/password. Onboarding wizard generates a token by default.
+- If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured (including SecretRefs), set `gateway.auth.mode` explicitly to `token` or `password`. Startup and service install/repair flows fail when both are configured and mode is unset.
 - `gateway.auth.mode: "none"`: explicit no-auth mode. Use only for trusted local loopback setups; this is intentionally not offered by onboarding prompts.
 - `gateway.auth.mode: "trusted-proxy"`: delegate auth to an identity-aware reverse proxy and trust identity headers from `gateway.trustedProxies` (see [Trusted Proxy Auth](/gateway/trusted-proxy-auth)).
 - `gateway.auth.allowTailscale`: when `true`, Tailscale Serve identity headers can satisfy Control UI/WebSocket auth (verified via `tailscale whois`); HTTP API endpoints still require token/password auth. This tokenless flow assumes the gateway host is trusted. Defaults to `true` when `tailscale.mode = "serve"`.
--- a/docs/gateway/doctor.md
+++ b/docs/gateway/doctor.md
@@ -77,7 +77,7 @@ cat ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
 - Gateway runtime best-practice checks (Node vs Bun, version-manager paths).
 - Gateway port collision diagnostics (default `18789`).
 - Security warnings for open DM policies.
- Gateway auth warnings when no `gateway.auth.token` is set (local mode; offers token generation).
+- Gateway auth checks for local token mode (offers token generation when no token source exists; does not overwrite token SecretRef configs).
 - systemd linger check on Linux.
 - Source install checks (pnpm workspace mismatch, missing UI assets, missing tsx binary).
 - Writes updated config + wizard metadata.
@@ -238,9 +238,11 @@ workspace.

 ### 12) Gateway auth checks (local token)

-Doctor warns when `gateway.auth` is missing on a local gateway and offers to
-generate a token. Use `openclaw doctor --generate-gateway-token` to force token
-creation in automation.
+Doctor checks local gateway token auth readiness.
+
+- If token mode needs a token and no token source exists, doctor offers to generate one.
+- If `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed but unavailable, doctor warns and does not overwrite it with plaintext.
+- `openclaw doctor --generate-gateway-token` forces generation only when no token SecretRef is configured.

 ### 13) Gateway health check + restart

@@ -265,6 +267,9 @@ Notes:
 - `openclaw doctor --yes` accepts the default repair prompts.
 - `openclaw doctor --repair` applies recommended fixes without prompts.
 - `openclaw doctor --repair --force` overwrites custom supervisor configs.
+- If token auth requires a token and `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, doctor service install/repair validates the SecretRef but does not persist resolved plaintext token values into supervisor service environment metadata.
+- If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, doctor blocks the install/repair path with actionable guidance.
+- If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, doctor blocks install/repair until mode is set explicitly.
 - You can always force a full rewrite via `openclaw gateway install --force`.

 ### 16) Gateway runtime + port diagnostics
--- a/docs/gateway/secrets.md
+++ b/docs/gateway/secrets.md
@@ -46,11 +46,13 @@ Examples of inactive surfaces:
    In local mode without those remote surfaces:
  - `gateway.remote.token` is active when token auth can win and no env/auth token is configured.
  - `gateway.remote.password` is active only when password auth can win and no env/auth password is configured.
+- `gateway.auth.token` SecretRef is inactive for startup auth resolution when `OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN` (or `CLAWDBOT_GATEWAY_TOKEN`) is set, because env token input wins for that runtime.

 ## Gateway auth surface diagnostics

-When a SecretRef is configured on `gateway.auth.password`, `gateway.remote.token`, or
-`gateway.remote.password`, gateway startup/reload logs the surface state explicitly:
+When a SecretRef is configured on `gateway.auth.token`, `gateway.auth.password`,
+`gateway.remote.token`, or `gateway.remote.password`, gateway startup/reload logs the
+surface state explicitly:

 - `active`: the SecretRef is part of the effective auth surface and must resolve.
 - `inactive`: the SecretRef is ignored for this runtime because another auth surface wins, or
@@ -65,6 +67,7 @@ When onboarding runs in interactive mode and you choose SecretRef storage, OpenC

 - Env refs: validates env var name and confirms a non-empty value is visible during onboarding.
 - Provider refs (`file` or `exec`): validates provider selection, resolves `id`, and checks resolved value type.
+- Quickstart reuse path: when `gateway.auth.token` is already a SecretRef, onboarding resolves it before probe/dashboard bootstrap (for `env`, `file`, and `exec` refs) using the same fail-fast gate.

 If validation fails, onboarding shows the error and lets you retry.

--- a/docs/reference/secretref-credential-surface.md
+++ b/docs/reference/secretref-credential-surface.md
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@ Scope intent:
 - `tools.web.search.kimi.apiKey`
 - `tools.web.search.perplexity.apiKey`
 - `gateway.auth.password`
+- `gateway.auth.token`
 - `gateway.remote.token`
 - `gateway.remote.password`
 - `cron.webhookToken`
@@ -107,7 +108,6 @@ Out-of-scope credentials include:

 [//]: # "secretref-unsupported-list-start"

- `gateway.auth.token`
 - `commands.ownerDisplaySecret`
 - `channels.matrix.accessToken`
 - `channels.matrix.accounts.*.accessToken`
--- a/docs/reference/secretref-user-supplied-credentials-matrix.json
+++ b/docs/reference/secretref-user-supplied-credentials-matrix.json
@@ -7,7 +7,6 @@
    "commands.ownerDisplaySecret",
    "channels.matrix.accessToken",
    "channels.matrix.accounts.*.accessToken",
-    "gateway.auth.token",
    "hooks.token",
    "hooks.gmail.pushToken",
    "hooks.mappings[].sessionKey",
@@ -385,6 +384,13 @@
      "secretShape": "secret_input",
      "optIn": true
    },
+    {
+      "id": "gateway.auth.token",
+      "configFile": "openclaw.json",
+      "path": "gateway.auth.token",
+      "secretShape": "secret_input",
+      "optIn": true
+    },
    {
      "id": "gateway.remote.password",
      "configFile": "openclaw.json",
--- a/docs/reference/wizard.md
+++ b/docs/reference/wizard.md
@@ -71,6 +71,15 @@ For a high-level overview, see [Onboarding Wizard](/start/wizard).
  <Step title="Gateway">
    - Port, bind, auth mode, tailscale exposure.
    - Auth recommendation: keep **Token** even for loopback so local WS clients must authenticate.
+    - In token mode, interactive onboarding offers:
+      - **Generate/store plaintext token** (default)
+      - **Use SecretRef** (opt-in)
+      - Quickstart reuses existing `gateway.auth.token` SecretRefs across `env`, `file`, and `exec` providers for onboarding probe/dashboard bootstrap.
+      - If that SecretRef is configured but cannot be resolved, onboarding fails early with a clear fix message instead of silently degrading runtime auth.
+    - In password mode, interactive onboarding also supports plaintext or SecretRef storage.
+    - Non-interactive token SecretRef path: `--gateway-token-ref-env <ENV_VAR>`.
+      - Requires a non-empty env var in the onboarding process environment.
+      - Cannot be combined with `--gateway-token`.
    - Disable auth only if you fully trust every local process.
    - Non‑loopback binds still require auth.
  </Step>
@@ -92,6 +101,9 @@ For a high-level overview, see [Onboarding Wizard](/start/wizard).
      - Wizard attempts to enable lingering via `loginctl enable-linger <user>` so the Gateway stays up after logout.
      - May prompt for sudo (writes `/var/lib/systemd/linger`); it tries without sudo first.
    - **Runtime selection:** Node (recommended; required for WhatsApp/Telegram). Bun is **not recommended**.
+    - If token auth requires a token and `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, daemon install validates it but does not persist resolved plaintext token values into supervisor service environment metadata.
+    - If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, daemon install is blocked with actionable guidance.
+    - If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, daemon install is blocked until mode is set explicitly.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Health check">
    - Starts the Gateway (if needed) and runs `openclaw health`.
@@ -130,6 +142,19 @@ openclaw onboard --non-interactive \

 Add `--json` for a machine‑readable summary.

+Gateway token SecretRef in non-interactive mode:
+
+```bash
+export OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN="your-token"
+openclaw onboard --non-interactive \
+  --mode local \
+  --auth-choice skip \
+  --gateway-auth token \
+  --gateway-token-ref-env OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN
+```
+
+`--gateway-token` and `--gateway-token-ref-env` are mutually exclusive.
+
 <Note>
 `--json` does **not** imply non-interactive mode. Use `--non-interactive` (and `--workspace`) for scripts.
 </Note>
--- a/docs/start/wizard-cli-reference.md
+++ b/docs/start/wizard-cli-reference.md
@@ -51,6 +51,13 @@ It does not install or modify anything on the remote host.
  <Step title="Gateway">
    - Prompts for port, bind, auth mode, and tailscale exposure.
    - Recommended: keep token auth enabled even for loopback so local WS clients must authenticate.
+    - In token mode, interactive onboarding offers:
+      - **Generate/store plaintext token** (default)
+      - **Use SecretRef** (opt-in)
+    - In password mode, interactive onboarding also supports plaintext or SecretRef storage.
+    - Non-interactive token SecretRef path: `--gateway-token-ref-env <ENV_VAR>`.
+      - Requires a non-empty env var in the onboarding process environment.
+      - Cannot be combined with `--gateway-token`.
    - Disable auth only if you fully trust every local process.
    - Non-loopback binds still require auth.
  </Step>
@@ -206,7 +213,7 @@ Credential and profile paths:
 - OAuth credentials: `~/.openclaw/credentials/oauth.json`
 - Auth profiles (API keys + OAuth): `~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json`

-API key storage mode:
+Credential storage mode:

 - Default onboarding behavior persists API keys as plaintext values in auth profiles.
 - `--secret-input-mode ref` enables reference mode instead of plaintext key storage.
@@ -222,6 +229,10 @@ API key storage mode:
  - Inline key flags (for example `--openai-api-key`) require that env var to be set; otherwise onboarding fails fast.
  - For custom providers, non-interactive `ref` mode stores `models.providers.<id>.apiKey` as `{ source: "env", provider: "default", id: "CUSTOM_API_KEY" }`.
  - In that custom-provider case, `--custom-api-key` requires `CUSTOM_API_KEY` to be set; otherwise onboarding fails fast.
+- Gateway auth credentials support plaintext and SecretRef choices in interactive onboarding:
+  - Token mode: **Generate/store plaintext token** (default) or **Use SecretRef**.
+  - Password mode: plaintext or SecretRef.
+- Non-interactive token SecretRef path: `--gateway-token-ref-env <ENV_VAR>`.
 - Existing plaintext setups continue to work unchanged.

 <Note>
--- a/docs/start/wizard.md
+++ b/docs/start/wizard.md
@@ -72,8 +72,13 @@ The wizard starts with **QuickStart** (defaults) vs **Advanced** (full control).
   In interactive runs, choosing secret reference mode lets you point at either an environment variable or a configured provider ref (`file` or `exec`), with a fast preflight validation before saving.
 2. **Workspace** — Location for agent files (default `~/.openclaw/workspace`). Seeds bootstrap files.
 3. **Gateway** — Port, bind address, auth mode, Tailscale exposure.
+   In interactive token mode, choose default plaintext token storage or opt into SecretRef.
+   Non-interactive token SecretRef path: `--gateway-token-ref-env <ENV_VAR>`.
 4. **Channels** — WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Google Chat, Mattermost, Signal, BlueBubbles, or iMessage.
 5. **Daemon** — Installs a LaunchAgent (macOS) or systemd user unit (Linux/WSL2).
+   If token auth requires a token and `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, daemon install validates it but does not persist the resolved token into supervisor service environment metadata.
+   If token auth requires a token and the configured token SecretRef is unresolved, daemon install is blocked with actionable guidance.
+   If both `gateway.auth.token` and `gateway.auth.password` are configured and `gateway.auth.mode` is unset, daemon install is blocked until mode is set explicitly.
 6. **Health check** — Starts the Gateway and verifies it's running.
 7. **Skills** — Installs recommended skills and optional dependencies.

--- a/docs/web/dashboard.md
+++ b/docs/web/dashboard.md
@@ -37,10 +37,15 @@ Prefer localhost, Tailscale Serve, or an SSH tunnel.

 - **Localhost**: open `http://127.0.0.1:18789/`.
 - **Token source**: `gateway.auth.token` (or `OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN`); the UI stores a copy in localStorage after you connect.
+- If `gateway.auth.token` is SecretRef-managed, `openclaw dashboard` prints/copies/opens a non-tokenized URL by design. This avoids exposing externally managed tokens in shell logs, clipboard history, or browser-launch arguments.
+- If `gateway.auth.token` is configured as a SecretRef and is unresolved in your current shell, `openclaw dashboard` still prints a non-tokenized URL plus actionable auth setup guidance.
 - **Not localhost**: use Tailscale Serve (tokenless for Control UI/WebSocket if `gateway.auth.allowTailscale: true`, assumes trusted gateway host; HTTP APIs still need token/password), tailnet bind with a token, or an SSH tunnel. See [Web surfaces](/web).

 ## If you see “unauthorized” / 1008

 - Ensure the gateway is reachable (local: `openclaw status`; remote: SSH tunnel `ssh -N -L 18789:127.0.0.1:18789 user@host` then open `http://127.0.0.1:18789/`).
- Retrieve the token from the gateway host: `openclaw config get gateway.auth.token` (or generate one: `openclaw doctor --generate-gateway-token`).
+- Retrieve or supply the token from the gateway host:
+  - Plaintext config: `openclaw config get gateway.auth.token`
+  - SecretRef-managed config: resolve the external secret provider or export `OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN` in this shell, then rerun `openclaw dashboard`
+  - No token configured: `openclaw doctor --generate-gateway-token`
 - In the dashboard settings, paste the token into the auth field, then connect.