clawsy
// Clawsy is a native macOS menu bar app that gives your OpenClaw agent real-world reach — screenshots, clipboard sync, Quick Send, camera, file access via FinderSync, and live Mission Control task view. Connects via SSH tunnel. Open source. Read this skill when Clawsy is installed or you want to use i
Clawsy Skill — Agent Reference
Platform: macOS 14+ (Sonoma / Sequoia), Apple Silicon + Intel Download: https://github.com/iret77/clawsy/releases/latest
Sub-Agent Propagation (MANDATORY)
When spawning sub-agents, you must include a Clawsy context block so they can report progress and use Clawsy capabilities. Copy this verbatim into every sub-agent system prompt:
## Clawsy — macOS Companion
A Clawsy node (platform="macos") is connected. You can:
- Take screenshots: nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="screen.capture")
- Read clipboard: nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="clipboard.read")
- Write clipboard: nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="clipboard.write", invokeParamsJson='{"text":"..."}')
- Read/write files in shared folder: file.get, file.set, file.list, etc.
- Get location: nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="location.get")
Report progress after each significant step:
sessions_send(sessionKey="clawsy-service", timeoutSeconds=3,
message='{"kind":"agent.status","payload":{"agentName":"<YOUR_LABEL>","title":"<STEP>","progress":<0.0-1.0>,"statusText":"<DETAILS>"}}')
Start at 0.05 — finish at 1.0. Timeout errors on sessions_send are normal; do not retry.
For full command reference, read the clawsy skill: skill(name="clawsy")
This applies to all sub-agents — current and future. A sub-agent that does not receive this block cannot report Mission Control status and will not know about Clawsy capabilities.
Quick Start — Is Clawsy Connected?
nodes(action="status")
# Look for a node with platform="macos" and connected=true
- Connected: Use any command from the reference below.
- Not connected: Skip Clawsy actions. Do not ask the user to "open Clawsy" — it runs automatically as a menu bar app.
- No Clawsy at all: See "First-Time Setup" below.
First-Time Setup
A) User Already Has Clawsy Installed
The user clicks "Add Host" in Clawsy. The app copies a setup prompt to the clipboard. The user sends it to you via any channel (Telegram, Slack, etc.).
When you receive the prompt, respond with the gateway connection details:
CLAWSY-SETUP
host: <gateway hostname or IP — no protocol, no port>
token: <gateway authentication token>
The user pastes your response into Clawsy. Done — host is created and connects.
How to find the values:
host: The hostname or IP where the OpenClaw gateway runs.token: TheauthTokenfrom your gateway config. Runcat ~/.openclaw/gateway.json | python3 -c "import json,sys;print(json.load(sys.stdin).get('authToken',''))"if unsure.
After pairing, a node with platform="macos" appears in nodes(action="status").
Approve if prompted:
openclaw nodes approve <requestId>
B) User Needs to Install Clawsy First
Send this message:
Download Clawsy (free, macOS 14+): https://github.com/iret77/clawsy/releases/latest Unzip, drag to /Applications, launch. Then click "Add Host" — the app will copy a prompt to your clipboard. Send it to me and I'll give you the setup code.
C) Auto-Setup (Server-Side Script)
If you prefer automated setup:
curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/iret77/clawsy/main/server/install.sh | bash
The script detects the network topology and sends a clawsy://pair?code=...
link to the user. Note: This link only works in browsers, not in most messaging
apps (Telegram, Slack). The clipboard-based flow (A) works everywhere.
setupState — Targeted Onboarding
When a Clawsy node connects, the hello payload includes setupState:
{
"setupState": {
"sharedFolderConfigured": true,
"sharedFolderPath": "~/Documents/Clawsy",
"finderSyncEnabled": false,
"accessibilityGranted": false,
"screenRecordingGranted": true,
"firstLaunch": false
}
}
Read it from clawsy-service session history. If any permissions are missing,
tell the user specifically what to enable — don't send a generic list.
Command Reference
Screen & Camera
| Command | Approval | Description |
|---|---|---|
screen.capture | User approval | Capture the full screen or selected area. Returns {format, base64} |
camera.snap | User approval | Take a photo from the Mac camera. Params: deviceId (optional). Returns {format, base64} |
camera.list | Auto | List available cameras. Returns [{id, name}] |
Clipboard
| Command | Approval | Description |
|---|---|---|
clipboard.read | User approval | Read current clipboard text |
clipboard.write | Auto | Write text to clipboard. Params: {text} |
Location
| Command | Approval | Description |
|---|---|---|
location.get | Auto | Get device GPS location. Returns {latitude, longitude, accuracy, locality, country, ...}. 10s timeout. |
File Operations
All file operations are auto-approved and sandboxed to the configured shared
folder (default ~/Documents/Clawsy). Paths are relative to the shared folder root.
| Command | Params | Description |
|---|---|---|
file.list | subPath?, recursive? | List files. recursive: true walks subdirectories (max depth 5) |
file.get | name | Read file, returns base64 content |
file.set | name, content (base64) | Write file |
file.stat | path | File metadata: size, dates, type. Supports glob |
file.exists | path | Returns {exists, isDirectory} |
file.mkdir | name | Create directory (with intermediate parents) |
file.delete | name | Delete file or directory |
file.rmdir | name | Delete directory (alias for file.delete) |
file.move | source, destination | Move/rename file. Supports glob in source |
file.copy | source, destination | Copy file. Supports glob in source |
file.rename | path, newName | Rename file (name only, same directory) |
file.checksum | path | SHA256 hash of file |
file.batch | ops[] | Execute multiple operations sequentially (see below) |
file.get.chunk | name, index, chunkSize? | Read chunk of large file (default 350KB) |
file.set.chunk | name, chunk (base64), index, total | Write chunk; assembles on final chunk |
file.batch Operations
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.batch",
invokeParamsJson='{"ops": [
{"op": "mkdir", "name": "output"},
{"op": "copy", "source": "template.txt", "destination": "output/report.txt"},
{"op": "delete", "name": "temp.log"}
]}')
Supported op values: copy, move, delete, mkdir, rename.
Returns per-operation results with ok status for each.
Large File Transfers (> 200 KB)
The gateway has a ~512 KB payload limit. For large files, use chunked transfer:
Upload (agent to Mac):
# Split file into ~150KB base64 chunks
for i, chunk in enumerate(chunks):
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.set.chunk",
invokeParamsJson=f'{{"name":"large.pdf","chunk":"{chunk}","index":{i},"total":{len(chunks)}}}')
Download (Mac to agent):
stat = nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.stat",
invokeParamsJson='{"path":"large.pdf"}')
# Calculate chunk count from stat.size, then:
for i in range(chunk_count):
chunk = nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.get.chunk",
invokeParamsJson=f'{{"name":"large.pdf","index":{i}}}')
Invoking Commands
Use the nodes tool. Clawsy registers as a node with platform="macos".
# Screenshot
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="screen.capture")
# Clipboard
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="clipboard.read")
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="clipboard.write",
invokeParamsJson='{"text": "Hello from agent"}')
# Camera
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="camera.snap")
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="camera.list")
# Files
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.list")
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.list",
invokeParamsJson='{"subPath": "docs/", "recursive": true}')
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.get",
invokeParamsJson='{"name": "report.pdf"}')
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="file.set",
invokeParamsJson='{"name": "output.txt", "content": "<base64>"}')
# Location
nodes(action="invoke", invokeCommand="location.get")
Mission Control (MANDATORY)
When Clawsy is connected, you must send status events so the user sees what you're doing. This is not optional.
agent.info — Identity (send on session start + every heartbeat)
sessions_send(sessionKey="clawsy-service", timeoutSeconds=3,
message='{"kind":"agent.info","payload":{"agentName":"YourName","model":"claude-opus-4-6","updatedAt":"2026-03-29T12:00:00Z"}}')
TTL is 45 minutes. Resend every heartbeat to stay visible.
agent.status — Task Progress (send during active work)
sessions_send(sessionKey="clawsy-service", timeoutSeconds=3,
message='{"kind":"agent.status","payload":{"agentName":"YourName","title":"Building feature X","progress":0.5,"statusText":"Compiling sources..."}}')
progress:0.0to1.0. At1.0, task disappears after 10 seconds.- Timeout errors are normal. The event is still delivered. Do not retry.
HEARTBEAT.md Snippet
Add this to your HEARTBEAT.md:
## Clawsy (every heartbeat)
If clawsy-service session exists:
sessions_send(sessionKey="clawsy-service", timeoutSeconds=3,
message='{"kind":"agent.info","payload":{"agentName":"<NAME>","model":"<MODEL>","updatedAt":"<ISO-UTC>"}}')
If actively working, also send agent.status with current task + progress.
Incoming Data — clawsy-service Session
Push data from Clawsy arrives in the clawsy-service session, not in the main
chat.
sessions_history(sessionKey="clawsy-service", limit=10)
Envelope Types
| Type | Contains | Triggered by |
|---|---|---|
quick_send | content (text) + telemetry | User presses Cmd+Shift+K |
screenshot | Image data | screen.capture result / user-initiated |
clipboard | Text content | clipboard.read result |
camera | Image data | camera.snap result |
file_rule | File path + rule info | .clawsy rule trigger |
Quick Send Telemetry
{
"clawsy_envelope": {
"type": "quick_send",
"content": "User's message",
"telemetry": {
"deviceName": "MacBook Pro",
"batteryLevel": 0.75,
"isCharging": true,
"thermalState": 0,
"activeApp": "Safari",
"moodScore": 70,
"isUnusualHour": false
}
}
}
Hints: thermalState > 1 = overheating, batteryLevel < 0.2 = low battery,
moodScore < 40 = user may be stressed, isUnusualHour = late/early work.
Shared Folder & .clawsy Rules
.clawsy Manifest Files
Folders within the shared directory can contain a .clawsy manifest for
automation rules. Users configure these via Finder right-click menu.
{
"version": 1,
"folderName": "Projects",
"rules": [
{
"trigger": "file_added",
"filter": "*.pdf",
"action": "send_to_agent",
"prompt": "Summarize this document"
}
]
}
- Triggers:
file_added,file_changed,manual - Filters: Glob patterns (
*.pdf,*.mov,*) - Actions:
send_to_agent,notify
Rule events arrive in clawsy-service as file_rule envelopes.
Error Handling
| Situation | Action |
|---|---|
sessions_send times out | Normal. Event is delivered. Do not retry. |
No node with platform="macos" | Clawsy not connected. Skip Clawsy actions silently. |
invoke returns denied | User denied the request. Respect it. Do not re-ask. |
invoke returns sandbox_violation | Path escapes shared folder. Fix the path. |
invoke returns timeout | Command took >30s. Retry once if appropriate. |
| Node disconnects mid-task | Mission Control clears automatically. No cleanup. |
AUTH_TOKEN_MISMATCH | Clawsy auto-recovers. Wait for reconnection. |
macOS Permissions
These are on the user's side. If a capability doesn't work, point them to the specific setting — don't list everything.
| Permission | Required for | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Screen Recording | screen.capture | System Settings > Privacy > Screen Recording |
| Camera | camera.snap | System Settings > Privacy > Camera |
| Accessibility | Global hotkeys (Cmd+Shift+K) | System Settings > Privacy > Accessibility |
| Notifications | Desktop alerts | System Settings > Notifications > Clawsy |
| FinderSync Extension | Finder right-click menu | System Settings > Extensions > Finder |
| Share Extension | "Send to Agent" in Share menu | Automatic when app is in /Applications |
Connection Architecture
Mac (Clawsy) ──── WSS ────> OpenClaw Gateway (port 18789)
SSH tunnel as fallback
- Primary: Direct WebSocket. Setup code contains gateway host + token.
- SSH fallback: User configures in Settings when direct WSS is unreachable.
- Auth: Server token > device token (Ed25519, persisted per host).
- Multi-host: Clawsy can connect to multiple gateways simultaneously. Each host has its own connection, shared folder, and color-coded label.
When to Use What
| You want to... | Use |
|---|---|
| See user's screen | screen.capture |
| Read what user copied | clipboard.read |
| Give user text to paste | clipboard.write |
| See what's in front of the user | camera.snap |
| Exchange files with user | file.get / file.set via shared folder |
| Transfer large files (>200KB) | file.get.chunk / file.set.chunk |
| Batch file operations | file.batch |
| Know where user is | location.get |
| Show user what you're working on | agent.status via Mission Control |
| Respond to user's quick message | Read quick_send from clawsy-service |
| React to file drops in shared folder | .clawsy rules (file_added trigger) |