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Install OpenClaw on Ubuntu 24.04 Desktop (Physical Machine)

This guide helps you install Ubuntu 24.04 Desktop on a dedicated physical machine (or a long-running spare host) and deploy OpenClaw as a permanent service. Ideal for running an OpenClaw relay node 24/7.

Step 1: Prepare the installation media

Section titled “Step 1: Prepare the installation media”
  1. Download the Ubuntu 24.04 LTS Desktop ISO from ubuntu.com/download/desktop.
  2. Write the ISO to a USB drive (≥8 GB) using Rufus (Windows) or dd (Linux/macOS).
Terminal window
# Linux / macOS example
sudo dd if=ubuntu-24.04-desktop-amd64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress

Step 2: Install the system (detailed, with screenshots)

Section titled “Step 2: Install the system (detailed, with screenshots)”

2.1 Enter BIOS and boot from USB

Section titled “2.1 Enter BIOS and boot from USB”
  1. Insert the USB drive and restart. Press the BIOS hotkey during boot (varies by vendor):
Brand Key Brand Key
ASUS F2 / Del Dell F2 / F12
Lenovo F2 / F12 HP Esc / F10
MSI Del Gigabyte Del / F12
  1. In BIOS, confirm these settings (recommended):
    • Boot mode: UEFI (disable Legacy/CSM; most modern machines default to UEFI)
    • Secure Boot: can stay enabled — Ubuntu 24.04 supports it; disable only if the machine fails to boot
    • Boot order: put the USB drive first
  2. Save and exit (usually F10) to boot from the USB drive.

Alternatively, press the boot-menu key at startup (often F12 / F11 / Esc) and pick the USB drive without entering BIOS.

2.2 Choose your language

Section titled “2.2 Choose your language”

After booting from USB, pick your language and click Install Ubuntu:

Choose language

2.3 Install or Try Ubuntu

Section titled “2.3 Install or Try Ubuntu”

Choose Install Ubuntu. If you pick “Try Ubuntu” you can preview the system first, then click the “Install Ubuntu” shortcut on the desktop to continue:

Install or try

If you see an Intel RST alert (some Lenovo/Dell machines), enter BIOS and switch the SATA mode from RST/RAID to AHCI to continue.

2.4 Keyboard layout

Section titled “2.4 Keyboard layout”

Keep the default English (US), or search and add Chinese Pinyin if needed (you can also add it later in Settings).

2.5 Connect to a network (optional)

Section titled “2.5 Connect to a network (optional)”

Connect if possible — the installer can then download updates and third-party drivers (e.g. NVIDIA) during installation.

2.6 Choose the installation type (partitioning — the key step)

Section titled “2.6 Choose the installation type (partitioning — the key step)”

Ubuntu 24.04 offers two install modes:

  • Interactive installation — used in this guide
  • Automated installation — for mass deployment via a config file; not needed for beginners

After choosing “Install Ubuntu”, you’ll see two disk handling options:

Section titled “Option A: Automatic partitioning (recommended for beginners)”

Choose Erase disk and install Ubuntu — the installer creates the EFI, root, and swap partitions automatically:

Erase disk confirmation

Best for: users who don’t care about disk details and want the fastest install. Note this wipes the entire disk.

Section titled “Option B: Manual partitioning (recommended for an always-on OpenClaw host)”

Choose Something else (manual partitioning), then click New Partition Table on the target disk (GPT) and create partitions as recommended below:

Ubuntu 24.04 recommended partition layout

Partition Size Type / filesystem Mount point Purpose
EFI System 1 GB FAT32 (EFI System Partition) /boot/efi UEFI bootloader, more stable for multi-boot
Root / 100 GB (≥ 60 GB) ext4 / System and software
/home all remaining space ext4 /home User data kept separate — survives reinstalls
swap optional 8–16 GB swap (auto) Virtual memory when RAM is low

Manual partitioning steps (1 TB disk example):

  1. Select the target disk → New Partition Table → confirm (wipes all partitions on it).
  2. Click + to create the EFI System Partition: size 1024 MB, type “EFI System Partition”, mount point /boot/efi, OK.
  3. Click + for the root partition: size 100 GB, filesystem ext4, mount point /, OK.
  4. Click + for /home: size = remaining space minus swap (e.g. ~900 GB on a 1 TB disk), filesystem ext4, mount point /home, OK.
  5. (Optional) Click + for swap: size 8192 or 16384 MB, type “swap area”, OK.
  6. Keep “Device for boot loader installation” at its default (the whole disk, e.g. /dev/sda) and click Install Now.

💡 Partitioning principles: with ≥ 16 GB RAM you can skip a swap partition (Ubuntu auto-enables a swapfile); with less RAM, create 8–16 GB. For a Windows dual boot, install Windows first, then Ubuntu — GRUB detects both automatically.

2.7 Confirm changes and pick your timezone

Section titled “2.7 Confirm changes and pick your timezone”
  • Review the changes the installer will make and click Continue.
  • Pick your timezone (e.g. Shanghai — click on the map or type it):

Select timezone

2.8 Create your user account

Section titled “2.8 Create your user account”

Fill in:

  • Your name: display name (e.g. rockchen)
  • Your computer’s name: auto-generated, editable (e.g. openclaw-host)
  • Pick a username: login name used with sudo later (e.g. rockchen)
  • Password: set it and remember it (you can require it at login)

2.9 Wait for the installation to finish

Section titled “2.9 Wait for the installation to finish”

Files are copied now — about 5–15 minutes depending on disk speed. Click Restart Now when done, remove the USB drive during reboot, then press Enter at the GRUB menu to boot into Ubuntu.

Step 3: Update the system

Section titled “Step 3: Update the system”

Open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T):

Terminal window
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 4: Install OpenClaw

Section titled “Step 4: Install OpenClaw”
Terminal window
curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

Verify:

Terminal window
openclaw --version

Step 5: Initialize and enable auto-start

Section titled “Step 5: Initialize and enable auto-start”
Terminal window
openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Pick your model provider and paste your API key. --install-daemon registers the Gateway as a systemd user service that runs when you log in.

To keep it running even when nobody is logged in (recommended for server use), enable user lingering:

Terminal window
sudo loginctl enable-linger $USER

Step 6: Access from your LAN (optional)

Section titled “Step 6: Access from your LAN (optional)”

Find your LAN IP:

Terminal window
ip addr show

From any device on the same network, open:

http://<host-IP>:18789
Section titled “Step 7: Secure remote access (Tailscale recommended)”

For access from outside your network, install Tailscale (WireGuard-based):

Terminal window
curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
sudo tailscale up

After signing in, your host gets a fixed 100.x.y.z address reachable from any device on the same account:

http://<Tailscale-IP>:18789

⚠️ Security: never expose port 18789 directly to the public internet. Always use Tailscale / VPN tunnels for external access.

Troubleshooting

Section titled “Troubleshooting”

OpenClaw doesn’t auto-start after reboot?

Section titled “OpenClaw doesn’t auto-start after reboot?”
Terminal window
openclaw status
systemctl --user status openclaw-gateway

Make sure loginctl enable-linger was run.

Want a static IP?

Section titled “Want a static IP?”

Configure it under Settings → Network (manual IP, netmask, gateway) to avoid DHCP address drift.

Next steps

Section titled “Next steps”