nemoclaw-setup

NemoClaw Setup

Install NVIDIA NemoClaw — a sandboxed AI agent platform built on OpenClaw with Landlock + seccomp + network namespace isolation. Runs inside Docker via k3s (OpenShell).

What You Get

• Sandboxed AI agent with web UI and terminal CLI
• Powered by NVIDIA Nemotron models (cloud or local)
• Network-policy-controlled access to external services
• Optional remote access via Cloudflare Tunnel

Prerequisites

| Requirement | Check | Install | |-------------|-------|---------| | Linux (Ubuntu 22.04+) | uname -a | — | | Docker | docker ps | sudo apt install docker.io | | Node.js 20+ (22 recommended) | node --version | nvm install 22 | | NVIDIA GPU (optional but recommended) | nvidia-smi | — | | NVIDIA API key | — | https://build.nvidia.com/settings/api-keys |

Workflow

Step 1: Pre-flight Checks

# Check Docker
docker ps 2>/dev/null || echo "Docker not running or no access"

# Check Node.js
node --version

# Check if already installed
which nemoclaw && nemoclaw --version
which openshell && openshell --version

If nemoclaw is already installed, skip to Step 4.

Step 2: Install NemoClaw

curl -fsSL https://nvidia.com/nemoclaw.sh | bash

This installs NemoClaw and OpenClaw via npm globally (to ~/.npm-global/bin/).

If the installer can't find Node.js, install it first:

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_22.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install -y nodejs

Step 3: Install OpenShell

curl -LsSf https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NVIDIA/OpenShell/main/install.sh | sh

Installs to ~/.local/bin/openshell.

Step 4: Fix Docker Permissions and cgroup

Docker group — the user must be in the docker group:

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker
# or log out and back in

cgroup v2 fix — required for k3s inside Docker:

# Check if needed
grep cgroup2 /proc/filesystems && echo "cgroup v2 detected — fix needed"

# Apply fix (needs sudo)
sudo $HOME/.npm-global/bin/nemoclaw setup-spark

This adds "default-cgroupns-mode": "host" to /etc/docker/daemon.json and restarts Docker.

IMPORTANT: The nemoclaw setup-spark command also asks for an NVIDIA API key. Have it ready (starts with nvapi-). Get one at https://build.nvidia.com/settings/api-keys.

Step 5: Run Onboarding

PATH=$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH nemoclaw onboard

The interactive wizard will:

1. Check Docker and OpenShell
2. Start the OpenShell gateway (k3s in Docker)
3. Ask for a sandbox name — use claw or any name
4. Configure the NVIDIA API key
5. Set up inference (Nemotron 3 Super 120B via cloud API)
6. Launch OpenClaw inside the sandbox
7. Apply network policy presets — select the ones you need

Common port conflict: If port 8080 is in use, find and kill the process:

fuser -k 8080/tcp

Step 6: Verify

# Check sandbox is running
PATH=$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH nemoclaw claw status

# Connect via terminal
PATH=$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH nemoclaw claw connect

Step 7: Set Up Web UI Access

The web UI runs inside the sandbox and needs a port forward:

PATH=$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH openshell forward start 18789 claw

Then open: http://127.0.0.1:18789/

Known bug (OpenClaw ≤ v2026.3.11): "device identity required" error. Workaround — append the gateway token to the URL:

# Get the token
ssh -F /tmp/nemoclaw-ssh-config openshell-claw \
  "python3 -c \"import json; print(json.load(open('/sandbox/.openclaw/openclaw.json'))['gateway']['auth']['token'])\""

Then visit: http://127.0.0.1:18789/#token=<gateway-token>

Fix: Update to OpenClaw v2026.3.12+ (see Updating section below).

Step 8: Make the Port Forward Persistent

Create a health-checked keepalive script:

cat > ~/.local/bin/nemoclaw-keepalive.sh << 'KEEPALIVE'
#!/bin/bash
export PATH="$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$HOME/.local/bin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/bin:/bin"
cleanup() { kill %1 2>/dev/null; exit 0; }
trap cleanup SIGTERM SIGINT
while true; do
    fuser -k 18789/tcp 2>/dev/null; sleep 1
    openshell forward start 18789 claw &
    FORWARD_PID=$!; sleep 3
    while kill -0 $FORWARD_PID 2>/dev/null; do
        if ! curl -sf -o /dev/null --connect-timeout 3 http://127.0.0.1:18789/ 2>/dev/null; then
            echo "$(date): Health check failed, restarting..."
            kill $FORWARD_PID 2>/dev/null; wait $FORWARD_PID 2>/dev/null; break
        fi
        sleep 10
    done
    echo "$(date): Forward died, restarting in 3s..."; sleep 3
done
KEEPALIVE
chmod +x ~/.local/bin/nemoclaw-keepalive.sh

Create the systemd service:

sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/nemoclaw-forward.service << 'SERVICE'
[Unit]
Description=NemoClaw Port Forward with Health Check
After=docker.service
Requires=docker.service

[Service]
Type=simple
User=$USER
Group=docker
Environment=PATH=/home/$USER/.npm-global/bin:/home/$USER/.local/bin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/bin:/bin
ExecStart=/home/$USER/.local/bin/nemoclaw-keepalive.sh
Restart=always
RestartSec=5
KillMode=control-group

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
SERVICE

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable nemoclaw-forward
sudo systemctl start nemoclaw-forward

Step 9: Remote Access via Cloudflare Tunnel (Optional)

If you have a Cloudflare Tunnel already running, add NemoClaw to it.

Add DNS route:

cloudflared tunnel route dns <tunnel-name> nemoclaw.<domain>

Update tunnel config (/etc/cloudflared/config.yml):

  - hostname: nemoclaw.<domain>
    service: http://localhost:18789
    originRequest:
      httpHostHeader: "127.0.0.1:18789"

Restart tunnel:

sudo systemctl restart cloudflared

Update sandbox allowed origins — SSH into the sandbox and add your domain:

openshell sandbox ssh-config claw > /tmp/nemoclaw-ssh-config

ssh -F /tmp/nemoclaw-ssh-config openshell-claw 'python3 -c "
import json
with open(\"/sandbox/.openclaw/openclaw.json\") as f:
    config = json.load(f)
config[\"gateway\"][\"controlUi\"][\"allowedOrigins\"].append(\"https://nemoclaw.<domain>\")
config[\"gateway\"][\"trustedProxies\"] = [\"127.0.0.1\", \"::1\", \"172.0.0.0/8\", \"10.0.0.0/8\"]
config[\"gateway\"][\"allowRealIpFallback\"] = True
with open(\"/sandbox/.openclaw/openclaw.json\", \"w\") as f:
    json.dump(config, f, indent=2)
print(\"Done. Token:\", config[\"gateway\"][\"auth\"][\"token\"])
"'

Protect with Cloudflare Access — add the hostname to your Access application in the Zero Trust dashboard.

Access URL: https://nemoclaw.<domain>/#token=<gateway-token>

Step 10: Install Custom Skills

Skills are markdown files in /sandbox/.openclaw/skills/<name>/SKILL.md. SSH into the sandbox to create them:

ssh -F /tmp/nemoclaw-ssh-config openshell-claw
mkdir -p /sandbox/.openclaw/skills/my-skill
cat > /sandbox/.openclaw/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md << 'EOF'
---
name: my-skill
description: What this skill does.
tools: [exec, read, write]
---
# My Skill
Instructions for the agent...
EOF

Verify with: openclaw skills list

Step 11: Configure the Workspace

Update the workspace files so the agent knows who you are:

• /sandbox/.openclaw/workspace/USER.md — your profile, preferences
• /sandbox/.openclaw/workspace/TOOLS.md — available tools and access
• /sandbox/.openclaw/workspace/SOUL.md — agent personality and behaviour

Updating OpenClaw

The sandbox bundles OpenClaw at install time. To update:

# 1. Update host-side packages
npm install -g openclaw@latest

# 2. Destroy and recreate sandbox
nemoclaw claw destroy
nemoclaw onboard

# 3. Reconfigure remote access (Step 9) and skills (Step 10)

Note: Sandbox network policies block npm/PyPI inside the sandbox. Updates must be done by rebuilding.

Troubleshooting

| Issue | Cause | Fix | |-------|-------|-----| | Docker is not running | Docker service stopped or user not in docker group | sudo systemctl start docker then newgrp docker | | cgroup v2 detected | Docker not configured for cgroupns=host | sudo nemoclaw setup-spark | | Port 8080 in use | Another service on that port | fuser -k 8080/tcp | | nemoclaw: command not found | Not in PATH | PATH=$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH | | device identity required | Bug in OpenClaw ≤ v2026.3.11 | Append #token=<gateway-token> to URL, or update to v2026.3.12+ | | gateway token mismatch | Token changed after sandbox rebuild | Get new token from sandbox config | | too many failed auth attempts | Rate limited from old token attempts | Restart gateway: ssh -F /tmp/nemoclaw-ssh-config openshell-claw 'pkill -f "openclaw gateway"; sleep 2; openclaw gateway &' | | origin not allowed | Domain not in allowedOrigins | Add to gateway.controlUi.allowedOrigins in sandbox config | | Port 18789 not responding | SSH tunnel died | sudo systemctl restart nemoclaw-forward (auto-recovers within 13s) | | npm 403 Forbidden inside sandbox | Network policy blocking TLS | Cannot install packages inside sandbox — rebuild instead | | Tunnel not found on DNS route | Wrong Cloudflare account/cert | Check cloudflared tunnel list matches your cert | | Error 502 on Cloudflare | Tunnel connections dropped | sudo systemctl restart cloudflared | | Assets 404 via Cloudflare | Browser not authenticated for sub-requests | Hard refresh (Ctrl+Shift+R) after Cloudflare Access login |

Architecture

Docker (openshell-cluster-<name>)
  └─ k3s cluster
      ├─ NVIDIA device plugin
      └─ OpenShell sandbox
          ├─ OpenClaw agent
          ├─ NemoClaw plugin
          ├─ Gateway (WebSocket + REST)
          └─ Workspace (SOUL.md, USER.md, TOOLS.md, skills/)

Port forward (systemd): localhost:18789 ←SSH tunnel→ sandbox:18789
Cloudflare Tunnel (optional): nemoclaw.domain → localhost:18789

References

• NemoClaw GitHub
• OpenShell GitHub
• OpenClaw docs
• NemoClaw quickstart
• awesome-nemoclaw presets
• awesome-openclaw-skills
• device auth bug fix