openclaw/docs/tools/browser-linux-troubleshooting.md
Jon Shapiro 92697edb7c fix(venice): add compat settings to prevent HTTP 400 errors
Venice's API doesn't support certain OpenAI-compatible parameters that
Clawdbot sends by default:

- `store`: Venice returns HTTP 400 with no body when this is present
- `developer` role: Not supported by Venice's API

This adds VENICE_COMPAT settings (supportsStore: false,
supportsDeveloperRole: false) to all Venice model definitions, both
from the static catalog and dynamically discovered models.

Fixes issues reported in PR #1666 where users experienced silent
failures (HTTP 400, no body) when using Venice models.

Co-authored-by: jonisjongithub <jonisjongithub@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: Clawdbot <bot@clawd.bot>
2026-01-26 17:56:01 -08:00

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---
summary: "Fix Chrome/Brave/Edge/Chromium CDP startup issues for Clawdbot browser control on Linux"
read_when: "Browser control fails on Linux, especially with snap Chromium"
---
# Browser Troubleshooting (Linux)
## Problem: "Failed to start Chrome CDP on port 18800"
Clawdbot's browser control server fails to launch Chrome/Brave/Edge/Chromium with the error:
```
{"error":"Error: Failed to start Chrome CDP on port 18800 for profile \"clawd\"."}
```
### Root Cause
On Ubuntu (and many Linux distros), the default Chromium installation is a **snap package**. Snap's AppArmor confinement interferes with how Clawdbot spawns and monitors the browser process.
The `apt install chromium` command installs a stub package that redirects to snap:
```
Note, selecting 'chromium-browser' instead of 'chromium'
chromium-browser is already the newest version (2:1snap1-0ubuntu2).
```
This is NOT a real browser — it's just a wrapper.
### Solution 1: Install Google Chrome (Recommended)
Install the official Google Chrome `.deb` package, which is not sandboxed by snap:
```bash
wget https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
sudo apt --fix-broken install -y # if there are dependency errors
```
Then update your Clawdbot config (`~/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json`):
```json
{
"browser": {
"enabled": true,
"executablePath": "/usr/bin/google-chrome-stable",
"headless": true,
"noSandbox": true
}
}
```
### Solution 2: Use Snap Chromium with Attach-Only Mode
If you must use snap Chromium, configure Clawdbot to attach to a manually-started browser:
1. Update config:
```json
{
"browser": {
"enabled": true,
"attachOnly": true,
"headless": true,
"noSandbox": true
}
}
```
2. Start Chromium manually:
```bash
chromium-browser --headless --no-sandbox --disable-gpu \
--remote-debugging-port=18800 \
--user-data-dir=$HOME/.clawdbot/browser/clawd/user-data \
about:blank &
```
3. Optionally create a systemd user service to auto-start Chrome:
```ini
# ~/.config/systemd/user/clawd-browser.service
[Unit]
Description=Clawd Browser (Chrome CDP)
After=network.target
[Service]
ExecStart=/snap/bin/chromium --headless --no-sandbox --disable-gpu --remote-debugging-port=18800 --user-data-dir=%h/.clawdbot/browser/clawd/user-data about:blank
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5
[Install]
WantedBy=default.target
```
Enable with: `systemctl --user enable --now clawd-browser.service`
### Verifying the Browser Works
Check status:
```bash
curl -s http://127.0.0.1:18791/ | jq '{running, pid, chosenBrowser}'
```
Test browsing:
```bash
curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:18791/start
curl -s http://127.0.0.1:18791/tabs
```
### Config Reference
| Option | Description | Default |
|--------|-------------|---------|
| `browser.enabled` | Enable browser control | `true` |
| `browser.executablePath` | Path to a Chromium-based browser binary (Chrome/Brave/Edge/Chromium) | auto-detected (prefers default browser when Chromium-based) |
| `browser.headless` | Run without GUI | `false` |
| `browser.noSandbox` | Add `--no-sandbox` flag (needed for some Linux setups) | `false` |
| `browser.attachOnly` | Don't launch browser, only attach to existing | `false` |
| `browser.cdpPort` | Chrome DevTools Protocol port | `18800` |
### Problem: "Chrome extension relay is running, but no tab is connected"
Youre using the `chrome` profile (extension relay). It expects the Clawdbot
browser extension to be attached to a live tab.
Fix options:
1. **Use the managed browser:** `clawdbot browser start --browser-profile clawd`
(or set `browser.defaultProfile: "clawd"`).
2. **Use the extension relay:** install the extension, open a tab, and click the
Clawdbot extension icon to attach it.
Notes:
- The `chrome` profile uses your **system default Chromium browser** when possible.
- Local `clawd` profiles auto-assign `cdpPort`/`cdpUrl`; only set those for remote CDP.