OpenClaw Browser Flows

Provides multi-step browser automation patterns with tab management, login checks, stale reference recovery, and session handling for OpenClaw.

Browser Automation

Use this skill when you need the browser tool for anything beyond a single page check.

Operating Loop

1. Check browser state before acting:
   • openclaw browser doctor or action="status" when the browser/plugin setup itself may be broken.
   • action="status" for availability.
   • action="profiles" if login state or profile choice matters.
   • action="tabs" before opening a new tab if retries/timeouts may have left windows behind.
2. Prefer stable tab handles:
   • Open important tabs with label, for example label="meet".
   • Use tabId handles like t1 or labels like meet as targetId in later calls.
   • Avoid relying on raw DevTools targetId unless the tool just returned it.
3. Read before you click:
   • Use action="snapshot" on the intended targetId.
   • Use the same targetId for follow-up actions so refs stay on the same tab.
   • For durable Playwright refs, request refs="aria" when supported. If you receive axN refs from snapshotFormat="aria", use them only after that same snapshot call; stale or unbound axN refs fail fast and need a fresh snapshot.
   • Use urls=true when link text is ambiguous or a direct navigation target would avoid brittle clicks.
   • Use labels=true on snapshot or screenshot when visual position matters.
4. Act narrowly:
   • Prefer action="act" with a ref from the latest snapshot.
   • After navigation, modal changes, or form submission, snapshot again before the next action.
   • Avoid blind waits. Wait for visible UI state when possible.
5. Report real blockers:
   • If the page needs login, permission, captcha, 2FA, camera/microphone approval, or another manual step, stop and tell the user exactly what is needed.
   • Do not claim the browser is not logged in just because the current page shows a permission or onboarding dialog. Inspect the visible UI first.

Tab Hygiene

Before creating a tab for a named task, list tabs and reuse an existing matching label or URL when it is still usable.

Example:

json

{ "action": "tabs" }

If no suitable tab exists:

json

{ "action": "open", "url": "https://example.com", "label": "task" }

Then target it by label:

json

{ "action": "snapshot", "targetId": "task", "refs": "aria" }

If a retry creates duplicates, close the extras by tabId:

json

{ "action": "close", "targetId": "t3" }

Do not pass bare numbers like "2" as targetId. Numeric tab positions are only for the CLI openclaw browser tab select 2 helper; browser tool calls need a suggestedTargetId, label, tabId, or raw target id.

Stale Ref Recovery

If an action fails with a missing or stale ref:

1. Snapshot the same targetId again.
2. Find the current visible control.
3. Retry once with the new ref.
4. If the UI moved to a blocker state, report the blocker instead of looping.

Existing User Browser

Use profile="user" only when existing cookies/login matter. This attaches to the user's running Chromium-based browser.

For profile="user" and other existing-session profiles, omit timeoutMs on act:type, evaluate, hover, scrollIntoView, drag, select, and fill; that driver rejects per-call timeout overrides for those actions.

Google Meet Notes

When creating or joining a Meet:

• Treat camera/microphone permission screens as progress, not login failure.
• If asked whether people can hear you, click the microphone option when voice is required.
• If Google asks for sign-in, 2FA, account chooser confirmation, or permission that needs user approval, report the exact manual action.
• Use one labeled tab per meeting flow, for example label="meet", and reuse it during retries.