Auto Updater Sxdg2

Automatically update OpenClaw and all installed skills once daily. Runs via cron, checks for updates, applies them, and messages the user with a summary of w...

Security Scan

The skill's purpose (daily auto-updates) is plausible, but its instructions ask for elevated/system-level actions (passwordless sudo + systemd restarts), auto-apply updates (--yes), and include OS-specific commands that don't match the declared cross-platform support — these are coherent for an updater but increase supply-chain and privilege risk and contain platform inconsistencies.

Purpose & Capability

The declared purpose — scheduling daily updates for OpenClaw and installed skills — matches the instructions (creating a cron job that runs openclaw update). However the SKILL.md also expects systemd (sudo systemctl restart openclaw) while the skill metadata claims Windows support; systemctl/cron are not available on Windows by default, so the cross-platform claim is inconsistent.

Instruction Scope

Instructions tell the agent to create a cron job that runs 'openclaw update --yes' and then restart the service via 'sudo systemctl restart openclaw'. Automatically applying updates with --yes means new code is pulled and will run without per-update approval. The doc also recommends granting passwordless sudo for service restarts — this elevates the updater's privileges. The skill does not instruct reading unrelated files, but it does rely on system-wide actions and will cause arbitrary updated code to be executed as part of normal update/install steps.

Install Mechanism

This is an instruction-only skill with no install spec and no code files — lowest install risk. Nothing is downloaded or installed by the skill itself.

Credentials

The skill declares no required environment variables or credentials, but its recommended setup explicitly requires system-level privileges (passwordless sudo) and systemd access. Asking the user to enable passwordless sudo for the Gateway user and permitting service restarts is a high-privilege requirement not reflected in metadata and increases risk if updates are compromised.

Persistence & Privilege

The skill creates a persistent cron job to run updates daily (persistent presence by design). always:false so it won't be force-included, but autonomous agent invocation plus an automatic cron job that runs update --yes amplifies supply-chain risk: updates will be applied unattended on a schedule. That combination is intended but raises security concerns.

What to consider before installing

This skill will set up an unattended daily updater that runs 'openclaw update --yes' and restarts the OpenClaw service via systemd. Before installing: - Consider NOT using unattended auto-apply (--yes) so you can review updates before they run. - Do not enable passwordless sudo lightly; if you must, restrict it tightly to the specific systemctl command and user. - Verify that your platform actually uses cron and systemd; the SKILL.md references systemctl and cron but the skill advertises Windows support — on Windows you'd need a different mechanism (Task Scheduler) and there is no systemctl. - Understand that updates can change or add executable code (supply-chain risk). Only enable automatic updates if you trust OpenClaw's update sources and signature/verification processes; consider limiting automatic updates to the core and requiring manual approval for third-party skills. - If you proceed, run the setup manually first and audit the created cron job and the exact command it will run; test updates in a non-production environment. - If you want stronger controls, modify the cron job to run 'openclaw update status' (notify) and require a manual 'openclaw update' to apply changes.

Auto-Updater Skill

Keep your OpenClaw and skills up to date automatically with daily update checks.

What It Does

This skill sets up a daily cron job that:

1. Updates OpenClaw itself (via openclaw update)
2. Updates all installed skills/plugins
3. Restarts the service via sudo systemctl restart openclaw
4. Messages you with a summary of what was updated

Setup

Quick Start

Ask OpenClaw to set up the auto-updater:

Set up daily auto-updates for yourself and all your skills.

Or manually add the cron job:

openclaw cron add \
  --name "Daily Auto-Update" \
  --cron "0 4 * * *" \
  --tz "America/Chicago" \
  --session isolated \
  --wake now \
  --deliver \
  --message "Run daily auto-updates: run 'openclaw update --yes' followed by 'sudo systemctl restart openclaw'. Update skills and report what was updated."

Configuration Options

Option	Default	Description
Time	4:00 AM	When to run updates (use --cron to change)
Timezone	America/Chicago	Set with --tz
Delivery	Main session	Where to send the update summary

How Updates Work

OpenClaw Updates

The primary update command used is:

openclaw update --yes && sudo systemctl restart openclaw

This updates the core CLI, builds any source checkouts, and updates all installed plugins/skills.

Skill Updates

Skills are updated as part of the openclaw update command. To update skills specifically:

openclaw skills update --all

Update Summary Format

After updates complete, you'll receive a message like:

🔄 Daily Auto-Update Complete

**OpenClaw**: Updated to v2026.2.2-3 (was v2026.2.1)

**Skills Updated (3)**:
- discord: 2.0.3 → 2.0.4
- browser: 1.2.0 → 1.2.1  
- nano-banana-pro: 3.1.0 → 3.1.2

**Skills Already Current (5)**:
gemini, weather, reddit, twitter, yahoo-finance

Service restarted successfully via systemd.

Manual Commands

Check for updates without applying:

openclaw update status

View current skill versions:

openclaw skills list

Check OpenClaw version:

openclaw --version

Troubleshooting

Updates Not Running

1. Verify cron is enabled: check cron.enabled in config
2. Confirm Gateway is running continuously
3. Check cron job exists: openclaw cron list

Update Failures

If an update fails, the summary will include the error. Common fixes:

• Permission errors: Ensure the Gateway user has passwordless sudo for systemctl restart openclaw.
• Network errors: Check internet connectivity
• Package conflicts: Run openclaw doctor to diagnose

Disabling Auto-Updates

Remove the cron job:

openclaw cron remove "Daily Auto-Update"

Or disable temporarily in config:

{
  "cron": {
    "enabled": false
  }
}

Resources

• OpenClaw Updating Guide
• Cron Jobs