OpenClaw Cloudflare Secure

Securely expose an OpenClaw Gateway WebUI on a VPS via Cloudflare Zero Trust Access + Cloudflare Tunnel (cloudflared), including DNS cutover for custom hostnames and optional cleanup of Tailscale Serve.

OpenClaw WebUI: Cloudflare Access + Tunnel (VPS)

Use this when you want an easy public URL (e.g. openclaw.example.com) that is NOT directly exposed, protected by Cloudflare Access allowlist, and delivered via Cloudflare Tunnel to a local service (commonly http://127.0.0.1:18789).

Assumptions

• OpenClaw WebUI is reachable locally on the VPS at http://127.0.0.1:18789 (or your chosen local port).
• You control DNS for the zone in Cloudflare (e.g. example.com).
• You have a Cloudflare API token available to the agent/VPS as CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN.
  • Recommended token perms (least privilege): Zone:DNS:Edit + Zone:Zone:Read for the target zone.
  • This is the key reason this setup is “agent-friendly”: the agent can securely create subdomains / manage DNS records without giving it full Cloudflare account access.
• You can access Cloudflare Zero Trust UI to create:
  • an Access Application for the hostname
  • an Allow policy for specific emails
  • a Block policy for Everyone
  • a Tunnel and its token

Quick start (copy/paste)

0) Optional: disable Tailscale Serve

If you used Tailscale Serve earlier and want to remove it:

sudo tailscale serve reset

1) Install and start cloudflared tunnel service (token-based)

In Cloudflare Zero Trust:

• Networks → Connectors → Tunnels → Create tunnel → Cloudflared
• Copy the token from the command cloudflared service install <TOKEN>

On the VPS:

./scripts/install_cloudflared.sh
sudo ./scripts/tunnel_service_install.sh '<TOKEN>'

Verify:

sudo systemctl is-active cloudflared
sudo systemctl status cloudflared --no-pager -l | sed -n '1,80p'

2) DNS cutover: point hostname to the tunnel

This uses the bundled DNS helper (./scripts/cf_dns.py). It will:

• find and delete any existing A/AAAA/CNAME for that hostname
• create a proxied CNAME to <TUNNEL_UUID>.cfargotunnel.com

Prereq:

export CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN='...'

2b) (Optional) Create/update a subdomain / DNS record (agent-friendly)

Use this when you want the agent (with least-privilege DNS token) to create records programmatically:

./scripts/dns_create_record.sh --zone example.com --type A --name openclaw --content 1.2.3.4 --proxied true
./scripts/dns_create_record.sh --zone example.com --type CNAME --name openclaw --content target.example.net --proxied true

./scripts/dns_point_hostname_to_tunnel.sh \
  --zone example.com \
  --hostname openclaw.example.com \
  --tunnel-uuid <TUNNEL_UUID>

3) In Cloudflare Zero Trust UI: bind hostname → service

In the tunnel:

• Add Public Hostname:
  • Hostname: openclaw.example.com
  • Service: http://127.0.0.1:18789

4) Cloudflare Access policy

In Zero Trust:

• Access → Applications → Add → Self-hosted
  • Public hostname: openclaw.example.com
• Policies:
  1. Allow: include specific emails (your allowlist)
  2. Block: include Everyone

Notes / gotchas

• If the Tunnel “route traffic” wizard errors with “record already exists”, it’s just DNS collision. Either:
  • delete the existing DNS record and let the wizard recreate it, OR
  • keep DNS as-is and set the Public Hostname mapping inside the Tunnel.
• Keep the hostname proxied (orange cloud). Access/Tunnel require proxy.

Rollback

• DNS: point the hostname back to an origin A record (or remove the record).
• VPS: sudo systemctl disable --now cloudflared.