How to Deploy Openclaw on GCP Compute Engine
Quick Start
Deploy Openclaw on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Compute Engine to create a scalable, production-ready AI gateway. This guide walks you through creating a VM, installing Openclaw, and configuring it for remote access.
Create the GCP Project and VM
If you are using the gcloud CLI, authenticate and create your project:
gcloud projects create my-openclaw-project --name="Openclaw Gateway" gcloud config set project my-openclaw-project gcloud services enable compute.googleapis.com Next, create an e2-small Debian 12 VM:
gcloud compute instances create openclaw-gateway --zone=us-central1-a --machine-type=e2-small --boot-disk-size=20GB --image-family=debian-12 --image-project=debian-cloud Install Openclaw on the VM
SSH into your instance and install Openclaw:
gcloud compute ssh openclaw-gateway --zone=us-central1-a Once connected, run the installer:
curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash Configure Firewall Rules
Allow external access to Openclaw's default port:
gcloud compute firewall-rules create allow-openclaw --allow tcp:8080 --source-ranges=0.0.0.0/0 --description="Allow Openclaw gateway access" If you're also using Hetzner or other VPS providers, the configuration pattern remains similar across cloud platforms.
Set Up Openclaw Configuration
Create your configuration file:
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw nano ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json Add your channel and model settings. For a quick test with Ollama models:
{ "agents": { "defaults": { "model": { "primary": "ollama/llama3.2" } } } } Start the Gateway
Launch Openclaw as a background service:
openclaw gateway start --daemon Verify it's running:
openclaw gateway status Connect to Your Gateway
Get your VM's external IP:
gcloud compute instances describe openclaw-gateway --zone=us-central1-a --format='get(networkInterfaces[0].accessConfigs[0].natIP)' Configure your local Openclaw CLI to connect:
openclaw config set gateway.url http://YOUR_VM_IP:8080 Troubleshooting
- Connection refused: Verify the firewall rule allows port 8080 and Openclaw is running.
- Permission denied: Ensure you're using the correct SSH key or configure OS Login.
- Out of memory: Upgrade to e2-medium if running multiple models.
Your Openclaw gateway is now live on GCP. Connect your preferred channels and start routing AI conversations through your self-hosted infrastructure.
