Env Vars & Settings
How to manage environment variables, credentials, and runtime settings in the dashboard.
Environment variables
The Env Vars tab (labelled Secrets on non-OpenClaw agents) stores environment variables injected into the container at startup. Values are encrypted at rest and masked after saving.
Managed LLM access is available out of the box via AGENTSTEAD_PROXY_TOKEN — no provider keys required. Add provider keys here only if you want to bring your own. See LLM Access for the full picture.
Values are masked after saving. Copy anything you'll need again before closing the tab.
Adding a variable
- Open your agent → Env Vars tab
- Enter the key name and value
- Save
Examples:
MY_WEBHOOK_URL=https://hooks.example.com/...
TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=...
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-... # optional — only needed for BYOKBulk import
Paste multiple entries in .env format and save them all at once:
MY_WEBHOOK_URL=https://hooks.example.com/...
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...
CUSTOM_SECRET=...Each line becomes a separate variable.
Rotating a variable
Delete the old entry
Go to Env Vars, find the key, and delete it. The old value is permanently removed immediately.
Add the new value
Add a new entry with the same key name and the new value.
Restart the agent
Go to the agent's overview and click Restart. The new value is injected on startup.
Runtime settings
The Settings tab holds structured runtime configuration — model/provider settings and platform-managed defaults.
In practice:
- Env Vars = values injected into the container environment (custom tokens, BYOK provider keys, webhooks)
- Settings = structured configuration (model selection, provider defaults)
Some settings changes take effect immediately; others need a restart. If in doubt, restart.