openclaw/docs/help/faq-models.md

summary, read_when, title, sidebarTitle

summary	read_when	title	sidebarTitle
FAQ: model defaults, selection, aliases, switching, failover, and auth profiles	Choosing or switching models, configuring aliases Debugging model failover / "All models failed" Understanding auth profiles and how to manage them	FAQ: models and auth	Models FAQ

Model- and auth-profile Q&A. For setup, sessions, gateway, channels, and troubleshooting, see the main FAQ.

Models: defaults, selection, aliases, switching

OpenClaw's default model is whatever you set as:

```
agents.defaults.model.primary
```

Models are referenced as `provider/model` (example: `openai/gpt-5.5` or `openai-codex/gpt-5.5`). If you omit the provider, OpenClaw first tries an alias, then a unique configured-provider match for that exact model id, and only then falls back to the configured default provider as a deprecated compatibility path. If that provider no longer exposes the configured default model, OpenClaw falls back to the first configured provider/model instead of surfacing a stale removed-provider default. You should still **explicitly** set `provider/model`.

**Recommended default:** use the strongest latest-generation model available in your provider stack. **For tool-enabled or untrusted-input agents:** prioritize model strength over cost. **For routine/low-stakes chat:** use cheaper fallback models and route by agent role.

MiniMax has its own docs: [MiniMax](/providers/minimax) and
[Local models](/gateway/local-models).

Rule of thumb: use the **best model you can afford** for high-stakes work, and a cheaper
model for routine chat or summaries. You can route models per agent and use sub-agents to
parallelize long tasks (each sub-agent consumes tokens). See [Models](/concepts/models) and
[Sub-agents](/tools/subagents).

Strong warning: weaker/over-quantized models are more vulnerable to prompt
injection and unsafe behavior. See [Security](/gateway/security).

More context: [Models](/concepts/models).

Use **model commands** or edit only the **model** fields. Avoid full config replaces.

Safe options:

- `/model` in chat (quick, per-session)
- `openclaw models set ...` (updates just model config)
- `openclaw configure --section model` (interactive)
- edit `agents.defaults.model` in `~/.openclaw/openclaw.json`

Avoid `config.apply` with a partial object unless you intend to replace the whole config.
For RPC edits, inspect with `config.schema.lookup` first and prefer `config.patch`. The lookup payload gives you the normalized path, shallow schema docs/constraints, and immediate child summaries.
for partial updates.
If you did overwrite config, restore from backup or re-run `openclaw doctor` to repair.

Docs: [Models](/concepts/models), [Configure](/cli/configure), [Config](/cli/config), [Doctor](/gateway/doctor).

Yes. Ollama is the easiest path for local models.

Quickest setup:

1. Install Ollama from `https://ollama.com/download`
2. Pull a local model such as `ollama pull gemma4`
3. If you want cloud models too, run `ollama signin`
4. Run `openclaw onboard` and choose `Ollama`
5. Pick `Local` or `Cloud + Local`

Notes:

- `Cloud + Local` gives you cloud models plus your local Ollama models
- cloud models such as `kimi-k2.5:cloud` do not need a local pull
- for manual switching, use `openclaw models list` and `openclaw models set ollama/<model>`

Security note: smaller or heavily quantized models are more vulnerable to prompt
injection. We strongly recommend **large models** for any bot that can use tools.
If you still want small models, enable sandboxing and strict tool allowlists.

Docs: [Ollama](/providers/ollama), [Local models](/gateway/local-models),
[Model providers](/concepts/model-providers), [Security](/gateway/security),
[Sandboxing](/gateway/sandboxing).

- These deployments can differ and may change over time; there is no fixed provider recommendation. - Check the current runtime setting on each gateway with `openclaw models status`. - For security-sensitive/tool-enabled agents, use the strongest latest-generation model available. Use the `/model` command as a standalone message:

```
/model sonnet
/model opus
/model gpt
/model gpt-mini
/model gemini
/model gemini-flash
/model gemini-flash-lite
```

These are the built-in aliases. Custom aliases can be added via `agents.defaults.models`.

You can list available models with `/model`, `/model list`, or `/model status`.

`/model` (and `/model list`) shows a compact, numbered picker. Select by number:

```
/model 3
```

You can also force a specific auth profile for the provider (per session):

```
/model opus@anthropic:default
/model opus@anthropic:work
```

Tip: `/model status` shows which agent is active, which `auth-profiles.json` file is being used, and which auth profile will be tried next.
It also shows the configured provider endpoint (`baseUrl`) and API mode (`api`) when available.

**How do I unpin a profile I set with @profile?**

Re-run `/model` **without** the `@profile` suffix:

```
/model anthropic/claude-opus-4-6
```

If you want to return to the default, pick it from `/model` (or send `/model <default provider/model>`).
Use `/model status` to confirm which auth profile is active.

Yes. Set one as default and switch as needed:

- **Quick switch (per session):** `/model openai/gpt-5.5` for current direct OpenAI API-key tasks or `/model openai-codex/gpt-5.5` for GPT-5.5 Codex OAuth tasks.
- **Default:** set `agents.defaults.model.primary` to `openai/gpt-5.5` for API-key usage or `openai-codex/gpt-5.5` for GPT-5.5 Codex OAuth usage.
- **Sub-agents:** route coding tasks to sub-agents with a different default model.

See [Models](/concepts/models) and [Slash commands](/tools/slash-commands).

Use either a session toggle or a config default:

- **Per session:** send `/fast on` while the session is using `openai/gpt-5.5` or `openai-codex/gpt-5.5`.
- **Per model default:** set `agents.defaults.models["openai/gpt-5.5"].params.fastMode` or `agents.defaults.models["openai-codex/gpt-5.5"].params.fastMode` to `true`.

Example:

```json5
{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      models: {
        "openai/gpt-5.5": {
          params: {
            fastMode: true,
          },
        },
      },
    },
  },
}
```

For OpenAI, fast mode maps to `service_tier = "priority"` on supported native Responses requests. Session `/fast` overrides beat config defaults.

See [Thinking and fast mode](/tools/thinking) and [OpenAI fast mode](/providers/openai#fast-mode).

If `agents.defaults.models` is set, it becomes the **allowlist** for `/model` and any session overrides. Choosing a model that isn't in that list returns:

```
Model "provider/model" is not allowed. Use /model to list available models.
```

That error is returned **instead of** a normal reply. Fix: add the model to
`agents.defaults.models`, remove the allowlist, or pick a model from `/model list`.

This means the **provider isn't configured** (no MiniMax provider config or auth profile was found), so the model can't be resolved.

Fix checklist:

1. Upgrade to a current OpenClaw release (or run from source `main`), then restart the gateway.
2. Make sure MiniMax is configured (wizard or JSON), or that MiniMax auth
   exists in env/auth profiles so the matching provider can be injected
   (`MINIMAX_API_KEY` for `minimax`, `MINIMAX_OAUTH_TOKEN` or stored MiniMax
   OAuth for `minimax-portal`).
3. Use the exact model id (case-sensitive) for your auth path:
   `minimax/MiniMax-M2.7` or `minimax/MiniMax-M2.7-highspeed` for API-key
   setup, or `minimax-portal/MiniMax-M2.7` /
   `minimax-portal/MiniMax-M2.7-highspeed` for OAuth setup.
4. Run:

   ```bash
   openclaw models list
   ```

   and pick from the list (or `/model list` in chat).

See [MiniMax](/providers/minimax) and [Models](/concepts/models).

Yes. Use **MiniMax as the default** and switch models **per session** when needed. Fallbacks are for **errors**, not "hard tasks," so use `/model` or a separate agent.

**Option A: switch per session**

```json5
{
  env: { MINIMAX_API_KEY: "sk-...", OPENAI_API_KEY: "sk-..." },
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: { primary: "minimax/MiniMax-M2.7" },
      models: {
        "minimax/MiniMax-M2.7": { alias: "minimax" },
        "openai/gpt-5.5": { alias: "gpt" },
      },
    },
  },
}
```

Then:

```
/model gpt
```

**Option B: separate agents**

- Agent A default: MiniMax
- Agent B default: OpenAI
- Route by agent or use `/agent` to switch

Docs: [Models](/concepts/models), [Multi-Agent Routing](/concepts/multi-agent), [MiniMax](/providers/minimax), [OpenAI](/providers/openai).

Yes. OpenClaw ships a few default shorthands (only applied when the model exists in `agents.defaults.models`):

- `opus` → `anthropic/claude-opus-4-6`
- `sonnet` → `anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6`
- `gpt` → `openai/gpt-5.5` for API-key setups, or `openai-codex/gpt-5.5` when configured for Codex OAuth
- `gpt-mini` → `openai/gpt-5.4-mini`
- `gpt-nano` → `openai/gpt-5.4-nano`
- `gemini` → `google/gemini-3.1-pro-preview`
- `gemini-flash` → `google/gemini-3-flash-preview`
- `gemini-flash-lite` → `google/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-preview`

If you set your own alias with the same name, your value wins.

Aliases come from `agents.defaults.models..alias`. Example:

```json5
{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: { primary: "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6" },
      models: {
        "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6": { alias: "opus" },
        "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6": { alias: "sonnet" },
        "anthropic/claude-haiku-4-5": { alias: "haiku" },
      },
    },
  },
}
```

Then `/model sonnet` (or `/<alias>` when supported) resolves to that model ID.

OpenRouter (pay-per-token; many models):

```json5
{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: { primary: "openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6" },
      models: { "openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6": {} },
    },
  },
  env: { OPENROUTER_API_KEY: "sk-or-..." },
}
```

Z.AI (GLM models):

```json5
{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: { primary: "zai/glm-5" },
      models: { "zai/glm-5": {} },
    },
  },
  env: { ZAI_API_KEY: "..." },
}
```

If you reference a provider/model but the required provider key is missing, you'll get a runtime auth error (e.g. `No API key found for provider "zai"`).

**No API key found for provider after adding a new agent**

This usually means the **new agent** has an empty auth store. Auth is per-agent and
stored in:

```
~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json
```

Fix options:

- Run `openclaw agents add <id>` and configure auth during the wizard.
- Or copy only portable static `api_key` / `token` profiles from the main agent's auth store into the new agent's auth store.
- For OAuth profiles, sign in from the new agent when it needs its own account; otherwise OpenClaw can read through to the default/main agent without cloning refresh tokens.

Do **not** reuse `agentDir` across agents; it causes auth/session collisions.

Model failover and "All models failed"

Failover happens in two stages:

1. **Auth profile rotation** within the same provider.
2. **Model fallback** to the next model in `agents.defaults.model.fallbacks`.

Cooldowns apply to failing profiles (exponential backoff), so OpenClaw can keep responding even when a provider is rate-limited or temporarily failing.

The rate-limit bucket includes more than plain `429` responses. OpenClaw
also treats messages like `Too many concurrent requests`,
`ThrottlingException`, `concurrency limit reached`,
`workers_ai ... quota limit exceeded`, `resource exhausted`, and periodic
usage-window limits (`weekly/monthly limit reached`) as failover-worthy
rate limits.

Some billing-looking responses are not `402`, and some HTTP `402`
responses also stay in that transient bucket. If a provider returns
explicit billing text on `401` or `403`, OpenClaw can still keep that in
the billing lane, but provider-specific text matchers stay scoped to the
provider that owns them (for example OpenRouter `Key limit exceeded`). If a `402`
message instead looks like a retryable usage-window or
organization/workspace spend limit (`daily limit reached, resets tomorrow`,
`organization spending limit exceeded`), OpenClaw treats it as
`rate_limit`, not a long billing disable.

Context-overflow errors are different: signatures such as
`request_too_large`, `input exceeds the maximum number of tokens`,
`input token count exceeds the maximum number of input tokens`,
`input is too long for the model`, or `ollama error: context length
exceeded` stay on the compaction/retry path instead of advancing model
fallback.

Generic server-error text is intentionally narrower than "anything with
unknown/error in it". OpenClaw does treat provider-scoped transient shapes
such as Anthropic bare `An unknown error occurred`, OpenRouter bare
`Provider returned error`, stop-reason errors like `Unhandled stop reason:
error`, JSON `api_error` payloads with transient server text
(`internal server error`, `unknown error, 520`, `upstream error`, `backend
error`), and provider-busy errors such as `ModelNotReadyException` as
failover-worthy timeout/overloaded signals when the provider context
matches.
Generic internal fallback text like `LLM request failed with an unknown
error.` stays conservative and does not trigger model fallback by itself.

It means the system attempted to use the auth profile ID `anthropic:default`, but could not find credentials for it in the expected auth store.

**Fix checklist:**

- **Confirm where auth profiles live** (new vs legacy paths)
  - Current: `~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json`
  - Legacy: `~/.openclaw/agent/*` (migrated by `openclaw doctor`)
- **Confirm your env var is loaded by the Gateway**
  - If you set `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` in your shell but run the Gateway via systemd/launchd, it may not inherit it. Put it in `~/.openclaw/.env` or enable `env.shellEnv`.
- **Make sure you're editing the correct agent**
  - Multi-agent setups mean there can be multiple `auth-profiles.json` files.
- **Sanity-check model/auth status**
  - Use `openclaw models status` to see configured models and whether providers are authenticated.

**Fix checklist for "No credentials found for profile anthropic"**

This means the run is pinned to an Anthropic auth profile, but the Gateway
can't find it in its auth store.

- **Use Claude CLI**
  - Run `openclaw models auth login --provider anthropic --method cli --set-default` on the gateway host.
- **If you want to use an API key instead**
  - Put `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` in `~/.openclaw/.env` on the **gateway host**.
  - Clear any pinned order that forces a missing profile:

    ```bash
    openclaw models auth order clear --provider anthropic
    ```

- **Confirm you're running commands on the gateway host**
  - In remote mode, auth profiles live on the gateway machine, not your laptop.

If your model config includes Google Gemini as a fallback (or you switched to a Gemini shorthand), OpenClaw will try it during model fallback. If you haven't configured Google credentials, you'll see `No API key found for provider "google"`.

Fix: either provide Google auth, or remove/avoid Google models in `agents.defaults.model.fallbacks` / aliases so fallback doesn't route there.

**LLM request rejected: thinking signature required (Google Antigravity)**

Cause: the session history contains **thinking blocks without signatures** (often from
an aborted/partial stream). Google Antigravity requires signatures for thinking blocks.

Fix: OpenClaw now strips unsigned thinking blocks for Google Antigravity Claude. If it still appears, start a **new session** or set `/thinking off` for that agent.

Auth profiles: what they are and how to manage them

Related: /concepts/oauth (OAuth flows, token storage, multi-account patterns)

An auth profile is a named credential record (OAuth or API key) tied to a provider. Profiles live in:

```
~/.openclaw/agents/<agentId>/agent/auth-profiles.json
```

OpenClaw uses provider-prefixed IDs like:

- `anthropic:default` (common when no email identity exists)
- `anthropic:<email>` for OAuth identities
- custom IDs you choose (e.g. `anthropic:work`)

Yes. Config supports optional metadata for profiles and an ordering per provider (`auth.order.`). This does **not** store secrets; it maps IDs to provider/mode and sets rotation order.

OpenClaw may temporarily skip a profile if it's in a short **cooldown** (rate limits/timeouts/auth failures) or a longer **disabled** state (billing/insufficient credits). To inspect this, run `openclaw models status --json` and check `auth.unusableProfiles`. Tuning: `auth.cooldowns.billingBackoffHours*`.

Rate-limit cooldowns can be model-scoped. A profile that is cooling down
for one model can still be usable for a sibling model on the same provider,
while billing/disabled windows still block the whole profile.

You can also set a **per-agent** order override (stored in that agent's `auth-state.json`) via the CLI:

```bash
# Defaults to the configured default agent (omit --agent)
openclaw models auth order get --provider anthropic

# Lock rotation to a single profile (only try this one)
openclaw models auth order set --provider anthropic anthropic:default

# Or set an explicit order (fallback within provider)
openclaw models auth order set --provider anthropic anthropic:work anthropic:default

# Clear override (fall back to config auth.order / round-robin)
openclaw models auth order clear --provider anthropic
```

To target a specific agent:

```bash
openclaw models auth order set --provider anthropic --agent main anthropic:default
```

To verify what will actually be tried, use:

```bash
openclaw models status --probe
```

If a stored profile is omitted from the explicit order, probe reports
`excluded_by_auth_order` for that profile instead of trying it silently.

OpenClaw supports both:

- **OAuth** often leverages subscription access (where applicable).
- **API keys** use pay-per-token billing.

The wizard explicitly supports Anthropic Claude CLI, OpenAI Codex OAuth, and API keys.

Related

• FAQ — the main FAQ
• FAQ — quick start and first-run setup
• Model selection
• Model failover