What You'll Learn
Why run Clawdbot on a VPS
Running Clawdbot on a remote VPS is a practical way to host an AI agent without relying on local hardware like a Mac Mini. VPS hosting gives you 24 7 uptime, easier scaling, and simpler remote access. In this tutorial based on Nate Herk's walkthrough, you will learn how to prepare a VPS, install dependencies, configure your environment, and run Clawdbot reliably.
What you need before you start
- A Linux VPS (Ubuntu 22.04 or similar) with SSH access
- Domain or static IP if you need inbound webhooks
- Basic familiarity with SSH, the terminal, and editing files
- Clawdbot repository or installer files
Optional but recommended:
- Docker and Docker Compose installed for containerized deployment
- A non root user configured with sudo
- A secure place to store secrets such as environment variables or a secrets manager
Step by step: Quick overview
1. Pick and prepare a VPS
2. SSH into the server and install dependencies
3. Clone or copy the Clawdbot project
4. Add required environment variables and API keys
5. Run the bot with Docker Compose or as a systemd service
6. Enable logs, firewall rules, and auto restart
The video shows each step in under 15 minutes and focuses on a simple, repeatable setup useful for testing and small production workloads.
1. Choose and provision a VPS
Choose a provider that matches your budget and region. Aim for at least 2 CPU cores and 2 to 4 GB of RAM for small bots, increasing resources if the agent performs heavy tasks. Ensure you create an SSH key pair and add your public key to the server for secure passwordless login.
Commands you will run on your local machine:
- ssh ubuntu@your.vps.ip.address
Once connected, update packages:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
2. Install dependencies
The video shows both Docker and a more direct Python based approach. Docker is recommended for isolation and repeatability. To install Docker quickly:
sudo apt install -y apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl gnupg lsb-release
curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
If you prefer not to use Docker install Python, pip, git, and any other required system libs noted in the Clawdbot docs.
3. Get the Clawdbot code and set environment variables
Clone the repo or download the project to your home directory. Create an .env file or use a config file for API keys and runtime settings. Keep secrets out of version control.
Example environment keys to expect:
- API_KEY or BOT_TOKEN
- DATABASE_URL or path for persistence
- LOG_LEVEL
Make sure file permissions restrict access: chmod 600 .env
4. Run with Docker Compose or systemd for persistence
Docker Compose approach (recommended for simple deployments):
- Create docker-compose.yml to define the service, environment, volumes for persistence and restart policy.
- Run docker compose up -d to start the bot in detached mode.
If you prefer systemd the video demonstrates a simple unit file that runs the bot as a service and restarts on failure. Example pattern:
- Create /etc/systemd/system/clawdbot.service with ExecStart pointing to your start script
- Enable and start the service: sudo systemctl enable clawdbot && sudo systemctl start clawdbot
Both approaches allow the bot to survive reboots and keep logs accessible via docker logs or journalctl.
5. Security and reliability tips
- Use SSH keys and disable password login
- Set up a basic firewall such as ufw to allow only required ports
- Keep secrets in environment variables or a secrets manager
- Monitor logs and resource usage with top, htop, docker stats or a lightweight monitoring agent
- Schedule automated backups if your bot stores state
Troubleshooting common issues
- Bot not starting: check logs, validate environment variables, and confirm dependencies are installed
- Permissions error: ensure files have correct owners and service user has access
- Restart loops: inspect logs for fatal exceptions and missing keys
Final thoughts and next steps
This quick VPS setup avoids hardware constraints and makes Clawdbot portable. From here you can add a domain and HTTPS, integrate with a database for persistence, or use container orchestration for scaling. Create With recommends testing updates in a staging environment before rolling changes to production.
If you follow the steps from the video you should have Clawdbot running on your VPS in minutes. The core ideas are reproducible for other agents and provide a reliable baseline for AI automation projects.
Credits
This guide summarizes the demo by Nate Herk | AI Automation and adds practical tips for secure, persistent hosting. For community resources and more agent tutorials check Create With for events and workshops.
