[Part 1: Basics] OpenClaw.AI Master Class: Create Your Own Autonomous AI Agent with Gemini and Docker

[Notice] OpenClaw Latest Version Bonjour-related Error Guide and Solution

1. Symptom Information

As of today (2026-04-27), after updating the OpenClaw image to the latest version (2026.4.x) via docker pull, an issue where the Gateway container keeps restarting is occurring in some environments.

If the following messages repeat in the openclaw-gateway logs, it corresponds to this issue., thì có nghĩa là bạn đang gặp phải vấn đề này.

[plugins] bonjour: advertised gateway fqdn=... state=announcing

[plugins] bonjour: restarting advertiser (service stuck in announcing ...)

[openclaw] Unhandled promise rejection: CIAO ANNOUNCEMENT CANCELLED

openclaw-gateway exited with code 1 (restarting)

In this case:

- The openclaw-gateway container starts up and immediately shuts down every few seconds,

- Dashboard access and Telegram integration may not function properly.

2. Cause – Bug in the Bonjour (mDNS) advertising process

By default, OpenClaw Gateway uses Bonjour (mDNS) to allow this instance to be automatically discovered (advertise) on the same network.

In some Docker / WSL / network (routers, corporate networks, etc.) environments:

- After the Bonjour advertise status gets stuck in the announcing stage,,

- An error CIAO ANNOUNCEMENT CANCELLED occurs, and

- There is a bug where this exception is not handled properly, causing the Gateway process to fall into a crash loop.

A patch is currently in progress, and until then, you can use the following workaround.

3. Solution – Disable Bonjour feature (Recommended)

The Part 1/Part 2 practice sessions use a structure intended for use on a single local machine only, so Bonjour is not strictly necessary.

Therefore, we recommend disabling Bonjour via environment variables.

3-1. When using docker-compose.yml

Add the following environment variable to the openclaw-gateway service..

services:

  openclaw-gateway:

    image: ghcr.io/openclaw/openclaw:latest

    environment:
      - OPENCLAW_DISABLE_BONJOUR=1

      # Other OPENCLAW related settings...

After making the changes, restart with the following command.

docker compose down

docker compose up -d

By applying this setting:

- The Gateway will no longer attempt Bonjour/mDNS advertisements,

- It will run stably without taking the CIAO ANNOUNCEMENT CANCELLED error path.

- It does not affect the browser access (dashboard) and Telegram integration used in Part 1/Part 2.

4. Future Guidance

- This issue is a compatibility problem between OpenClaw's Bonjour plugin and certain network/Docker environments, and it is expected to be improved in a future release.

- Even after the patch,

- If you are using it on only one local machine, you can continue to keep OPENCLAW_DISABLE_BONJOUR=1, and

- You only need to re-enable Bonjour when you need to automatically discover OpenClaw instances across multiple devices.

For those students in Part 1/Part 2 who are experiencing a sudden issue where the Gateway keeps shutting down after recently re-pulling the image,

Please apply the settings above to disable the Bonjour feature.

Thank you!