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OpenClaw keeps older plugin contracts wired through named compatibility adapters before removing them. This protects existing bundled and external plugins while the SDK, manifest, setup, config, and agent runtime contracts evolve.

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Compatibility registry

Plugin compatibility contracts are tracked in the core registry at src/plugins/compat/registry.ts. Each record has:
  • a stable compatibility code
  • status: active, deprecated, removal-pending, or removed
  • owner: sdk, config, setup, channel, provider, plugin-execution, agent-runtime, or core
  • introduction and deprecation dates when applicable
  • replacement guidance
  • docs, diagnostics, and tests that cover the old and new behavior
The registry is the source for maintainer planning and future plugin inspector checks. If a plugin-facing behavior changes, add or update the compatibility record in the same change that adds the adapter. Doctor repair and migration compatibility is tracked separately at src/commands/doctor/shared/deprecation-compat.ts. Those records cover old config shapes, install-ledger layouts, and repair shims that may need to stay available after the runtime compatibility path is removed. Release sweeps should check both registries. Do not delete a doctor migration just because the matching runtime or config compatibility record expired; first verify there is no supported upgrade path that still needs the repair. Revalidate each replacement annotation during release planning too, since plugin ownership and config footprint can change as providers and channels move out of core.

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Deprecation policy

OpenClaw should not remove a documented plugin contract in the same release that introduces its replacement. Migration sequence:
  1. Add the new contract.
  2. Keep the old behavior wired through a named compatibility adapter.
  3. Emit diagnostics or warnings when plugin authors can act.
  4. Document the replacement and timeline.
  5. Test both old and new paths.
  6. Wait through the announced migration window.
  7. Remove only with explicit breaking-release approval.
Deprecated records must include a warning start date, replacement, docs link, and a final removal date no more than three months after the warning starts. Do not add a deprecated compatibility path with an open-ended removal window unless maintainers explicitly decide it is permanent compatibility and mark it active instead.

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Current compatibility areas

The registry currently tracks around 70 compatibility codes across these areas. New plugin code should use the replacement in each area and in the specific migration guide; existing plugins can keep using a compatibility path until docs, diagnostics, and release notes announce a removal window.
  • legacy broad SDK imports such as openclaw/plugin-sdk/compat
  • legacy hook-only plugin shapes and before_agent_start
  • legacy api.on("deactivate", ...) cleanup hook names while plugins migrate to gateway_stop
  • legacy activate(api) plugin entrypoints while plugins migrate to register(api)
  • legacy SDK aliases such as openclaw/extension-api, openclaw/plugin-sdk/channel-runtime, openclaw/plugin-sdk/command-auth status builders, openclaw/plugin-sdk/test-utils (replaced by focused openclaw/plugin-sdk/* test subpaths), and the ClawdbotConfig / OpenClawSchemaType type aliases
  • bundled plugin allowlist and enablement behavior
  • legacy provider/channel env-var manifest metadata
  • legacy provider plugin hooks and type aliases while providers move to explicit catalog, auth, thinking, replay, and transport hooks
  • legacy runtime aliases such as api.runtime.taskFlow, api.runtime.subagent.getSession, api.runtime.stt, and deprecated api.runtime.config.loadConfig() / api.runtime.config.writeConfigFile(...)
  • WhatsApp WebInboundMessage flat callback fields (see below)
  • WhatsApp WebInboundMessage top-level admission fields (see below)
  • legacy memory-plugin split registration while memory plugins move to registerMemoryCapability
  • legacy memory-specific embedding provider registration while embedding providers move to api.registerEmbeddingProvider(...) and contracts.embeddingProviders
  • legacy channel SDK helpers for native message schemas, mention gating, inbound envelope formatting, and approval capability nesting
  • legacy channel route key and comparable-target helper aliases while plugins move to openclaw/plugin-sdk/channel-route
  • activation hints being replaced by manifest contribution ownership
  • setup-api runtime fallback while setup descriptors move to cold setup.requiresRuntime: false metadata
  • provider discovery hooks while provider catalog hooks move to catalog.run(...)
  • channel showConfigured / showInSetup metadata while channel packages move to openclaw.channel.exposure
  • legacy runtime-policy config keys while doctor migrates operators to agentRuntime
  • generated bundled channel config metadata fallback while registry-first channelConfigs metadata lands
  • persisted plugin registry disable and install-migration env flags while repair flows migrate operators to openclaw plugins registry --refresh and openclaw doctor --fix
  • legacy plugin-owned web search, web fetch, and x_search config paths while doctor migrates them to plugins.entries.<plugin>.config
  • legacy plugins.installs authored config and bundled plugin load-path aliases while install metadata moves into the state-managed plugin ledger

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WhatsApp inbound callback flat aliases

WhatsApp runtime callbacks deliver WebInboundMessage: the canonical nested event, payload, quote, group, and platform contexts plus deprecated flat aliases for the shipped callback fields. New callback code should read the nested contexts. Code that constructs clean nested callback messages can use WebInboundCallbackMessage; compatibility listeners that still inject old flat test or plugin messages should use LegacyFlatWebInboundMessage or WebInboundMessageInput. The flat aliases remain available until 2026-08-30; that window applies only to flat alias access, not to the nested shape, which is the canonical runtime contract. Each flat alias’s TypeScript @deprecated annotation names its exact nested replacement. Common examples:
  • id, timestamp, and isBatched move under event.
  • body, mediaPath, mediaType, mediaFileName, mediaUrl, location, and untrustedStructuredContext move under payload.
  • to, chatId, sender/self fields, sendComposing, reply(...), and sendMedia(...) move under platform.
  • replyTo* fields move under quote; group subject/participant/mention fields move under group.
payload.untrustedStructuredContext is extracted from inbound provider payloads. Plugins should inspect label, source, and type before treating its payload as authoritative.

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WhatsApp inbound admission fields

Accepted WhatsApp callback messages carry admission, a public-safe envelope for the access-control decision that admitted the message. New callback code should read admission facts from msg.admission instead of the older top-level admission fields. The top-level fields remain available until 2026-08-30. Each field’s TypeScript @deprecated annotation names its replacement:
  • from and conversationId move to admission.conversation.id.
  • accountId moves to admission.accountId.
  • accessControlPassed is a derived compatibility view of admission.ingress.decision === "allow"; on messages that already carry admission, writing the legacy boolean does not rewrite the ingress graph.
  • chatType moves to admission.conversation.kind.

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Plugin inspector package

The plugin inspector should live outside the core OpenClaw repo as a separate package/repository backed by the versioned compatibility and manifest contracts. The day-one CLI should be: 
openclaw-plugin-inspector ./my-plugin
It should emit manifest/schema validation, the contract compatibility version being checked, install/source metadata checks, cold-path import checks, and deprecation/compatibility warnings. Use --json for stable machine-readable output in CI annotations. OpenClaw core should expose contracts and fixtures the inspector can consume, but should not publish the inspector binary from the main openclaw package.

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Maintainer acceptance lane

Use Crabbox-backed Blacksmith Testbox for the installable-package acceptance lane when validating the external inspector against OpenClaw plugin packages. Run it from a clean OpenClaw checkout after the package is built: 
pnpm crabbox:run -- --provider blacksmith-testbox --timing-json --shell -- "pnpm install && pnpm build && npm exec --yes @openclaw/plugin-inspector@0.1.0 -- ./extensions/telegram --json"
pnpm crabbox:run -- --provider blacksmith-testbox --timing-json --shell -- "npm exec --yes @openclaw/plugin-inspector@0.1.0 -- ./extensions/discord --json"
pnpm crabbox:run -- --provider blacksmith-testbox --timing-json --shell -- "npm exec --yes @openclaw/plugin-inspector@0.1.0 -- <clawhub-plugin-dir> --json"
Keep this lane opt-in for maintainers, since it installs an external npm package and may inspect plugin packages cloned outside the repo. The local repo guards cover the SDK export map, compatibility registry metadata, deprecated SDK-import burn-down, and bundled extension import boundaries; Testbox inspector proof covers the package as external plugin authors consume it.

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Release notes

Release notes should include upcoming plugin deprecations with target dates and links to migration docs, before a compatibility path moves to removal-pending or removed.