OpenClaw

OpenClaw has quickly gone viral due to its ability to adapt to an almost unlimited number of tasks and use cases. However, to test it in the field, it is necessary to have a computer online 24 hours a day with a consistently available internet connection. This is why Aruba has launched its own offer of VPS with OpenClaw pre-installed, making it easier to try the AI agent at a very low cost. We have tried it for you and prepared some tips on how to use it best.

What is OpenClaw and Why Try It

OpenClaw is an open-source platform that allows you to create an autonomous artificial intelligence agent capable of performing numerous tasks. To do this, it leverages language models provided by companies like Anthropic, Google, or OpenAI as a base, but then integrates a rich ecosystem of skills and functionalities. A unique feature of OpenClaw is that you can interact with it not only from a browser but also through messaging platforms like Telegram and WhatsApp, making communication with the agent more immediate and easily accessible.

We could define OpenClaw as a connector between various services: on one side, there are LLMs, and on the other side, there are third-party services that can be accessed (GitHub, GitLab, online research, Notion, etc.). One particularity of OpenClaw, which distinguishes it from cloud AI services like Claude and ChatGPT, is that it can interact with local files and applications, and any file transmitted to it remains on the device it is running on. In some ways, therefore, OpenClaw offers greater control and customization compared to cloud alternatives. Another distinguishing element is the ability to customize the behavior of the agent by giving it a “personality” and clearly defining its limits.

The project is in a phase of explosive growth: in a few months, it has reached over 300,000 stars on GitHub and has an active community of users and developers. This growth has prompted OpenAI to acquire the project in February 2026. They have contributed with various integrations for online services, which currently exceed 50.

Where to Install OpenClaw?

By its very nature, OpenClaw needs an environment that is always active and available: this way, it is always reachable and capable of executing the tasks assigned to it, such as various automations. For this, it is necessary to install OpenClaw on a computer that is always on.

The most common configuration is a Mac Mini with an M1 or M2 processor, due to its low power consumption and excellent performance. However, the cost of such devices makes the initial investment significant. Additionally, it is necessary to know (and be able) to configure the device to be accessible from outside your local network, and to have a reliable connection that allows OpenClaw to remain always active.

An alternative option is a VPS (Virtual Private Server), a virtual machine hosted in a data center. The advantage of this solution is that its availability and reliability are guaranteed, and it is not necessary to make a significant initial investment to use OpenClaw. The rental cost of the VPS is only a few euros per month, meaning it would take years to reach the price required for purchasing a Mac Mini or another low-power mini PC, even if used.

One aspect to consider regarding the use of a VPS is that the server is publicly accessible on the Internet and therefore requires careful configuration to be secure from attacks.

Whether using a local computer or a VPS, in any case, you must rely on the models offered by various AI companies (Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, etc.): while it is technically possible to host an LLM locally, the performance is such that it essentially becomes impossible to use OpenClaw for any practical application. The device (whether computer or VPS) thus becomes just a connection point between LLM, user, and other services.

Configuring OpenClaw on Aruba VPS

Aruba offers a wide range of VPS equipped with both Linux and Windows operating systems, with features ranging from one core and 1 GB of RAM to 16 cores and 32 GB of RAM. The company has recently expanded its offer with new VPS equipped with Ubuntu and OpenClaw pre-installed.

The VPS are hosted in data centers in Italy and the Czech Republic and are available in six sizes:

• O1I1: 1 core, 1 GB of RAM, 20 GB disk space, 2 TB traffic per month
• O1I2: 1 core, 2 GB of RAM, 40 GB disk space, 5 TB/month
• O2A4: 2 CPUs, 4 GB of RAM, 40 GB hard disk, 25 TB/month
• O4A8: 4 CPUs, 8 GB of RAM, 80 GB disk space, 50 TB monthly traffic
• O8A16: 8 cores, 16 GB of RAM, 160 GB hard disk, 100 TB monthly traffic
• O16A32: 16 CPUs, 32 GB of RAM, 320 GB disk space, 100 TB/month

Which size to choose largely depends on the type of usage you want to make of the VPS and, thus, on which applications you want to run directly on it. If you want to use it just as a gateway, the model with 2 CPUs and 4 GB of RAM is more than sufficient; the model with 8 GB of RAM opens the door to using other applications directly on the VPS, for example, using Docker.

To activate the VPS, you need to create an Aruba Cloud account (this is a different account from the standard Aruba one, so new registration is necessary if you are not already registered). The configuration process is quite straightforward and takes only a few minutes; during the password setup phase, it is important to select a strong one.

Once the order is placed, the virtual machine will be ready for use in a few minutes, and you will be able to connect via SSH (included in Windows 11, macOS, and Linux). To configure OpenClaw, you need to connect via your browser and follow the setup procedure as explained in Aruba's dedicated video.

The advantage of Aruba's VPS with OpenClaw is that it already contains many useful configurations to maintain a high level of security (for example, OpenClaw is not directly exposed on the Internet, but is behind a reverse proxy) without the user having to deal with it.

An aspect to consider when configuring OpenClaw is the choice of the artificial intelligence model. The performance of the main models from various vendors (Anthropic, Google, OpenAI) are quite similar, as are the prices: it is about $15 per month plus VAT for 1 million tokens for the medium-sized models normally used for OpenClaw. The monthly cost of OpenClaw will, therefore, be the sum of the VPS cost (6.29€ + VAT for the 4 GB RAM model, for example) and the costs of the tokens used; this last aspect is the variable one that most affects the overall expenditure, and it depends heavily on how the bot is used.

Tips on How to Make the VPS with OpenClaw More Secure

Following are some basic tips on how to make the VPS with OpenClaw more secure. These are fundamental measures that help strengthen the server's security level, thus avoiding unpleasant inconveniences. Before starting, it is necessary to take note of the server's IP address, which is available in the Aruba Cloud control panel once the VPS is created.

During the server setup, it is possible to upload an SSH public key: this procedure ensures that the server is set to accept connections only when the device attempting the connection is using the corresponding private key. If you have not already generated this key for other projects, you can do so using the command ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 (without quotes) on your computer (all major operating systems are supported); this will create two keys. The key to use is the one with the “.pub” extension. It is important to keep the key pair safe: if you lose the private key (the one without the extension), it will no longer be possible to connect to the VPS.

After the first connection with the root user to the server using SSH (ssh root@ip-address), we recommend creating a new user using the command useradd -m -s /bin/bash user && chpasswd 'user:password' (replace “user” with the desired name and “password” with the chosen password; the name must be all lowercase). At this point, it is necessary to type the command usermod -aG sudoers user.

Once this is done, you need to disable access via the root user: to do this, you can type nano /etc/sshd_config and scroll until you find the line that says PermitRootLogin yes, modifying it so that it says no. An additional security measure you can adopt is to use a non-standard port for SSH connections. One of the first lines is #Port 22. You need to delete the hashtag and change the port (for example, 8022). Once done, you can save the file with ctrl+O and exit using ctrl+X; change the firewall rules using sudo ufw allow 8022 to allow connections to the new port. At this point, you can enter the command sudo systemctl restart ssh to make the change effective, and then enter exit. To connect later, you will need to use the command ssh -p 8022 user@ip-address.

It is very important to protect API keys from possible unauthorized use. If the machine or agent were compromised, you might end up with a hefty bill. Therefore, the correct approach is to create a specific key for OpenClaw at the LLM provider, imposing strict spending limits: this way, in the worst-case scenario, you will reach the spending limit and be able to simply revoke the key to render it useless. Using the guided setup process, the system itself ensures that the key is readable only by the user with whom the configuration is being carried out, so no further actions are necessary.

To keep track of the system's status, you can install an application like Cockpit, which allows you to monitor the server and perform configuration and maintenance tasks directly from the browser. To install Cockpit, you need to enable the “backports” repository: you can simply type the command sudo apt install -t noble-backports cockpit && sudo systemctl enable --now cockpit.{socket,service} (this command is valid for Ubuntu 24.04; for later versions, just remove “-t noble-backports”). You will then need to enable the related port on the firewall, and to do this, simply type the command ufw allow 9090. At this point, you will be able to connect to Cockpit from the browser by entering https://server-ip-address:9090.

With these few precautions, it is possible to better monitor the server and achieve a better level of security, thus obtaining the best from the VPS model (low costs, 24/7 availability, flexibility) alongside the advantages offered by OpenClaw.