Channel Docking for OpenClaw Sessions

Channel docking is call forwarding for a single OpenClaw session. It preserves the existing conversation context but redirects where future replies for that session are delivered. Docking works only from a direct chat, not from a group chat.

Example

Alice can message OpenClaw on Telegram and Discord:

{
  session: {
    identityLinks: {
      alice: ["telegram:123", "discord:456"],
    },
  },
}

If Alice sends this from a Telegram direct chat:

/dock_discord

OpenClaw retains the current session context and alters the reply destination:

Before docking	After `/dock_discord`
Replies go to Telegram `123`	Replies go to Discord `456`

The session is not rebuilt. The transcript history remains attached to the same session.

Why use it

Use docking when a task begins in one chat app but subsequent replies need to arrive elsewhere.

Common flow:

Start an agent task from Telegram.
Move to Discord where you are coordinating work.
Send /dock_discord from the Telegram direct chat.
Keep the same OpenClaw session, but receive future replies in Discord.

Required config

Docking requires session.identityLinks. The source sender and target peer must belong to the same identity group:

{
  session: {
    identityLinks: {
      alice: ["telegram:123", "discord:456", "slack:U123"],
    },
  },
}

The values are channel-prefixed peer ids:

Value	Meaning
`telegram:123`	Telegram sender id `123`
`discord:456`	Discord direct peer id `456`
`slack:U123`	Slack user id `U123`

The canonical key (alice above) is just the shared identity group name. Dock commands use the channel-prefixed values to verify that the source sender and target peer are the same person.

Commands

OpenClaw generates one /dock-<channel> command for each loaded channel plugin that supports native commands, so the list grows as plugins are added. Bundled plugins that currently support it:

Target channel	Command	Alias
Discord	`/dock-discord`	`/dock_discord`
Mattermost	`/dock-mattermost`	`/dock_mattermost`
Slack	`/dock-slack`	`/dock_slack`
Telegram	`/dock-telegram`	`/dock_telegram`

The underscore form is also the native command name on surfaces like Telegram that expose slash commands directly.

What changes

Docking updates the active session delivery fields:

Session field	Example after `/dock_discord`
`lastChannel`	`discord`
`lastTo`	`456`
`lastAccountId`	the target channel account, or `default`

Those fields are persisted in the session store and used by later reply delivery for that session.

What does not change

Docking does not:

create channel accounts
connect a new Discord, Telegram, Slack, or Mattermost bot
grant access to a user
bypass channel allowlists or DM policies
move transcript history to another session
make unrelated users share a session

It only changes the delivery route for the current session.

Troubleshooting

The command says the sender is not linked.

Add both the current sender and the target peer to the same session.identityLinks group. For example, if Telegram sender 123 should dock to Discord peer 456, include both telegram:123 and discord:456.

The command says docking is only available from direct chats.

Send the dock command from a direct chat with OpenClaw, not from a group chat.

The command says no active session exists.

Dock from an existing direct-chat session. The command needs an active session entry so it can persist the new route.

Replies still go to the old channel.

Check that the command replied with a success message, and confirm the target peer id matches the id used by that channel. Docking only changes the active session route; another session may still route elsewhere.

I need to switch back.

Send the matching command for the original channel, such as /dock_telegram or /dock-telegram, from a linked sender.