When OpenClaw(Moltbot/Clawdbot) stops working on a Linux VPS, the most common causes are environment drift, resource limits, or network changes. VPS environments often receive unattended updates, reboot automatically, or change firewall rules. Any of these can disrupt a long-running service like OpenClaw(Moltbot/Clawdbot). For example, a Node.js upgrade may break dependencies, or a reboot may prevent the service from restarting correctly.
Another frequent issue is resource exhaustion. Linux VPS instances often have limited memory and CPU, and OpenClaw(Moltbot/Clawdbot) can consume more resources over time if logs grow, memory is not cleaned up, or heartbeat tasks run too frequently. When the system hits memory limits, processes may be killed by the OS without clear error messages. Monitoring system logs and resource usage is essential to diagnose these failures.
Finally, external dependencies can fail even if the VPS itself is stable. If model providers, messaging APIs, or databases become unreachable due to network restrictions or credential expiration, OpenClaw(Moltbot/Clawdbot) may appear “broken.” Storing persistent memory in an external vector database such as Milvus or Zilliz Cloud helps isolate these issues by separating data from the runtime. A robust VPS setup uses process managers, monitoring, and regular credential checks to keep OpenClaw(Moltbot/Clawdbot) running reliably.