Installing Moltbot on BinaryLane using the CLI

Introduction to Moltbot

Moltbot is an open-source, self-hosted AI assistant that allows you to interact with AI models through various messaging platforms including WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, and more. Unlike web-based chatbots, Moltbot runs on your own server with persistent memory across conversations, full system access, and extensive integrations.

A Brief History: From Clawdbot to Moltbot

Moltbot was originally known as "Clawdbot" when it launched in late 2025. The project quickly became one of the fastest-growing open-source repositories in GitHub history, gaining over 60,000 stars. In January 2026, Anthropic (the company behind Claude AI) contacted the creator Peter Steinberger requesting a name change due to trademark concerns with the similarity between "Clawd" and "Claude".

The new name "Moltbot" was chosen to symbolise rebirth, inspired by the molting process of the project's lobster mascot (now called "Molty"). All functionality remains identical — only the branding changed.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

• A BinaryLane account with API access enabled
• The BinaryLane CLI installed on your local machine
• An API key from your preferred AI provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google)
• Basic familiarity with Linux command line operations

Step 1: Install the BinaryLane CLI

The BinaryLane CLI can be installed via pip (Python package manager):

pip install binarylane-cli

Verify the installation:

bl version

Step 2: Configure the BinaryLane CLI

You'll need to create an API token to authenticate the CLI:

1. Log in to your BinaryLane account at https://home.binarylane.com.au
2. Navigate to the Developer API section
3. Click + Create Token
4. Enter a name for your token (e.g., "CLI Access") and click Create
5. Copy the displayed token immediately (it won't be shown again)

Configure the CLI with your token:

bl configure

When prompted, paste your API token. Verify the configuration:

bl account get

This should display your account information if configured correctly.

Step 3: Create a VPS for Moltbot

First, view available server sizes to find one suitable for Moltbot (2 CPU, 2GB RAM recommended):

bl size list

View available regions:

bl region list

View available operating system images (Ubuntu 24.04 LTS is recommended):

bl image list --type distribution

Create the server with the following command (adjust the size slug and region as needed):

bl server create \
  --name moltbot-server \
  --region syd \
  --image ubuntu-24.04 \
  --size std-2vcpu-2gb \
  --ssh-key YOUR_SSH_KEY_ID

To find your SSH key ID, run:

bl ssh-key list

If you don't have an SSH key registered, add one first:

bl ssh-key create --name "My Key" --public-key "ssh-rsa AAAA..."

Wait for the server to be created. Check its status:

bl server list

Once the status shows active, note the public IP address.

Step 4: Connect to Your VPS

SSH into your new server:

ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

Step 5: Install Node.js 24

Moltbot requires Node.js version 24 or higher. Install it using NodeSource:

# Update system packages
apt update && apt upgrade -y

# Install required dependencies
apt install -y curl

# Add NodeSource repository for Node.js 24
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_24.x | bash -

# Install Node.js
apt install -y nodejs

# Verify installation
node --version
npm --version

Step 6: Install Moltbot

Install Moltbot globally using npm:

npm install -g moltbot@latest

Alternatively, use the install script:

curl -fsSL https://molt.bot/install.sh | bash

moltbot onboard --install-daemon

The wizard will guide you through:

• Configuring your AI provider API key
• Setting up messaging platform integrations
• Creating the system service for persistent operation

Step 7: Configure Your AI Provider

Edit the Moltbot configuration file:

nano ~/.moltbot/moltbot.json

A minimal configuration for Claude looks like:

{
  "agent": {
    "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5"
  }
}

You'll also need to set your API key as an environment variable. Add this to your ~/.bashrc:

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"

Then reload your shell:

source ~/.bashrc

Step 8: Start Moltbot

Start the Moltbot gateway:

moltbot gateway --port 18789 --verbose

The gateway will be accessible at http://127.0.0.1:18789/ from the server.

Step 9: Verify Installation

Run the diagnostic tool to check your setup:

moltbot doctor

This will identify any configuration issues and validate your installation.

Test sending a message:

moltbot agent --message "Hello, are you working?" --thinking high

Basic Maintenance

Viewing Logs

Check the gateway logs:

journalctl -u moltbot-gateway -f

Updating Moltbot

To update to the latest version:

npm update -g moltbot@latest
systemctl restart moltbot-gateway

Stopping and Starting the Service

# Stop the gateway
systemctl stop moltbot-gateway

# Start the gateway
systemctl start moltbot-gateway

# Check status
systemctl status moltbot-gateway

Managing Your VPS with the BinaryLane CLI

Here are some useful commands for managing your Moltbot server:

# List all your servers
bl server list

# Get details about a specific server
bl server get --server-id SERVER_ID

# Reboot the server
bl server action reboot --server-id SERVER_ID

# Resize the server (requires shutdown first)
bl server action shutdown --server-id SERVER_ID
bl server action resize --server-id SERVER_ID --size std-4vcpu-4gb

# Take a backup/snapshot
bl server action snapshot --server-id SERVER_ID --name "moltbot-backup"

# Delete a server (use with caution!)
bl server delete --server-id SERVER_ID

Troubleshooting

Gateway Won't Start

Ensure Node.js 22+ is installed (node --version) and check for port conflicts on 18789.

AI Provider Errors

Verify your API key is correctly set in the environment variables and has sufficient credits/quota.

Connection Issues

The Moltbot web interface is designed for local access only. Do not expose port 18789 to the public internet without additional security measures.

Additional Resources

• Official Moltbot Documentation: https://docs.molt.bot/
• BinaryLane CLI Documentation: https://github.com/binarylane/binarylane-cli
• BinaryLane API Reference: https://api.binarylane.com.au/reference/