Install

Install

macOS and Linux:

curl -LsSf https://github.com/cisco-ai-defense/defenseclaw/releases/latest/download/install.sh | bash

Windows (PowerShell):

irm https://github.com/cisco-ai-defense/defenseclaw/releases/latest/download/install.ps1 | iex

When it finishes, run defenseclaw init to configure DefenseClaw. To pick an agent during the install, pass options: on macOS/Linux, end the command above with bash -s -- --connector codex --quickstart instead of bash; on Windows, run

& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://github.com/cisco-ai-defense/defenseclaw/releases/latest/download/install.ps1))) -Connector codex -Quickstart

The installer downloads the release's gateway, CLI wheel, and a hash-pinned list of the CLI's Python dependencies, and checks each file against the release's checksums.txt. When cosign 2.0 or later is installed it also verifies the Sigstore signature on checksums.txt. It installs uv if you do not have it, and uv provides the Python runtime; nothing else is required.

The same command upgrades or repairs an existing install and keeps your configuration and data. Day to day, use defenseclaw upgrade, which runs the latest release's installer for you.

Prerequisites for source builds

Agent-specific dependencies and quirks live on the connector pages.

What's bundled (LLM backends)

The base install ships everything DefenseClaw needs to talk to the major LLM backends out of the box:

Install from source

git clone https://github.com/cisco-ai-defense/defenseclaw.git
cd defenseclaw
make all CONNECTOR=none
defenseclaw init

make all installs the editable Python CLI, builds and installs the Go gateway, updates your PATH, and normally runs quickstart. The example sets CONNECTOR=none to skip that automatic first-run configuration, then invokes defenseclaw init explicitly. Omit CONNECTOR=none when you want make all to run quickstart itself. The OpenClaw plugin is installed when CONNECTOR=openclaw is selected.

Source builds are development tooling, not a packaged upgrade path. make all is the explicit developer reinstall workflow: it may reclaim markerless or older source state only when the installed CLI belongs to this exact checkout. It validates marker ownership, rejects foreign and newer source identities, and records the current strict marker after a successful rebuild. Direct make install, scripts/install-dev.sh, and release-managed hosts remain fail-closed. Release installations must use defenseclaw upgrade; do not aim a raw pip, uv, or editable install at a release-managed virtual environment. The lower-level install targets are for fresh or isolated development homes, not the normal repeated-development path.

What the install creates

The installer also keeps ~/.defenseclaw/installer/ (the installer that performed the current install, used by defenseclaw rollback), ~/.defenseclaw/previous/ (the install the last upgrade replaced), and ~/.defenseclaw/logs/.

On Windows the same layout lives under %USERPROFILE%: %USERPROFILE%\.defenseclaw\ holds configuration, data, and the Python environment, and %USERPROFILE%\.local\bin\ holds defenseclaw.cmd, defenseclaw-gateway.exe, defenseclaw-hook.exe, and defenseclaw-acp.exe. The installer adds %USERPROFILE%\.local\bin to your user PATH.

Verify

defenseclaw --version
defenseclaw doctor

Doctor verifies:

Useful modes:

# Avoid billable, content-submitting, and synthetic probes
defenseclaw doctor --passive

# Machine-readable schema v2
defenseclaw doctor --json-output

# Preview eligible repairs without mutation
defenseclaw doctor --fix --dry-run

# Apply eligible safe and disruptive repairs
defenseclaw doctor --fix --yes

# Select one repair and its declared dependencies
defenseclaw doctor --fix --fix-id doctor.state.audit-db.initialize

# Identity recovery is always attended; do not add --yes
defenseclaw doctor --fix --fix-id doctor.identity.device-key.initialize

Doctor executes skill-scanner --version through the resolved installed launcher. A stale launcher or interpreter mismatch is therefore reported as a failure instead of appearing merely "installed" because a file exists.

--fix applies selected repairs before the health pass, so its summary describes post-repair state. A failed health check or failed or blocked repair exits 1. See the Doctor CLI reference for the machine contract and Reporting and diagnosis for token, recovery, compatibility, and approval boundaries.

Uninstall

defenseclaw uninstall              # reversible — keeps ~/.defenseclaw/ and binaries
defenseclaw uninstall --all        # also delete ~/.defenseclaw/ (audit log, config, secrets)
defenseclaw uninstall --binaries   # also remove managed CLI and scanner launchers
defenseclaw uninstall --all --binaries --yes   # full nuke, no confirm prompt

The default tears down connector integrations and leaves ~/.defenseclaw/ and the installed binaries on disk so a subsequent defenseclaw setup guardrail can pick up where you left off. An unchanged managed connector file is restored byte-for-byte from its hash-checked snapshot; after user edits, connector-specific cleanup removes only DefenseClaw-owned entries and preserves unrelated changes. Use --all and/or --binaries to make the removal total. On POSIX installs, --binaries also removes the managed skill-scanner, skill-scanner-api, skill-scanner-pre-commit, mcp-scanner, mcp-scanner-api, and litellm launchers from ~/.local/bin. --dry-run previews the plan.

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