Failed to start agent: protocol mismatch - OpenClaw 2026.5.12 uses gateway protocol v4 , dench 3.1.2 uses v3

[asistent-alex]

Root cause: The DenchClaw Web UI's WebSocket client sends a minProtocol/maxProtocol handshake range that does not include protocol version 4, which is the version the OpenClaw 2026.5.12 gateway requires. The gateway rejects the connection with close(1002, "protocol mismatch"), making all agent sessions fail.

The Web UI was built against an older OpenClaw gateway that used a lower protocol version. When OpenClaw updated to 2026.5.12 (which bumped the expected protocol to v4), the DenchClaw Web UI bundle was not rebuilt/updated to match, so its client still negotiates with the old range — and the gateway rejects it.

[andreimironstv]

Me too

[asistent-alex]

Since OpenClaw 2026.5.12 we cannot use denchclaw... 3 weeks soon...
openclaw shipped many stability and speed features in the meantime, which we cannot use in Denchclaw.

What is the plan with v3 /v4 protocol version?

[kumarabhirup]

I can confirm this bug. @vedworks is fixing this. We will be supporting the latest OpenClaw version but we will be locking it to 2026.5.28

[asistent-alex]

is this related to what you said @kumarabhirup ?

"You can still use DenchClaw, but it won't receive updates. for the latest features, go to dench.com."

So after 2 months denchclaw will not have the latest new openclaw?

[kumarabhirup]

@asistent-alex sorry about that, no it isn't related and that banner on DenchClaw shouldn't have been there. It will receive updates, but we will be locking in the OpenClaw support at 2026.5.28 for quite a while and encourage users to stick to that OpenClaw version to make DenchClaw work. We had to lock OpenClaw support to that version because OpenClaw updates kept breaking DenchClaw.

Now that Hermes / Codex / Claude Code also provide very similar workflows to OpenClaw, our focus has shifted to providing a Workspace CRM Platform for all agents to work on, instead of only OpenClaw.

We now recommend users to use Dench CLI with OpenClaw instead of using DenchClaw UI locally.

Paste this prompt into your OpenClaw or any other agent:

Help me set up Dench — an AI workspace and CRM at https://dench.com.

Please:
1. Read https://dench.com/SKILL.md AND the `references/CRM.md` it links to (https://dench.com/references/CRM.md) fully. (If your web fetch tool summarizes them, run `curl -sL https://dench.com/SKILL.md` and `curl -sL https://dench.com/references/CRM.md` so you have the raw markdown.) Together they're the Dench skill: SKILL.md is the connection / `dench signin` fast-start, references/CRM.md is the canonical CRM playbook (field types, batch writes, the protected `Notes` field, common pitfalls).
2. Ensure the above Dench and CRM skill is installed in your system so you can re-use it everytime I mention Dench or anything CRM / Workspace related.
3. Ask me whether to create a new Dench workspace or sign you in to an existing one. If creating a new one, ask for a workspace name.
4. Run the right `npx -y -p @dench.com/cli dench signin ...` command from the SKILL.md fast-start. (The published package is `@dench.com/cli` but the binary is named `dench`, so a bare `npx -y @dench.com/cli ...` will fail — always pass `-p @dench.com/cli dench`.) Share the approval URL with me, or read me the 6-digit OTP code if you used `--email`.
5. After approval, run `npx -y -p @dench.com/cli dench context --json` and `npx -y -p @dench.com/cli dench crm objects list --json` to verify the connection.
6. Once connected, help me organize my CRM (people, company, task entries, and any custom objects) following the patterns in references/CRM.md.

[kumarabhirup]

This bug is fixed in v4.0.0 but I'll keep this issue open for others to confirm.