Getting Started — Business in a Box

What you'll have at the end

A fully operational AI team — CEO, CTO, CMO, CFO, CISO, CSO — pick what you need

Mission Control — the visual dashboard that shows everything at once

A complete brand identity — voice, audience, visual direction (Business in a Box only)

Discord integration so you can message your team from anywhere

A daily rhythm — morning briefs, task routing, standup reports — running automatically

Before you start — which path are you on?

Path A

I'm brand new to OpenClaw. Nothing set up yet.

Follow every phase in order: 0 → 1 → 2 → 3A → 4 → 5 → 6.

Start here

Path B

I already have OpenClaw with agents running.

Follow phases 0, 1, and 2 as normal — then skip to Phase 3B.

Jump to 3B

A 5-minute check now prevents hours of confusion later. Run through all four steps before moving on.

0.1 — Verify OpenClaw is installed

openclaw --version

You should see a version number like openclaw/2026.x.x. If you see command not found, go to 0.2.

0.2 — Install OpenClaw (if needed)

macOS or Linux:

curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

This downloads the CLI, installs it globally, and launches an onboarding wizard. Follow the wizard — it will ask you to configure your AI provider.

Windows: OpenClaw requires WSL2. First install it (wsl --install in PowerShell as Administrator, restart), then open your WSL2 terminal and run the Linux command above.

⚠️ command not found after install: Run npm prefix -g to find where npm installs global packages, then add that bin folder to your PATH.

0.3 — Verify your AI model is configured

openclaw models status

You should see at least one provider listed as active. If nothing is configured, run openclaw onboard and follow the wizard.

0.4 — Verify the Gateway is running

openclaw gateway status

Should say running or active. If not: openclaw gateway start

Phase 0 checkpoint

openclaw --version      # prints a version number
openclaw models status  # shows at least one active provider
openclaw gateway status # shows "running"

1.1 — Find your download

After purchasing on Gumroad, check your email for a receipt with a "View content" or "Download" button. The file will be named something like business-in-a-box-v1.x.zip.

Can't find the email? Log in at gumroad.com/library with the email you used to purchase.

1.2 — Unzip the archive

macOS: Double-click the .zip file in Finder, or in Terminal:

cd ~/Downloads
unzip business-in-a-box-*.zip

Linux: Same as above. If unzip isn't installed: sudo apt install unzip

1.3 — Verify the contents

cd business-in-a-box*
ls -la

You should see all of these:

SKILL.md                  ← Product overview
FAQ.md                    ← Answers to common questions
scripts/setup.sh          ← The setup script (Phase 2)
templates/                ← AGENTS.md, all SOUL-*.md files
mission-control/          ← Mission Control dashboard
references/               ← This guide, security framework
examples/                 ← Filled-in examples to reference

Phase 1 checkpoint

ls scripts/setup.sh templates/AGENTS.md templates/SOUL-CEO.md mission-control/

All present? Move to Phase 2.

The setup script does the heavy lifting — asks a series of questions, then generates your entire workspace pre-filled with your company name and agent names.

2.1 — Run the script

bash scripts/setup.sh ~/workspace

~/workspace is where your agent files will live. Change it to any path you like. The rest of this guide assumes ~/workspace.

2.2 — What the script will ask

1/4

Company & owner

Your company name and what your agents should call you. Leave blank to use defaults.

2/4

Choose your agents

CEO is always included. Press Enter for each role you want, N to skip. Adding more later takes 5 minutes.

3/4

Name your agents

Give each agent a name, or press Enter for the defaults. Personality names — your CEO can be "Marcus" or "Aria" or anything you like.

4/4

Workspace generation

The script builds everything and prints a config snippet at the end. Takes about 10 seconds. Don't interrupt it.

Which agents do I need?

🏢

CEO (always included)

Runs standups, coordinates the team, reports to you. Always required.

💻

CTO

If you're building software, websites, or anything technical.

📣

CMO

If you're doing marketing, content, social, or brand work.

💰

CFO

If you have revenue, costs, or financial tracking to manage.

🛡️

CISO

Security and risk. Recommended for most — handles threat awareness.

🎧

CSO

If customers email you or you need dedicated support handling.

Start with CEO + the one or two roles that match your immediate work. Re-run the script any time — existing files are never overwritten.

Phase 2 checkpoint

grep -i "company" ~/workspace/AGENTS.md | head -3
ls ~/workspace/agents/
cat ~/workspace/openclaw-agents.txt

All working? Go to Phase 3A (new setup) or 3B (existing setup).

Only follow 3A if: you're new to OpenClaw with no existing agents. Already have agents running? Skip to Phase 3B.

3A.1 — Open your config file

nano ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json

3A.2 — Add your agents

Replace the contents with the snippet below. Change every path that says /home/yourname/workspace to your actual workspace path (run echo ~/workspace to find it). Remove blocks for roles you didn't select.

// ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: {
        primary: "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",
      },
    },
    list: [
      {
        id: "ceo",
        workspace: "/home/yourname/workspace/agents/ceo",
        model: "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6",  // CEO gets Opus — worth it
      },
      {
        id: "cto",
        workspace: "/home/yourname/workspace/agents/cto",
      },
      {
        id: "cmo",
        workspace: "/home/yourname/workspace/agents/cmo",
      },
      // Add/remove roles to match your Phase 2 selections
    ],
  },
}

3A.3 — Copy credentials to each agent

mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/agents/ceo/agent
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/agents/cto/agent
# Repeat for each agent you created

cp ~/.openclaw/agents/main/agent/auth-profiles.json ~/.openclaw/agents/ceo/agent/
cp ~/.openclaw/agents/main/agent/auth-profiles.json ~/.openclaw/agents/cto/agent/
# Repeat for each agent

⚠️ Can't find auth-profiles.json? Run find ~/.openclaw/agents -name "auth-profiles.json" to locate it.

3A.4 — Reload and verify

openclaw gateway restart
openclaw agents list

Phase 3A checkpoint

openclaw gateway status  # running
openclaw agents list     # lists ceo, cto, etc.
openclaw doctor          # no errors

All good? Skip to Phase 4: Discord Setup.

Only follow 3B if: you already have OpenClaw running with one or more agents. New to OpenClaw? Use Phase 3A instead.

This is a config merge, not a replace. Your existing agent stays exactly as it is.

Check your current config pattern

cat ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json

Single agent (no agents.list)

Your config has agents.defaults.workspace but no list array. Your single agent is the implicit main agent.

Explicit agent list (has agents.list)

Your config already has an agents.list array. You'll be appending to it.

Open ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json and add the Business in a Box agents to your existing list. If you're in Pattern A, make your existing agent explicit first:

{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: { primary: "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5" },
    },
    list: [
      // YOUR EXISTING AGENT — unchanged
      {
        id: "main",
        default: true,
        workspace: "/home/yourname/.openclaw/workspace",
      },

      // BUSINESS IN A BOX — new additions
      {
        id: "ceo",
        workspace: "/home/yourname/workspace/agents/ceo",
        model: "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6",
      },
      { id: "cto", workspace: "/home/yourname/workspace/agents/cto" },
      // ... add roles you selected in Phase 2
    ],
  },
  // Keep all your other existing config — do NOT delete anything
}

openclaw doctor
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw agents list

Phase 3B checkpoint

openclaw gateway status  # running
openclaw agents list     # shows original agent AND new ones
openclaw doctor          # no errors

Can I skip Discord? Yes. Talk to agents via openclaw dashboard or the CLI: openclaw agent --agent ceo --message "your message". Discord is the designed experience but not required.

4.1

Create a Discord server

In Discord, click + in the sidebar → Create My Own → For me and my friends. Name it "[Your Company] HQ".

4.2

Create channels for each agent

One text channel per agent: #ceo-office, #dev-workshop, #marketing-hub, #finance-desk, #security-ops, #support-desk, #general, #war-room.

4.3

Create a Discord bot

Go to discord.com/developers/applications → New Application → name it after your CEO. Under Bot, enable Message Content Intent (required). Click Reset Token and copy it.

4.4

Enable Developer Mode & collect IDs

User Settings → Advanced → Developer Mode ON. Right-click server icon → Copy Server ID. Right-click your username → Copy User ID. Save both.

4.5

Add bot token to OpenClaw

openclaw config set channels.discord.token '"YOUR_BOT_TOKEN"' --json
openclaw config set channels.discord.enabled true --json
openclaw gateway restart

4.6

Invite the bot and pair

In Developer Portal → OAuth2 → URL Generator: check bot and applications.commands with Send Messages, Read Message History permissions. Paste invite URL in browser. Then DM your bot in Discord and run openclaw pairing approve discord CODE.

Phase 4 checkpoint

Send a message in your #ceo-office channel. Your CEO agent should respond within seconds.

0–5m

Boot up your CEO

In #ceo-office: "Good morning. Read your SOUL.md and AGENTS.md, then read MEMORY.md and tell me your read on our current situation and priorities." If MEMORY.md is empty on day one, spend 10 minutes filling it in. That's the most valuable 10 minutes of setup.

5–15m

Set the day's agenda

Tell the CEO the top 3 priorities for today. They'll write this into their daily note and brief the team.

15–30m

Boot your other agents

For each agent: "Good morning. Read your SOUL.md and AGENTS.md, then check TASKS.md for anything in your lane." The files do the orientation work.

30–60m

Give first tasks + get a brief

Assign each agent something real, then ask the CEO: "Write me a morning brief. What's in progress and what needs my attention?"

Three first-task ideas

Option 1 → CEO

Plan a growth strategy

"We're [2–3 sentences about the business]. What growth strategy do you recommend for the next 90 days? Give me 3 options with tradeoffs."

Option 2 → CEO

Audit current operations

"Audit our current operations. What's missing? What's inefficient? Flag anything where you need more information."

Option 3 → CMO

Build a marketing campaign

"I want to launch [product]. Build me a 30-day campaign: target audience, key messages, channel mix, week-by-week plan."

The daily rhythm

Morning

Read CEO's brief (or ask for one) → review overnight → give direction, approvals, or corrections → set the day's priorities.

→

Throughout the day

Drop tasks into agent channels as they come up → agents execute and report back → CEO tracks and coordinates.

End of day

Ask CEO for a close-of-day brief → agents update daily notes → CEO synthesises for tomorrow.

Useful prompts for daily use

What you want	What to say
Standup report	"Generate a standup report. What did each agent do today? What's blocked? What needs my attention?"
Direction change	"New priority: we're pivoting focus to [X] this week. Adjust team priorities and brief each agent."
Task for specific agent	Message them directly: "New task: [description]. Report back with your plan before starting."
Add context that persists	Edit `~/workspace/agents/ceo/MEMORY.md` directly — the CEO's long-term memory

Frequently asked questions

Troubleshooting

Issue	Fix
Agents aren't reading SOUL.md	Check that SOUL.md exists in the agent's workspace root. The workspace path in config must point to the folder containing SOUL.md.
CEO standup is too long / unfocused	Add to CEO's SOUL.md: "Keep standups concise — 3 bullets per agent maximum."
"No API key found" on a new agent	Auth is per-agent. Re-run the credential copy from Phase 3A.3.
Gateway won't restart after config changes	Syntax error in JSON5. Run `openclaw doctor` — it pinpoints the line.
Discord bot silent despite being online	Message Content Intent not enabled (Developer Portal → Bot). Or Server ID is wrong — must be numeric.

Still stuck? Email support@pinebeach.com.au any time — 24/7/365. We built this for ourselves first; we want it to work for you.

Getting started.
No surprises.

Four steps. Your agent handles the rest.

Purchase & download

Install OpenClaw & connect your AI

Tell your agent: "Install Business in a Box"

Follow the prompts

What you'll have at the end

I'm brand new to OpenClaw. Nothing set up yet.

I already have OpenClaw with agents running.

0.1 — Verify OpenClaw is installed

0.2 — Install OpenClaw (if needed)

0.3 — Verify your AI model is configured

0.4 — Verify the Gateway is running

1.1 — Find your download

1.2 — Unzip the archive

1.3 — Verify the contents

2.1 — Run the script

2.2 — What the script will ask

Which agents do I need?

3A.1 — Open your config file

3A.2 — Add your agents

3A.3 — Copy credentials to each agent

3A.4 — Reload and verify

Check your current config pattern

Three first-task ideas

Plan a growth strategy

Audit current operations

Build a marketing campaign

The daily rhythm

Useful prompts for daily use

Ready to run your team?

Getting started.No surprises.

Four steps. Your agent handles the rest.

Purchase & download

Install OpenClaw & connect your AI

Tell your agent: "Install Business in a Box"

Follow the prompts

What you'll have at the end

I'm brand new to OpenClaw. Nothing set up yet.

I already have OpenClaw with agents running.

Ready to run your team?

Getting started.
No surprises.