OpenClaw + xCloud

Back up and stage sites with OpenClaw on xCloud

Backing up and staging sites with OpenClaw means messaging your own agent runtime from WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack or Discord to check backups, take one before a change and create a staging copy of a Git site on xCloud, and scheduling the audit with automations.

Skill: xcloud:sites
Toolsets: sites
Free with every xCloud account

Set up OpenClaw All OpenClaw guides

YouCreate a staging environment for the api site from feature/checkout.

sites_showread-only

Agentapi.example.com is a Node.js site, so I can create staging from the branch you named. This needs a paid plan. Create it?

YouYes.

sites_stagingSites_createneeds approval

AgentStaging is ready at https://api-staging.example.xcloud.site and answers 200. Take a backup of production before you push anything back.

Last updated: October 2026. Keep a human in the loop: xCloud stops and asks before anything that creates, deploys, updates, reboots, deletes or buys.

Setup

How Do You Set Up OpenClaw to Back up and stage sites on xCloud?

Connect OpenClaw once; every job on this account uses the same connection. Then ask in plain words.

1
Install the xCloud skill from ClawHub
This installs the nine xCloud skills into the active workspace skills folder. Add --global to install them into ~/.openclaw/skills for every local agent. The clawhub CLI installs the same listing with clawhub install xcloud.
Terminal
```
openclaw skills install @asif2bd/xcloud
```
2
Add the xCloud MCP server and sign in
Run these on the installation that owns the connector. The --auth oauth flag matters: openclaw mcp login only runs for HTTP servers saved with OAuth, so without it the login is refused. The login prints an authorization URL, and OpenClaw normally captures the redirect on a loopback address and saves the credentials; Settings, MCP, Sign in in the Control UI does the same. On the xCloud approval screen tick the teams and choose Read-only or Full access.
Terminal
```
openclaw mcp add xcloud \
  --url https://app.xcloud.host/mcp \
  --transport streamable-http \
  --auth oauth
openclaw mcp login xcloud
```
3
Check the skill and the connection
The first command lists the skills that are eligible to run in this environment, and xcloud should be among them. The second opens a live connection and reports the tools the server offers. A saved server entry proves nothing until the probe passes. Then ask who am I on xCloud.
Terminal
```
openclaw skills list --eligible
openclaw mcp doctor xcloud --probe
```

Check it worked

Then ask OpenClaw for the job itself, for example:

Prompt

Can you back up shop.example.com now? I am changing the theme tonight. Message me here when it has finished and tell me where it is stored.

In practice

How Does Backups and staging Work from OpenClaw?

OpenClaw is the agent you run yourself and message from the apps already on your phone, so the natural moment for a backup is a message sent from wherever you are. Send back up shop.example.com, I am changing the theme tonight and OpenClaw uses the xcloud skill to resolve the site, read its backup state and decide which kind of backup applies. The skill carries the habit: it reads before it writes, says which site it is about to act on and checks the result of the queued backup before it answers. The MCP client supplies the tools it calls, among them sites_backups, sites_backupStatus and sites_backup for a native site and sites_docker_backup for a Docker app.

What you read in the chat is short: the latest backup, when it ran, whether it succeeded and where it is stored, in two or three lines that fit a phone screen. If you ask for a backup, it starts without a prompt, and for a Docker app OpenClaw first tells you the app will stop briefly, which matters if you are writing from a group chat that other people use. When the backup reaches a terminal state the agent replies completed or failed in the same thread. Restores are dashboard-only, so a message asking to roll back gets the list of backups, the newest completed one and the dashboard path, not an attempt.

Automations are the second half. openclaw automations create with a cron expression, an isolated session and an announce target can run a backup audit every Monday and post the result to a Telegram or Slack channel: which sites have no schedule, which last backup failed, which Docker apps have automatic backup switched off. Staging requests from chat stop for your reply before xCloud creates anything, so the person who types yes in the thread is the person approving it. A WordPress staging copy is a dashboard step, and OpenClaw answers with the path instead of trying.

OpenClaw specific: An automation has nobody watching, so write its prompt as a report: list the sites and their last backup, change nothing. A scheduled run that started backups would stop Docker apps at an hour you did not choose. Run openclaw mcp doctor xcloud --probe on the installation that runs the automations too, because the skill on its own falls back to a GET-only wrapper that can read backups but cannot start one.

What xCloud does for backups and staging

xCloud lets the agent read every site's backup state, start a backup on demand for native and Docker sites, and create a staging environment for Git sites. Restores, storage providers and WordPress staging stay in the dashboard, and the agent tells you the exact path when you ask for one.

Find the site. The agent resolves the site by name or domain, restates which one it is about to act on, and reads whether it is a native site or a Docker app, because the two use different backup operations.
Read the protection state. It reads the backup settings, status, count and recent backups. That answers whether the site has a schedule, when the last backup ran, whether it succeeded and where it is stored, before anything is changed.
Back up now. A backup starts without an approval prompt. A native site takes a local backup by default or a remote one when a storage provider is connected. A Docker app is stopped briefly while its volumes are captured, so the agent says so before it backs up a production app.
Wait for the result. xCloud queues the backup and returns straight away. The agent follows the backup task or row until it is terminal, then reports completed or failed instead of treating the queued response as done.
Stage the change. For a Git site such as Laravel, Node.js, custom PHP or Lovable, the agent creates a staging environment from the branch you name, after you approve, and gives you its URL. A WordPress staging site is a dashboard step, and the agent gives you the path.
Hand off restores and settings. If you ask to restore a backup, change a native site's schedule or add a storage provider, the agent explains that these are dashboard-only and gives the path and the site's dashboard link. It never improvises a workaround.

Reference

Backups and staging Settings and Limits on xCloud

The facts OpenClaw works within when it backs up and stage sites. Where a row names the dashboard, that step stays yours to take there.

Setting or limit	What applies
Native site backup	On demand through the API; the type is local (the default) or remote. A remote backup needs a storage provider with a working connection, otherwise xCloud refuses it with a 422 before anything is queued
Docker app backup	On demand through the API for Compose deploys and most one-click apps. The app is cold-stopped for a moment while volumes are captured. A remote copy goes to an S3-compatible or SFTP provider; Google Drive and pCloud are not supported for Docker apps
Reading backups	Backup list, count, status and settings are readable for every site. Docker apps also expose one backup's detail
Docker backup housekeeping	The agent can label a Docker backup with a note and delete one. Deleting is irreversible, so it names the exact backup by date and note first
Native schedule and retention	Read-only through the API. Change them in the dashboard under Site > Site Backup > Backup Settings
Docker backup settings	Writable through the API: automatic backup on or off, daily, weekly or monthly frequency, and the number of days to keep backups
Restores	Dashboard-only for every site type: Site > Site Backup > Previous Backups > Restore. A backup can also be restored to another site from the same page
Storage providers	Dashboard-only, under Integrations > Storage Provider. Backup settings return a provider's identifier and status, never its credentials
Team-wide backup policy	Applying one backup policy to many sites is dashboard-only, under Global Settings > Site Backup
Git staging	Created through the API for Git sites on paid plans. On the free plan xCloud answers 403 because it is a plan limit, not a permission
WordPress staging	Dashboard-only: xCloud answers 422 when the API is asked for it. Push and pull between staging and production also happen in the dashboard
Snapshots	Snapshots are listed per site. The server-wide snapshot list holds site snapshots, not a server image. Taking or restoring a snapshot, and a whole-server provider backup, stay in the dashboard

Rules OpenClaw has to follow

A backup runs without an approval prompt, but the agent says when it briefly stops a Docker app and does not trigger one on a busy production app without telling you.
A queued backup is not a finished backup: the agent reports completed or failed only after it has read the result.
Restoring a backup, changing a native site's schedule, adding a storage provider and creating WordPress staging are dashboard steps; the agent gives you the path instead of guessing an operation.
Creating a staging environment stops for your approval, and deleting a backup names the exact backup first.
Before you push staging data to production in the dashboard, take a backup of the production site so you can recover if the push goes wrong.

Example prompts

What Can You Ask OpenClaw to Do for Backups and staging?

Type these as written and swap in your own repository, site and server names. Reads and routine actions such as backups, cache purges, PageSpeed scans and vulnerability scans run straight away; creating, deploying, updating, rebooting, deleting, buying or starting a broken-link scan stops and asks first.

Prompt

Can you back up shop.example.com now? I am changing the theme tonight. Message me here when it has finished and tell me where it is stored.

Prompt

Every Monday at 8am, check the backup status of every site and post a summary here: no schedule, failed last backup, anything older than a week. Change nothing.

Prompt

Please create a staging environment for the api site from the feature/checkout branch and send me the URL when it answers.

Prompt

When was the last backup of the shop site, did it succeed, and where is it stored?

Prompt

Check the backup settings on every site and list the ones with no schedule.

Prompt

Take a backup of the n8n Docker app now, before I upgrade it, and tell me when it is done.

Prompt

Switch the n8n Docker app to a daily backup and keep backups for 14 days. Show me the change before you apply it.

Prompt

Create a staging environment for the API site from the feature/checkout branch and give me its URL.

Prompt

List the snapshots of the shop site and tell me which is newest.

Prompt

I need to restore the shop site to last night's backup. Tell me where to click.

OpenClaw and Backups and staging: Frequently Asked Questions

What people ask before they let OpenClaw back up and stage sites through xCloud.

Can I ask OpenClaw for a backup from WhatsApp or Telegram?

Yes. Message it the site name and it reads the backup state, starts a native or Docker backup without an approval prompt and replies when the backup is completed or failed. For a Docker app it tells you first that the app stops briefly.

Can an OpenClaw automation take backups on a schedule?

It can read and report on a schedule, which is the safe use. Keep the automation to a backup audit that announces the result in a channel. Starting backups from an unattended run would stop Docker apps at times you did not pick, and xCloud does not ask before a backup starts.

Can an AI agent restore a backup for me?

No. Restoring a native or Docker backup is a dashboard step, under Site > Site Backup > Previous Backups > Restore. The agent can list the backups, tell you which one is newest and completed, and give you the site's dashboard link so you can start the restore yourself.

Does the agent ask before it takes a backup?

No. A backup is a routine action, so xCloud runs it without a confirmation prompt. For a Docker app the agent tells you first that the app stops briefly while its data is captured, and it reports the result only after the backup has finished.

Can the agent change my backup schedule?

For Docker apps, yes: it can turn automatic backups on or off, set daily, weekly or monthly, and set how many days backups are kept. For native sites the schedule, retention and destination are read-only through the API, so you change them in the dashboard under Site > Site Backup > Backup Settings.

Can the agent connect my S3 bucket or other storage?

No. Storage providers are added in the dashboard, under Integrations > Storage Provider, so credentials never pass through a chat. Once a provider exists, the agent can read which one a site's backup settings point at and use it for a remote backup.

Can the agent create a staging site for WordPress?

Not through the API. xCloud answers 422 for WordPress staging, so you create it in the dashboard from the site overview. For Laravel, Node.js, custom PHP and Lovable sites the agent can create a staging environment, which needs a paid plan.

Other agents