2026-09-21-openclaw-breaking-changes-an-upgrader-will-hit

Breaking changes an upgrader will hit. 8.1: bundled OpenProse plugin and /prose removed. codex/* and openai-codex/* model refs migrate to openai/* via openclaw doctor --fix. 9.3: Node 24.16+ or 26.1+ required, and older Node risks SQLite text truncation. Skill Workshop moves to one writable collection per agent, and skills.workshop.allowSymlinkTargetWrites is retired. Several plugin SDK removals.

Channel: tagged-release. Half: defect. Date: 2026-08-31 (v2026.8.1), 2026-09-08 (v2026.9.3).

Operator consequence: Upgrade Node before OpenClaw. Run openclaw doctor --fix after crossing 8.1.

Receipt

• https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/releases/tag/v2026.8.1
• https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/releases/tag/v2026.9.3