openclaw/docs/tools/elevated.md

summary	read_when	title
Elevated exec mode: run commands outside the sandbox from a sandboxed agent	Adjusting elevated mode defaults, allowlists, or slash command behavior Understanding how sandboxed agents can access the host	Elevated mode

When an agent runs inside a sandbox, its exec commands are confined to the sandbox environment. Elevated mode lets the agent break out of ordinary agent-configured sandboxing and run commands outside the sandbox instead, with configurable approval gates. Sessions whose creator role requires sandboxing cannot use elevated mode to escape.

Elevated mode only changes behavior when the agent is **sandboxed**. For unsandboxed agents, exec already runs on the host.

Directives

Control elevated mode per-session with slash commands:

Directive	What it does
/elevated on	Run outside the sandbox on the configured host path, keep approvals
/elevated ask	Same as on (alias)
/elevated full	Run outside the sandbox on the configured host path and skip approvals when the mode/host approval policy is already permissive
/elevated off	Return to sandbox-confined execution

Also available as /elev on|off|ask|full.

Send /elevated with no argument to see the current level.

How it works

Elevated must be enabled in config and the sender must be on the allowlist:

```json5
{
  tools: {
    elevated: {
      enabled: true,
      allowFrom: {
        discord: ["user-id-123"],
        whatsapp: ["+15555550123"],
      },
    },
  },
}
```

Send a directive-only message to set the session default:

```text
/elevated full
```

Or use it inline (applies to that message only):

```text
/elevated on run the deployment script
```

With elevated active, `exec` calls leave the sandbox. The effective host is `gateway` by default, or `node` when the configured/session exec target is `node`. In `full` mode, exec approvals are skipped when the resolved exec mode/host approval policy is already fully permissive (security `full`, ask `off`); otherwise the normal approval policy still applies. In `on`/`ask` mode, configured approval rules always apply.

Resolution order

1. Inline directive on the message (applies only to that message)
2. Session override (set by sending a directive-only message)
3. Global default (agents.defaults.elevatedDefault in config)

Availability and allowlists

• Global gate: tools.elevated.enabled (must be true)
• Sender allowlist: tools.elevated.allowFrom with per-channel lists
• Per-agent gate: agents.entries.*.tools.elevated.enabled (can only further restrict; both the global and per-agent gate must be true)
• Per-agent allowlist: agents.entries.*.tools.elevated.allowFrom (sender must match both global + per-agent)
• Channel-provided fallback allowlist: channel plugins can optionally supply a fallback allowlist through an SDK adapter hook, used when tools.elevated.allowFrom.<provider> is not configured. No bundled channel currently implements this hook, so in practice every provider needs an explicit tools.elevated.allowFrom.<provider> entry today.
• All gates must pass; otherwise elevated is treated as unavailable

Allowlist entry formats:

Prefix	Matches
(none)	Sender ID, E.164, or From field
name:	Sender display name
username:	Sender username
tag:	Sender tag
id:, from:, e164:	Explicit identity targeting

What elevated does not control

• Tool policy: if exec is denied by tool policy, elevated cannot override it.
• Required role sandboxing: if the authenticated session creator's operator role required a sandbox, elevated mode cannot run commands on the Gateway or a node.
• Host selection policy: elevated does not turn auto into a free cross-host override. It uses the configured/session exec target rules, choosing node only when the target is already node.
• Separate from /exec: the /exec directive adjusts per-session exec defaults (host, security, ask, node) for authorized senders and does not require elevated mode.

The bash chat command (`!` prefix; `/bash` alias) is a separate gate that requires `tools.elevated` to be enabled in addition to its own `tools.bash.enabled` flag. Disabling elevated locks `!` shell commands out as well.

Related

Shell command execution from the agent. Approval and allowlist system for `exec`. Gateway-level sandbox configuration. How the three gates compose during a tool call. Per-agent sandbox and tool limits. The reasoning budget an elevated run uses.