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summary: "Android app (node): connection runbook + Canvas/Chat/Camera"
read_when:
- Pairing or reconnecting the Android node
- Debugging Android gateway discovery or auth
- Verifying chat history parity across clients
---
# Android App (Node)
## Support snapshot
- Role: companion node app (Android does not host the Gateway).
- Gateway required: yes (run it on macOS, Linux, or Windows via WSL2).
- Install: [Getting Started](/start/getting-started) + [Pairing](/gateway/pairing).
- Gateway: [Runbook](/gateway) + [Configuration](/gateway/configuration).
- Protocols: [Gateway protocol](/gateway/protocol) (nodes + control plane).
## System control
System control (launchd/systemd) lives on the Gateway host. See [Gateway](/gateway).
## Connection Runbook
Android node app ⇄ (mDNS/NSD + WebSocket) ⇄ **Gateway**
Android connects directly to the Gateway WebSocket (default `ws://<host>:18789`) and uses Gateway-owned pairing.
### Prerequisites
- You can run the Gateway on the “master” machine.
- Android device/emulator can reach the gateway WebSocket:
- Same LAN with mDNS/NSD, **or**
- Same Tailscale tailnet using Wide-Area Bonjour / unicast DNS-SD (see below), **or**
- Manual gateway host/port (fallback)
- You can run the CLI (`moltbot`) on the gateway machine (or via SSH).
### 1) Start the Gateway
```bash
moltbot gateway --port 18789 --verbose
```
Confirm in logs you see something like:
- `listening on ws://0.0.0.0:18789`
For tailnet-only setups (recommended for Vienna ⇄ London), bind the gateway to the tailnet IP:
- Set `gateway.bind: "tailnet"` in `~/.clawdbot/moltbot.json` on the gateway host.
- Restart the Gateway / macOS menubar app.
### 2) Verify discovery (optional)
From the gateway machine:
```bash
dns-sd -B _moltbot-gw._tcp local.
```
More debugging notes: [Bonjour](/gateway/bonjour).
#### Tailnet (Vienna ⇄ London) discovery via unicast DNS-SD
Android NSD/mDNS discovery won’t cross networks. If your Android node and the gateway are on different networks but connected via Tailscale, use Wide-Area Bonjour / unicast DNS-SD instead:
1) Set up a DNS-SD zone (example `moltbot.internal.`) on the gateway host and publish `_moltbot-gw._tcp` records.
2) Configure Tailscale split DNS for `moltbot.internal` pointing at that DNS server.
Details and example CoreDNS config: [Bonjour](/gateway/bonjour).
### 3) Connect from Android
In the Android app:
- The app keeps its gateway connection alive via a **foreground service** (persistent notification).
- Open **Settings**.
- Under **Discovered Gateways**, select your gateway and hit **Connect**.
- If mDNS is blocked, use **Advanced → Manual Gateway** (host + port) and **Connect (Manual)**.
After the first successful pairing, Android auto-reconnects on launch:
- Manual endpoint (if enabled), otherwise
- The last discovered gateway (best-effort).
### 4) Approve pairing (CLI)
On the gateway machine:
```bash
moltbot nodes pending
moltbot nodes approve <requestId>
```
Pairing details: [Gateway pairing](/gateway/pairing).
### 5) Verify the node is connected
- Via nodes status:
```bash
moltbot nodes status
```
- Via Gateway:
```bash
moltbot gateway call node.list --params "{}"
```
### 6) Chat + history
The Android node’s Chat sheet uses the gateway’s **primary session key** (`main`), so history and replies are shared with WebChat and other clients:
- History: `chat.history`
- Send: `chat.send`
- Push updates (best-effort): `chat.subscribe` → `event:"chat"`
### 7) Canvas + camera
#### Gateway Canvas Host (recommended for web content)
If you want the node to show real HTML/CSS/JS that the agent can edit on disk, point the node at the Gateway canvas host.
Note: nodes use the standalone canvas host on `canvasHost.port` (default `18793`).
1) Create `~/clawd/canvas/index.html` on the gateway host.
2) Navigate the node to it (LAN):
```bash
moltbot nodes invoke --node "<Android Node>" --command canvas.navigate --params '{"url":"http://<gateway-hostname>.local:18793/__moltbot__/canvas/"}'
```
Tailnet (optional): if both devices are on Tailscale, use a MagicDNS name or tailnet IP instead of `.local`, e.g. `http://<gateway-magicdns>:18793/__moltbot__/canvas/`.
This server injects a live-reload client into HTML and reloads on file changes.
The A2UI host lives at `http://<gateway-host>:18793/__moltbot__/a2ui/`.
Canvas commands (foreground only):
- `canvas.eval`, `canvas.snapshot`, `canvas.navigate` (use `{"url":""}` or `{"url":"/"}` to return to the default scaffold). `canvas.snapshot` returns `{ format, base64 }` (default `format="jpeg"`).
- A2UI: `canvas.a2ui.push`, `canvas.a2ui.reset` (`canvas.a2ui.pushJSONL` legacy alias)
Camera commands (foreground only; permission-gated):
- `camera.snap` (jpg)
- `camera.clip` (mp4)
See [Camera node](/nodes/camera) for parameters and CLI helpers.
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