Expose reload kind in config schema lookup (#81612)

Merged via squash.

Prepared head SHA: 9517cfa718
Co-authored-by: LLagoon3 <115124830+LLagoon3@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: altaywtf <9790196+altaywtf@users.noreply.github.com>
Reviewed-by: @altaywtf

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@ Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai
 - QA-Lab: extend the personal-agent benchmark pack with a local task followthrough scenario for proof-backed pending, blocked, and done status reporting. Thanks @iFiras-Max1.
 - Gateway/performance: add `pnpm test:restart:gateway` benchmark tooling for repeated restart readiness, downtime, trace, and resource-slope evidence. (#83299) Thanks @samzong.
 - Android: switch Talk Mode to realtime Gateway relay voice sessions with streaming mic input, realtime audio playback, tool-result bridging, and on-screen transcripts. (#83130) Thanks @sliekens.
+- Gateway/config: expose config lookup reload metadata so tools can distinguish restart-required, hot-reloadable, and no-op fields before applying config edits. Fixes #81409. (#81612) Thanks @LLagoon3.
 
 ### Fixes
 

apps/shared/OpenClawKit/Sources/OpenClawProtocol/GatewayModels.swift

@@ -2757,6 +2757,7 @@ public struct ConfigSchemaResponse: Codable, Sendable {
 public struct ConfigSchemaLookupResult: Codable, Sendable {
     public let path: String
     public let schema: AnyCodable
+    public let reloadkind: AnyCodable?
     public let hint: [String: AnyCodable]?
     public let hintpath: String?
     public let children: [[String: AnyCodable]]
@@ -2764,12 +2765,14 @@ public struct ConfigSchemaLookupResult: Codable, Sendable {
     public init(
         path: String,
         schema: AnyCodable,
+        reloadkind: AnyCodable?,
         hint: [String: AnyCodable]?,
         hintpath: String?,
         children: [[String: AnyCodable]])
     {
         self.path = path
         self.schema = schema
+        self.reloadkind = reloadkind
         self.hint = hint
         self.hintpath = hintpath
         self.children = children
@@ -2778,6 +2781,7 @@ public struct ConfigSchemaLookupResult: Codable, Sendable {
     private enum CodingKeys: String, CodingKey {
         case path
         case schema
+        case reloadkind = "reloadKind"
         case hint
         case hintpath = "hintPath"
         case children

docs/gateway/protocol.md

@@ -392,7 +392,7 @@ enumeration of `src/gateway/server-methods/*.ts`.
     - `config.patch` merges a partial config update.
     - `config.apply` validates + replaces the full config payload.
     - `config.schema` returns the live config schema payload used by Control UI and CLI tooling: schema, `uiHints`, version, and generation metadata, including plugin + channel schema metadata when the runtime can load it. The schema includes field `title` / `description` metadata derived from the same labels and help text used by the UI, including nested object, wildcard, array-item, and `anyOf` / `oneOf` / `allOf` composition branches when matching field documentation exists.
-    - `config.schema.lookup` returns a path-scoped lookup payload for one config path: normalized path, a shallow schema node, matched hint + `hintPath`, and immediate child summaries for UI/CLI drill-down. Lookup schema nodes keep the user-facing docs and common validation fields (`title`, `description`, `type`, `enum`, `const`, `format`, `pattern`, numeric/string/array/object bounds, and flags like `additionalProperties`, `deprecated`, `readOnly`, `writeOnly`). Child summaries expose `key`, normalized `path`, `type`, `required`, `hasChildren`, plus the matched `hint` / `hintPath`.
+    - `config.schema.lookup` returns a path-scoped lookup payload for one config path: normalized path, a shallow schema node, matched hint + `hintPath`, optional `reloadKind`, and immediate child summaries for UI/CLI drill-down. `reloadKind` is one of `restart`, `hot`, or `none` and mirrors the Gateway config reload planner for the requested path. Lookup schema nodes keep the user-facing docs and common validation fields (`title`, `description`, `type`, `enum`, `const`, `format`, `pattern`, numeric/string/array/object bounds, and flags like `additionalProperties`, `deprecated`, `readOnly`, `writeOnly`). Child summaries expose `key`, normalized `path`, `type`, `required`, `hasChildren`, optional `reloadKind`, plus the matched `hint` / `hintPath`.
     - `update.run` runs the gateway update flow and schedules a restart only when the update itself succeeded; callers with a session can include `continuationMessage` so startup resumes one follow-up agent turn through the restart continuation queue. Package-manager updates from the control plane use a detached managed-service handoff instead of replacing the package tree inside the live Gateway. A started handoff returns `ok: true` with `result.reason: "managed-service-handoff-started"` and `handoff.status: "started"`; unavailable or failed handoffs return `ok: false` with `managed-service-handoff-unavailable` or `managed-service-handoff-failed`, plus `handoff.command` when a manual shell update is required. During a started handoff, the restart sentinel may briefly report `stats.reason: "restart-health-pending"`; the continuation is delayed until the CLI verifies the restarted Gateway and writes the final `ok` sentinel.
     - `update.status` returns the latest cached update restart sentinel, including the post-restart running version when available.
     - `wizard.start`, `wizard.next`, `wizard.status`, and `wizard.cancel` expose the onboarding wizard over WS RPC.

src/config/schema.test.ts

@@ -663,7 +663,28 @@ describe("config schema", () => {
     expect(schema?.properties).toBeUndefined();
   });
 
-  it("returns a shallow lookup schema with top-level composition for editing", () => {
+  it("includes reload metadata when a resolver is provided", () => {
+    const lookup = lookupConfigSchema(baseSchema, "gateway", (path) => {
+      if (path === "gateway.channelHealthCheckMinutes") {
+        return { kind: "hot" };
+      }
+      if (path.startsWith("gateway")) {
+        return { kind: "restart" };
+      }
+      return { kind: "none" };
+    });
+
+    expect(lookup?.reloadKind).toBe("restart");
+    expect(
+      lookup?.children.find((child) => child.path === "gateway.handshakeTimeoutMs")?.reloadKind,
+    ).toBe("restart");
+    expect(
+      lookup?.children.find((child) => child.path === "gateway.channelHealthCheckMinutes")
+        ?.reloadKind,
+    ).toBe("hot");
+  });
+
+  it("returns a shallow lookup schema without nested composition keywords", () => {
     const lookup = lookupConfigSchema(baseSchema, "agents.list.0.runtime");
     expect(lookup?.path).toBe("agents.list.0.runtime");
     expect(lookup?.hintPath).toBe("agents.list[].runtime");

src/config/schema.ts

@@ -112,13 +112,25 @@ export type ConfigSchemaLookupChild = {
   type?: string | string[];
   required: boolean;
   hasChildren: boolean;
+  reloadKind?: ConfigSchemaReloadKind;
   hint?: ConfigUiHint;
   hintPath?: string;
 };
 
+export type ConfigSchemaReloadKind = "restart" | "hot" | "none";
+
+export type ConfigSchemaReloadMetadata = {
+  kind: ConfigSchemaReloadKind;
+};
+
+export type ConfigSchemaReloadMetadataResolver = (
+  path: string,
+) => ConfigSchemaReloadMetadata | null | undefined;
+
 export type ConfigSchemaLookupResult = {
   path: string;
   schema: JsonSchemaNode;
+  reloadKind?: ConfigSchemaReloadKind;
   hint?: ConfigUiHint;
   hintPath?: string;
   children: ConfigSchemaLookupChild[];
@@ -750,6 +762,7 @@ function buildLookupChildren(
   schema: JsonSchemaObject,
   path: string,
   uiHints: ConfigUiHints,
+  resolveReloadMetadata?: ConfigSchemaReloadMetadataResolver,
 ): ConfigSchemaLookupChild[] {
   const children: ConfigSchemaLookupChild[] = [];
   const required = new Set(schema.required ?? []);
@@ -757,12 +770,14 @@ function buildLookupChildren(
   const pushChild = (key: string, childSchema: JsonSchemaObject, isRequired: boolean) => {
     const childPath = path ? `${path}.${key}` : key;
     const resolvedHint = resolveUiHintMatch(uiHints, childPath);
+    const reloadMetadata = resolveReloadMetadata?.(childPath);
     children.push({
       key,
       path: childPath,
       type: childSchema.type,
       required: isRequired,
       hasChildren: schemaHasChildren(childSchema),
+      reloadKind: reloadMetadata?.kind,
       hint: resolvedHint?.hint,
       hintPath: resolvedHint?.path,
     });
@@ -788,6 +803,7 @@ function buildLookupChildren(
 export function lookupConfigSchema(
   response: ConfigSchemaResponse,
   path: string,
+  resolveReloadMetadata?: ConfigSchemaReloadMetadataResolver,
 ): ConfigSchemaLookupResult | null {
   const wantsRoot = path.trim() === ".";
   const normalizedPath = normalizeLookupPath(path);
@@ -812,11 +828,18 @@ export function lookupConfigSchema(
   }
 
   const resolvedHint = resolveUiHintMatch(response.uiHints, normalizedPath);
+  const reloadMetadata = resolveReloadMetadata?.(normalizedPath);
   return {
     path: wantsRoot ? "." : normalizedPath,
     schema: stripSchemaForLookup(current),
+    reloadKind: reloadMetadata?.kind,
     hint: resolvedHint?.hint,
     hintPath: resolvedHint?.path,
-    children: buildLookupChildren(current, wantsRoot ? "" : normalizedPath, response.uiHints),
+    children: buildLookupChildren(
+      current,
+      wantsRoot ? "" : normalizedPath,
+      response.uiHints,
+      resolveReloadMetadata,
+    ),
   };
 }

src/gateway/config-reload-plan.ts

@@ -30,6 +30,10 @@ type ReloadRule = {
   actions?: ReloadAction[];
 };
 
+export type ConfigReloadMetadata = {
+  kind: ReloadRule["kind"];
+};
+
 type ReloadAction =
   | "reload-hooks"
   | "restart-gmail-watcher"
@@ -222,6 +226,13 @@ function matchRule(path: string): ReloadRule | null {
   return null;
 }
 
+export function resolveConfigReloadMetadata(path: string): ConfigReloadMetadata {
+  if (isPluginInstallTimestampPath(path)) {
+    return { kind: "none" };
+  }
+  return { kind: matchRule(path)?.kind ?? "restart" };
+}
+
 function isPluginInstallTimestampPath(path: string): boolean {
   // Legacy compatibility only: new plugin install metadata lives in the
   // managed plugin index, but old config writes may still touch this path.

src/gateway/config-reload.test.ts

@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ import {
   type GatewayReloadPlan,
   listPluginInstallTimestampMetadataPaths,
   listPluginInstallWholeRecordPaths,
+  resolveConfigReloadMetadata,
   resolveGatewayReloadSettings,
   shouldInvalidateSkillsSnapshotForPaths,
   startGatewayConfigReloader,
@@ -298,6 +299,12 @@ describe("buildGatewayReloadPlan", () => {
       "plugins.installs.lossless-claw.resolvedAt",
       "plugins.installs.lossless-claw.installedAt",
     ]);
+    expect(resolveConfigReloadMetadata("plugins.installs.lossless-claw.resolvedAt").kind).toBe(
+      "none",
+    );
+    expect(resolveConfigReloadMetadata("plugins.installs.lossless-claw.installedAt").kind).toBe(
+      "none",
+    );
   });
 
   it("restarts for whole-record plugin install changes", () => {

src/gateway/config-reload.ts

@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ import {
   buildGatewayReloadPlan,
   listPluginInstallTimestampMetadataPaths,
   listPluginInstallWholeRecordPaths,
+  resolveConfigReloadMetadata,
   type GatewayReloadPlan,
 } from "./config-reload-plan.js";
 import { resolveGatewayReloadSettings } from "./config-reload-settings.js";
@@ -23,6 +24,7 @@ export {
   diffConfigPaths,
   listPluginInstallTimestampMetadataPaths,
   listPluginInstallWholeRecordPaths,
+  resolveConfigReloadMetadata,
   resolveGatewayReloadSettings,
 };
 export type { ChannelKind, GatewayReloadPlan } from "./config-reload-plan.js";

src/gateway/protocol/schema/config.ts

@@ -97,6 +97,9 @@ export const ConfigSchemaLookupChildSchema = Type.Object(
     type: Type.Optional(Type.Union([Type.String(), Type.Array(Type.String())])),
     required: Type.Boolean(),
     hasChildren: Type.Boolean(),
+    reloadKind: Type.Optional(
+      Type.Union([Type.Literal("restart"), Type.Literal("hot"), Type.Literal("none")]),
+    ),
     hint: Type.Optional(ConfigUiHintSchema),
     hintPath: Type.Optional(Type.String()),
   },
@@ -107,6 +110,9 @@ export const ConfigSchemaLookupResultSchema = Type.Object(
   {
     path: NonEmptyString,
     schema: Type.Unknown(),
+    reloadKind: Type.Optional(
+      Type.Union([Type.Literal("restart"), Type.Literal("hot"), Type.Literal("none")]),
+    ),
     hint: Type.Optional(ConfigUiHintSchema),
     hintPath: Type.Optional(Type.String()),
     children: Type.Array(ConfigSchemaLookupChildSchema),

src/gateway/server-methods/config.ts

@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ import {
   type PreparedSecretsRuntimeSnapshot,
 } from "../../secrets/runtime.js";
 import { diffConfigPaths } from "../config-diff.js";
+import { resolveConfigReloadMetadata } from "../config-reload-plan.js";
 import {
   formatControlPlaneActor,
   resolveControlPlaneActor,
@@ -313,7 +314,7 @@ export const configHandlers: GatewayRequestHandlers = {
     }
     const path = (params as { path: string }).path;
     const schema = loadSchemaWithPlugins();
-    const result = lookupConfigSchema(schema, path);
+    const result = lookupConfigSchema(schema, path, resolveConfigReloadMetadata);
     if (!result) {
       respond(
         false,