Configuration

Cove is primarily configured through its browser UI, but there are some important gateway settings that affect how Cove works.

Cove Settings

All Cove settings are stored in your browser's localStorage. Open Settings (gear icon or ⌘,) to access:

Appearance

• Theme — Choose from 12+ themes (light, dark, Nord, Catppuccin, etc.)
• Font Size — Small, Medium, or Large
• Font Family — System, Geist, Inter, JetBrains Mono, or OpenDyslexic

Preferences

• Time Format — Relative ("2 hours ago") or absolute (local time)

Gateway Settings

These settings are configured in your OpenClaw gateway (~/.openclaw/openclaw.json):

Canvas Host

Enable the canvas host so agents can push content to Cove:

{
  "canvasHost": {
    "enabled": true
  }
}

Network Binding

If Cove runs on a different machine (e.g., in Docker):

{
  "bind": "lan"
}

This allows LAN connections to the gateway's canvas host.

Webchat Settings

Control Cove-specific behaviors:

{
  "webchat": {
    "capabilities": {
      "inlineButtons": "dm"
    }
  }
}

Option	Values	Description
inlineButtons	"dm", "group", "all", "allowlist"	Enable inline action buttons in chat

Environment Variables

When running the Cove server (via npx @maudecode/cove or Docker):

Variable	Default	Description
PORT	8080	HTTP server port
GATEWAY_HOST	127.0.0.1	Gateway hostname for canvas proxy
GATEWAY_PORT	18789	Gateway port for canvas proxy

Docker example:

docker run -p 8080:8080 \
  -e GATEWAY_HOST=192.168.1.100 \
  -e GATEWAY_PORT=18789 \
  ghcr.io/maudecode/cove:latest

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
⌘K / Ctrl+K	Open command palette
⌘Enter / Ctrl+Enter	Send message
Shift+Enter	New line in message
Escape	Close modal/panel
⌘Shift+C / Ctrl+Shift+C	Toggle canvas panel
⌘, / Ctrl+,	Open settings

Resetting Cove

To reset all Cove settings and clear stored data:

1. Open Settings
2. Scroll to the bottom
3. Click Reset to Defaults

Or clear localStorage manually in your browser's developer tools.

Next Steps

• Deployment — Production deployment options
• Canvas Setup — Enable canvas for agent content