web_search: add searxng provider

src/agents/tools/web-search.test.ts

@@ -2,8 +2,13 @@ import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
 import { __testing } from "./web-search.js";
 
-const { inferPerplexityBaseUrlFromApiKey, resolvePerplexityBaseUrl, normalizeFreshness } =
-  __testing;
+const {
+  inferPerplexityBaseUrlFromApiKey,
+  resolvePerplexityBaseUrl,
+  normalizeFreshness,
+  resolveSearxngBaseUrl,
+  resolveSearxngHeaders,
+} = __testing;
 
 describe("web_search perplexity baseUrl defaults", () => {
   it("detects a Perplexity key prefix", () => {
@@ -69,3 +74,36 @@ describe("web_search freshness normalization", () => {
     expect(normalizeFreshness("2024-03-10to2024-03-01")).toBeUndefined();
   });
 });
+
+describe("web_search searxng config resolution", () => {
+  it("prefers config baseUrl and trims trailing slash", () => {
+    expect(resolveSearxngBaseUrl({ baseUrl: "http://localhost:8080/" })).toBe(
+      "http://localhost:8080",
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("falls back to SEARXNG_BASE_URL env var", () => {
+    const prev = process.env.SEARXNG_BASE_URL;
+    process.env.SEARXNG_BASE_URL = "http://searxng.local:8888/";
+    try {
+      expect(resolveSearxngBaseUrl(undefined)).toBe("http://searxng.local:8888");
+    } finally {
+      if (prev === undefined) {
+        delete process.env.SEARXNG_BASE_URL;
+      } else {
+        process.env.SEARXNG_BASE_URL = prev;
+      }
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("builds headers with optional auth and extras", () => {
+    expect(resolveSearxngHeaders(undefined)).toEqual({ Accept: "application/json" });
+
+    expect(resolveSearxngHeaders({ apiKey: "token-123" }).Authorization).toBe("Bearer token-123");
+    expect(resolveSearxngHeaders({ apiKey: "Basic abc" }).Authorization).toBe("Basic abc");
+
+    const headers = resolveSearxngHeaders({ headers: { "X-Test": "ok" }, apiKey: "token-123" });
+    expect(headers["X-Test"]).toBe("ok");
+    expect(headers.Accept).toBe("application/json");
+  });
+});

src/agents/tools/web-search.ts

@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ import {
   writeCache,
 } from "./web-shared.js";
 
-const SEARCH_PROVIDERS = ["brave", "perplexity"] as const;
+const SEARCH_PROVIDERS = ["brave", "perplexity", "searxng"] as const;
 const DEFAULT_SEARCH_COUNT = 5;
 const MAX_SEARCH_COUNT = 10;
 
@@ -41,6 +41,39 @@ const WebSearchSchema = Type.Object({
       maximum: MAX_SEARCH_COUNT,
     }),
   ),
+  categories: Type.Optional(
+    Type.String({
+      description: "Comma-separated categories to search (SearXNG only), e.g. 'general,news'.",
+    }),
+  ),
+  engines: Type.Optional(
+    Type.String({
+      description: "Comma-separated engines to search (SearXNG only), e.g. 'duckduckgo,bing'.",
+    }),
+  ),
+  language: Type.Optional(
+    Type.String({
+      description: "Language code (SearXNG), e.g. 'en', 'de'.",
+    }),
+  ),
+  time_range: Type.Optional(
+    Type.String({
+      description: "Time range (SearXNG only). Values: day, month, year.",
+    }),
+  ),
+  safesearch: Type.Optional(
+    Type.Number({
+      description: "Safe search level (SearXNG only). Values: 0, 1, 2.",
+      minimum: 0,
+      maximum: 2,
+    }),
+  ),
+  pageno: Type.Optional(
+    Type.Number({
+      description: "Search page number (SearXNG only). Default: 1.",
+      minimum: 1,
+    }),
+  ),
   country: Type.Optional(
     Type.String({
       description:
@@ -90,6 +123,13 @@ type PerplexityConfig = {
   model?: string;
 };
 
+type SearxngConfig = {
+  baseUrl?: string;
+  apiKey?: string;
+  headers?: Record<string, string>;
+  params?: Record<string, string | number | boolean>;
+};
+
 type PerplexityApiKeySource = "config" | "perplexity_env" | "openrouter_env" | "none";
 
 type PerplexitySearchResponse = {
@@ -103,6 +143,17 @@ type PerplexitySearchResponse = {
 
 type PerplexityBaseUrlHint = "direct" | "openrouter";
 
+type SearxngSearchResult = {
+  title?: string;
+  url?: string;
+  content?: string;
+  publishedDate?: string;
+};
+
+type SearxngSearchResponse = {
+  results?: SearxngSearchResult[];
+};
+
 function resolveSearchConfig(cfg?: OpenClawConfig): WebSearchConfig {
   const search = cfg?.tools?.web?.search;
   if (!search || typeof search !== "object") return undefined;
@@ -131,6 +182,14 @@ function missingSearchKeyPayload(provider: (typeof SEARCH_PROVIDERS)[number]) {
       docs: "https://docs.openclaw.ai/tools/web",
     };
   }
+  if (provider === "searxng") {
+    return {
+      error: "missing_searxng_base_url",
+      message:
+        "web_search (searxng) needs a base URL. Configure tools.web.search.searxng.baseUrl or set SEARXNG_BASE_URL in the Gateway environment.",
+      docs: "https://docs.openclaw.ai/tools/web",
+    };
+  }
   return {
     error: "missing_brave_api_key",
     message: `web_search needs a Brave Search API key. Run \`${formatCliCommand("openclaw configure --section web")}\` to store it, or set BRAVE_API_KEY in the Gateway environment.`,
@@ -145,6 +204,7 @@ function resolveSearchProvider(search?: WebSearchConfig): (typeof SEARCH_PROVIDE
       : "";
   if (raw === "perplexity") return "perplexity";
   if (raw === "brave") return "brave";
+  if (raw === "searxng") return "searxng";
   return "brave";
 }
 
@@ -155,6 +215,13 @@ function resolvePerplexityConfig(search?: WebSearchConfig): PerplexityConfig {
   return perplexity as PerplexityConfig;
 }
 
+function resolveSearxngConfig(search?: WebSearchConfig): SearxngConfig {
+  if (!search || typeof search !== "object") return {};
+  const searxng = "searxng" in search ? (search as Record<string, unknown>).searxng : undefined;
+  if (!searxng || typeof searxng !== "object") return {};
+  return searxng as SearxngConfig;
+}
+
 function resolvePerplexityApiKey(perplexity?: PerplexityConfig): {
   apiKey?: string;
   source: PerplexityApiKeySource;
@@ -221,6 +288,38 @@ function resolvePerplexityModel(perplexity?: PerplexityConfig): string {
   return fromConfig || DEFAULT_PERPLEXITY_MODEL;
 }
 
+function resolveSearxngBaseUrl(searxng?: SearxngConfig): string | undefined {
+  const fromConfig =
+    searxng && "baseUrl" in searxng && typeof searxng.baseUrl === "string" ? searxng.baseUrl : "";
+  const fromEnv = (process.env.SEARXNG_BASE_URL ?? "").trim();
+  const baseUrl = (fromConfig ?? "").trim() || fromEnv;
+  if (!baseUrl) return undefined;
+  return baseUrl.replace(/\/$/, "");
+}
+
+function resolveSearxngHeaders(searxng?: SearxngConfig): Record<string, string> {
+  const headers: Record<string, string> = {
+    Accept: "application/json",
+  };
+
+  if (!searxng || typeof searxng !== "object") return headers;
+
+  if (searxng.headers && typeof searxng.headers === "object") {
+    for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(searxng.headers)) {
+      if (typeof value === "string" && value.trim()) {
+        headers[key] = value;
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  const apiKey = typeof searxng.apiKey === "string" ? searxng.apiKey.trim() : "";
+  if (apiKey) {
+    headers.Authorization = apiKey.includes(" ") ? apiKey : `Bearer ${apiKey}`;
+  }
+
+  return headers;
+}
+
 function resolveSearchCount(value: unknown, fallback: number): number {
   const parsed = typeof value === "number" && Number.isFinite(value) ? value : fallback;
   const clamped = Math.max(1, Math.min(MAX_SEARCH_COUNT, Math.floor(parsed)));
@@ -306,6 +405,72 @@ async function runPerplexitySearch(params: {
   return { content, citations };
 }
 
+function addSearxngParams(
+  searchParams: URLSearchParams,
+  params?: Record<string, string | number | boolean>,
+): void {
+  if (!params) return;
+  for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(params)) {
+    if (!key.trim()) continue;
+    if (value === undefined) continue;
+    searchParams.set(key, String(value));
+  }
+}
+
+async function runSearxngSearch(params: {
+  query: string;
+  baseUrl: string;
+  count: number;
+  timeoutSeconds: number;
+  searchParams?: Record<string, string | number | boolean>;
+  headers?: Record<string, string>;
+  categories?: string;
+  engines?: string;
+  language?: string;
+  time_range?: string;
+  safesearch?: number;
+  pageno?: number;
+}): Promise<{ results: Array<Record<string, unknown>> }> {
+  const url = new URL(`${params.baseUrl.replace(/\/$/, "")}/search`);
+  addSearxngParams(url.searchParams, params.searchParams);
+  url.searchParams.set("q", params.query);
+  url.searchParams.set("format", "json");
+
+  if (params.categories) url.searchParams.set("categories", params.categories);
+  if (params.engines) url.searchParams.set("engines", params.engines);
+  if (params.language) url.searchParams.set("language", params.language);
+  if (params.time_range) url.searchParams.set("time_range", params.time_range);
+  if (typeof params.safesearch === "number" && Number.isFinite(params.safesearch)) {
+    url.searchParams.set("safesearch", String(params.safesearch));
+  }
+  if (typeof params.pageno === "number" && Number.isFinite(params.pageno) && params.pageno > 0) {
+    url.searchParams.set("pageno", String(Math.floor(params.pageno)));
+  }
+
+  const res = await fetch(url.toString(), {
+    method: "GET",
+    headers: params.headers,
+    signal: withTimeout(undefined, params.timeoutSeconds * 1000),
+  });
+
+  if (!res.ok) {
+    const detail = await readResponseText(res);
+    throw new Error(`SearXNG API error (${res.status}): ${detail || res.statusText}`);
+  }
+
+  const data = (await res.json()) as SearxngSearchResponse;
+  const results = Array.isArray(data.results) ? data.results : [];
+  const mapped = results.slice(0, params.count).map((entry) => ({
+    title: entry.title ?? "",
+    url: entry.url ?? "",
+    description: entry.content ?? "",
+    published: entry.publishedDate ?? undefined,
+    siteName: resolveSiteName(entry.url ?? ""),
+  }));
+
+  return { results: mapped };
+}
+
 async function runWebSearch(params: {
   query: string;
   count: number;
@@ -319,11 +484,22 @@ async function runWebSearch(params: {
   freshness?: string;
   perplexityBaseUrl?: string;
   perplexityModel?: string;
+  searxngBaseUrl?: string;
+  searxngHeaders?: Record<string, string>;
+  searxngParams?: Record<string, string | number | boolean>;
+  categories?: string;
+  engines?: string;
+  language?: string;
+  time_range?: string;
+  safesearch?: number;
+  pageno?: number;
 }): Promise<Record<string, unknown>> {
   const cacheKey = normalizeCacheKey(
     params.provider === "brave"
       ? `${params.provider}:${params.query}:${params.count}:${params.country || "default"}:${params.search_lang || "default"}:${params.ui_lang || "default"}:${params.freshness || "default"}`
-      : `${params.provider}:${params.query}:${params.count}:${params.country || "default"}:${params.search_lang || "default"}:${params.ui_lang || "default"}`,
+      : params.provider === "searxng"
+        ? `${params.provider}:${params.query}:${params.count}:${params.categories || "default"}:${params.engines || "default"}:${params.language || "default"}:${params.time_range || "default"}:${String(params.safesearch ?? "default")}:${String(params.pageno ?? "default")}`
+        : `${params.provider}:${params.query}:${params.count}:${params.country || "default"}:${params.search_lang || "default"}:${params.ui_lang || "default"}`,
   );
   const cached = readCache(SEARCH_CACHE, cacheKey);
   if (cached) return { ...cached.value, cached: true };
@@ -351,6 +527,33 @@ async function runWebSearch(params: {
     return payload;
   }
 
+  if (params.provider === "searxng") {
+    const { results } = await runSearxngSearch({
+      query: params.query,
+      baseUrl: params.searxngBaseUrl ?? "",
+      count: params.count,
+      timeoutSeconds: params.timeoutSeconds,
+      searchParams: params.searxngParams,
+      headers: params.searxngHeaders,
+      categories: params.categories,
+      engines: params.engines,
+      language: params.language,
+      time_range: params.time_range,
+      safesearch: params.safesearch,
+      pageno: params.pageno,
+    });
+
+    const payload = {
+      query: params.query,
+      provider: params.provider,
+      count: results.length,
+      tookMs: Date.now() - start,
+      results,
+    };
+    writeCache(SEARCH_CACHE, cacheKey, payload, params.cacheTtlMs);
+    return payload;
+  }
+
   if (params.provider !== "brave") {
     throw new Error("Unsupported web search provider.");
   }
@@ -415,11 +618,14 @@ export function createWebSearchTool(options?: {
 
   const provider = resolveSearchProvider(search);
   const perplexityConfig = resolvePerplexityConfig(search);
+  const searxngConfig = resolveSearxngConfig(search);
 
   const description =
     provider === "perplexity"
       ? "Search the web using Perplexity Sonar (direct or via OpenRouter). Returns AI-synthesized answers with citations from real-time web search."
-      : "Search the web using Brave Search API. Supports region-specific and localized search via country and language parameters. Returns titles, URLs, and snippets for fast research.";
+      : provider === "searxng"
+        ? "Search the web using a self-hosted SearXNG instance. Returns titles, URLs, and snippets for fast research."
+        : "Search the web using Brave Search API. Supports region-specific and localized search via country and language parameters. Returns titles, URLs, and snippets for fast research.";
 
   return {
     label: "Web Search",
@@ -431,14 +637,26 @@ export function createWebSearchTool(options?: {
         provider === "perplexity" ? resolvePerplexityApiKey(perplexityConfig) : undefined;
       const apiKey =
         provider === "perplexity" ? perplexityAuth?.apiKey : resolveSearchApiKey(search);
+      const searxngBaseUrl =
+        provider === "searxng" ? resolveSearxngBaseUrl(searxngConfig) : undefined;
 
-      if (!apiKey) {
+      if (provider === "searxng") {
+        if (!searxngBaseUrl) return jsonResult(missingSearchKeyPayload(provider));
+      } else if (!apiKey) {
         return jsonResult(missingSearchKeyPayload(provider));
       }
       const params = args as Record<string, unknown>;
       const query = readStringParam(params, "query", { required: true });
       const count =
         readNumberParam(params, "count", { integer: true }) ?? search?.maxResults ?? undefined;
+      const categories = readStringParam(params, "categories");
+      const engines = readStringParam(params, "engines");
+      const language =
+        readStringParam(params, "language") ??
+        (provider === "searxng" ? readStringParam(params, "search_lang") : undefined);
+      const time_range = readStringParam(params, "time_range");
+      const safesearch = readNumberParam(params, "safesearch", { integer: true });
+      const pageno = readNumberParam(params, "pageno", { integer: true });
       const country = readStringParam(params, "country");
       const search_lang = readStringParam(params, "search_lang");
       const ui_lang = readStringParam(params, "ui_lang");
@@ -462,7 +680,7 @@ export function createWebSearchTool(options?: {
       const result = await runWebSearch({
         query,
         count: resolveSearchCount(count, DEFAULT_SEARCH_COUNT),
-        apiKey,
+        apiKey: apiKey ?? "",
         timeoutSeconds: resolveTimeoutSeconds(search?.timeoutSeconds, DEFAULT_TIMEOUT_SECONDS),
         cacheTtlMs: resolveCacheTtlMs(search?.cacheTtlMinutes, DEFAULT_CACHE_TTL_MINUTES),
         provider,
@@ -476,6 +694,15 @@ export function createWebSearchTool(options?: {
           perplexityAuth?.apiKey,
         ),
         perplexityModel: resolvePerplexityModel(perplexityConfig),
+        searxngBaseUrl,
+        searxngHeaders: provider === "searxng" ? resolveSearxngHeaders(searxngConfig) : undefined,
+        searxngParams: provider === "searxng" ? searxngConfig.params : undefined,
+        categories,
+        engines,
+        language,
+        time_range,
+        safesearch: typeof safesearch === "number" ? safesearch : undefined,
+        pageno: typeof pageno === "number" ? pageno : undefined,
       });
       return jsonResult(result);
     },
@@ -486,4 +713,6 @@ export const __testing = {
   inferPerplexityBaseUrlFromApiKey,
   resolvePerplexityBaseUrl,
   normalizeFreshness,
+  resolveSearxngBaseUrl,
+  resolveSearxngHeaders,
 } as const;

src/config/schema.ts

@@ -193,6 +193,10 @@ const FIELD_LABELS: Record<string, string> = {
   "tools.web.search.maxResults": "Web Search Max Results",
   "tools.web.search.timeoutSeconds": "Web Search Timeout (sec)",
   "tools.web.search.cacheTtlMinutes": "Web Search Cache TTL (min)",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.baseUrl": "SearXNG Base URL",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.apiKey": "SearXNG API Key",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.headers": "SearXNG Extra Headers",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.params": "SearXNG Default Params",
   "tools.web.fetch.enabled": "Enable Web Fetch Tool",
   "tools.web.fetch.maxChars": "Web Fetch Max Chars",
   "tools.web.fetch.timeoutSeconds": "Web Fetch Timeout (sec)",
@@ -434,8 +438,9 @@ const FIELD_HELP: Record<string, string> = {
   "tools.message.crossContext.marker.suffix":
     'Text suffix for cross-context markers (supports "{channel}").',
   "tools.message.broadcast.enabled": "Enable broadcast action (default: true).",
-  "tools.web.search.enabled": "Enable the web_search tool (requires a provider API key).",
-  "tools.web.search.provider": 'Search provider ("brave" or "perplexity").',
+  "tools.web.search.enabled":
+    "Enable the web_search tool (requires provider configuration: API key or base URL).",
+  "tools.web.search.provider": 'Search provider ("brave", "perplexity", or "searxng").',
   "tools.web.search.apiKey": "Brave Search API key (fallback: BRAVE_API_KEY env var).",
   "tools.web.search.maxResults": "Default number of results to return (1-10).",
   "tools.web.search.timeoutSeconds": "Timeout in seconds for web_search requests.",
@@ -446,6 +451,14 @@ const FIELD_HELP: Record<string, string> = {
     "Perplexity base URL override (default: https://openrouter.ai/api/v1 or https://api.perplexity.ai).",
   "tools.web.search.perplexity.model":
     'Perplexity model override (default: "perplexity/sonar-pro").',
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.baseUrl":
+    "SearXNG instance base URL (e.g. http://localhost:8080). Fallback: SEARXNG_BASE_URL env var.",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.apiKey":
+    "Optional SearXNG auth token; sent as Authorization header (Bearer by default).",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.headers":
+    "Optional extra headers for SearXNG requests (e.g. for reverse-proxy auth).",
+  "tools.web.search.searxng.params":
+    "Optional default query params for SearXNG /search (merged into each request).",
   "tools.web.fetch.enabled": "Enable the web_fetch tool (lightweight HTTP fetch).",
   "tools.web.fetch.maxChars": "Max characters returned by web_fetch (truncated).",
   "tools.web.fetch.timeoutSeconds": "Timeout in seconds for web_fetch requests.",

src/config/zod-schema.agent-runtime.ts

@@ -165,7 +165,9 @@ export const ToolPolicySchema = ToolPolicyBaseSchema.superRefine((value, ctx) =>
 export const ToolsWebSearchSchema = z
   .object({
     enabled: z.boolean().optional(),
-    provider: z.union([z.literal("brave"), z.literal("perplexity")]).optional(),
+    provider: z
+      .union([z.literal("brave"), z.literal("perplexity"), z.literal("searxng")])
+      .optional(),
     apiKey: z.string().optional(),
     maxResults: z.number().int().positive().optional(),
     timeoutSeconds: z.number().int().positive().optional(),
@@ -178,6 +180,15 @@ export const ToolsWebSearchSchema = z
       })
       .strict()
       .optional(),
+    searxng: z
+      .object({
+        baseUrl: z.string().optional(),
+        apiKey: z.string().optional(),
+        headers: z.record(z.string(), z.string()).optional(),
+        params: z.record(z.string(), z.union([z.string(), z.number(), z.boolean()])).optional(),
+      })
+      .strict()
+      .optional(),
   })
   .strict()
   .optional();

src/wizard/onboarding.finalize.ts

@@ -433,29 +433,101 @@ export async function finalizeOnboardingWizard(options: FinalizeOnboardingOption
     );
   }
 
-  const webSearchKey = (nextConfig.tools?.web?.search?.apiKey ?? "").trim();
-  const webSearchEnv = (process.env.BRAVE_API_KEY ?? "").trim();
-  const hasWebSearchKey = Boolean(webSearchKey || webSearchEnv);
+  const webSearch = nextConfig.tools?.web?.search;
+  const webSearchProviderRaw =
+    webSearch &&
+    typeof webSearch === "object" &&
+    "provider" in webSearch &&
+    typeof webSearch.provider === "string"
+      ? webSearch.provider.trim().toLowerCase()
+      : "";
+  const webSearchProvider =
+    webSearchProviderRaw === "perplexity"
+      ? "perplexity"
+      : webSearchProviderRaw === "searxng"
+        ? "searxng"
+        : "brave";
+
+  const readTrimmedString = (value: unknown): string =>
+    typeof value === "string" ? value.trim() : "";
+
+  const braveKey =
+    webSearch && typeof webSearch === "object" && "apiKey" in webSearch
+      ? readTrimmedString(webSearch.apiKey)
+      : "";
+  const braveEnv = (process.env.BRAVE_API_KEY ?? "").trim();
+  const hasBraveKey = Boolean(braveKey || braveEnv);
+
+  const perplexityKey =
+    webSearch &&
+    typeof webSearch === "object" &&
+    "perplexity" in webSearch &&
+    webSearch.perplexity &&
+    typeof webSearch.perplexity === "object" &&
+    "apiKey" in webSearch.perplexity
+      ? readTrimmedString((webSearch.perplexity as Record<string, unknown>).apiKey)
+      : "";
+  const perplexityEnv = (process.env.PERPLEXITY_API_KEY ?? "").trim();
+  const openrouterEnv = (process.env.OPENROUTER_API_KEY ?? "").trim();
+  const hasPerplexityKey = Boolean(perplexityKey || perplexityEnv || openrouterEnv);
+
+  const searxngBaseUrl =
+    webSearch &&
+    typeof webSearch === "object" &&
+    "searxng" in webSearch &&
+    webSearch.searxng &&
+    typeof webSearch.searxng === "object" &&
+    "baseUrl" in webSearch.searxng
+      ? readTrimmedString((webSearch.searxng as Record<string, unknown>).baseUrl)
+      : "";
+  const searxngEnv = (process.env.SEARXNG_BASE_URL ?? "").trim();
+  const hasSearxngBaseUrl = Boolean(searxngBaseUrl || searxngEnv);
+
+  const hasWebSearchSetup =
+    webSearchProvider === "perplexity"
+      ? hasPerplexityKey
+      : webSearchProvider === "searxng"
+        ? hasSearxngBaseUrl
+        : hasBraveKey;
   await prompter.note(
-    hasWebSearchKey
+    hasWebSearchSetup
       ? [
           "Web search is enabled, so your agent can look things up online when needed.",
           "",
-          webSearchKey
-            ? "API key: stored in config (tools.web.search.apiKey)."
-            : "API key: provided via BRAVE_API_KEY env var (Gateway environment).",
+          `Provider: ${webSearchProvider}`,
+          webSearchProvider === "searxng"
+            ? searxngBaseUrl
+              ? "Base URL: stored in config (tools.web.search.searxng.baseUrl)."
+              : "Base URL: provided via SEARXNG_BASE_URL env var (Gateway environment)."
+            : webSearchProvider === "perplexity"
+              ? perplexityKey
+                ? "API key: stored in config (tools.web.search.perplexity.apiKey)."
+                : perplexityEnv
+                  ? "API key: provided via PERPLEXITY_API_KEY env var (Gateway environment)."
+                  : "API key: provided via OPENROUTER_API_KEY env var (Gateway environment)."
+              : braveKey
+                ? "API key: stored in config (tools.web.search.apiKey)."
+                : "API key: provided via BRAVE_API_KEY env var (Gateway environment).",
           "Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai/tools/web",
         ].join("\n")
       : [
-          "If you want your agent to be able to search the web, you’ll need an API key.",
+          "If you want your agent to be able to search the web, you’ll need to configure a provider.",
           "",
-          "OpenClaw uses Brave Search for the `web_search` tool. Without a Brave Search API key, web search won’t work.",
+          `OpenClaw uses ${webSearchProvider} for the \`web_search\` tool.`,
           "",
           "Set it up interactively:",
           `- Run: ${formatCliCommand("openclaw configure --section web")}`,
-          "- Enable web_search and paste your Brave Search API key",
+          webSearchProvider === "searxng"
+            ? "- Enable web_search and set your SearXNG base URL"
+            : webSearchProvider === "perplexity"
+              ? "- Enable web_search and set your Perplexity/OpenRouter API key"
+              : "- Enable web_search and paste your Brave Search API key",
           "",
-          "Alternative: set BRAVE_API_KEY in the Gateway environment (no config changes).",
+          webSearchProvider === "searxng"
+            ? "Alternative: set SEARXNG_BASE_URL in the Gateway environment (no config changes)."
+            : webSearchProvider === "perplexity"
+              ? "Alternative: set PERPLEXITY_API_KEY or OPENROUTER_API_KEY in the Gateway environment (no config changes)."
+              : "Alternative: set BRAVE_API_KEY in the Gateway environment (no config changes).",
           "Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai/tools/web",
         ].join("\n"),
     "Web search (optional)",