A comprehensive Windows automation skill for controlling applications, simulating user input, and managing system processes via PowerShell.
Install & Download
1. ClawHub CLI
The fastest way to install a skill directly from the registry.
npx clawhub@latest install desktop-control-win
2. Manual Installation
Copy the skill folder to one of these locations
~/.openclaw/skills/ <project>/skills/ Priority: Workspace > Local > Bundled
3. Prompt Installation
Copy this prompt to OpenClaw to install it automatically.
Help me install desktop-control-win using Clawhub. If Clawhub is not installed, install it first (npm i -g clawhub).
Prefer to download?
Get the raw skill files in a ZIP archive.
What is Desktop Control for Windows?
The desktop-control skill provides a powerful interface for AI agents to interact directly with the Windows operating system. By leveraging a suite of specialized PowerShell scripts, this addition to the Openclaw Skills ecosystem enables seamless manipulation of desktop applications, window states, and system-level processes.
Whether you need to automate repetitive UI tasks, manage complex development environments in VSCode, or monitor system resources, this skill offers the granular control required for high-level desktop automation. It serves as a bridge between high-level AI reasoning and low-level OS execution, making it an essential tool for developers and power users looking to extend their agent's reach into the local environment.
Desktop Control for Windows Use Cases
- Automating multi-window layouts for complex development or research sessions.
- Sending keyboard shortcuts and text input to legacy Windows applications without native APIs.
- Controlling Visual Studio Code extensions, terminals, and file navigation programmatically.
- Monitoring and managing unresponsive system processes during heavy workloads.
- Capturing screenshots of specific windows for automated documentation or visual debugging.
- Programmatically interacting with the system clipboard to move data between apps.
How Desktop Control for Windows Works
- The AI agent identifies the required administrative or UI action, such as focusing a specific window or launching a process.
- The skill executes a relevant PowerShell script located in the ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/desktop-control/scripts directory.
- For UI-sensitive tasks, the system uses app-control.ps1 to ensure the target application is in the foreground.
- Specific parameters (like coordinates for clicks or strings for typing) are passed into the script via CLI arguments.
- The PowerShell script interacts with the Windows API to perform the requested action and returns a success or error code back to the agent.
Desktop Control for Windows Setup
To integrate this capability into your Openclaw Skills library, follow these installation steps:
- Download the skill package into your local skill directory:
~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/desktop-control/. - Since the package includes scripts as text files for security, rename all
.ps1.txtfiles in thescripts/folder to.ps1. - Ensure your system's PowerShell execution policy allows for script execution:
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass
- Verify that the
codeCLI is added to your system PATH to enable the VSCode control features.
Desktop Control for Windows Data Schema & Taxonomy
The skill organizes its functionality across five specialized PowerShell modules. Data is processed through command-line arguments and returns structured console output:
| Script | Functional Area | Primary Actions |
|---|---|---|
app-control.ps1 |
Window Management | list-windows, focus, snap, resize, launch |
input-sim.ps1 |
Input Simulation | type-text, send-keys, mouse-click, scroll |
vscode-control.ps1 |
Editor Control | open-file, install-extension, run-command, goto-line |
process-manager.ps1 |
Process Management | list, kill, monitor-usage, start |
screen-info.ps1 |
System Metadata | screenshot, clipboard-get, active-window, system-info |
Desktop Control for Windows Advanced Features
- Multi-monitor support: Identify and manage windows across different displays and resolutions.
- VSCode Command Palette Integration: Execute any internal workbench command by name.
- Window Snapping: Programmatically snap windows to quadrants or halves for perfect workspace organization.
- Resource Monitoring: Sample process CPU and memory usage over a defined duration.
- Precise UI Targeting: Interact with windows using either partial title matching or unique Process IDs (PIDs).
SKILL.md
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