Bug: npm package ships TypeScript source only — no compiled output (dist/)

[SinoGod]

Bug: npm package ships TypeScript source only — no compiled output (dist/)

Description

The @memtensor/memos-local-openclaw-plugin npm package (both 1.0.8 and 1.0.10) publishes only TypeScript source code without compiled JavaScript output. This causes the plugin to fail loading in OpenClaw 2026.5.4, which expects compiled JS (dist/index.js, dist/index.mjs, or dist/index.cjs).

Steps to Reproduce

1. Run the official install script:

   curl -fsSL https://cdn.memtensor.com.cn/memos-local-openclaw/install.sh | bash

2. The install completes but the plugin fails to load with:

   plugins.slots.memory: plugin not found: memos-local-openclaw-plugin
   

3. OpenClaw reports:

   installed plugin package requires compiled runtime output for TypeScript entry index.ts: expected ./dist/index.js, ./dist/index.mjs, ./dist/index.cjs, index.js, index.mjs, index.cjs
   

Root Cause

• package.json has "main": "index.ts" (pointing to raw TypeScript)
• prepublishOnly script is: echo 'Source-only publish — no build needed.'
• No dist/ directory exists in the published package
• No tsconfig.json is included

The package was designed assuming the runtime would handle TypeScript directly, but OpenClaw's plugin loader requires compiled JS.

Environment

• OpenClaw: 2026.5.4 (stable)
• OS: macOS 26.3.1 (arm64)
• Node.js: v22.18.0
• Plugin version: 1.0.10 (also confirmed on 1.0.8)

Workaround

Manually compile the plugin after install:

cd ~/.openclaw/extensions/memos-local-openclaw-plugin

# Create tsconfig.json
cat > tsconfig.json << 'TSEOF'
{
  "compilerOptions": {
    "target": "ES2022",
    "module": "ESNext",
    "moduleResolution": "bundler",
    "outDir": "./dist",
    "rootDir": ".",
    "declaration": false,
    "esModuleInterop": true,
    "skipLibCheck": true,
    "resolveJsonModule": true,
    "strict": false,
    "noEmit": false
  },
  "include": ["index.ts", "src/**/*.ts"],
  "exclude": ["node_modules", "dist", "scripts", "skill"]
}
TSEOF

# Create type shim for openclaw/plugin-sdk
mkdir -p dist
cat > dist/openclaw-plugin-sdk.d.ts << 'DTEOF'
export interface OpenClawPluginApi {
  registerTool(...args: any[]): void;
  registerHook(...args: any[]): void;
  registerMemoryCapability(...args: any[]): void;
  getConfig(): any;
  getLogger(): any;
  logger: any;
  [key: string]: any;
}
DTEOF

# Compile
npx tsc

Then re-register the plugin in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json.

Suggested Fix

Either:

1. Add a tsconfig.json and include a prepublishOnly build step that compiles to dist/
2. Or ship the compiled JS alongside the TypeScript source in the npm package
3. Or change "main" in package.json to point to a compiled entry point

[fancyboi999]

@SinoGod Your report was solid — three repro steps plus a workaround saved a ton of dead-end exploration. Thanks.

#1622 is up. Digging in, the problem turned out to go one layer deeper than the issue describes: tsconfig.json had rootDir: "src", which silently kept the OpenClaw plugin entry (root index.ts) out of the compile graph entirely. So even with a build step bolted on, the resulting dist/index.js would still have been src/index.ts's output — a separate library-style entry, not the plugin entry. Easy trap because the filenames collide.

Could you try the branch on your side before we cut a release? My Node 25 ESM loader resolves dist/index.js to {id, register} here, which matches the OpenClaw plugin contract — but I don't have OpenClaw 2026.5.4 set up locally, so your environment is the real proof.

git clone -b fix/openclaw-plugin-1619-publish-compiled-output \
  https://github.com/fancyboi999/MemOS.git
cd MemOS/apps/memos-local-openclaw
npm install
npm run build      # tsc + post-process to add .js suffixes for Node ESM
npm pack

# Drop into OpenClaw
rm -rf ~/.openclaw/extensions/memos-local-openclaw-plugin
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/extensions/memos-local-openclaw-plugin
tar -xzf memtensor-memos-local-openclaw-plugin-*.tgz \
  -C ~/.openclaw/extensions/memos-local-openclaw-plugin --strip-components=1
cd ~/.openclaw/extensions/memos-local-openclaw-plugin && npm install --omit=dev
openclaw gateway stop && openclaw gateway start

Ping me if anything still misloads — __dirname-style paths shifted with the new layout, so viewer/server.ts and bundled-memory-guide.ts are where I'd look first.