diff --git a/electron/api/routes/channels.ts b/electron/api/routes/channels.ts
index 4405be241..0b3c06d0d 100644
--- a/electron/api/routes/channels.ts
+++ b/electron/api/routes/channels.ts
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ import {
   normalizeSlackMessagingTarget,
   normalizeWhatsAppMessagingTarget,
 } from '../../utils/openclaw-sdk';
+import { logger } from '../../utils/logger';
 
 // listWhatsAppDirectory*FromConfig were removed from openclaw's public exports
 // in 2026.3.23-1.  No-op stubs; WhatsApp target picker uses session discovery.
@@ -263,11 +264,11 @@ function scheduleGatewayChannelSaveRefresh(
     return;
   }
   if (FORCE_RESTART_CHANNELS.has(storedChannelType)) {
-    ctx.gatewayManager.debouncedRestart();
+    ctx.gatewayManager.debouncedRestart(150);
     void reason;
     return;
   }
-  ctx.gatewayManager.debouncedReload();
+  ctx.gatewayManager.debouncedReload(150);
   void reason;
 }
 
@@ -416,6 +417,28 @@ interface ChannelAccountsView {
   accounts: ChannelAccountView[];
 }
 
+function buildGatewayStatusSnapshot(status: GatewayChannelStatusPayload | null): string {
+  if (!status?.channelAccounts) return 'none';
+  const entries = Object.entries(status.channelAccounts);
+  if (entries.length === 0) return 'empty';
+  return entries
+    .slice(0, 12)
+    .map(([channelType, accounts]) => {
+      const channelStatus = pickChannelRuntimeStatus(accounts);
+      const flags = accounts.slice(0, 4).map((account) => {
+        const accountId = typeof account.accountId === 'string' ? account.accountId : 'default';
+        const connected = account.connected === true ? '1' : '0';
+        const running = account.running === true ? '1' : '0';
+        const linked = account.linked === true ? '1' : '0';
+        const probeOk = account.probe?.ok === true ? '1' : '0';
+        const hasErr = typeof account.lastError === 'string' && account.lastError.trim().length > 0 ? '1' : '0';
+        return `${accountId}[c${connected}r${running}l${linked}p${probeOk}e${hasErr}]`;
+      }).join('|');
+      return `${channelType}:${channelStatus}{${flags}}`;
+    })
+    .join(', ');
+}
+
 function shouldIncludeRuntimeAccountId(
   accountId: string,
   configuredAccountIds: Set<string>,
@@ -458,7 +481,11 @@ const CHANNEL_TARGET_CACHE_TTL_MS = 60_000;
 const CHANNEL_TARGET_CACHE_ENABLED = process.env.VITEST !== 'true';
 const channelTargetCache = new Map<string, { expiresAt: number; targets: ChannelTargetOptionView[] }>();
 
-async function buildChannelAccountsView(ctx: HostApiContext): Promise<ChannelAccountsView[]> {
+async function buildChannelAccountsView(
+  ctx: HostApiContext,
+  options?: { probe?: boolean },
+): Promise<ChannelAccountsView[]> {
+  const startedAt = Date.now();
   // Read config once and share across all sub-calls (was 5 readFile calls before).
   const openClawConfig = await readOpenClawConfig();
 
@@ -470,11 +497,24 @@ async function buildChannelAccountsView(ctx: HostApiContext): Promise<ChannelAcc
 
   let gatewayStatus: GatewayChannelStatusPayload | null;
   try {
-    // probe: false — use cached runtime state instead of active network probes
-    // per channel. Real-time status updates arrive via channel.status events.
+    // probe=false uses cached runtime state (lighter); probe=true forces
+    // adapter-level connectivity checks for faster post-restart convergence.
+    const probe = options?.probe === true;
     // 8s timeout — fail fast when Gateway is busy with AI tasks.
-    gatewayStatus = await ctx.gatewayManager.rpc<GatewayChannelStatusPayload>('channels.status', { probe: false }, 8000);
+    const rpcStartedAt = Date.now();
+    gatewayStatus = await ctx.gatewayManager.rpc<GatewayChannelStatusPayload>(
+      'channels.status',
+      { probe },
+      probe ? 5000 : 8000,
+    );
+    logger.info(
+      `[channels.accounts] channels.status probe=${probe ? '1' : '0'} elapsedMs=${Date.now() - rpcStartedAt} snapshot=${buildGatewayStatusSnapshot(gatewayStatus)}`
+    );
   } catch {
+    const probe = options?.probe === true;
+    logger.warn(
+      `[channels.accounts] channels.status probe=${probe ? '1' : '0'} failed after ${Date.now() - startedAt}ms`
+    );
     gatewayStatus = null;
   }
 
@@ -553,7 +593,11 @@ async function buildChannelAccountsView(ctx: HostApiContext): Promise<ChannelAcc
     });
   }
 
-  return channels.sort((left, right) => left.channelType.localeCompare(right.channelType));
+  const sorted = channels.sort((left, right) => left.channelType.localeCompare(right.channelType));
+  logger.info(
+    `[channels.accounts] response probe=${options?.probe === true ? '1' : '0'} elapsedMs=${Date.now() - startedAt} view=${sorted.map((item) => `${item.channelType}:${item.status}`).join(',')}`
+  );
+  return sorted;
 }
 
 function buildChannelTargetLabel(baseLabel: string, value: string): string {
@@ -1147,7 +1191,9 @@ export async function handleChannelRoutes(
 
   if (url.pathname === '/api/channels/accounts' && req.method === 'GET') {
     try {
-      const channels = await buildChannelAccountsView(ctx);
+      const probe = url.searchParams.get('probe') === '1';
+      logger.info(`[channels.accounts] request probe=${probe ? '1' : '0'}`);
+      const channels = await buildChannelAccountsView(ctx, { probe });
       sendJson(res, 200, { success: true, channels });
     } catch (error) {
       sendJson(res, 500, { success: false, error: String(error) });
diff --git a/electron/gateway/config-sync.ts b/electron/gateway/config-sync.ts
index 8d1b1428c..e6bdc574f 100644
--- a/electron/gateway/config-sync.ts
+++ b/electron/gateway/config-sync.ts
@@ -20,8 +20,8 @@ import { getApiKey, getDefaultProvider, getProvider } from '../utils/secure-stor
 import { getProviderEnvVar, getKeyableProviderTypes } from '../utils/provider-registry';
 import { getOpenClawDir, getOpenClawEntryPath, isOpenClawPresent } from '../utils/paths';
 import { getUvMirrorEnv } from '../utils/uv-env';
-import { cleanupDanglingWeChatPluginState, listConfiguredChannels, readOpenClawConfig } from '../utils/channel-config';
-import { syncGatewayTokenToConfig, syncBrowserConfigToOpenClaw, syncSessionIdleMinutesToOpenClaw, sanitizeOpenClawConfig } from '../utils/openclaw-auth';
+import { cleanupDanglingWeChatPluginState, listConfiguredChannelsFromConfig, readOpenClawConfig } from '../utils/channel-config';
+import { sanitizeOpenClawConfig, batchSyncConfigFields } from '../utils/openclaw-auth';
 import { buildProxyEnv, resolveProxySettings } from '../utils/proxy';
 import { syncProxyConfigToOpenClaw } from '../utils/openclaw-proxy';
 import { logger } from '../utils/logger';
@@ -180,7 +180,20 @@ function ensureConfiguredPluginsUpgraded(configuredChannels: string[]): void {
  * resolution algorithm find them.  Skip-if-exists avoids overwriting
  * openclaw's own deps (they take priority).
  */
+let _extensionDepsLinked = false;
+
+/**
+ * Reset the extension-deps-linked cache so the next
+ * ensureExtensionDepsResolvable() call re-scans and links.
+ * Called before each Gateway launch to pick up newly installed extensions.
+ */
+export function resetExtensionDepsLinked(): void {
+  _extensionDepsLinked = false;
+}
+
 function ensureExtensionDepsResolvable(openclawDir: string): void {
+  if (_extensionDepsLinked) return;
+
   const extDir = join(openclawDir, 'dist', 'extensions');
   const topNM = join(openclawDir, 'node_modules');
   let linkedCount = 0;
@@ -229,6 +242,8 @@ function ensureExtensionDepsResolvable(openclawDir: string): void {
   if (linkedCount > 0) {
     logger.info(`[extension-deps] Linked ${linkedCount} extension packages into ${topNM}`);
   }
+
+  _extensionDepsLinked = true;
 }
 
 // ── Pre-launch sync ──────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -236,6 +251,11 @@ function ensureExtensionDepsResolvable(openclawDir: string): void {
 export async function syncGatewayConfigBeforeLaunch(
   appSettings: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof getAllSettings>>,
 ): Promise<void> {
+  // Reset the extension-deps cache so that newly installed extensions
+  // (e.g. user added a channel while the app was running) get their
+  // node_modules linked on the next Gateway spawn.
+  resetExtensionDepsLinked();
+
   await syncProxyConfigToOpenClaw(appSettings, { preserveExistingWhenDisabled: true });
 
   try {
@@ -260,21 +280,20 @@ export async function syncGatewayConfigBeforeLaunch(
 
   // Auto-upgrade installed plugins before Gateway starts so that
   // the plugin manifest ID matches what sanitize wrote to the config.
+  // Read config once and reuse for both listConfiguredChannels and plugins.allow.
   try {
-    const configuredChannels = await listConfiguredChannels();
+    const rawCfg = await readOpenClawConfig();
+    const configuredChannels = await listConfiguredChannelsFromConfig(rawCfg);
 
     // Also ensure plugins referenced in plugins.allow are installed even if
     // they have no channels.X section yet (e.g. qqbot added via plugins.allow
     // but never fully saved through ClawX UI).
     try {
-      const rawCfg = await readOpenClawConfig();
       const allowList = Array.isArray(rawCfg.plugins?.allow) ? (rawCfg.plugins!.allow as string[]) : [];
-      // Build reverse maps: dirName → channelType AND known manifest IDs → channelType
       const pluginIdToChannel: Record<string, string> = {};
       for (const [channelType, info] of Object.entries(CHANNEL_PLUGIN_MAP)) {
         pluginIdToChannel[info.dirName] = channelType;
       }
-      // Known manifest IDs that differ from their dirName/channelType
 
       pluginIdToChannel['openclaw-lark'] = 'feishu';
       pluginIdToChannel['feishu-openclaw-plugin'] = 'feishu';
@@ -295,22 +314,11 @@ export async function syncGatewayConfigBeforeLaunch(
     logger.warn('Failed to auto-upgrade plugins:', err);
   }
 
+  // Batch gateway token, browser config, and session idle into one read+write cycle.
   try {
-    await syncGatewayTokenToConfig(appSettings.gatewayToken);
+    await batchSyncConfigFields(appSettings.gatewayToken);
   } catch (err) {
-    logger.warn('Failed to sync gateway token to openclaw.json:', err);
-  }
-
-  try {
-    await syncBrowserConfigToOpenClaw();
-  } catch (err) {
-    logger.warn('Failed to sync browser config to openclaw.json:', err);
-  }
-
-  try {
-    await syncSessionIdleMinutesToOpenClaw();
-  } catch (err) {
-    logger.warn('Failed to sync session idle minutes to openclaw.json:', err);
+    logger.warn('Failed to batch-sync config fields to openclaw.json:', err);
   }
 }
 
@@ -360,7 +368,8 @@ async function resolveChannelStartupPolicy(): Promise<{
   channelStartupSummary: string;
 }> {
   try {
-    const configuredChannels = await listConfiguredChannels();
+    const rawCfg = await readOpenClawConfig();
+    const configuredChannels = await listConfiguredChannelsFromConfig(rawCfg);
     if (configuredChannels.length === 0) {
       return {
         skipChannels: true,
diff --git a/electron/gateway/event-dispatch.ts b/electron/gateway/event-dispatch.ts
index 6e9427265..fedd34c64 100644
--- a/electron/gateway/event-dispatch.ts
+++ b/electron/gateway/event-dispatch.ts
@@ -23,8 +23,13 @@ export function dispatchProtocolEvent(
       break;
     }
     case 'channel.status':
+    case 'channel.status_changed':
       emitter.emit('channel:status', payload as { channelId: string; status: string });
       break;
+    case 'gateway.ready':
+    case 'ready':
+      emitter.emit('gateway:ready', payload);
+      break;
     default:
       emitter.emit('notification', { method: event, params: payload });
   }
diff --git a/electron/gateway/manager.ts b/electron/gateway/manager.ts
index 9ca7384ef..918813d98 100644
--- a/electron/gateway/manager.ts
+++ b/electron/gateway/manager.ts
@@ -61,6 +61,8 @@ export interface GatewayStatus {
   connectedAt?: number;
   version?: string;
   reconnectAttempts?: number;
+  /** True once the gateway's internal subsystems (skills, plugins) are ready for RPC calls. */
+  gatewayReady?: boolean;
 }
 
 /**
@@ -119,9 +121,11 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
   private static readonly HEARTBEAT_TIMEOUT_MS_WIN = 25_000;
   private static readonly HEARTBEAT_MAX_MISSES_WIN = 5;
   public static readonly RESTART_COOLDOWN_MS = 5_000;
+  private static readonly GATEWAY_READY_FALLBACK_MS = 30_000;
   private lastRestartAt = 0;
   /** Set by scheduleReconnect() before calling start() to signal auto-reconnect. */
   private isAutoReconnectStart = false;
+  private gatewayReadyFallbackTimer: NodeJS.Timeout | null = null;
 
   constructor(config?: Partial<ReconnectConfig>) {
     super();
@@ -152,6 +156,14 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
     this.reconnectConfig = { ...DEFAULT_RECONNECT_CONFIG, ...config };
     // Device identity is loaded lazily in start() — not in the constructor —
     // so that async file I/O and key generation don't block module loading.
+
+    this.on('gateway:ready', () => {
+      this.clearGatewayReadyFallback();
+      if (this.status.state === 'running' && !this.status.gatewayReady) {
+        logger.info('Gateway subsystems ready (event received)');
+        this.setStatus({ gatewayReady: true });
+      }
+    });
   }
 
   private async initDeviceIdentity(): Promise<void> {
@@ -231,12 +243,16 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
       this.reconnectAttempts = 0;
     }
     this.isAutoReconnectStart = false; // consume the flag
-    this.setStatus({ state: 'starting', reconnectAttempts: this.reconnectAttempts });
+    this.setStatus({ state: 'starting', reconnectAttempts: this.reconnectAttempts, gatewayReady: false });
 
     // Check if Python environment is ready (self-healing) asynchronously.
     // Fire-and-forget: only needs to run once, not on every retry.
     warmupManagedPythonReadiness();
 
+    const t0 = Date.now();
+    let tSpawned = 0;
+    let tReady = 0;
+
     try {
       await runGatewayStartupSequence({
         port: this.status.port,
@@ -262,7 +278,6 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
           await this.connect(port, externalToken);
         },
         onConnectedToExistingGateway: () => {
-
           // If the existing gateway is actually our own spawned UtilityProcess
           // (e.g. after a self-restart code=1012), keep ownership so that
           // stop() can still terminate the process during a restart() cycle.
@@ -288,16 +303,24 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
         },
         startProcess: async () => {
           await this.startProcess();
+          tSpawned = Date.now();
         },
         waitForReady: async (port) => {
           await waitForGatewayReady({
             port,
             getProcessExitCode: () => this.processExitCode,
           });
+          tReady = Date.now();
         },
         onConnectedToManagedGateway: () => {
           this.startHealthCheck();
-          logger.debug('Gateway started successfully');
+          const tConnected = Date.now();
+          logger.info('[metric] gateway.startup', {
+            configSyncMs: tSpawned ? tSpawned - t0 : undefined,
+            spawnToReadyMs: tReady && tSpawned ? tReady - tSpawned : undefined,
+            readyToConnectMs: tReady ? tConnected - tReady : undefined,
+            totalMs: tConnected - t0,
+          });
         },
         runDoctorRepair: async () => await runOpenClawDoctorRepair(),
         onDoctorRepairSuccess: () => {
@@ -390,7 +413,7 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
 
     this.restartController.resetDeferredRestart();
     this.isAutoReconnectStart = false;
-    this.setStatus({ state: 'stopped', error: undefined, pid: undefined, connectedAt: undefined, uptime: undefined });
+    this.setStatus({ state: 'stopped', error: undefined, pid: undefined, connectedAt: undefined, uptime: undefined, gatewayReady: undefined });
   }
 
   /**
@@ -663,6 +686,25 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
       clearTimeout(this.reloadDebounceTimer);
       this.reloadDebounceTimer = null;
     }
+    this.clearGatewayReadyFallback();
+  }
+
+  private clearGatewayReadyFallback(): void {
+    if (this.gatewayReadyFallbackTimer) {
+      clearTimeout(this.gatewayReadyFallbackTimer);
+      this.gatewayReadyFallbackTimer = null;
+    }
+  }
+
+  private scheduleGatewayReadyFallback(): void {
+    this.clearGatewayReadyFallback();
+    this.gatewayReadyFallbackTimer = setTimeout(() => {
+      this.gatewayReadyFallbackTimer = null;
+      if (this.status.state === 'running' && !this.status.gatewayReady) {
+        logger.info('Gateway ready fallback triggered (no gateway.ready event within timeout)');
+        this.setStatus({ gatewayReady: true });
+      }
+    }, GatewayManager.GATEWAY_READY_FALLBACK_MS);
   }
 
   /**
@@ -843,6 +885,7 @@ export class GatewayManager extends EventEmitter {
           connectedAt: Date.now(),
         });
         this.startPing();
+        this.scheduleGatewayReadyFallback();
       },
       onMessage: (message) => {
         this.handleMessage(message);
diff --git a/electron/main/ipc-handlers.ts b/electron/main/ipc-handlers.ts
index e988ab5e7..00937d4ce 100644
--- a/electron/main/ipc-handlers.ts
+++ b/electron/main/ipc-handlers.ts
@@ -1452,7 +1452,7 @@ function registerOpenClawHandlers(gatewayManager: GatewayManager): void {
   const scheduleGatewayChannelRestart = (reason: string): void => {
     if (gatewayManager.getStatus().state !== 'stopped') {
       logger.info(`Scheduling Gateway restart after ${reason}`);
-      gatewayManager.debouncedRestart();
+      gatewayManager.debouncedRestart(150);
     } else {
       logger.info(`Gateway is stopped; skip immediate restart after ${reason}`);
     }
@@ -1465,11 +1465,11 @@ function registerOpenClawHandlers(gatewayManager: GatewayManager): void {
     }
     if (forceRestartChannels.has(channelType)) {
       logger.info(`Scheduling Gateway restart after ${reason}`);
-      gatewayManager.debouncedRestart();
+      gatewayManager.debouncedRestart(150);
       return;
     }
     logger.info(`Scheduling Gateway reload after ${reason}`);
-    gatewayManager.debouncedReload();
+    gatewayManager.debouncedReload(150);
   };
 
   // Get OpenClaw package status
diff --git a/electron/utils/openclaw-auth.ts b/electron/utils/openclaw-auth.ts
index b8f087c52..237144a19 100644
--- a/electron/utils/openclaw-auth.ts
+++ b/electron/utils/openclaw-auth.ts
@@ -1235,6 +1235,89 @@ export async function syncSessionIdleMinutesToOpenClaw(): Promise<void> {
   });
 }
 
+/**
+ * Batch-apply gateway token, browser config, and session idle minutes in a
+ * single config lock + read + write cycle.  Replaces three separate
+ * withConfigLock calls during pre-launch sync.
+ */
+export async function batchSyncConfigFields(token: string): Promise<void> {
+  const DEFAULT_IDLE_MINUTES = 10_080; // 7 days
+
+  return withConfigLock(async () => {
+    const config = await readOpenClawJson();
+    let modified = true;
+
+    // ── Gateway token + controlUi ──
+    const gateway = (
+      config.gateway && typeof config.gateway === 'object'
+        ? { ...(config.gateway as Record<string, unknown>) }
+        : {}
+    ) as Record<string, unknown>;
+
+    const auth = (
+      gateway.auth && typeof gateway.auth === 'object'
+        ? { ...(gateway.auth as Record<string, unknown>) }
+        : {}
+    ) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    auth.mode = 'token';
+    auth.token = token;
+    gateway.auth = auth;
+
+    const controlUi = (
+      gateway.controlUi && typeof gateway.controlUi === 'object'
+        ? { ...(gateway.controlUi as Record<string, unknown>) }
+        : {}
+    ) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    const allowedOrigins = Array.isArray(controlUi.allowedOrigins)
+      ? (controlUi.allowedOrigins as unknown[]).filter((v): v is string => typeof v === 'string')
+      : [];
+    if (!allowedOrigins.includes('file://')) {
+      controlUi.allowedOrigins = [...allowedOrigins, 'file://'];
+    }
+    gateway.controlUi = controlUi;
+    if (!gateway.mode) gateway.mode = 'local';
+    config.gateway = gateway;
+
+    // ── Browser config ──
+    const browser = (
+      config.browser && typeof config.browser === 'object'
+        ? { ...(config.browser as Record<string, unknown>) }
+        : {}
+    ) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    if (browser.enabled === undefined) {
+      browser.enabled = true;
+      config.browser = browser;
+      modified = true;
+    }
+    if (browser.defaultProfile === undefined) {
+      browser.defaultProfile = 'openclaw';
+      config.browser = browser;
+      modified = true;
+    }
+
+    // ── Session idle minutes ──
+    const session = (
+      config.session && typeof config.session === 'object'
+        ? { ...(config.session as Record<string, unknown>) }
+        : {}
+    ) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    const hasExplicitSessionConfig = session.idleMinutes !== undefined
+      || session.reset !== undefined
+      || session.resetByType !== undefined
+      || session.resetByChannel !== undefined;
+    if (!hasExplicitSessionConfig) {
+      session.idleMinutes = DEFAULT_IDLE_MINUTES;
+      config.session = session;
+      modified = true;
+    }
+
+    if (modified) {
+      await writeOpenClawJson(config);
+      console.log('Synced gateway token, browser config, and session idle to openclaw.json');
+    }
+  });
+}
+
 /**
  * Update a provider entry in every discovered agent's models.json.
  */
@@ -1670,9 +1753,10 @@ export async function sanitizeOpenClawConfig(): Promise<void> {
       // that conflicts with the official @larksuite/openclaw-lark plugin
       // (id: 'openclaw-lark').  When the canonical feishu plugin is NOT the
       // built-in 'feishu' itself, we must:
-      //   1. Remove bare 'feishu' from plugins.allow
-      //   2. Always set plugins.entries.feishu = { enabled: false } to explicitly
-      //      disable the built-in — it loads automatically unless disabled.
+      //   1. Remove bare 'feishu' from plugins.allow (already done above at line ~1648)
+      //   2. Delete plugins.entries.feishu entirely — keeping it with enabled:false
+      //      causes the Gateway to report the feishu channel as "disabled".
+      //      Since 'feishu' is not in plugins.allow, the built-in won't load.
       const allowArr2 = Array.isArray(pluginsObj.allow) ? pluginsObj.allow as string[] : [];
       const hasCanonicalFeishu = allowArr2.includes(canonicalFeishuId) || !!pEntries[canonicalFeishuId];
       if (hasCanonicalFeishu && canonicalFeishuId !== 'feishu') {
@@ -1683,11 +1767,13 @@ export async function sanitizeOpenClawConfig(): Promise<void> {
           console.log('[sanitize] Removed bare "feishu" from plugins.allow (openclaw-lark plugin is configured)');
           modified = true;
         }
-        // Always ensure the built-in feishu plugin is explicitly disabled.
-        // Built-in extensions load automatically unless plugins.entries.<id>.enabled = false.
-        if (!pEntries.feishu || pEntries.feishu.enabled !== false) {
-          pEntries.feishu = { ...(pEntries.feishu || {}), enabled: false };
-          console.log('[sanitize] Disabled built-in feishu plugin (openclaw-lark plugin is configured)');
+        // Delete the built-in feishu entry entirely instead of setting enabled:false.
+        // Setting enabled:false causes the Gateway to report the channel as "disabled"
+        // which shows as an error in the UI.  Since 'feishu' is removed from
+        // plugins.allow above, the built-in extension won't auto-load.
+        if (pEntries.feishu) {
+          delete pEntries.feishu;
+          console.log('[sanitize] Removed built-in feishu plugin entry (openclaw-lark plugin is configured)');
           modified = true;
         }
       }
diff --git a/src/components/layout/Sidebar.tsx b/src/components/layout/Sidebar.tsx
index 70cc81535..9df1d3739 100644
--- a/src/components/layout/Sidebar.tsx
+++ b/src/components/layout/Sidebar.tsx
@@ -128,9 +128,10 @@ export function Sidebar() {
 
   const gatewayStatus = useGatewayStore((s) => s.status);
   const isGatewayRunning = gatewayStatus.state === 'running';
+  const isGatewayReady = isGatewayRunning && gatewayStatus.gatewayReady !== false;
 
   useEffect(() => {
-    if (!isGatewayRunning) return;
+    if (!isGatewayReady) return;
     let cancelled = false;
     const hasExistingMessages = useChatStore.getState().messages.length > 0;
     (async () => {
@@ -141,7 +142,7 @@ export function Sidebar() {
     return () => {
       cancelled = true;
     };
-  }, [isGatewayRunning, loadHistory, loadSessions]);
+  }, [isGatewayReady, loadHistory, loadSessions]);
   const agents = useAgentsStore((s) => s.agents);
   const fetchAgents = useAgentsStore((s) => s.fetchAgents);
 
diff --git a/src/pages/Channels/index.tsx b/src/pages/Channels/index.tsx
index 1f4176815..fd3b80026 100644
--- a/src/pages/Channels/index.tsx
+++ b/src/pages/Channels/index.tsx
@@ -89,6 +89,9 @@ export function Channels() {
   const [existingAccountIdsForModal, setExistingAccountIdsForModal] = useState<string[]>([]);
   const [initialConfigValuesForModal, setInitialConfigValuesForModal] = useState<Record<string, string> | undefined>(undefined);
   const [deleteTarget, setDeleteTarget] = useState<DeleteTarget | null>(null);
+  const convergenceRefreshTimersRef = useRef<number[]>([]);
+  const fetchInFlightRef = useRef(false);
+  const queuedFetchOptionsRef = useRef<{ probe?: boolean } | null>(null);
 
   const displayedChannelTypes = getPrimaryChannels();
   const visibleChannelGroups = channelGroups;
@@ -104,7 +107,24 @@ export function Channels() {
   const agentsRef = useRef(agents);
   agentsRef.current = agents;
 
-  const fetchPageData = useCallback(async () => {
+  const mergeFetchOptions = (
+    base: { probe?: boolean } | null,
+    incoming: { probe?: boolean } | undefined,
+  ): { probe?: boolean } => {
+    return {
+      probe: Boolean(base?.probe) || Boolean(incoming?.probe),
+    };
+  };
+
+  const fetchPageData = useCallback(async (options?: { probe?: boolean }) => {
+    if (fetchInFlightRef.current) {
+      queuedFetchOptionsRef.current = mergeFetchOptions(queuedFetchOptionsRef.current, options);
+      return;
+    }
+    fetchInFlightRef.current = true;
+    const startedAt = Date.now();
+    const probe = options?.probe === true;
+    console.info(`[channels-ui] fetch start probe=${probe ? '1' : '0'}`);
     // Only show loading spinner on first load (stale-while-revalidate).
     const hasData = channelGroupsRef.current.length > 0 || agentsRef.current.length > 0;
     if (!hasData) {
@@ -113,7 +133,9 @@ export function Channels() {
     setError(null);
     try {
       const [channelsRes, agentsRes] = await Promise.all([
-        hostApiFetch<{ success: boolean; channels?: ChannelGroupItem[]; error?: string }>('/api/channels/accounts'),
+        hostApiFetch<{ success: boolean; channels?: ChannelGroupItem[]; error?: string }>(
+          options?.probe ? '/api/channels/accounts?probe=1' : '/api/channels/accounts'
+        ),
         hostApiFetch<{ success: boolean; agents?: AgentItem[]; error?: string }>('/api/agents'),
       ]);
 
@@ -127,20 +149,64 @@ export function Channels() {
 
       setChannelGroups(channelsRes.channels || []);
       setAgents(agentsRes.agents || []);
+      console.info(
+        `[channels-ui] fetch ok probe=${probe ? '1' : '0'} elapsedMs=${Date.now() - startedAt} view=${(channelsRes.channels || []).map((item) => `${item.channelType}:${item.status}`).join(',')}`
+      );
     } catch (fetchError) {
       // Preserve previous data on error — don't clear channelGroups/agents.
       setError(String(fetchError));
+      console.warn(
+        `[channels-ui] fetch fail probe=${probe ? '1' : '0'} elapsedMs=${Date.now() - startedAt} error=${String(fetchError)}`
+      );
     } finally {
+      fetchInFlightRef.current = false;
       setLoading(false);
+      const queued = queuedFetchOptionsRef.current;
+      if (queued) {
+        queuedFetchOptionsRef.current = null;
+        void fetchPageData(queued);
+      }
     }
   // Stable reference — reads state via refs, no deps needed.
    
   }, []);
 
+  const clearConvergenceRefreshTimers = useCallback(() => {
+    convergenceRefreshTimersRef.current.forEach((timerId) => {
+      window.clearTimeout(timerId);
+    });
+    convergenceRefreshTimersRef.current = [];
+  }, []);
+
+  const scheduleConvergenceRefresh = useCallback(() => {
+    clearConvergenceRefreshTimers();
+    // Channel adapters can take time to reconnect after gateway restart.
+    // First few rounds use probe=true to force runtime connectivity checks,
+    // then fall back to cached pulls to reduce load.
+    [
+      { delay: 1200, probe: true },
+      { delay: 2600, probe: false },
+      { delay: 4500, probe: false },
+      { delay: 7000, probe: false },
+      { delay: 10500, probe: false },
+    ].forEach(({ delay, probe }) => {
+      const timerId = window.setTimeout(() => {
+        void fetchPageData({ probe });
+      }, delay);
+      convergenceRefreshTimersRef.current.push(timerId);
+    });
+  }, [clearConvergenceRefreshTimers, fetchPageData]);
+
   useEffect(() => {
     void fetchPageData();
   }, [fetchPageData]);
 
+  useEffect(() => {
+    return () => {
+      clearConvergenceRefreshTimers();
+    };
+  }, [clearConvergenceRefreshTimers]);
+
   useEffect(() => {
     // Throttle channel-status events to avoid flooding fetchPageData during AI tasks.
     let throttleTimer: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
@@ -176,8 +242,9 @@ export function Channels() {
 
     if (previousGatewayState !== 'running' && gatewayStatus.state === 'running') {
       void fetchPageData();
+      scheduleConvergenceRefresh();
     }
-  }, [fetchPageData, gatewayStatus.state]);
+  }, [fetchPageData, gatewayStatus.state, scheduleConvergenceRefresh]);
 
   const configuredTypes = useMemo(
     () => visibleChannelGroups.map((group) => group.channelType),
@@ -199,7 +266,7 @@ export function Channels() {
   const unsupportedGroups = displayedChannelTypes.filter((type) => !configuredTypes.includes(type));
 
   const handleRefresh = () => {
-    void fetchPageData();
+    void fetchPageData({ probe: true });
   };
 
   const handleBindAgent = async (channelType: string, accountId: string, agentId: string) => {
@@ -525,7 +592,8 @@ export function Channels() {
             setInitialConfigValuesForModal(undefined);
           }}
           onChannelSaved={async () => {
-            await fetchPageData();
+            await fetchPageData({ probe: true });
+            scheduleConvergenceRefresh();
             setShowConfigModal(false);
             setSelectedChannelType(null);
             setSelectedAccountId(undefined);
diff --git a/src/stores/chat/session-actions.ts b/src/stores/chat/session-actions.ts
index 40f42071f..9e994fe52 100644
--- a/src/stores/chat/session-actions.ts
+++ b/src/stores/chat/session-actions.ts
@@ -1,9 +1,10 @@
 import { invokeIpc } from '@/lib/api-client';
 import { getCanonicalPrefixFromSessions, getMessageText, toMs } from './helpers';
-import { classifyHistoryStartupRetryError, sleep } from './history-startup-retry';
 import { DEFAULT_CANONICAL_PREFIX, DEFAULT_SESSION_KEY, type ChatSession, type RawMessage } from './types';
 import type { ChatGet, ChatSet, SessionHistoryActions } from './store-api';
 
+const LABEL_FETCH_CONCURRENCY = 5;
+
 function getAgentIdFromSessionKey(sessionKey: string): string {
   if (!sessionKey.startsWith('agent:')) return 'main';
   const [, agentId] = sessionKey.split(':');
@@ -111,30 +112,24 @@ export function createSessionActions(
             get().loadHistory();
           }
 
-          // Background: fetch first user message for every non-main session to populate labels upfront.
-          // Retries on "gateway startup" errors since the gateway may still be initializing.
+          // Background: fetch first user message for every non-main session to populate labels.
+          // Concurrency-limited to avoid flooding the gateway with parallel RPCs.
+          // By the time this runs, the gateway should already be fully ready (Sidebar
+          // gates on gatewayReady), so no startup-retry loop is needed.
           const sessionsToLabel = sessionsWithCurrent.filter((s) => !s.key.endsWith(':main'));
           if (sessionsToLabel.length > 0) {
-            const LABEL_RETRY_DELAYS = [2_000, 5_000, 10_000];
             void (async () => {
-              let pending = sessionsToLabel;
-              for (let attempt = 0; attempt <= LABEL_RETRY_DELAYS.length; attempt += 1) {
-                const failed: typeof pending = [];
+              for (let i = 0; i < sessionsToLabel.length; i += LABEL_FETCH_CONCURRENCY) {
+                const batch = sessionsToLabel.slice(i, i + LABEL_FETCH_CONCURRENCY);
                 await Promise.all(
-                  pending.map(async (session) => {
+                  batch.map(async (session) => {
                     try {
                       const r = await invokeIpc(
                         'gateway:rpc',
                         'chat.history',
                         { sessionKey: session.key, limit: 1000 },
                       ) as { success: boolean; result?: Record<string, unknown>; error?: string };
-                      if (!r.success) {
-                        if (classifyHistoryStartupRetryError(r.error) === 'gateway_startup') {
-                          failed.push(session);
-                        }
-                        return;
-                      }
-                      if (!r.result) return;
+                      if (!r.success || !r.result) return;
                       const msgs = Array.isArray(r.result.messages) ? r.result.messages as RawMessage[] : [];
                       const firstUser = msgs.find((m) => m.role === 'user');
                       const lastMsg = msgs[msgs.length - 1];
@@ -155,9 +150,6 @@ export function createSessionActions(
                     } catch { /* ignore per-session errors */ }
                   }),
                 );
-                if (failed.length === 0 || attempt >= LABEL_RETRY_DELAYS.length) break;
-                await sleep(LABEL_RETRY_DELAYS[attempt]!);
-                pending = failed;
               }
             })();
           }
diff --git a/src/types/gateway.ts b/src/types/gateway.ts
index 3decd24a1..368d0f193 100644
--- a/src/types/gateway.ts
+++ b/src/types/gateway.ts
@@ -15,6 +15,8 @@ export interface GatewayStatus {
   connectedAt?: number;
   version?: string;
   reconnectAttempts?: number;
+  /** True once the gateway's internal subsystems (skills, plugins) are ready for RPC calls. */
+  gatewayReady?: boolean;
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/tests/unit/gateway-event-dispatch.test.ts b/tests/unit/gateway-event-dispatch.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..42ecf5577
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/gateway-event-dispatch.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
+import { dispatchProtocolEvent } from '@electron/gateway/event-dispatch';
+
+function createMockEmitter() {
+  const emitted: Array<{ event: string; payload: unknown }> = [];
+  return {
+    emit: vi.fn((event: string, payload: unknown) => {
+      emitted.push({ event, payload });
+      return true;
+    }),
+    emitted,
+  };
+}
+
+describe('dispatchProtocolEvent', () => {
+  it('dispatches gateway.ready event to gateway:ready', () => {
+    const emitter = createMockEmitter();
+    dispatchProtocolEvent(emitter, 'gateway.ready', { version: '4.11' });
+    expect(emitter.emit).toHaveBeenCalledWith('gateway:ready', { version: '4.11' });
+  });
+
+  it('dispatches ready event to gateway:ready', () => {
+    const emitter = createMockEmitter();
+    dispatchProtocolEvent(emitter, 'ready', { skills: 31 });
+    expect(emitter.emit).toHaveBeenCalledWith('gateway:ready', { skills: 31 });
+  });
+
+  it('dispatches channel.status to channel:status', () => {
+    const emitter = createMockEmitter();
+    dispatchProtocolEvent(emitter, 'channel.status', { channelId: 'telegram', status: 'connected' });
+    expect(emitter.emit).toHaveBeenCalledWith('channel:status', { channelId: 'telegram', status: 'connected' });
+  });
+
+  it('dispatches chat to chat:message', () => {
+    const emitter = createMockEmitter();
+    dispatchProtocolEvent(emitter, 'chat', { text: 'hello' });
+    expect(emitter.emit).toHaveBeenCalledWith('chat:message', { message: { text: 'hello' } });
+  });
+
+  it('suppresses tick events', () => {
+    const emitter = createMockEmitter();
+    dispatchProtocolEvent(emitter, 'tick', {});
+    expect(emitter.emit).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it('dispatches unknown events as notifications', () => {
+    const emitter = createMockEmitter();
+    dispatchProtocolEvent(emitter, 'some.custom.event', { data: 1 });
+    expect(emitter.emit).toHaveBeenCalledWith('notification', { method: 'some.custom.event', params: { data: 1 } });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/tests/unit/gateway-events.test.ts b/tests/unit/gateway-events.test.ts
index 8e10c5c42..d33273154 100644
--- a/tests/unit/gateway-events.test.ts
+++ b/tests/unit/gateway-events.test.ts
@@ -38,4 +38,42 @@ describe('gateway store event wiring', () => {
     handlers.get('gateway:status')?.({ state: 'stopped', port: 18789 });
     expect(useGatewayStore.getState().status.state).toBe('stopped');
   });
+
+  it('propagates gatewayReady field from status events', async () => {
+    hostApiFetchMock.mockResolvedValueOnce({ state: 'running', port: 18789, gatewayReady: false });
+
+    const handlers = new Map<string, (payload: unknown) => void>();
+    subscribeHostEventMock.mockImplementation((eventName: string, handler: (payload: unknown) => void) => {
+      handlers.set(eventName, handler);
+      return () => {};
+    });
+
+    const { useGatewayStore } = await import('@/stores/gateway');
+    await useGatewayStore.getState().init();
+
+    // Initially gatewayReady=false from the status fetch
+    expect(useGatewayStore.getState().status.gatewayReady).toBe(false);
+
+    // Simulate gateway.ready event setting gatewayReady=true
+    handlers.get('gateway:status')?.({ state: 'running', port: 18789, gatewayReady: true });
+    expect(useGatewayStore.getState().status.gatewayReady).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('treats undefined gatewayReady as ready for backwards compatibility', async () => {
+    hostApiFetchMock.mockResolvedValueOnce({ state: 'running', port: 18789 });
+
+    const handlers = new Map<string, (payload: unknown) => void>();
+    subscribeHostEventMock.mockImplementation((eventName: string, handler: (payload: unknown) => void) => {
+      handlers.set(eventName, handler);
+      return () => {};
+    });
+
+    const { useGatewayStore } = await import('@/stores/gateway');
+    await useGatewayStore.getState().init();
+
+    const status = useGatewayStore.getState().status;
+    // gatewayReady is undefined (old gateway version) — should be treated as ready
+    expect(status.gatewayReady).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(status.state === 'running' && status.gatewayReady !== false).toBe(true);
+  });
 });
diff --git a/tests/unit/gateway-ready-fallback.test.ts b/tests/unit/gateway-ready-fallback.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..8cd9596ad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/gateway-ready-fallback.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,127 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
+
+vi.mock('electron', () => ({
+  app: {
+    getPath: () => '/tmp',
+    isPackaged: false,
+  },
+  utilityProcess: {},
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@electron/utils/logger', () => ({
+  logger: {
+    info: vi.fn(),
+    warn: vi.fn(),
+    error: vi.fn(),
+    debug: vi.fn(),
+  },
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@electron/utils/config', () => ({
+  PORTS: { OPENCLAW_GATEWAY: 18789 },
+}));
+
+describe('GatewayManager gatewayReady fallback', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    vi.useRealTimers();
+  });
+
+  it('sets gatewayReady=false when entering starting state', async () => {
+    vi.resetModules();
+    const { GatewayManager } = await import('@electron/gateway/manager');
+    const manager = new GatewayManager();
+
+    const statusUpdates: Array<{ gatewayReady?: boolean }> = [];
+    manager.on('status', (status: { gatewayReady?: boolean }) => {
+      statusUpdates.push({ gatewayReady: status.gatewayReady });
+    });
+
+    // Simulate start attempt (will fail but we can check the initial status)
+    try {
+      await manager.start();
+    } catch {
+      // expected to fail — no actual gateway process
+    }
+
+    const startingUpdate = statusUpdates.find((u) => u.gatewayReady === false);
+    expect(startingUpdate).toBeDefined();
+  });
+
+  it('emits gatewayReady=true when gateway:ready event is received', async () => {
+    vi.resetModules();
+    const { GatewayManager } = await import('@electron/gateway/manager');
+    const manager = new GatewayManager();
+
+    // Force internal state to 'running' for the test
+    const stateController = (manager as unknown as { stateController: { setStatus: (u: Record<string, unknown>) => void } }).stateController;
+    stateController.setStatus({ state: 'running', connectedAt: Date.now() });
+
+    const statusUpdates: Array<{ gatewayReady?: boolean; state: string }> = [];
+    manager.on('status', (status: { gatewayReady?: boolean; state: string }) => {
+      statusUpdates.push({ gatewayReady: status.gatewayReady, state: status.state });
+    });
+
+    manager.emit('gateway:ready', {});
+
+    const readyUpdate = statusUpdates.find((u) => u.gatewayReady === true);
+    expect(readyUpdate).toBeDefined();
+  });
+
+  it('auto-sets gatewayReady=true after fallback timeout if no event received', async () => {
+    vi.resetModules();
+    const { GatewayManager } = await import('@electron/gateway/manager');
+    const manager = new GatewayManager();
+
+    // Force internal state to 'running' without gatewayReady
+    const stateController = (manager as unknown as { stateController: { setStatus: (u: Record<string, unknown>) => void } }).stateController;
+    stateController.setStatus({ state: 'running', connectedAt: Date.now() });
+
+    const statusUpdates: Array<{ gatewayReady?: boolean }> = [];
+    manager.on('status', (status: { gatewayReady?: boolean }) => {
+      statusUpdates.push({ gatewayReady: status.gatewayReady });
+    });
+
+    // Call the private scheduleGatewayReadyFallback method
+    (manager as unknown as { scheduleGatewayReadyFallback: () => void }).scheduleGatewayReadyFallback();
+
+    // Before timeout, no gatewayReady update
+    vi.advanceTimersByTime(29_000);
+    expect(statusUpdates.find((u) => u.gatewayReady === true)).toBeUndefined();
+
+    // After 30s fallback timeout
+    vi.advanceTimersByTime(2_000);
+    const readyUpdate = statusUpdates.find((u) => u.gatewayReady === true);
+    expect(readyUpdate).toBeDefined();
+  });
+
+  it('cancels fallback timer when gateway:ready event arrives first', async () => {
+    vi.resetModules();
+    const { GatewayManager } = await import('@electron/gateway/manager');
+    const manager = new GatewayManager();
+
+    const stateController = (manager as unknown as { stateController: { setStatus: (u: Record<string, unknown>) => void } }).stateController;
+    stateController.setStatus({ state: 'running', connectedAt: Date.now() });
+
+    const statusUpdates: Array<{ gatewayReady?: boolean }> = [];
+    manager.on('status', (status: { gatewayReady?: boolean }) => {
+      statusUpdates.push({ gatewayReady: status.gatewayReady });
+    });
+
+    // Schedule fallback
+    (manager as unknown as { scheduleGatewayReadyFallback: () => void }).scheduleGatewayReadyFallback();
+
+    // gateway:ready event arrives at 5s
+    vi.advanceTimersByTime(5_000);
+    manager.emit('gateway:ready', {});
+    expect(statusUpdates.filter((u) => u.gatewayReady === true)).toHaveLength(1);
+
+    // After 30s, no duplicate gatewayReady=true
+    vi.advanceTimersByTime(30_000);
+    expect(statusUpdates.filter((u) => u.gatewayReady === true)).toHaveLength(1);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/tests/unit/session-label-fetch.test.ts b/tests/unit/session-label-fetch.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..55d6296ff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/session-label-fetch.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi, beforeEach } from 'vitest';
+
+const invokeIpcMock = vi.fn();
+
+vi.mock('@/lib/api-client', () => ({
+  invokeIpc: (...args: unknown[]) => invokeIpcMock(...args),
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/stores/chat/helpers', () => ({
+  getCanonicalPrefixFromSessions: () => 'agent:main',
+  getMessageText: (content: unknown) => typeof content === 'string' ? content : '',
+  toMs: (v: unknown) => typeof v === 'number' ? v : 0,
+}));
+
+describe('session label fetch concurrency', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+  });
+
+  it('limits concurrent chat.history RPCs during label fetches', async () => {
+    // Track max concurrent RPCs
+    let currentConcurrency = 0;
+    let maxConcurrency = 0;
+    const resolvers: Array<() => void> = [];
+
+    invokeIpcMock.mockImplementation(async (channel: string, method: string) => {
+      if (method === 'sessions.list') {
+        return {
+          success: true,
+          result: {
+            sessions: Array.from({ length: 12 }, (_, i) => ({
+              key: `agent:main:session-${i}`,
+              label: `Session ${i}`,
+            })),
+          },
+        };
+      }
+      if (method === 'chat.history') {
+        currentConcurrency++;
+        maxConcurrency = Math.max(maxConcurrency, currentConcurrency);
+        await new Promise<void>((resolve) => resolvers.push(resolve));
+        currentConcurrency--;
+        return {
+          success: true,
+          result: {
+            messages: [{ role: 'user', content: 'hello', timestamp: Date.now() }],
+          },
+        };
+      }
+      return { success: false };
+    });
+
+    vi.resetModules();
+    const { createSessionActions } = await import('@/stores/chat/session-actions');
+    const state = {
+      currentSessionKey: 'agent:main:main',
+      messages: [],
+      sessions: [],
+      sessionLabels: {},
+      sessionLastActivity: {},
+    };
+    const set = vi.fn();
+    const get = vi.fn().mockReturnValue({
+      ...state,
+      loadHistory: vi.fn(),
+    });
+
+    const actions = createSessionActions(set as never, get as never);
+    await actions.loadSessions();
+
+    // Wait for the label-fetch loop to start its batches
+    await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 10));
+
+    // Resolve first batch (up to 5 concurrent)
+    while (resolvers.length > 0 && resolvers.length <= 5) {
+      resolvers.shift()?.();
+      await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 0));
+    }
+
+    // Resolve remaining
+    while (resolvers.length > 0) {
+      resolvers.shift()?.();
+      await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 0));
+    }
+
+    // maxConcurrency should be capped at 5 (LABEL_FETCH_CONCURRENCY)
+    expect(maxConcurrency).toBeLessThanOrEqual(5);
+  });
+});