diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 0ddac6fa4..734ab7e6b 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai
 - CLI/Doctor: ensure `openclaw doctor --fix --non-interactive --yes` exits promptly after completion so one-shot automation no longer hangs. (#18502)
 - CLI/Doctor: auto-repair `dmPolicy="open"` configs missing wildcard allowlists and write channel-correct repair paths (including `channels.googlechat.dm.allowFrom`) so `openclaw doctor --fix` no longer leaves Google Chat configs invalid after attempted repair. (#18544)
 - CLI/Doctor: detect gateway service token drift when the gateway token is only provided via environment variables, keeping service repairs aligned after token rotation.
+- CLI/Update: run a standalone restart helper after updates, honoring service-name overrides and reporting restart initiation separately from confirmed restarts. (#18050)
 - CLI/Daemon: warn when a gateway restart sees a stale service token so users can reinstall with `openclaw gateway install --force`, and skip drift warnings for non-gateway service restarts. (#18018)
 - CLI/Status: fix `openclaw status --all` token summaries for bot-token-only channels so Mattermost/Zalo no longer show a bot+app warning. (#18527) Thanks @echo931.
 - CLI/Configure: make the `/model picker` allowlist prompt searchable with tokenized matching in `openclaw configure` so users can filter huge model lists by typing terms like `gpt-5.2 openai/`. (#19010) Thanks @bjesuiter.
diff --git a/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.test.ts b/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.test.ts
index 9755e5a77..ddeb8df34 100644
--- a/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.test.ts
@@ -41,6 +41,22 @@ describe("restart-helper", () => {
       }
     });
 
+    it("uses OPENCLAW_SYSTEMD_UNIT override for systemd scripts", async () => {
+      Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "linux" });
+      const scriptPath = await prepareRestartScript({
+        OPENCLAW_PROFILE: "default",
+        OPENCLAW_SYSTEMD_UNIT: "custom-gateway",
+      });
+
+      expect(scriptPath).toBeTruthy();
+      const content = await fs.readFile(scriptPath!, "utf-8");
+      expect(content).toContain("systemctl --user restart 'custom-gateway.service'");
+
+      if (scriptPath) {
+        await fs.unlink(scriptPath);
+      }
+    });
+
     it("creates a launchd restart script on macOS", async () => {
       Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "darwin" });
       process.getuid = () => 501;
@@ -62,6 +78,24 @@ describe("restart-helper", () => {
       }
     });
 
+    it("uses OPENCLAW_LAUNCHD_LABEL override on macOS", async () => {
+      Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "darwin" });
+      process.getuid = () => 501;
+
+      const scriptPath = await prepareRestartScript({
+        OPENCLAW_PROFILE: "default",
+        OPENCLAW_LAUNCHD_LABEL: "com.custom.openclaw",
+      });
+
+      expect(scriptPath).toBeTruthy();
+      const content = await fs.readFile(scriptPath!, "utf-8");
+      expect(content).toContain("launchctl kickstart -k 'gui/501/com.custom.openclaw'");
+
+      if (scriptPath) {
+        await fs.unlink(scriptPath);
+      }
+    });
+
     it("creates a schtasks restart script on Windows", async () => {
       Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "win32" });
 
@@ -84,6 +118,24 @@ describe("restart-helper", () => {
       }
     });
 
+    it("uses OPENCLAW_WINDOWS_TASK_NAME override on Windows", async () => {
+      Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "win32" });
+
+      const scriptPath = await prepareRestartScript({
+        OPENCLAW_PROFILE: "default",
+        OPENCLAW_WINDOWS_TASK_NAME: "OpenClaw Gateway (custom)",
+      });
+
+      expect(scriptPath).toBeTruthy();
+      const content = await fs.readFile(scriptPath!, "utf-8");
+      expect(content).toContain('schtasks /End /TN "OpenClaw Gateway (custom)"');
+      expect(content).toContain('schtasks /Run /TN "OpenClaw Gateway (custom)"');
+
+      if (scriptPath) {
+        await fs.unlink(scriptPath);
+      }
+    });
+
     it("uses custom profile in service names", async () => {
       Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "linux" });
       const scriptPath = await prepareRestartScript({
diff --git a/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.ts b/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.ts
index 4ac822319..d8f828af0 100644
--- a/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.ts
+++ b/src/cli/update-cli/restart-helper.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,30 @@ function isBatchSafe(value: string): boolean {
   return /^[A-Za-z0-9 _\-().]+$/.test(value);
 }
 
+function resolveSystemdUnit(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): string {
+  const override = env.OPENCLAW_SYSTEMD_UNIT?.trim();
+  if (override) {
+    return override.endsWith(".service") ? override : `${override}.service`;
+  }
+  return `${resolveGatewaySystemdServiceName(env.OPENCLAW_PROFILE)}.service`;
+}
+
+function resolveLaunchdLabel(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): string {
+  const override = env.OPENCLAW_LAUNCHD_LABEL?.trim();
+  if (override) {
+    return override;
+  }
+  return resolveGatewayLaunchAgentLabel(env.OPENCLAW_PROFILE);
+}
+
+function resolveWindowsTaskName(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): string {
+  const override = env.OPENCLAW_WINDOWS_TASK_NAME?.trim();
+  if (override) {
+    return override;
+  }
+  return resolveGatewayWindowsTaskName(env.OPENCLAW_PROFILE);
+}
+
 /**
  * Prepares a standalone script to restart the gateway service.
  * This script is written to a temporary directory and does not depend on
@@ -41,8 +65,8 @@ export async function prepareRestartScript(
 
   try {
     if (platform === "linux") {
-      const serviceName = resolveGatewaySystemdServiceName(env.OPENCLAW_PROFILE);
-      const escaped = shellEscape(`${serviceName}.service`);
+      const unitName = resolveSystemdUnit(env);
+      const escaped = shellEscape(unitName);
       filename = `openclaw-restart-${timestamp}.sh`;
       scriptContent = `#!/bin/sh
 # Standalone restart script — survives parent process termination.
@@ -53,7 +77,7 @@ systemctl --user restart '${escaped}'
 rm -f "$0"
 `;
     } else if (platform === "darwin") {
-      const label = resolveGatewayLaunchAgentLabel(env.OPENCLAW_PROFILE);
+      const label = resolveLaunchdLabel(env);
       const escaped = shellEscape(label);
       // Fallback to 501 if getuid is not available (though it should be on macOS)
       const uid = process.getuid ? process.getuid() : 501;
@@ -67,7 +91,7 @@ launchctl kickstart -k 'gui/${uid}/${escaped}'
 rm -f "$0"
 `;
     } else if (platform === "win32") {
-      const taskName = resolveGatewayWindowsTaskName(env.OPENCLAW_PROFILE);
+      const taskName = resolveWindowsTaskName(env);
       if (!isBatchSafe(taskName)) {
         return null;
       }
diff --git a/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts b/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts
index f9293ad9b..87f36a9e4 100644
--- a/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts
+++ b/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts
@@ -400,9 +400,10 @@ async function maybeRestartService(params: {
 
     try {
       let restarted = false;
+      let restartInitiated = false;
       if (params.restartScriptPath) {
         await runRestartScript(params.restartScriptPath);
-        restarted = true;
+        restartInitiated = true;
       } else {
         restarted = await runDaemonRestart();
       }
@@ -423,6 +424,16 @@ async function maybeRestartService(params: {
           delete process.env.OPENCLAW_UPDATE_IN_PROGRESS;
         }
       }
+
+      if (!params.opts.json && restartInitiated) {
+        defaultRuntime.log(theme.success("Daemon restart initiated."));
+        defaultRuntime.log(
+          theme.muted(
+            `Verify with \`${replaceCliName(formatCliCommand("openclaw gateway status"), CLI_NAME)}\` once the gateway is back.`,
+          ),
+        );
+        defaultRuntime.log("");
+      }
     } catch (err) {
       if (!params.opts.json) {
         defaultRuntime.log(theme.warn(`Daemon restart failed: ${String(err)}`));