diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 80bcd534a81..3cc6263f245 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@ Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai
 
 - OpenAI/Responses WebSocket tool-call id hygiene: normalize blank/whitespace streamed tool-call ids before persistence, and block empty `function_call_output.call_id` payloads in the WS conversion path to avoid OpenAI 400 errors (`Invalid 'input[n].call_id': empty string`), with regression coverage for both inbound stream normalization and outbound payload guards.
 - Gateway/Control UI basePath webhook passthrough: let non-read methods under configured `controlUiBasePath` fall through to plugin routes (instead of returning Control UI 405), restoring webhook handlers behind basePath mounts. (#32311) Thanks @ademczuk.
+- CLI/Config validation and routing hardening: dedupe `openclaw config validate` failures to a single authoritative report, expose allowed-values metadata/hints across core Zod and plugin AJV validation (including `--json` fields), sanitize terminal-rendered validation text, and make command-path parsing root-option-aware across preaction/route/lazy registration (including routed `config get/unset` with split root options). Thanks @gumadeiras.
 - Models/config env propagation: apply `config.env.vars` before implicit provider discovery in models bootstrap so config-scoped credentials are visible to implicit provider resolution paths. (#32295) Thanks @hsiaoa.
 - Hooks/runtime stability: keep the internal hook handler registry on a `globalThis` singleton so hook registration/dispatch remains consistent when bundling emits duplicate module copies. (#32292) Thanks @Drickon.
 - Restart sentinel formatting: avoid duplicate `Reason:` lines when restart message text already matches `stats.reason`, keeping restart notifications concise for users and downstream parsers. (#32083) Thanks @velamints2.
diff --git a/src/agents/context.lookup.test.ts b/src/agents/context.lookup.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..5870be401a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/agents/context.lookup.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,64 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+
+describe("lookupContextTokens", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.resetModules();
+  });
+
+  it("returns configured model context window on first lookup", async () => {
+    vi.doMock("../config/config.js", () => ({
+      loadConfig: () => ({
+        models: {
+          providers: {
+            openrouter: {
+              models: [{ id: "openrouter/claude-sonnet", contextWindow: 321_000 }],
+            },
+          },
+        },
+      }),
+    }));
+    vi.doMock("./models-config.js", () => ({
+      ensureOpenClawModelsJson: vi.fn(async () => {}),
+    }));
+    vi.doMock("./agent-paths.js", () => ({
+      resolveOpenClawAgentDir: () => "/tmp/openclaw-agent",
+    }));
+    vi.doMock("./pi-model-discovery.js", () => ({
+      discoverAuthStorage: vi.fn(() => ({})),
+      discoverModels: vi.fn(() => ({
+        getAll: () => [],
+      })),
+    }));
+
+    const { lookupContextTokens } = await import("./context.js");
+    expect(lookupContextTokens("openrouter/claude-sonnet")).toBe(321_000);
+  });
+
+  it("does not skip eager warmup when --profile is followed by -- terminator", async () => {
+    const loadConfigMock = vi.fn(() => ({ models: {} }));
+    vi.doMock("../config/config.js", () => ({
+      loadConfig: loadConfigMock,
+    }));
+    vi.doMock("./models-config.js", () => ({
+      ensureOpenClawModelsJson: vi.fn(async () => {}),
+    }));
+    vi.doMock("./agent-paths.js", () => ({
+      resolveOpenClawAgentDir: () => "/tmp/openclaw-agent",
+    }));
+    vi.doMock("./pi-model-discovery.js", () => ({
+      discoverAuthStorage: vi.fn(() => ({})),
+      discoverModels: vi.fn(() => ({
+        getAll: () => [],
+      })),
+    }));
+
+    const argvSnapshot = process.argv;
+    process.argv = ["node", "openclaw", "--profile", "--", "config", "validate"];
+    try {
+      await import("./context.js");
+      expect(loadConfigMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    } finally {
+      process.argv = argvSnapshot;
+    }
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/agents/context.ts b/src/agents/context.ts
index 2cb0f5296fa..50e549877ea 100644
--- a/src/agents/context.ts
+++ b/src/agents/context.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 
 import { loadConfig } from "../config/config.js";
 import type { OpenClawConfig } from "../config/config.js";
+import { consumeRootOptionToken, FLAG_TERMINATOR } from "../infra/cli-root-options.js";
 import { resolveOpenClawAgentDir } from "./agent-paths.js";
 import { ensureOpenClawModelsJson } from "./models-config.js";
 
@@ -66,55 +67,114 @@ export function applyConfiguredContextWindows(params: {
 }
 
 const MODEL_CACHE = new Map<string, number>();
-const loadPromise = (async () => {
-  let cfg: ReturnType<typeof loadConfig> | undefined;
+let loadPromise: Promise<void> | null = null;
+let configuredWindowsPrimed = false;
+
+function getCommandPathFromArgv(argv: string[]): string[] {
+  const args = argv.slice(2);
+  const tokens: string[] = [];
+  for (let i = 0; i < args.length; i += 1) {
+    const arg = args[i];
+    if (!arg || arg === FLAG_TERMINATOR) {
+      break;
+    }
+    const consumed = consumeRootOptionToken(args, i);
+    if (consumed > 0) {
+      i += consumed - 1;
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (arg.startsWith("-")) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    tokens.push(arg);
+    if (tokens.length >= 2) {
+      break;
+    }
+  }
+  return tokens;
+}
+
+function shouldSkipEagerContextWindowWarmup(argv: string[] = process.argv): boolean {
+  const [primary, secondary] = getCommandPathFromArgv(argv);
+  return primary === "config" && secondary === "validate";
+}
+
+function primeConfiguredContextWindows(): OpenClawConfig | undefined {
+  if (configuredWindowsPrimed) {
+    return undefined;
+  }
+  configuredWindowsPrimed = true;
   try {
-    cfg = loadConfig();
+    const cfg = loadConfig();
+    applyConfiguredContextWindows({
+      cache: MODEL_CACHE,
+      modelsConfig: cfg.models as ModelsConfig | undefined,
+    });
+    return cfg;
   } catch {
     // If config can't be loaded, leave cache empty.
-    return;
+    return undefined;
   }
+}
 
-  try {
-    await ensureOpenClawModelsJson(cfg);
-  } catch {
-    // Continue with best-effort discovery/overrides.
+function ensureContextWindowCacheLoaded(): Promise<void> {
+  const cfg = primeConfiguredContextWindows();
+  if (loadPromise) {
+    return loadPromise;
   }
+  loadPromise = (async () => {
+    if (!cfg) {
+      return;
+    }
 
-  try {
-    const { discoverAuthStorage, discoverModels } = await import("./pi-model-discovery.js");
-    const agentDir = resolveOpenClawAgentDir();
-    const authStorage = discoverAuthStorage(agentDir);
-    const modelRegistry = discoverModels(authStorage, agentDir) as unknown as ModelRegistryLike;
-    const models =
-      typeof modelRegistry.getAvailable === "function"
-        ? modelRegistry.getAvailable()
-        : modelRegistry.getAll();
-    applyDiscoveredContextWindows({
+    try {
+      await ensureOpenClawModelsJson(cfg);
+    } catch {
+      // Continue with best-effort discovery/overrides.
+    }
+
+    try {
+      const { discoverAuthStorage, discoverModels } = await import("./pi-model-discovery.js");
+      const agentDir = resolveOpenClawAgentDir();
+      const authStorage = discoverAuthStorage(agentDir);
+      const modelRegistry = discoverModels(authStorage, agentDir) as unknown as ModelRegistryLike;
+      const models =
+        typeof modelRegistry.getAvailable === "function"
+          ? modelRegistry.getAvailable()
+          : modelRegistry.getAll();
+      applyDiscoveredContextWindows({
+        cache: MODEL_CACHE,
+        models,
+      });
+    } catch {
+      // If model discovery fails, continue with config overrides only.
+    }
+
+    applyConfiguredContextWindows({
       cache: MODEL_CACHE,
-      models,
+      modelsConfig: cfg.models as ModelsConfig | undefined,
     });
-  } catch {
-    // If model discovery fails, continue with config overrides only.
-  }
-
-  applyConfiguredContextWindows({
-    cache: MODEL_CACHE,
-    modelsConfig: cfg.models as ModelsConfig | undefined,
+  })().catch(() => {
+    // Keep lookup best-effort.
   });
-})().catch(() => {
-  // Keep lookup best-effort.
-});
+  return loadPromise;
+}
 
 export function lookupContextTokens(modelId?: string): number | undefined {
   if (!modelId) {
     return undefined;
   }
   // Best-effort: kick off loading, but don't block.
-  void loadPromise;
+  void ensureContextWindowCacheLoaded();
   return MODEL_CACHE.get(modelId);
 }
 
+if (!shouldSkipEagerContextWindowWarmup()) {
+  // Keep prior behavior where model limits begin loading during startup.
+  // This avoids a cold-start miss on the first context token lookup.
+  void ensureContextWindowCacheLoaded();
+}
+
 function resolveConfiguredModelParams(
   cfg: OpenClawConfig | undefined,
   provider: string,
diff --git a/src/cli/argv.test.ts b/src/cli/argv.test.ts
index fd7ed71d529..665b47c4f60 100644
--- a/src/cli/argv.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/argv.test.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import {
   buildParseArgv,
   getFlagValue,
   getCommandPath,
+  getCommandPathWithRootOptions,
   getPrimaryCommand,
   getPositiveIntFlagValue,
   getVerboseFlag,
@@ -160,6 +161,15 @@ describe("argv helpers", () => {
     expect(getCommandPath(argv, 2)).toEqual(expected);
   });
 
+  it("extracts command path while skipping known root option values", () => {
+    expect(
+      getCommandPathWithRootOptions(
+        ["node", "openclaw", "--profile", "work", "--no-color", "config", "validate"],
+        2,
+      ),
+    ).toEqual(["config", "validate"]);
+  });
+
   it.each([
     {
       name: "returns first command token",
@@ -171,6 +181,11 @@ describe("argv helpers", () => {
       argv: ["node", "openclaw"],
       expected: null,
     },
+    {
+      name: "skips known root option values",
+      argv: ["node", "openclaw", "--log-level", "debug", "status"],
+      expected: "status",
+    },
   ])("returns primary command: $name", ({ argv, expected }) => {
     expect(getPrimaryCommand(argv)).toBe(expected);
   });
diff --git a/src/cli/argv.ts b/src/cli/argv.ts
index ecc33d689e5..ca989dc4a4b 100644
--- a/src/cli/argv.ts
+++ b/src/cli/argv.ts
@@ -1,11 +1,13 @@
 import { isBunRuntime, isNodeRuntime } from "../daemon/runtime-binary.js";
+import {
+  consumeRootOptionToken,
+  FLAG_TERMINATOR,
+  isValueToken,
+} from "../infra/cli-root-options.js";
 
 const HELP_FLAGS = new Set(["-h", "--help"]);
 const VERSION_FLAGS = new Set(["-V", "--version"]);
 const ROOT_VERSION_ALIAS_FLAG = "-v";
-const ROOT_BOOLEAN_FLAGS = new Set(["--dev", "--no-color"]);
-const ROOT_VALUE_FLAGS = new Set(["--profile", "--log-level"]);
-const FLAG_TERMINATOR = "--";
 
 export function hasHelpOrVersion(argv: string[]): boolean {
   return (
@@ -13,19 +15,6 @@ export function hasHelpOrVersion(argv: string[]): boolean {
   );
 }
 
-function isValueToken(arg: string | undefined): boolean {
-  if (!arg) {
-    return false;
-  }
-  if (arg === FLAG_TERMINATOR) {
-    return false;
-  }
-  if (!arg.startsWith("-")) {
-    return true;
-  }
-  return /^-\d+(?:\.\d+)?$/.test(arg);
-}
-
 function parsePositiveInt(value: string): number | undefined {
   const parsed = Number.parseInt(value, 10);
   if (Number.isNaN(parsed) || parsed <= 0) {
@@ -62,17 +51,9 @@ export function hasRootVersionAlias(argv: string[]): boolean {
       hasAlias = true;
       continue;
     }
-    if (ROOT_BOOLEAN_FLAGS.has(arg)) {
-      continue;
-    }
-    if (arg.startsWith("--profile=")) {
-      continue;
-    }
-    if (ROOT_VALUE_FLAGS.has(arg)) {
-      const next = args[i + 1];
-      if (isValueToken(next)) {
-        i += 1;
-      }
+    const consumed = consumeRootOptionToken(args, i);
+    if (consumed > 0) {
+      i += consumed - 1;
       continue;
     }
     if (arg.startsWith("-")) {
@@ -109,17 +90,9 @@ function isRootInvocationForFlags(
       hasTarget = true;
       continue;
     }
-    if (ROOT_BOOLEAN_FLAGS.has(arg)) {
-      continue;
-    }
-    if (arg.startsWith("--profile=") || arg.startsWith("--log-level=")) {
-      continue;
-    }
-    if (ROOT_VALUE_FLAGS.has(arg)) {
-      const next = args[i + 1];
-      if (isValueToken(next)) {
-        i += 1;
-      }
+    const consumed = consumeRootOptionToken(args, i);
+    if (consumed > 0) {
+      i += consumed - 1;
       continue;
     }
     // Unknown flags and subcommand-scoped help/version should fall back to Commander.
@@ -170,6 +143,18 @@ export function getPositiveIntFlagValue(argv: string[], name: string): number |
 }
 
 export function getCommandPath(argv: string[], depth = 2): string[] {
+  return getCommandPathInternal(argv, depth, { skipRootOptions: false });
+}
+
+export function getCommandPathWithRootOptions(argv: string[], depth = 2): string[] {
+  return getCommandPathInternal(argv, depth, { skipRootOptions: true });
+}
+
+function getCommandPathInternal(
+  argv: string[],
+  depth: number,
+  opts: { skipRootOptions: boolean },
+): string[] {
   const args = argv.slice(2);
   const path: string[] = [];
   for (let i = 0; i < args.length; i += 1) {
@@ -180,6 +165,13 @@ export function getCommandPath(argv: string[], depth = 2): string[] {
     if (arg === "--") {
       break;
     }
+    if (opts.skipRootOptions) {
+      const consumed = consumeRootOptionToken(args, i);
+      if (consumed > 0) {
+        i += consumed - 1;
+        continue;
+      }
+    }
     if (arg.startsWith("-")) {
       continue;
     }
@@ -192,7 +184,7 @@ export function getCommandPath(argv: string[], depth = 2): string[] {
 }
 
 export function getPrimaryCommand(argv: string[]): string | null {
-  const [primary] = getCommandPath(argv, 1);
+  const [primary] = getCommandPathWithRootOptions(argv, 1);
   return primary ?? null;
 }
 
diff --git a/src/cli/config-cli.test.ts b/src/cli/config-cli.test.ts
index 0e2ee488500..c2130dc2df4 100644
--- a/src/cli/config-cli.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/config-cli.test.ts
@@ -252,6 +252,55 @@ describe("config cli", () => {
       expect(mockError).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
     });
 
+    it("preserves allowed-values metadata in --json output", async () => {
+      setSnapshotOnce({
+        path: "/tmp/custom-openclaw.json",
+        exists: true,
+        raw: "{}",
+        parsed: {},
+        resolved: {},
+        valid: false,
+        config: {},
+        issues: [
+          {
+            path: "update.channel",
+            message: 'Invalid input (allowed: "stable", "beta", "dev")',
+            allowedValues: ["stable", "beta", "dev"],
+            allowedValuesHiddenCount: 0,
+          },
+        ],
+        warnings: [],
+        legacyIssues: [],
+      });
+
+      await expect(runConfigCommand(["config", "validate", "--json"])).rejects.toThrow(
+        "__exit__:1",
+      );
+
+      const raw = mockLog.mock.calls.at(0)?.[0];
+      expect(typeof raw).toBe("string");
+      const payload = JSON.parse(String(raw)) as {
+        valid: boolean;
+        path: string;
+        issues: Array<{
+          path: string;
+          message: string;
+          allowedValues?: string[];
+          allowedValuesHiddenCount?: number;
+        }>;
+      };
+      expect(payload.valid).toBe(false);
+      expect(payload.path).toBe("/tmp/custom-openclaw.json");
+      expect(payload.issues).toEqual([
+        {
+          path: "update.channel",
+          message: 'Invalid input (allowed: "stable", "beta", "dev")',
+          allowedValues: ["stable", "beta", "dev"],
+        },
+      ]);
+      expect(mockError).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    });
+
     it("prints file-not-found and exits 1 when config file is missing", async () => {
       setSnapshotOnce({
         path: "/tmp/openclaw.json",
diff --git a/src/cli/config-cli.ts b/src/cli/config-cli.ts
index d73d340b7c3..4793ff6bea6 100644
--- a/src/cli/config-cli.ts
+++ b/src/cli/config-cli.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import type { Command } from "commander";
 import JSON5 from "json5";
 import { readConfigFileSnapshot, writeConfigFile } from "../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines, normalizeConfigIssues } from "../config/issue-format.js";
 import { CONFIG_PATH } from "../config/paths.js";
 import { isBlockedObjectKey } from "../config/prototype-keys.js";
 import { redactConfigObject } from "../config/redact-snapshot.js";
@@ -16,10 +17,6 @@ type PathSegment = string;
 type ConfigSetParseOpts = {
   strictJson?: boolean;
 };
-type ConfigIssue = {
-  path: string;
-  message: string;
-};
 
 const OLLAMA_API_KEY_PATH: PathSegment[] = ["models", "providers", "ollama", "apiKey"];
 const OLLAMA_PROVIDER_PATH: PathSegment[] = ["models", "providers", "ollama"];
@@ -102,17 +99,6 @@ function hasOwnPathKey(value: Record<string, unknown>, key: string): boolean {
   return Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(value, key);
 }
 
-function normalizeConfigIssues(issues: ReadonlyArray<ConfigIssue>): ConfigIssue[] {
-  return issues.map((issue) => ({
-    path: issue.path || "<root>",
-    message: issue.message,
-  }));
-}
-
-function formatConfigIssueLines(issues: ReadonlyArray<ConfigIssue>, marker: string): string[] {
-  return normalizeConfigIssues(issues).map((issue) => `${marker} ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`);
-}
-
 function formatDoctorHint(message: string): string {
   return `Run \`${formatCliCommand("openclaw doctor")}\` ${message}`;
 }
@@ -249,7 +235,7 @@ async function loadValidConfig(runtime: RuntimeEnv = defaultRuntime) {
     return snapshot;
   }
   runtime.error(`Config invalid at ${shortenHomePath(snapshot.path)}.`);
-  for (const line of formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.issues, "-")) {
+  for (const line of formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.issues, "-", { normalizeRoot: true })) {
     runtime.error(line);
   }
   runtime.error(formatDoctorHint("to repair, then retry."));
@@ -381,7 +367,7 @@ export async function runConfigValidate(opts: { json?: boolean; runtime?: Runtim
         runtime.log(JSON.stringify({ valid: false, path: outputPath, issues }, null, 2));
       } else {
         runtime.error(danger(`Config invalid at ${shortPath}:`));
-        for (const line of formatConfigIssueLines(issues, danger("×"))) {
+        for (const line of formatConfigIssueLines(issues, danger("×"), { normalizeRoot: true })) {
           runtime.error(`  ${line}`);
         }
         runtime.error("");
diff --git a/src/cli/daemon-cli/status.print.ts b/src/cli/daemon-cli/status.print.ts
index 27787550c90..ce9934f7ed4 100644
--- a/src/cli/daemon-cli/status.print.ts
+++ b/src/cli/daemon-cli/status.print.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 import { resolveControlUiLinks } from "../../commands/onboard-helpers.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLine } from "../../config/issue-format.js";
 import {
   resolveGatewayLaunchAgentLabel,
   resolveGatewaySystemdServiceName,
@@ -110,7 +111,7 @@ export function printDaemonStatus(status: DaemonStatus, opts: { json: boolean })
     if (!status.config.cli.valid && status.config.cli.issues?.length) {
       for (const issue of status.config.cli.issues.slice(0, 5)) {
         defaultRuntime.error(
-          `${errorText("Config issue:")} ${issue.path || "<root>"}: ${issue.message}`,
+          `${errorText("Config issue:")} ${formatConfigIssueLine(issue, "", { normalizeRoot: true })}`,
         );
       }
     }
@@ -120,7 +121,7 @@ export function printDaemonStatus(status: DaemonStatus, opts: { json: boolean })
       if (!status.config.daemon.valid && status.config.daemon.issues?.length) {
         for (const issue of status.config.daemon.issues.slice(0, 5)) {
           defaultRuntime.error(
-            `${errorText("Service config issue:")} ${issue.path || "<root>"}: ${issue.message}`,
+            `${errorText("Service config issue:")} ${formatConfigIssueLine(issue, "", { normalizeRoot: true })}`,
           );
         }
       }
diff --git a/src/cli/program/config-guard.ts b/src/cli/program/config-guard.ts
index 06c45a8ea58..48ca6c26e88 100644
--- a/src/cli/program/config-guard.ts
+++ b/src/cli/program/config-guard.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import { loadAndMaybeMigrateDoctorConfig } from "../../commands/doctor-config-flow.js";
 import { readConfigFileSnapshot } from "../../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../../config/issue-format.js";
 import type { RuntimeEnv } from "../../runtime.js";
 import { colorize, isRich, theme } from "../../terminal/theme.js";
 import { shortenHomePath } from "../../utils.js";
@@ -28,10 +29,6 @@ function resetConfigGuardStateForTests() {
   configSnapshotPromise = null;
 }
 
-function formatConfigIssues(issues: Array<{ path: string; message: string }>): string[] {
-  return issues.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path || "<root>"}: ${issue.message}`);
-}
-
 async function getConfigSnapshot() {
   // Tests often mutate config fixtures; caching can make those flaky.
   if (process.env.VITEST === "true") {
@@ -83,11 +80,12 @@ export async function ensureConfigReady(params: {
         subcommandName &&
         ALLOWED_INVALID_GATEWAY_SUBCOMMANDS.has(subcommandName))
     : false;
-  const issues = snapshot.exists && !snapshot.valid ? formatConfigIssues(snapshot.issues) : [];
-  const legacyIssues =
-    snapshot.legacyIssues.length > 0
-      ? snapshot.legacyIssues.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`)
+  const issues =
+    snapshot.exists && !snapshot.valid
+      ? formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.issues, "-", { normalizeRoot: true })
       : [];
+  const legacyIssues =
+    snapshot.legacyIssues.length > 0 ? formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.legacyIssues, "-") : [];
 
   const invalid = snapshot.exists && !snapshot.valid;
   if (!invalid) {
diff --git a/src/cli/program/preaction.test.ts b/src/cli/program/preaction.test.ts
index b2fded5ed71..065abb3bbf7 100644
--- a/src/cli/program/preaction.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/program/preaction.test.ts
@@ -103,6 +103,10 @@ describe("registerPreActionHooks", () => {
       .argument("<value>")
       .option("--json")
       .action(() => {});
+    config
+      .command("validate")
+      .option("--json")
+      .action(() => {});
     registerPreActionHooks(program, "9.9.9-test");
     return program;
   }
@@ -204,6 +208,24 @@ describe("registerPreActionHooks", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it("bypasses config guard for config validate", async () => {
+    await runPreAction({
+      parseArgv: ["config", "validate"],
+      processArgv: ["node", "openclaw", "config", "validate"],
+    });
+
+    expect(ensureConfigReadyMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it("bypasses config guard for config validate when root option values are present", async () => {
+    await runPreAction({
+      parseArgv: ["config", "validate"],
+      processArgv: ["node", "openclaw", "--profile", "work", "config", "validate"],
+    });
+
+    expect(ensureConfigReadyMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
   beforeAll(() => {
     program = buildProgram();
     const hooks = (
diff --git a/src/cli/program/preaction.ts b/src/cli/program/preaction.ts
index c3adce61e19..5984df6e4f4 100644
--- a/src/cli/program/preaction.ts
+++ b/src/cli/program/preaction.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,12 @@ import { setVerbose } from "../../globals.js";
 import { isTruthyEnvValue } from "../../infra/env.js";
 import type { LogLevel } from "../../logging/levels.js";
 import { defaultRuntime } from "../../runtime.js";
-import { getCommandPath, getVerboseFlag, hasFlag, hasHelpOrVersion } from "../argv.js";
+import {
+  getCommandPathWithRootOptions,
+  getVerboseFlag,
+  hasFlag,
+  hasHelpOrVersion,
+} from "../argv.js";
 import { emitCliBanner } from "../banner.js";
 import { resolveCliName } from "../cli-name.js";
 
@@ -34,6 +39,22 @@ const JSON_PARSE_ONLY_COMMANDS = new Set(["config set"]);
 let configGuardModulePromise: Promise<typeof import("./config-guard.js")> | undefined;
 let pluginRegistryModulePromise: Promise<typeof import("../plugin-registry.js")> | undefined;
 
+function shouldBypassConfigGuard(commandPath: string[]): boolean {
+  const [primary, secondary] = commandPath;
+  if (!primary) {
+    return false;
+  }
+  if (CONFIG_GUARD_BYPASS_COMMANDS.has(primary)) {
+    return true;
+  }
+  // config validate is the explicit validation command; let it render
+  // validation failures directly without preflight guard output duplication.
+  if (primary === "config" && secondary === "validate") {
+    return true;
+  }
+  return false;
+}
+
 function loadConfigGuardModule() {
   configGuardModulePromise ??= import("./config-guard.js");
   return configGuardModulePromise;
@@ -82,7 +103,7 @@ export function registerPreActionHooks(program: Command, programVersion: string)
     if (hasHelpOrVersion(argv)) {
       return;
     }
-    const commandPath = getCommandPath(argv, 2);
+    const commandPath = getCommandPathWithRootOptions(argv, 2);
     const hideBanner =
       isTruthyEnvValue(process.env.OPENCLAW_HIDE_BANNER) ||
       commandPath[0] === "update" ||
@@ -100,7 +121,7 @@ export function registerPreActionHooks(program: Command, programVersion: string)
     if (!verbose) {
       process.env.NODE_NO_WARNINGS ??= "1";
     }
-    if (CONFIG_GUARD_BYPASS_COMMANDS.has(commandPath[0])) {
+    if (shouldBypassConfigGuard(commandPath)) {
       return;
     }
     const suppressDoctorStdout = isJsonOutputMode(commandPath, argv);
diff --git a/src/cli/program/routes.test.ts b/src/cli/program/routes.test.ts
index eb4b7351c59..0ce9dde4310 100644
--- a/src/cli/program/routes.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/program/routes.test.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,26 @@
-import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { findRoutedCommand } from "./routes.js";
 
+const runConfigGetMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn(async () => {}));
+const runConfigUnsetMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn(async () => {}));
+const modelsListCommandMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn(async () => {}));
+const modelsStatusCommandMock = vi.hoisted(() => vi.fn(async () => {}));
+
+vi.mock("../config-cli.js", () => ({
+  runConfigGet: runConfigGetMock,
+  runConfigUnset: runConfigUnsetMock,
+}));
+
+vi.mock("../../commands/models.js", () => ({
+  modelsListCommand: modelsListCommandMock,
+  modelsStatusCommand: modelsStatusCommandMock,
+}));
+
 describe("program routes", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+  });
+
   function expectRoute(path: string[]) {
     const route = findRoutedCommand(path);
     expect(route).not.toBeNull();
@@ -58,6 +77,31 @@ describe("program routes", () => {
     await expectRunFalse(["config", "unset"], ["node", "openclaw", "config", "unset"]);
   });
 
+  it("passes config get path correctly when root option values precede command", async () => {
+    const route = expectRoute(["config", "get"]);
+    await expect(
+      route?.run([
+        "node",
+        "openclaw",
+        "--log-level",
+        "debug",
+        "config",
+        "get",
+        "update.channel",
+        "--json",
+      ]),
+    ).resolves.toBe(true);
+    expect(runConfigGetMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ path: "update.channel", json: true });
+  });
+
+  it("passes config unset path correctly when root option values precede command", async () => {
+    const route = expectRoute(["config", "unset"]);
+    await expect(
+      route?.run(["node", "openclaw", "--profile", "work", "config", "unset", "update.channel"]),
+    ).resolves.toBe(true);
+    expect(runConfigUnsetMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ path: "update.channel" });
+  });
+
   it("returns false for memory status route when --agent value is missing", async () => {
     await expectRunFalse(["memory", "status"], ["node", "openclaw", "memory", "status", "--agent"]);
   });
@@ -95,4 +139,39 @@ describe("program routes", () => {
       ["node", "openclaw", "models", "status", "--probe-profile"],
     );
   });
+
+  it("accepts negative-number probe profile values", async () => {
+    const route = expectRoute(["models", "status"]);
+    await expect(
+      route?.run([
+        "node",
+        "openclaw",
+        "models",
+        "status",
+        "--probe-provider",
+        "openai",
+        "--probe-timeout",
+        "5000",
+        "--probe-concurrency",
+        "2",
+        "--probe-max-tokens",
+        "64",
+        "--probe-profile",
+        "-1",
+        "--agent",
+        "default",
+      ]),
+    ).resolves.toBe(true);
+    expect(modelsStatusCommandMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      expect.objectContaining({
+        probeProvider: "openai",
+        probeTimeout: "5000",
+        probeConcurrency: "2",
+        probeMaxTokens: "64",
+        probeProfile: "-1",
+        agent: "default",
+      }),
+      expect.any(Object),
+    );
+  });
 });
diff --git a/src/cli/program/routes.ts b/src/cli/program/routes.ts
index ccecd8548f5..943d2aecad4 100644
--- a/src/cli/program/routes.ts
+++ b/src/cli/program/routes.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { consumeRootOptionToken, isValueToken } from "../../infra/cli-root-options.js";
 import { defaultRuntime } from "../../runtime.js";
 import { getFlagValue, getPositiveIntFlagValue, getVerboseFlag, hasFlag } from "../argv.js";
 
@@ -102,13 +103,23 @@ const routeMemoryStatus: RouteSpec = {
 function getCommandPositionals(argv: string[]): string[] {
   const out: string[] = [];
   const args = argv.slice(2);
-  for (const arg of args) {
+  let commandStarted = false;
+  for (let i = 0; i < args.length; i += 1) {
+    const arg = args[i];
     if (!arg || arg === "--") {
       break;
     }
+    if (!commandStarted) {
+      const consumed = consumeRootOptionToken(args, i);
+      if (consumed > 0) {
+        i += consumed - 1;
+        continue;
+      }
+    }
     if (arg.startsWith("-")) {
       continue;
     }
+    commandStarted = true;
     out.push(arg);
   }
   return out;
@@ -124,7 +135,7 @@ function getFlagValues(argv: string[], name: string): string[] | null {
     }
     if (arg === name) {
       const next = args[i + 1];
-      if (!next || next === "--" || next.startsWith("-")) {
+      if (!isValueToken(next)) {
         return null;
       }
       values.push(next);
diff --git a/src/cli/route.test.ts b/src/cli/route.test.ts
index 6979c4d58ea..c2b2270fd0a 100644
--- a/src/cli/route.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/route.test.ts
@@ -69,4 +69,16 @@ describe("tryRouteCli", () => {
       commandPath: ["status"],
     });
   });
+
+  it("routes status when root options precede the command", async () => {
+    await expect(tryRouteCli(["node", "openclaw", "--log-level", "debug", "status"])).resolves.toBe(
+      true,
+    );
+
+    expect(findRoutedCommandMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(["status"]);
+    expect(ensureConfigReadyMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith({
+      runtime: expect.any(Object),
+      commandPath: ["status"],
+    });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/src/cli/route.ts b/src/cli/route.ts
index 2d86eeb036c..b1d7b2851e1 100644
--- a/src/cli/route.ts
+++ b/src/cli/route.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import { isTruthyEnvValue } from "../infra/env.js";
 import { defaultRuntime } from "../runtime.js";
 import { VERSION } from "../version.js";
-import { getCommandPath, hasFlag, hasHelpOrVersion } from "./argv.js";
+import { getCommandPathWithRootOptions, hasFlag, hasHelpOrVersion } from "./argv.js";
 import { emitCliBanner } from "./banner.js";
 import { ensurePluginRegistryLoaded } from "./plugin-registry.js";
 import { ensureConfigReady } from "./program/config-guard.js";
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ export async function tryRouteCli(argv: string[]): Promise<boolean> {
     return false;
   }
 
-  const path = getCommandPath(argv, 2);
+  const path = getCommandPathWithRootOptions(argv, 2);
   if (!path[0]) {
     return false;
   }
diff --git a/src/cli/run-main.test.ts b/src/cli/run-main.test.ts
index 0884d05b65e..495a23684d1 100644
--- a/src/cli/run-main.test.ts
+++ b/src/cli/run-main.test.ts
@@ -114,6 +114,7 @@ describe("shouldEnsureCliPath", () => {
 
   it("skips path bootstrap for read-only fast paths", () => {
     expect(shouldEnsureCliPath(["node", "openclaw", "status"])).toBe(false);
+    expect(shouldEnsureCliPath(["node", "openclaw", "--log-level", "debug", "status"])).toBe(false);
     expect(shouldEnsureCliPath(["node", "openclaw", "sessions", "--json"])).toBe(false);
     expect(shouldEnsureCliPath(["node", "openclaw", "config", "get", "update"])).toBe(false);
     expect(shouldEnsureCliPath(["node", "openclaw", "models", "status", "--json"])).toBe(false);
diff --git a/src/cli/run-main.ts b/src/cli/run-main.ts
index 4f78c82bd4d..b304f213bfb 100644
--- a/src/cli/run-main.ts
+++ b/src/cli/run-main.ts
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import { ensureOpenClawCliOnPath } from "../infra/path-env.js";
 import { assertSupportedRuntime } from "../infra/runtime-guard.js";
 import { installUnhandledRejectionHandler } from "../infra/unhandled-rejections.js";
 import { enableConsoleCapture } from "../logging.js";
-import { getCommandPath, getPrimaryCommand, hasHelpOrVersion } from "./argv.js";
+import { getCommandPathWithRootOptions, getPrimaryCommand, hasHelpOrVersion } from "./argv.js";
 import { applyCliProfileEnv, parseCliProfileArgs } from "./profile.js";
 import { tryRouteCli } from "./route.js";
 import { normalizeWindowsArgv } from "./windows-argv.js";
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ export function shouldEnsureCliPath(argv: string[]): boolean {
   if (hasHelpOrVersion(argv)) {
     return false;
   }
-  const [primary, secondary] = getCommandPath(argv, 2);
+  const [primary, secondary] = getCommandPathWithRootOptions(argv, 2);
   if (!primary) {
     return true;
   }
diff --git a/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts b/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts
index 52f68732ca0..7422d43f984 100644
--- a/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts
+++ b/src/cli/update-cli/update-command.ts
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import {
   resolveGatewayPort,
   writeConfigFile,
 } from "../../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../../config/issue-format.js";
 import { resolveGatewayService } from "../../daemon/service.js";
 import {
   channelToNpmTag,
@@ -655,7 +656,7 @@ export async function updateCommand(opts: UpdateCommandOptions): Promise<void> {
     return;
   }
   if (opts.channel && !configSnapshot.valid) {
-    const issues = configSnapshot.issues.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`);
+    const issues = formatConfigIssueLines(configSnapshot.issues, "-");
     defaultRuntime.error(["Config is invalid; cannot set update channel.", ...issues].join("\n"));
     defaultRuntime.exit(1);
     return;
diff --git a/src/commands/config-validation.ts b/src/commands/config-validation.ts
index e8c7cef84c2..707c6e87eff 100644
--- a/src/commands/config-validation.ts
+++ b/src/commands/config-validation.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import { formatCliCommand } from "../cli/command-format.js";
 import { type OpenClawConfig, readConfigFileSnapshot } from "../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../config/issue-format.js";
 import type { RuntimeEnv } from "../runtime.js";
 
 export async function requireValidConfigSnapshot(
@@ -9,7 +10,7 @@ export async function requireValidConfigSnapshot(
   if (snapshot.exists && !snapshot.valid) {
     const issues =
       snapshot.issues.length > 0
-        ? snapshot.issues.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`).join("\n")
+        ? formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.issues, "-").join("\n")
         : "Unknown validation issue.";
     runtime.error(`Config invalid:\n${issues}`);
     runtime.error(`Fix the config or run ${formatCliCommand("openclaw doctor")}.`);
diff --git a/src/commands/doctor-config-flow.ts b/src/commands/doctor-config-flow.ts
index 84d2f9e4307..b61b7c06908 100644
--- a/src/commands/doctor-config-flow.ts
+++ b/src/commands/doctor-config-flow.ts
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import { formatCliCommand } from "../cli/command-format.js";
 import type { OpenClawConfig } from "../config/config.js";
 import { CONFIG_PATH, migrateLegacyConfig, readConfigFileSnapshot } from "../config/config.js";
 import { collectProviderDangerousNameMatchingScopes } from "../config/dangerous-name-matching.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../config/issue-format.js";
 import { applyPluginAutoEnable } from "../config/plugin-auto-enable.js";
 import { parseToolsBySenderTypedKey } from "../config/types.tools.js";
 import { OpenClawSchema } from "../config/zod-schema.js";
@@ -1753,13 +1754,13 @@ export async function loadAndMaybeMigrateDoctorConfig(params: {
   }
   const warnings = snapshot.warnings ?? [];
   if (warnings.length > 0) {
-    const lines = warnings.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`).join("\n");
+    const lines = formatConfigIssueLines(warnings, "-").join("\n");
     note(lines, "Config warnings");
   }
 
   if (snapshot.legacyIssues.length > 0) {
     note(
-      snapshot.legacyIssues.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`).join("\n"),
+      formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.legacyIssues, "-").join("\n"),
       "Compatibility config keys detected",
     );
     const { config: migrated, changes } = migrateLegacyConfig(snapshot.parsed);
diff --git a/src/commands/models/shared.ts b/src/commands/models/shared.ts
index 925558aad11..793e7e4b8e3 100644
--- a/src/commands/models/shared.ts
+++ b/src/commands/models/shared.ts
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import {
   readConfigFileSnapshot,
   writeConfigFile,
 } from "../../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../../config/issue-format.js";
 import { toAgentModelListLike } from "../../config/model-input.js";
 import type { AgentModelConfig } from "../../config/types.agents-shared.js";
 import { normalizeAgentId } from "../../routing/session-key.js";
@@ -64,7 +65,7 @@ export const isLocalBaseUrl = (baseUrl: string) => {
 export async function loadValidConfigOrThrow(): Promise<OpenClawConfig> {
   const snapshot = await readConfigFileSnapshot();
   if (!snapshot.valid) {
-    const issues = snapshot.issues.map((issue) => `- ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`).join("\n");
+    const issues = formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.issues, "-").join("\n");
     throw new Error(`Invalid config at ${snapshot.path}\n${issues}`);
   }
   return snapshot.config;
diff --git a/src/commands/status-all/diagnosis.ts b/src/commands/status-all/diagnosis.ts
index 35da8ab97e9..59140e49b44 100644
--- a/src/commands/status-all/diagnosis.ts
+++ b/src/commands/status-all/diagnosis.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 import type { ProgressReporter } from "../../cli/progress.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLine } from "../../config/issue-format.js";
 import { resolveGatewayLogPaths } from "../../daemon/launchd.js";
 import { formatPortDiagnostics } from "../../infra/ports.js";
 import {
@@ -88,7 +89,7 @@ export async function appendStatusAllDiagnosis(params: {
         issues.findIndex((x) => x.path === issue.path && x.message === issue.message) === index,
     );
     for (const issue of uniqueIssues.slice(0, 12)) {
-      lines.push(`  - ${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`);
+      lines.push(`  ${formatConfigIssueLine(issue, "-")}`);
     }
     if (uniqueIssues.length > 12) {
       lines.push(`  ${muted(`… +${uniqueIssues.length - 12} more`)}`);
diff --git a/src/config/allowed-values.test.ts b/src/config/allowed-values.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f62b95dae9b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/config/allowed-values.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { summarizeAllowedValues } from "./allowed-values.js";
+
+describe("summarizeAllowedValues", () => {
+  it("does not collapse mixed-type entries that stringify similarly", () => {
+    const summary = summarizeAllowedValues([1, "1", 1, "1"]);
+    expect(summary).not.toBeNull();
+    if (!summary) {
+      return;
+    }
+    expect(summary.hiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    expect(summary.formatted).toContain('1, "1"');
+    expect(summary.values).toHaveLength(2);
+  });
+
+  it("keeps distinct long values even when labels truncate the same way", () => {
+    const prefix = "a".repeat(200);
+    const summary = summarizeAllowedValues([`${prefix}x`, `${prefix}y`]);
+    expect(summary).not.toBeNull();
+    if (!summary) {
+      return;
+    }
+    expect(summary.hiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    expect(summary.values).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(summary.values[0]).not.toBe(summary.values[1]);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/config/allowed-values.ts b/src/config/allowed-values.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f85b04df9a0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/config/allowed-values.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,98 @@
+const MAX_ALLOWED_VALUES_HINT = 12;
+const MAX_ALLOWED_VALUE_CHARS = 160;
+
+export type AllowedValuesSummary = {
+  values: string[];
+  hiddenCount: number;
+  formatted: string;
+};
+
+function truncateHintText(text: string, limit: number): string {
+  if (text.length <= limit) {
+    return text;
+  }
+  return `${text.slice(0, limit)}... (+${text.length - limit} chars)`;
+}
+
+function safeStringify(value: unknown): string {
+  try {
+    const serialized = JSON.stringify(value);
+    if (serialized !== undefined) {
+      return serialized;
+    }
+  } catch {
+    // Fall back to string coercion when value is not JSON-serializable.
+  }
+  return String(value);
+}
+
+function toAllowedValueLabel(value: unknown): string {
+  if (typeof value === "string") {
+    return JSON.stringify(truncateHintText(value, MAX_ALLOWED_VALUE_CHARS));
+  }
+  return truncateHintText(safeStringify(value), MAX_ALLOWED_VALUE_CHARS);
+}
+
+function toAllowedValueValue(value: unknown): string {
+  if (typeof value === "string") {
+    return value;
+  }
+  return safeStringify(value);
+}
+
+function toAllowedValueDedupKey(value: unknown): string {
+  if (value === null) {
+    return "null:null";
+  }
+  const kind = typeof value;
+  if (kind === "string") {
+    return `string:${value as string}`;
+  }
+  return `${kind}:${safeStringify(value)}`;
+}
+
+export function summarizeAllowedValues(
+  values: ReadonlyArray<unknown>,
+): AllowedValuesSummary | null {
+  if (values.length === 0) {
+    return null;
+  }
+
+  const deduped: Array<{ value: string; label: string }> = [];
+  const seenValues = new Set<string>();
+  for (const item of values) {
+    const dedupeKey = toAllowedValueDedupKey(item);
+    if (seenValues.has(dedupeKey)) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    seenValues.add(dedupeKey);
+    deduped.push({
+      value: toAllowedValueValue(item),
+      label: toAllowedValueLabel(item),
+    });
+  }
+
+  const shown = deduped.slice(0, MAX_ALLOWED_VALUES_HINT);
+  const hiddenCount = deduped.length - shown.length;
+  const formattedCore = shown.map((entry) => entry.label).join(", ");
+  const formatted =
+    hiddenCount > 0 ? `${formattedCore}, ... (+${hiddenCount} more)` : formattedCore;
+
+  return {
+    values: shown.map((entry) => entry.value),
+    hiddenCount,
+    formatted,
+  };
+}
+
+function messageAlreadyIncludesAllowedValues(message: string): boolean {
+  const lower = message.toLowerCase();
+  return lower.includes("(allowed:") || lower.includes("expected one of");
+}
+
+export function appendAllowedValuesHint(message: string, summary: AllowedValuesSummary): string {
+  if (messageAlreadyIncludesAllowedValues(message)) {
+    return message;
+  }
+  return `${message} (allowed: ${summary.formatted})`;
+}
diff --git a/src/config/config.plugin-validation.test.ts b/src/config/config.plugin-validation.test.ts
index 488d4ab7eac..6c0b9e56587 100644
--- a/src/config/config.plugin-validation.test.ts
+++ b/src/config/config.plugin-validation.test.ts
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ describe("config plugin validation", () => {
   let fixtureRoot = "";
   let suiteHome = "";
   let badPluginDir = "";
+  let enumPluginDir = "";
   let bluebubblesPluginDir = "";
   const envSnapshot = {
     OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR: process.env.OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR,
@@ -48,6 +49,7 @@ describe("config plugin validation", () => {
     suiteHome = path.join(fixtureRoot, "home");
     await fs.mkdir(suiteHome, { recursive: true });
     badPluginDir = path.join(suiteHome, "bad-plugin");
+    enumPluginDir = path.join(suiteHome, "enum-plugin");
     bluebubblesPluginDir = path.join(suiteHome, "bluebubbles-plugin");
     await writePluginFixture({
       dir: badPluginDir,
@@ -61,6 +63,20 @@ describe("config plugin validation", () => {
         required: ["value"],
       },
     });
+    await writePluginFixture({
+      dir: enumPluginDir,
+      id: "enum-plugin",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          fileFormat: {
+            type: "string",
+            enum: ["markdown", "html"],
+          },
+        },
+        required: ["fileFormat"],
+      },
+    });
     await writePluginFixture({
       dir: bluebubblesPluginDir,
       id: "bluebubbles-plugin",
@@ -185,13 +201,34 @@ describe("config plugin validation", () => {
     if (!res.ok) {
       const hasIssue = res.issues.some(
         (issue) =>
-          issue.path === "plugins.entries.bad-plugin.config" &&
+          issue.path.startsWith("plugins.entries.bad-plugin.config") &&
           issue.message.includes("invalid config"),
       );
       expect(hasIssue).toBe(true);
     }
   });
 
+  it("surfaces allowed enum values for plugin config diagnostics", async () => {
+    const res = validateInSuite({
+      agents: { list: [{ id: "pi" }] },
+      plugins: {
+        enabled: true,
+        load: { paths: [enumPluginDir] },
+        entries: { "enum-plugin": { config: { fileFormat: "txt" } } },
+      },
+    });
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.issues.find(
+        (entry) => entry.path === "plugins.entries.enum-plugin.config.fileFormat",
+      );
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain('allowed: "markdown", "html"');
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual(["markdown", "html"]);
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    }
+  });
+
   it("accepts known plugin ids and valid channel/heartbeat enums", async () => {
     const res = validateInSuite({
       agents: {
diff --git a/src/config/issue-format.test.ts b/src/config/issue-format.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..fed82f99588
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/config/issue-format.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import {
+  formatConfigIssueLine,
+  formatConfigIssueLines,
+  normalizeConfigIssue,
+  normalizeConfigIssuePath,
+  normalizeConfigIssues,
+} from "./issue-format.js";
+
+describe("config issue format", () => {
+  it("normalizes empty paths to <root>", () => {
+    expect(normalizeConfigIssuePath("")).toBe("<root>");
+    expect(normalizeConfigIssuePath("   ")).toBe("<root>");
+    expect(normalizeConfigIssuePath(null)).toBe("<root>");
+    expect(normalizeConfigIssuePath(undefined)).toBe("<root>");
+  });
+
+  it("formats issue lines with and without markers", () => {
+    expect(formatConfigIssueLine({ path: "", message: "broken" }, "-")).toBe("- : broken");
+    expect(
+      formatConfigIssueLine({ path: "", message: "broken" }, "-", { normalizeRoot: true }),
+    ).toBe("- <root>: broken");
+    expect(formatConfigIssueLine({ path: "gateway.bind", message: "invalid" }, "")).toBe(
+      "gateway.bind: invalid",
+    );
+    expect(
+      formatConfigIssueLines(
+        [
+          { path: "", message: "first" },
+          { path: "channels.signal.dmPolicy", message: "second" },
+        ],
+        "×",
+        { normalizeRoot: true },
+      ),
+    ).toEqual(["× <root>: first", "× channels.signal.dmPolicy: second"]);
+  });
+
+  it("sanitizes control characters and ANSI sequences in formatted lines", () => {
+    expect(
+      formatConfigIssueLine(
+        {
+          path: "gateway.\nbind\x1b[31m",
+          message: "bad\r\n\tvalue\x1b[0m\u0007",
+        },
+        "-",
+      ),
+    ).toBe("- gateway.\\nbind: bad\\r\\n\\tvalue");
+  });
+
+  it("normalizes issue metadata for machine output", () => {
+    expect(
+      normalizeConfigIssue({
+        path: "",
+        message: "invalid",
+        allowedValues: ["stable", "beta"],
+        allowedValuesHiddenCount: 0,
+      }),
+    ).toEqual({
+      path: "<root>",
+      message: "invalid",
+      allowedValues: ["stable", "beta"],
+    });
+
+    expect(
+      normalizeConfigIssues([
+        {
+          path: "update.channel",
+          message: "invalid",
+          allowedValues: [],
+          allowedValuesHiddenCount: 2,
+        },
+      ]),
+    ).toEqual([
+      {
+        path: "update.channel",
+        message: "invalid",
+      },
+    ]);
+
+    expect(
+      normalizeConfigIssue({
+        path: "update.channel",
+        message: "invalid",
+        allowedValues: ["stable"],
+        allowedValuesHiddenCount: 2,
+      }),
+    ).toEqual({
+      path: "update.channel",
+      message: "invalid",
+      allowedValues: ["stable"],
+      allowedValuesHiddenCount: 2,
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/config/issue-format.ts b/src/config/issue-format.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..599e93986a2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/config/issue-format.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+import { sanitizeTerminalText } from "../terminal/safe-text.js";
+import type { ConfigValidationIssue } from "./types.js";
+
+type ConfigIssueLineInput = {
+  path?: string | null;
+  message: string;
+};
+
+type ConfigIssueFormatOptions = {
+  normalizeRoot?: boolean;
+};
+
+export function normalizeConfigIssuePath(path: string | null | undefined): string {
+  if (typeof path !== "string") {
+    return "<root>";
+  }
+  const trimmed = path.trim();
+  return trimmed ? trimmed : "<root>";
+}
+
+export function normalizeConfigIssue(issue: ConfigValidationIssue): ConfigValidationIssue {
+  const hasAllowedValues = Array.isArray(issue.allowedValues) && issue.allowedValues.length > 0;
+  return {
+    path: normalizeConfigIssuePath(issue.path),
+    message: issue.message,
+    ...(hasAllowedValues ? { allowedValues: issue.allowedValues } : {}),
+    ...(hasAllowedValues &&
+    typeof issue.allowedValuesHiddenCount === "number" &&
+    issue.allowedValuesHiddenCount > 0
+      ? { allowedValuesHiddenCount: issue.allowedValuesHiddenCount }
+      : {}),
+  };
+}
+
+export function normalizeConfigIssues(
+  issues: ReadonlyArray<ConfigValidationIssue>,
+): ConfigValidationIssue[] {
+  return issues.map((issue) => normalizeConfigIssue(issue));
+}
+
+function resolveIssuePathForLine(
+  path: string | null | undefined,
+  opts?: ConfigIssueFormatOptions,
+): string {
+  if (opts?.normalizeRoot) {
+    return normalizeConfigIssuePath(path);
+  }
+  return typeof path === "string" ? path : "";
+}
+
+export function formatConfigIssueLine(
+  issue: ConfigIssueLineInput,
+  marker = "-",
+  opts?: ConfigIssueFormatOptions,
+): string {
+  const prefix = marker ? `${marker} ` : "";
+  const path = sanitizeTerminalText(resolveIssuePathForLine(issue.path, opts));
+  const message = sanitizeTerminalText(issue.message);
+  return `${prefix}${path}: ${message}`;
+}
+
+export function formatConfigIssueLines(
+  issues: ReadonlyArray<ConfigIssueLineInput>,
+  marker = "-",
+  opts?: ConfigIssueFormatOptions,
+): string[] {
+  return issues.map((issue) => formatConfigIssueLine(issue, marker, opts));
+}
diff --git a/src/config/types.openclaw.ts b/src/config/types.openclaw.ts
index e83b105dff3..0a818419557 100644
--- a/src/config/types.openclaw.ts
+++ b/src/config/types.openclaw.ts
@@ -119,6 +119,8 @@ export type OpenClawConfig = {
 export type ConfigValidationIssue = {
   path: string;
   message: string;
+  allowedValues?: string[];
+  allowedValuesHiddenCount?: number;
 };
 
 export type LegacyConfigIssue = {
diff --git a/src/config/validation.allowed-values.test.ts b/src/config/validation.allowed-values.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..d586246ff87
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/config/validation.allowed-values.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { validateConfigObjectRaw } from "./validation.js";
+
+describe("config validation allowed-values metadata", () => {
+  it("adds allowed values for invalid union paths", () => {
+    const result = validateConfigObjectRaw({
+      update: { channel: "nightly" },
+    });
+
+    expect(result.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!result.ok) {
+      const issue = result.issues.find((entry) => entry.path === "update.channel");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain('(allowed: "stable", "beta", "dev")');
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual(["stable", "beta", "dev"]);
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("keeps native enum messages while attaching allowed values metadata", () => {
+    const result = validateConfigObjectRaw({
+      channels: { signal: { dmPolicy: "maybe" } },
+    });
+
+    expect(result.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!result.ok) {
+      const issue = result.issues.find((entry) => entry.path === "channels.signal.dmPolicy");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("expected one of");
+      expect(issue?.message).not.toContain("(allowed:");
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual(["pairing", "allowlist", "open", "disabled"]);
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("includes boolean variants for boolean-or-enum unions", () => {
+    const result = validateConfigObjectRaw({
+      channels: {
+        telegram: {
+          botToken: "x",
+          allowFrom: ["*"],
+          dmPolicy: "allowlist",
+          streaming: "maybe",
+        },
+      },
+    });
+
+    expect(result.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!result.ok) {
+      const issue = result.issues.find((entry) => entry.path === "channels.telegram.streaming");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual([
+        "true",
+        "false",
+        "off",
+        "partial",
+        "block",
+        "progress",
+      ]);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("skips allowed-values hints for unions with open-ended branches", () => {
+    const result = validateConfigObjectRaw({
+      cron: { sessionRetention: true },
+    });
+
+    expect(result.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!result.ok) {
+      const issue = result.issues.find((entry) => entry.path === "cron.sessionRetention");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(issue?.message).not.toContain("(allowed:");
+    }
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/config/validation.ts b/src/config/validation.ts
index 96dd1c7e6fb..f6687e172bb 100644
--- a/src/config/validation.ts
+++ b/src/config/validation.ts
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ import {
 import { isCanonicalDottedDecimalIPv4, isLoopbackIpAddress } from "../shared/net/ip.js";
 import { isRecord } from "../utils.js";
 import { findDuplicateAgentDirs, formatDuplicateAgentDirError } from "./agent-dirs.js";
+import { appendAllowedValuesHint, summarizeAllowedValues } from "./allowed-values.js";
 import { applyAgentDefaults, applyModelDefaults, applySessionDefaults } from "./defaults.js";
 import { findLegacyConfigIssues } from "./legacy.js";
 import type { OpenClawConfig, ConfigValidationIssue } from "./types.js";
@@ -25,6 +26,119 @@ import { OpenClawSchema } from "./zod-schema.js";
 
 const LEGACY_REMOVED_PLUGIN_IDS = new Set(["google-antigravity-auth"]);
 
+type UnknownIssueRecord = Record<string, unknown>;
+type AllowedValuesCollection = {
+  values: unknown[];
+  incomplete: boolean;
+  hasValues: boolean;
+};
+
+function toIssueRecord(value: unknown): UnknownIssueRecord | null {
+  if (!value || typeof value !== "object") {
+    return null;
+  }
+  return value as UnknownIssueRecord;
+}
+
+function collectAllowedValuesFromIssue(issue: unknown): AllowedValuesCollection {
+  const record = toIssueRecord(issue);
+  if (!record) {
+    return { values: [], incomplete: false, hasValues: false };
+  }
+  const code = typeof record.code === "string" ? record.code : "";
+
+  if (code === "invalid_value") {
+    const values = record.values;
+    if (!Array.isArray(values)) {
+      return { values: [], incomplete: true, hasValues: false };
+    }
+    return { values, incomplete: false, hasValues: values.length > 0 };
+  }
+
+  if (code === "invalid_type") {
+    const expected = typeof record.expected === "string" ? record.expected : "";
+    if (expected === "boolean") {
+      return { values: [true, false], incomplete: false, hasValues: true };
+    }
+    return { values: [], incomplete: true, hasValues: false };
+  }
+
+  if (code !== "invalid_union") {
+    return { values: [], incomplete: false, hasValues: false };
+  }
+
+  const nested = record.errors;
+  if (!Array.isArray(nested) || nested.length === 0) {
+    return { values: [], incomplete: true, hasValues: false };
+  }
+
+  const collected: unknown[] = [];
+  for (const branch of nested) {
+    if (!Array.isArray(branch) || branch.length === 0) {
+      return { values: [], incomplete: true, hasValues: false };
+    }
+    const branchCollected = collectAllowedValuesFromIssueList(branch);
+    if (branchCollected.incomplete || !branchCollected.hasValues) {
+      return { values: [], incomplete: true, hasValues: false };
+    }
+    collected.push(...branchCollected.values);
+  }
+
+  return { values: collected, incomplete: false, hasValues: collected.length > 0 };
+}
+
+function collectAllowedValuesFromIssueList(
+  issues: ReadonlyArray<unknown>,
+): AllowedValuesCollection {
+  const collected: unknown[] = [];
+  let hasValues = false;
+  for (const issue of issues) {
+    const branch = collectAllowedValuesFromIssue(issue);
+    if (branch.incomplete) {
+      return { values: [], incomplete: true, hasValues: false };
+    }
+    if (!branch.hasValues) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    hasValues = true;
+    collected.push(...branch.values);
+  }
+  return { values: collected, incomplete: false, hasValues };
+}
+
+function collectAllowedValuesFromUnknownIssue(issue: unknown): unknown[] {
+  const collection = collectAllowedValuesFromIssue(issue);
+  if (collection.incomplete || !collection.hasValues) {
+    return [];
+  }
+  return collection.values;
+}
+
+function mapZodIssueToConfigIssue(issue: unknown): ConfigValidationIssue {
+  const record = toIssueRecord(issue);
+  const path = Array.isArray(record?.path)
+    ? record.path
+        .filter((segment): segment is string | number => {
+          const segmentType = typeof segment;
+          return segmentType === "string" || segmentType === "number";
+        })
+        .join(".")
+    : "";
+  const message = typeof record?.message === "string" ? record.message : "Invalid input";
+  const allowedValuesSummary = summarizeAllowedValues(collectAllowedValuesFromUnknownIssue(issue));
+
+  if (!allowedValuesSummary) {
+    return { path, message };
+  }
+
+  return {
+    path,
+    message: appendAllowedValuesHint(message, allowedValuesSummary),
+    allowedValues: allowedValuesSummary.values,
+    allowedValuesHiddenCount: allowedValuesSummary.hiddenCount,
+  };
+}
+
 function isWorkspaceAvatarPath(value: string, workspaceDir: string): boolean {
   const workspaceRoot = path.resolve(workspaceDir);
   const resolved = path.resolve(workspaceRoot, value);
@@ -129,10 +243,7 @@ export function validateConfigObjectRaw(
   if (!validated.success) {
     return {
       ok: false,
-      issues: validated.error.issues.map((iss) => ({
-        path: iss.path.join("."),
-        message: iss.message,
-      })),
+      issues: validated.error.issues.map((issue) => mapZodIssueToConfigIssue(issue)),
     };
   }
   const duplicates = findDuplicateAgentDirs(validated.data as OpenClawConfig);
@@ -227,6 +338,14 @@ function validateConfigObjectWithPluginsBase(
   const hasExplicitPluginsConfig =
     isRecord(raw) && Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(raw, "plugins");
 
+  const resolvePluginConfigIssuePath = (pluginId: string, errorPath: string): string => {
+    const base = `plugins.entries.${pluginId}.config`;
+    if (!errorPath || errorPath === "<root>") {
+      return base;
+    }
+    return `${base}.${errorPath}`;
+  };
+
   type RegistryInfo = {
     registry: ReturnType<typeof loadPluginManifestRegistry>;
     knownIds?: Set<string>;
@@ -472,8 +591,10 @@ function validateConfigObjectWithPluginsBase(
         if (!res.ok) {
           for (const error of res.errors) {
             issues.push({
-              path: `plugins.entries.${pluginId}.config`,
-              message: `invalid config: ${error}`,
+              path: resolvePluginConfigIssuePath(pluginId, error.path),
+              message: `invalid config: ${error.message}`,
+              allowedValues: error.allowedValues,
+              allowedValuesHiddenCount: error.allowedValuesHiddenCount,
             });
           }
         }
diff --git a/src/gateway/config-reload.ts b/src/gateway/config-reload.ts
index dfd9ebdaf93..38fe786a667 100644
--- a/src/gateway/config-reload.ts
+++ b/src/gateway/config-reload.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import { isDeepStrictEqual } from "node:util";
 import chokidar from "chokidar";
 import type { OpenClawConfig, ConfigFileSnapshot, GatewayReloadMode } from "../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../config/issue-format.js";
 import { isPlainObject } from "../utils.js";
 import { buildGatewayReloadPlan, type GatewayReloadPlan } from "./config-reload-plan.js";
 
@@ -141,7 +142,7 @@ export function startGatewayConfigReloader(opts: {
     if (snapshot.valid) {
       return false;
     }
-    const issues = snapshot.issues.map((issue) => `${issue.path}: ${issue.message}`).join(", ");
+    const issues = formatConfigIssueLines(snapshot.issues, "").join(", ");
     opts.log.warn(`config reload skipped (invalid config): ${issues}`);
     return true;
   };
diff --git a/src/gateway/server.impl.ts b/src/gateway/server.impl.ts
index ceb41029951..65c84593202 100644
--- a/src/gateway/server.impl.ts
+++ b/src/gateway/server.impl.ts
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ import {
   readConfigFileSnapshot,
   writeConfigFile,
 } from "../config/config.js";
+import { formatConfigIssueLines } from "../config/issue-format.js";
 import { applyPluginAutoEnable } from "../config/plugin-auto-enable.js";
 import { resolveMainSessionKey } from "../config/sessions.js";
 import { clearAgentRunContext, onAgentEvent } from "../infra/agent-events.js";
@@ -237,9 +238,7 @@ export async function startGatewayServer(
   if (configSnapshot.exists && !configSnapshot.valid) {
     const issues =
       configSnapshot.issues.length > 0
-        ? configSnapshot.issues
-            .map((issue) => `${issue.path || "<root>"}: ${issue.message}`)
-            .join("\n")
+        ? formatConfigIssueLines(configSnapshot.issues, "", { normalizeRoot: true }).join("\n")
         : "Unknown validation issue.";
     throw new Error(
       `Invalid config at ${configSnapshot.path}.\n${issues}\nRun "${formatCliCommand("openclaw doctor")}" to repair, then retry.`,
@@ -332,9 +331,7 @@ export async function startGatewayServer(
     if (!freshSnapshot.valid) {
       const issues =
         freshSnapshot.issues.length > 0
-          ? freshSnapshot.issues
-              .map((issue) => `${issue.path || "<root>"}: ${issue.message}`)
-              .join("\n")
+          ? formatConfigIssueLines(freshSnapshot.issues, "", { normalizeRoot: true }).join("\n")
           : "Unknown validation issue.";
       throw new Error(`Invalid config at ${freshSnapshot.path}.\n${issues}`);
     }
diff --git a/src/infra/cli-root-options.test.ts b/src/infra/cli-root-options.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..514548586f7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/infra/cli-root-options.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { consumeRootOptionToken } from "./cli-root-options.js";
+
+describe("consumeRootOptionToken", () => {
+  it("consumes boolean and inline root options", () => {
+    expect(consumeRootOptionToken(["--dev"], 0)).toBe(1);
+    expect(consumeRootOptionToken(["--profile=work"], 0)).toBe(1);
+    expect(consumeRootOptionToken(["--log-level=debug"], 0)).toBe(1);
+  });
+
+  it("consumes split root value option only when next token is a value", () => {
+    expect(consumeRootOptionToken(["--profile", "work"], 0)).toBe(2);
+    expect(consumeRootOptionToken(["--profile", "--no-color"], 0)).toBe(1);
+    expect(consumeRootOptionToken(["--profile", "--"], 0)).toBe(1);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/infra/cli-root-options.ts b/src/infra/cli-root-options.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..9522e114966
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/infra/cli-root-options.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+export const FLAG_TERMINATOR = "--";
+
+const ROOT_BOOLEAN_FLAGS = new Set(["--dev", "--no-color"]);
+const ROOT_VALUE_FLAGS = new Set(["--profile", "--log-level"]);
+
+export function isValueToken(arg: string | undefined): boolean {
+  if (!arg || arg === FLAG_TERMINATOR) {
+    return false;
+  }
+  if (!arg.startsWith("-")) {
+    return true;
+  }
+  return /^-\d+(?:\.\d+)?$/.test(arg);
+}
+
+export function consumeRootOptionToken(args: ReadonlyArray<string>, index: number): number {
+  const arg = args[index];
+  if (!arg) {
+    return 0;
+  }
+  if (ROOT_BOOLEAN_FLAGS.has(arg)) {
+    return 1;
+  }
+  if (arg.startsWith("--profile=") || arg.startsWith("--log-level=")) {
+    return 1;
+  }
+  if (ROOT_VALUE_FLAGS.has(arg)) {
+    return isValueToken(args[index + 1]) ? 2 : 1;
+  }
+  return 0;
+}
diff --git a/src/logging/logger.settings.test.ts b/src/logging/logger.settings.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..39cc3f3d73c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/logging/logger.settings.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { __test__ } from "./logger.js";
+
+describe("shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback", () => {
+  it("matches config validate invocations", () => {
+    expect(__test__.shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback(["node", "openclaw", "config", "validate"])).toBe(
+      true,
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("handles root flags before config validate", () => {
+    expect(
+      __test__.shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback([
+        "node",
+        "openclaw",
+        "--profile",
+        "work",
+        "--no-color",
+        "config",
+        "validate",
+        "--json",
+      ]),
+    ).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it("does not match other commands", () => {
+    expect(
+      __test__.shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback(["node", "openclaw", "config", "get", "foo"]),
+    ).toBe(false);
+    expect(__test__.shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback(["node", "openclaw", "status"])).toBe(false);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/logging/logger.ts b/src/logging/logger.ts
index dcb89de9a43..47e5624dc20 100644
--- a/src/logging/logger.ts
+++ b/src/logging/logger.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import fs from "node:fs";
 import path from "node:path";
 import { Logger as TsLogger } from "tslog";
+import { getCommandPathWithRootOptions } from "../cli/argv.js";
 import type { OpenClawConfig } from "../config/types.js";
 import { resolvePreferredOpenClawTmpDir } from "../infra/tmp-openclaw-dir.js";
 import { readLoggingConfig } from "./config.js";
@@ -42,6 +43,11 @@ export type LogTransport = (logObj: LogTransportRecord) => void;
 
 const externalTransports = new Set<LogTransport>();
 
+function shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback(argv: string[] = process.argv): boolean {
+  const [primary, secondary] = getCommandPathWithRootOptions(argv, 2);
+  return primary === "config" && secondary === "validate";
+}
+
 function attachExternalTransport(logger: TsLogger<LogObj>, transport: LogTransport): void {
   logger.attachTransport((logObj: LogObj) => {
     if (!externalTransports.has(transport)) {
@@ -78,7 +84,7 @@ function resolveSettings(): ResolvedSettings {
 
   let cfg: OpenClawConfig["logging"] | undefined =
     (loggingState.overrideSettings as LoggerSettings | null) ?? readLoggingConfig();
-  if (!cfg) {
+  if (!cfg && !shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback()) {
     try {
       const loaded = requireConfig?.("../config/config.js") as
         | {
@@ -289,6 +295,10 @@ export function registerLogTransport(transport: LogTransport): () => void {
   };
 }
 
+export const __test__ = {
+  shouldSkipLoadConfigFallback,
+};
+
 function formatLocalDate(date: Date): string {
   const year = date.getFullYear();
   const month = String(date.getMonth() + 1).padStart(2, "0");
diff --git a/src/plugins/loader.ts b/src/plugins/loader.ts
index a2d2f50b6ac..c0ac9751a3d 100644
--- a/src/plugins/loader.ts
+++ b/src/plugins/loader.ts
@@ -121,7 +121,7 @@ function validatePluginConfig(params: {
   if (result.ok) {
     return { ok: true, value: params.value as Record<string, unknown> | undefined };
   }
-  return { ok: false, errors: result.errors };
+  return { ok: false, errors: result.errors.map((error) => error.text) };
 }
 
 function resolvePluginModuleExport(moduleExport: unknown): {
diff --git a/src/plugins/schema-validator.test.ts b/src/plugins/schema-validator.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..7f2b849d774
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/plugins/schema-validator.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,211 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { validateJsonSchemaValue } from "./schema-validator.js";
+
+describe("schema validator", () => {
+  it("includes allowed values in enum validation errors", () => {
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.enum",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          fileFormat: {
+            type: "string",
+            enum: ["markdown", "html", "json"],
+          },
+        },
+        required: ["fileFormat"],
+      },
+      value: { fileFormat: "txt" },
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors.find((entry) => entry.path === "fileFormat");
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("(allowed:");
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual(["markdown", "html", "json"]);
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("includes allowed value in const validation errors", () => {
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.const",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          mode: {
+            const: "strict",
+          },
+        },
+        required: ["mode"],
+      },
+      value: { mode: "relaxed" },
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors.find((entry) => entry.path === "mode");
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("(allowed:");
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual(["strict"]);
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBe(0);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("truncates long allowed-value hints", () => {
+    const values = [
+      "v1",
+      "v2",
+      "v3",
+      "v4",
+      "v5",
+      "v6",
+      "v7",
+      "v8",
+      "v9",
+      "v10",
+      "v11",
+      "v12",
+      "v13",
+    ];
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.enum.truncate",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          mode: {
+            type: "string",
+            enum: values,
+          },
+        },
+        required: ["mode"],
+      },
+      value: { mode: "not-listed" },
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors.find((entry) => entry.path === "mode");
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("(allowed:");
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("... (+1 more)");
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toEqual([
+        "v1",
+        "v2",
+        "v3",
+        "v4",
+        "v5",
+        "v6",
+        "v7",
+        "v8",
+        "v9",
+        "v10",
+        "v11",
+        "v12",
+      ]);
+      expect(issue?.allowedValuesHiddenCount).toBe(1);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("appends missing required property to the structured path", () => {
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.required.path",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          settings: {
+            type: "object",
+            properties: {
+              mode: { type: "string" },
+            },
+            required: ["mode"],
+          },
+        },
+        required: ["settings"],
+      },
+      value: { settings: {} },
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors.find((entry) => entry.path === "settings.mode");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toBeUndefined();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("appends missing dependency property to the structured path", () => {
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.dependencies.path",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          settings: {
+            type: "object",
+            dependencies: {
+              mode: ["format"],
+            },
+          },
+        },
+      },
+      value: { settings: { mode: "strict" } },
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors.find((entry) => entry.path === "settings.format");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.allowedValues).toBeUndefined();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("truncates oversized allowed value entries", () => {
+    const oversizedAllowed = "a".repeat(300);
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.enum.long-value",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          mode: {
+            type: "string",
+            enum: [oversizedAllowed],
+          },
+        },
+        required: ["mode"],
+      },
+      value: { mode: "not-listed" },
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors.find((entry) => entry.path === "mode");
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("(allowed:");
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("... (+");
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("sanitizes terminal text while preserving structured fields", () => {
+    const maliciousProperty = "evil\nkey\t\x1b[31mred\x1b[0m";
+    const res = validateJsonSchemaValue({
+      cacheKey: "schema-validator.test.terminal-sanitize",
+      schema: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {},
+        required: [maliciousProperty],
+      },
+      value: {},
+    });
+
+    expect(res.ok).toBe(false);
+    if (!res.ok) {
+      const issue = res.errors[0];
+      expect(issue).toBeDefined();
+      expect(issue?.path).toContain("\n");
+      expect(issue?.message).toContain("\n");
+      expect(issue?.text).toContain("\\n");
+      expect(issue?.text).toContain("\\t");
+      expect(issue?.text).not.toContain("\n");
+      expect(issue?.text).not.toContain("\t");
+      expect(issue?.text).not.toContain("\x1b");
+    }
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/plugins/schema-validator.ts b/src/plugins/schema-validator.ts
index 19af4d63cf8..af64be10147 100644
--- a/src/plugins/schema-validator.ts
+++ b/src/plugins/schema-validator.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 import { createRequire } from "node:module";
 import type { ErrorObject, ValidateFunction } from "ajv";
+import { appendAllowedValuesHint, summarizeAllowedValues } from "../config/allowed-values.js";
+import { sanitizeTerminalText } from "../terminal/safe-text.js";
 
 const require = createRequire(import.meta.url);
 type AjvLike = {
@@ -31,14 +33,100 @@ type CachedValidator = {
 
 const schemaCache = new Map<string, CachedValidator>();
 
-function formatAjvErrors(errors: ErrorObject[] | null | undefined): string[] {
+export type JsonSchemaValidationError = {
+  path: string;
+  message: string;
+  text: string;
+  allowedValues?: string[];
+  allowedValuesHiddenCount?: number;
+};
+
+function normalizeAjvPath(instancePath: string | undefined): string {
+  const path = instancePath?.replace(/^\//, "").replace(/\//g, ".");
+  return path && path.length > 0 ? path : "<root>";
+}
+
+function appendPathSegment(path: string, segment: string): string {
+  const trimmed = segment.trim();
+  if (!trimmed) {
+    return path;
+  }
+  if (path === "<root>") {
+    return trimmed;
+  }
+  return `${path}.${trimmed}`;
+}
+
+function resolveMissingProperty(error: ErrorObject): string | null {
+  if (
+    error.keyword !== "required" &&
+    error.keyword !== "dependentRequired" &&
+    error.keyword !== "dependencies"
+  ) {
+    return null;
+  }
+  const missingProperty = (error.params as { missingProperty?: unknown }).missingProperty;
+  return typeof missingProperty === "string" && missingProperty.trim() ? missingProperty : null;
+}
+
+function resolveAjvErrorPath(error: ErrorObject): string {
+  const basePath = normalizeAjvPath(error.instancePath);
+  const missingProperty = resolveMissingProperty(error);
+  if (!missingProperty) {
+    return basePath;
+  }
+  return appendPathSegment(basePath, missingProperty);
+}
+
+function extractAllowedValues(error: ErrorObject): unknown[] | null {
+  if (error.keyword === "enum") {
+    const allowedValues = (error.params as { allowedValues?: unknown }).allowedValues;
+    return Array.isArray(allowedValues) ? allowedValues : null;
+  }
+
+  if (error.keyword === "const") {
+    const params = error.params as { allowedValue?: unknown };
+    if (!Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(params, "allowedValue")) {
+      return null;
+    }
+    return [params.allowedValue];
+  }
+
+  return null;
+}
+
+function getAjvAllowedValuesSummary(error: ErrorObject): ReturnType<typeof summarizeAllowedValues> {
+  const allowedValues = extractAllowedValues(error);
+  if (!allowedValues) {
+    return null;
+  }
+  return summarizeAllowedValues(allowedValues);
+}
+
+function formatAjvErrors(errors: ErrorObject[] | null | undefined): JsonSchemaValidationError[] {
   if (!errors || errors.length === 0) {
-    return ["invalid config"];
+    return [{ path: "<root>", message: "invalid config", text: "<root>: invalid config" }];
   }
   return errors.map((error) => {
-    const path = error.instancePath?.replace(/^\//, "").replace(/\//g, ".") || "<root>";
-    const message = error.message ?? "invalid";
-    return `${path}: ${message}`;
+    const path = resolveAjvErrorPath(error);
+    const baseMessage = error.message ?? "invalid";
+    const allowedValuesSummary = getAjvAllowedValuesSummary(error);
+    const message = allowedValuesSummary
+      ? appendAllowedValuesHint(baseMessage, allowedValuesSummary)
+      : baseMessage;
+    const safePath = sanitizeTerminalText(path);
+    const safeMessage = sanitizeTerminalText(message);
+    return {
+      path,
+      message,
+      text: `${safePath}: ${safeMessage}`,
+      ...(allowedValuesSummary
+        ? {
+            allowedValues: allowedValuesSummary.values,
+            allowedValuesHiddenCount: allowedValuesSummary.hiddenCount,
+          }
+        : {}),
+    };
   });
 }
 
@@ -46,7 +134,7 @@ export function validateJsonSchemaValue(params: {
   schema: Record<string, unknown>;
   cacheKey: string;
   value: unknown;
-}): { ok: true } | { ok: false; errors: string[] } {
+}): { ok: true } | { ok: false; errors: JsonSchemaValidationError[] } {
   let cached = schemaCache.get(params.cacheKey);
   if (!cached || cached.schema !== params.schema) {
     const validate = getAjv().compile(params.schema);
diff --git a/src/terminal/safe-text.test.ts b/src/terminal/safe-text.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..cbed2a7b06f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/terminal/safe-text.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { sanitizeTerminalText } from "./safe-text.js";
+
+describe("sanitizeTerminalText", () => {
+  it("removes C1 control characters", () => {
+    expect(sanitizeTerminalText("a\u009bb\u0085c")).toBe("abc");
+  });
+
+  it("escapes line controls while preserving printable text", () => {
+    expect(sanitizeTerminalText("a\tb\nc\rd")).toBe("a\\tb\\nc\\rd");
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/terminal/safe-text.ts b/src/terminal/safe-text.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f6754da5aef
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/terminal/safe-text.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+import { stripAnsi } from "./ansi.js";
+
+/**
+ * Normalize untrusted text for single-line terminal/log rendering.
+ */
+export function sanitizeTerminalText(input: string): string {
+  const normalized = stripAnsi(input)
+    .replace(/\r/g, "\\r")
+    .replace(/\n/g, "\\n")
+    .replace(/\t/g, "\\t");
+  let sanitized = "";
+  for (const char of normalized) {
+    const code = char.charCodeAt(0);
+    const isControl = (code >= 0x00 && code <= 0x1f) || (code >= 0x7f && code <= 0x9f);
+    if (!isControl) {
+      sanitized += char;
+    }
+  }
+  return sanitized;
+}