Keep editing. Keep agents moving.

On-demand computers for agents.

Run tests and builds on remote boxes while your coding agents keep editing locally.

Get started Providers GitHub
  • For agents and humans
  • MIT licensed
  • 80 built-in providers
your checkout → a boxexample run
crabbox run -- pnpm test

Use your configured provider and your repo’s test command.

  1. 01
    Lease a boxCompute for this run
  2. 02
    Sync your working treeUncommitted changes included
  3. 03
    Run and stream outputThe command you already use
Exit code back. Box released.Keep a warm box when you want another run.

Local edits. Remote execution.

  1. 01Edit locally
  2. 02Lease a box
  3. 03Sync
  4. 04Run
  5. 05Stream + exit code
  6. 06Cleanup

The standard remote loop. Sync, reuse, and cleanup follow each provider’s contract. How it works →

Room to work

More agents.
Less waiting.

Your laptop is where you edit. Give the heavy work its own compute, without rebuilding your workflow around a CI queue.

Let agents work in parallel.

Run tests and builds on separate boxes, so agents don’t compete for your laptop’s CPU, RAM, and ports.

Explore parallel runs →

Keep the next run close.

Reuse warm boxes and prepared environments. Spend the next iteration running your changes instead of provisioning again.

Warm a box →

Test where it needs to work.

Choose Linux, macOS, native Windows, or WSL2 targets. Catch platform differences from the same local checkout.

Explore OS targets →

See it. Drive it. Take over.

Open supported desktops with VNC or WebVNC, request a browser, or use VS Code in the browser with --code on managed Linux.

The authenticated coordinator portal shows leases and run logs. Its WebVNC viewer lets you watch a desktop or take control while the local bridge runs.

Desktop & browser →Explore the portal →

A fleet for the whole team.

An optional coordinator owns cloud credentials and shares capacity across trusted teammates. Lease expiry and configured spend caps bound brokered usage.

Self-host on Cloudflare or Node.js with PostgreSQL. You choose the infrastructure; Crabbox manages the leases.

How the coordinator works →

One CLI. Across operating systems.

Same checkout. Different OS.

  • Linux
  • macOS
  • Windows native
  • WSL2

Target and desktop support vary by provider. Compare capabilities →

Bring your own compute

80 built-in providers.
One way to run.

Cloud boxes, local VMs, existing hosts, and delegated sandboxes. 81 catalog entries, including the external plugin contract for your own backend. Each provider defines its capabilities and cleanup contract.

Coordinator-brokered clouds4 catalog entries

Direct clouds22 catalog entries

Delegated sandboxes24 catalog entries

Local virtual machines7 catalog entries

Self-hosted virtualization5 catalog entries

GPU clouds5 catalog entries

Local sandboxes4 catalog entries

Service control4 catalog entries

Local runtimes2 catalog entries

CI proof runners2 catalog entries

Bring your own SSH host1 catalog entries

External plugin contract1 catalog entries

Compare targets, capabilities, and requirements

Choose your starting point

Find a box for your next job.

Turn 81 registered providers into a focused comparison path. Choose a workload, run the matching built-in recommendations, then verify the provider you select with crabbox doctor.

Choose the job Crabbox should help with

Recommended starting path

Shorten the edit–run loop.

Start with providers that favor local execution, reusable caches, warm sessions, or other fast-feedback paths.

Built-in recommendationsverify after selection
crabbox providers recommend fast-feedbackcrabbox doctor --provider <name>
Open the Fast Test Loop Guide

Recommended starting path

Separate agent fit from cleanup guarantees.

Compare agent- and devbox-shaped runtimes with the stricter disposable route, then inspect the selected provider’s isolation, network, secret, and cleanup boundary.

Built-in recommendationsverify after selection
crabbox providers recommend agent-sandboxcrabbox providers recommend disposable-executioncrabbox doctor --provider <name>
Open the Coding Agent Guide

Recommended starting path

Match the operating system before the vendor.

Compare the platform routes independently; Windows includes native and WSL2-capable paths, subject to the selected host.

Built-in recommendationsverify after selection
crabbox providers recommend linux-vmcrabbox providers recommend windowscrabbox providers recommend macos
Open the Platform Validation Guide

Recommended starting path

Start with a visible desktop-capable target.

Compare browser and desktop paths first, then add evidence routing when screenshots, video, or diagnostics must survive the lease.

Built-in recommendationsverify after selection
crabbox providers recommend desktopcrabbox doctor --provider <name>
Open the Browser & Desktop Guide

Recommended starting path

Fan prepared state out across multiple attempts.

Start with checkpoint- and fork-capable workspace providers for test shards, branch comparisons, or best-of-N runs.

Built-in recommendationsverify after selection
crabbox providers recommend fanout-testingcrabbox doctor --provider <name>
Open the Parallel Experiments Guide

Recommended starting path

Require GPU capability before choosing capacity.

Compare SSH-accessible and delegated accelerator paths for model tests, CUDA builds, rendering, or other GPU-shaped work.

Built-in recommendationsverify after selection
crabbox providers recommend gpucrabbox doctor --provider <name>
Open the GPU Workload Guide

Built-in guidance, not a live provider check. Availability, price, performance, credentials, quota, and security still depend on the provider. Verify readiness with crabbox doctor.

See all recommendation paths

Cost model

Crabbox is free. Compute isn’t.

The CLI and coordinator are MIT-licensed. You pay your provider for compute and your own coordinator infrastructure.

Crabbox Software$0 license fee

MIT-licensed CLI and coordinator.

ComputeProvider rate

Cloud, sandbox, GPU, or local runtime bills remain external.

CoordinatorYour infrastructure

Run it on Cloudflare or Node.js with PostgreSQL.

Coordinator GuardrailsTTL and spend caps

For brokered providers, estimate reserved cost and reject leases over configured limits.

See Pricing and Cost Boundaries

Install the CLI

One command to start.

Install Crabbox, choose direct, local, delegated, or team-coordinator access, then run the command your repository already knows.

Open the 10-minute guide 
$ brew install openclaw/tap/crabbox
$ crabbox doctor
$ crabbox run -- pnpm test