Agent sandboxes / Alibaba Cloud AgentBay alternative

An Alibaba Cloud AgentBay alternative for a persistent Linux agent

AgentBay combines execution tools and interactive cloud environments with separately retained Context data. Start by deciding whether the agent needs browser or desktop interaction, a reusable profile, or one evolving Linux computer whose system changes persist.

Start buildingCompare capabilities ↓

Reviewed 2026-10-18 · Published by the Sandbox0 team

When Alibaba Cloud AgentBay fits

AgentBay fits teams using Alibaba Cloud’s browser, terminal, file, and visual interaction tools. Named browser contexts help carry logins and preferences into later sessions, while CodeSpace supplies a managed code-execution environment.

When to consider Sandbox0

Consider Sandbox0 for an agent that should keep installed software, configuration, and working data in one durable writable RootFS. Automatic online growth and supported paused file operations address that machine layer; port any visual-control or built-in agent tools separately.

Capabilities

Alibaba Cloud AgentBay and Sandbox0: what persists?

Feature comparison with documentation and verification status
Environment and runtime lifetimeAlibaba Cloud AgentBayRunning sessions accrue compute charges even when idle. A retained Context or storage allowance does not establish unlimited active session duration.View evidence ↗Sandbox0ttl and hard_ttl default to 0 (disabled). Configure idle pause and deletion policies for the same persistent sandbox identity; an idle running sandbox still accrues compute charges.Read documentation →
Persistent filesAlibaba Cloud AgentBayConfigured Context paths and browser profiles can be synchronized and reused across sessions.View evidence ↗Sandbox0The writable RootFS survives successful checkpoints, including software, system configuration, dependencies, and user data.Read documentation →
Whole RootFSAlibaba Cloud AgentBayThe reviewed Context workflow selects retained state; it does not establish whole-RootFS retention across sessions.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Persistence extends beyond /workspace to paths such as /usr/local, /etc, and /home. Runtime tmpfs and virtual filesystems are excluded.Read documentation →
Release compute, keep stateAlibaba Cloud AgentBayNot established in this reviewSandbox0Pause compute between tasks; resume on available capacity. Default resume starts fresh processes from the saved filesystem.Read documentation →
Memory and process stateAlibaba Cloud AgentBayNot established in this reviewSandbox0Experimental memory checkpoints can preserve compatible process state. Use memory: true on both pause and resume on a compatible deployment. A filesystem checkpoint alone does not preserve running processes.Read documentation →

Online RootFS growth

On growth-enabled images, Sandbox0 automatically expands the writable RootFS as free space runs low, within a configured sparse logical ceiling up to 64 TiB. Agent processes keep running. Growth is enabled in the qualified Cloud region; confirm activation for other regions. Existing images and snapshots retain their captured storage geometry. The ceiling is logical capacity, not preallocated host disk.

The reviewed Context capacity allowance is not a system-disk size. AgentBay’s published billing and browser-persistence pages do not establish automatic growth of the entire mounted RootFS.

Files while compute is paused

Sandbox0's Files API reads persistent files without resuming compute. Filesystem-only pauses also permit edits; retained-memory pauses are read-only and reject mutations with 409. SSH, SFTP, file watching, and runtime-only mounts require running compute.

See paused file operations →

Context retention follows an explicit synchronization policy

AgentBay browser sessions attach a named Context. Upload and extraction policies control which paths carry forward; the browser guide demonstrates ending one session with synchronization and reading its cookies in another. This is useful reusable state, but does not establish that every system change in the source session is retained.

Source 1 ↗

An account storage allowance is not a root-disk allocation

The billing guide assigns included storage to Context data and session replay, separately from compute system and data disks. The Basic allowance is therefore not evidence of a root filesystem of the same size, or automatic expansion of installed packages and system directories.

Source 1 ↗

Running compute and AI Credits are separate charges

A running AgentBay session incurs CPU and memory charges even while its processes are idle. Credits meter built-in agents’ model tokens and exclude compute, Context storage, and bandwidth. Estimate those items separately rather than treating a credit balance as the complete runtime budget.

Source 1 ↗

Pricing

Compare billing models, then price your workload

CPU allocation, memory, billing minimums, disk, plan fees, and supported workload differ. These meters are not equal-performance machine quotes. Confirm region, resource units, and included allowances before estimating a total.

Alibaba Cloud AgentBay

Pricing reviewed 2026-10-18

Basic plan
$0 plan fee plus resource usage
Rate source ↗
Running CPU
$0.027 per core-hour
Per-second billing; running idle sessions also incur compute charges.
Rate source ↗
Running memory
$0.0113 per GB-hour
Rate source ↗
Context and replay storage above allowance
$0.000045 per GiB-hour
Basic includes 100 GiB; Pro and Ultra include 1 TiB. These are separate from compute system and data disks.
Rate source ↗
Pro / Ultra plan fees
$149 / $225 per month, plus resource usage
Rate source ↗
Built-in agent Credits
$0.0267 per Credit
For model tokens only; compute, storage, and bandwidth are additional.
Rate source ↗

The international rate card uses dollars and distinguishes GB memory from GiB storage. Optional premium bandwidth is charged for inbound traffic. Confirm custom-image access, concurrency, regional availability, and the retained-state policy for the selected plan.

Check current Alibaba Cloud AgentBay pricing ↗

Sandbox0

$0.015/GiB-hour compute (billed by the second at approximately $0.000004167/GiB-second), plus $0.02/GiB-month of retained incremental RootFS and memory checkpoint data. Shared base images and platform recovery retention are excluded; paused sandboxes accrue storage charges only.

Compute / GiB-hour
$0.015
Retained data / GiB-month
$0.02
Paused compute
$0.00

A 4 GiB agent, 100 running hours

$6.00 compute

4 GiB × 100 hours, billed by the second. Keeping 20 GiB of billable incremental data for a full billing month adds $0.40. CPU is derived from memory by the platform; choose a tier that fits your workload.

Understand storage billing →

Before migrating from Alibaba Cloud AgentBay

  1. Inventory Context IDs, synchronized paths, browser profiles, custom images, and any session outputs that are not synchronized.
  2. Select a Linux workload and port terminal, file, network, and credential integration; replace required visual-control or built-in agent functionality separately.
  3. Validate repeated tasks, installed packages, RootFS growth, paused file access, and separate compute, retained-storage, and model costs.

Common questions

Is Sandbox0 a drop-in Alibaba Cloud AgentBay replacement?

Evaluate API compatibility and product scope. A shared sandbox category does not make SDKs, lifecycle semantics, or limits interchangeable.

Does keeping files also keep a running agent?

Filesystem state and volatile process state are separate. Sandbox0 requires explicit compatible memory checkpoints to preserve running processes; its default filesystem resume starts fresh processes.

Sources and review scope

The Boat team's Battleships directory is the discovery source. References below describe the product and plan discussed on this page. Check current availability, regional terms and billing units before migrating. Where the cited material does not establish a capability or price, the comparison identifies that uncertainty.

Battleships research record ↗www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/agentbay/developer-reference/browser-context ↗www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/agentbay/product-overview/agentbay-billing-instructions ↗Sandbox0 RootFS capacity →

Related comparisons

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