Confidential computing / Caution alternative

Caution.co alternative

Caution deploys applications into AWS Nitro Enclaves with reproducible, independently verifiable software. Its confidentiality and attestation workflow addresses a different trust requirement from durable agent filesystem lifecycle. Compare the actual security boundary as well as execution and storage features.

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

When Caution fits

Caution fits teams needing verifiable enclave software and its client/deployment integration, including operation in their own AWS account or a self-operated platform. Keep that confidential-computing layer when it is a requirement.

When to consider Sandbox0

Consider Sandbox0 when the required product is an isolated Linux agent runtime with durable whole RootFS, online growth and supported paused-file access. Its gVisor isolation is a different boundary from a hardware enclave; do not assume attestation or Caution’s end-to-end encryption integration comes with that choice.

Capabilities

Caution and Sandbox0: what persists?

Feature comparison with documentation and verification status
Environment and runtime lifetimeCautionNot established in this reviewSandbox0ttl 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 filesCautionDeployment ownership and enclave integrity do not define a universal durable application-disk contract.View evidence ↗Sandbox0The writable RootFS survives successful checkpoints, including software, system configuration, dependencies, and user data.Read documentation →
Whole RootFSCautionComplete mutable RootFS recovery is not established by the reviewed deployment model.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 stateCautionVerified deployment/restart is not an arbitrary-process checkpoint/resume interface.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Pause compute between tasks; resume on available capacity. Default resume starts fresh processes from the saved filesystem.Read documentation →
Memory and process stateCautionAttestation and protected in-use memory are not proof of a retained-memory snapshot product.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Experimental 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.

Caution’s source-verifiable deployment and configurable infrastructure ownership are acknowledged. The reviewed commercial/deployment pages do not establish automatic online expansion and persistence of a complete mutable Linux RootFS. Evaluate storage lifecycle independently of enclave measurements.

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.

The reviewed enclave deployment overview does not establish full-RootFS read/write operations while guest compute remains paused. Access to build artifacts, configuration or attestation evidence is a separate interface.

See paused file operations →

Verifiable deployment is a separate capability

The docs link running enclave code to source, build and configuration. End-to-end request encryption depends on an active, correctly configured STEVE v2 client. These are meaningful security features to integrate and verify; a filesystem snapshot alone does not provide them.

Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗

Deployment models assign different operational ownership

Fully managed uses Caution infrastructure. Bring your own compute runs in your AWS account while Caution manages enclave lifecycle and deployments. Self-hosting leaves platform operations with you. The pricing page offers AGPLv3 source or a commercial licence and marks several additional attestation targets as future work; AWS Nitro is the current documented path.

Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗

Durable application data needs its own contract

Source/build reproducibility and enclave attestation identify intended software; they do not by themselves preserve every write, installed package or arbitrary live process across a restart. The reviewed deployment overview does not establish automatic whole-RootFS growth or retained-memory pause/resume for arbitrary agents.

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.

Caution

Pricing reviewed 2026-10-18

Caution-managed own-AWS deployment
Vendor quote
Your AWS account and infrastructure billing remain separate responsibilities.
Rate source ↗
Fully managed deployment
Vendor quote
Hosting, enclave lifecycle and any support package need effective commercial terms.
Rate source ↗
Self-operated platform
AGPLv3 source or commercial licence
Budget infrastructure and operation separately; no numeric commercial licence tariff is published.
Rate source ↗

The reviewed pricing page publishes deployment options and a sales path, without a numeric per-enclave-hour rate. Missing commercial rates are not a zero-cost managed service. Current AWS Nitro support and roadmap hardware targets are separate. Sandbox0 self-hosting is not supported and its BYOC option is planned, so it should not be presented as the same own-account deployment offer.

Check current Caution 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 Caution

  1. Document the required enclave/attestation/client trust model, deployment ownership, application storage and commercial scope before changing execution infrastructure.
  2. Use Sandbox0 only where compatible agent execution is required, retaining an appropriate confidential-computing layer when that trust requirement remains.
  3. Test toolchain retention, RootFS growth, paused files, recovery and complete platform/cloud/model costs without assuming identical security properties.

Common questions

Is Sandbox0 a drop-in Caution replacement?

Evaluate API compatibility and product scope. These products serve different core workflows, so a change may require a different architecture.

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 ↗docs.caution.co/ ↗caution.co/cloud/aws.html ↗caution.co/pricing.html ↗docs.caution.co/reference/deployment-models/ ↗Sandbox0 RootFS capacity →

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