CI and test infrastructure / Codemagic (mobile CI) alternative

Codemagic alternative for persistent agent environments

Codemagic specializes in mobile CI/CD, code signing and app distribution. Each build clones source into a new VM that is destroyed at completion, while logs and artifacts remain in the service. A returning agent computer needs to retain a broader set of machine changes.

Start buildingCompare capabilities ↓

Reviewed 2026-10-19 · Published by the Sandbox0 team

When Codemagic (mobile CI) fits

Choose Codemagic for mobile builds, signing, store publishing and managed macOS, Linux or Windows build hosts. Keep iOS/Xcode tasks on compatible Apple infrastructure when they are required.

When to consider Sandbox0

Consider Sandbox0 for compatible Linux agent tools and durable growing filesystem state. Mobile signing, distribution, store integrations and macOS execution remain separate services or infrastructure to retain.

Capabilities

Codemagic (mobile CI) and Sandbox0: what persists?

Feature comparison with documentation and verification status
Environment and runtime lifetimeCodemagic (mobile CI)Standard plans list a 120-minute build limit; enterprise terms can differ. Retained build history and artifacts are separate from the disposed build VM.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 filesCodemagic (mobile CI)Caches and artifacts retain selected data with limits; full runtime-disk retention is not established.View evidence ↗Sandbox0The writable RootFS survives successful checkpoints, including software, system configuration, dependencies, and user data.Read documentation →
Whole RootFSCodemagic (mobile CI)The build VM is destroyed at completion.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 stateCodemagic (mobile CI)Build history does not establish arbitrary machine checkpoint/resume.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Pause compute between tasks; resume on available capacity. Default resume starts fresh processes from the saved filesystem.Read documentation →
Memory and process stateCodemagic (mobile CI)No arbitrary VM-memory recovery contract is established.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.

Larger build machines and per-build caches help mobile compilation. They do not establish an automatically expanding complete RootFS retained across independent builds.

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.

Saved build artifacts remain available without the completed VM, but they cover published outputs rather than direct file operations throughout a paused whole RootFS.

See paused file operations →

Build machines are disposable by design

Codemagic starts each build on a new VM and destroys it after completion. Only build history and artifacts remain in the dashboard under their retention policies. Cache storage preserves selected build data; it does not make the entire previous operating-system filesystem durable.

Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗

Free minutes have an OS and user scope

The individual plan includes one user, one parallel build and 500 macOS M2 minutes each month. It is not an unlimited team or every-machine allowance. Pay-as-you-go adds separate concurrency charges and OS-specific usage rates.

Source 1 ↗

Fixed cost still has build and storage limits

The current comparison gives standard plans a 120-minute build limit; enterprise terms can differ. Free history/artifacts last 30 days, PAYG 60 days and fixed-price plans one year. A fixed annual fee does not create an indefinitely running or retained machine.

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.

Codemagic (mobile CI)

Pricing reviewed 2026-10-19

PAYG Mac mini M2
$0.095 per minute
The individual allowance covers the first 500 M2 minutes/month under its limits.
Rate source ↗
PAYG Mac mini M4
$0.114 per minute
Different hardware from M2; do not assume identical throughput.
Rate source ↗
PAYG Linux X2 or Windows
$0.045 per minute
Rate source ↗
PAYG additional concurrency
$49 per concurrency/month
Rate source ↗
M2 fixed-price reference
$3,990/year
Includes three concurrent builds; standard build-duration and other plan conditions still apply.
Rate source ↗

Prices exclude applicable taxes. Cache, artifact retention, hardware, concurrency and enterprise terms affect fit. OTA updates are a separate mobile-distribution product, not a retained sandbox filesystem. No mobile-build or macOS equivalence with Sandbox0 is asserted.

Check current Codemagic (mobile CI) 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 Codemagic (mobile CI)

  1. Inventory mobile OS/toolchains, signing secrets, publishing, build-duration requirements, caches and artifact retention.
  2. Retain required macOS and distribution services while moving compatible persistent Linux agent work to Sandbox0.
  3. Test installed-tool retention, growing outputs, paused files and complete build, concurrency, storage and model costs.

Common questions

Is Sandbox0 a drop-in Codemagic (mobile CI) 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.codemagic.io/getting-started/about-codemagic/ ↗codemagic.io/pricing/ ↗Sandbox0 RootFS capacity →

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Apple Xcode Cloud vs Sandbox0 →Artillery vs Sandbox0 →AWS CodeBuild vs Sandbox0 →Azure Pipelines vs Sandbox0 →Bitbucket Pipelines vs Sandbox0 →Blacksmith (GitHub Actions runners) vs Sandbox0 →