Computer-use platforms / Isle alternative

An Isle sandbox alternative depends on the application your agent controls

Isle wraps desktop applications such as KiCad and FreeCAD in monitoring, containment, recovery, and computer-use controls. That application-aware environment is different from a general Linux agent computer. Decide whether you need those managed design-tool workflows or a runtime that you customize yourself.

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

When Isle fits

Isle fits agents that operate its supported engineering applications and need ready-to-use software, screenshot/input APIs, application health checks, and saved design artifacts. It accepts an external agent/model loop rather than requiring a single model provider.

When to consider Sandbox0

Consider Sandbox0 for the execution layer of an agent application that needs durable system tools, online RootFS growth, and supported file operations during compute pauses. Hosting a design tool separately also requires building the observation, containment, artifact validation, and recovery features the user needs.

Capabilities

Isle and Sandbox0: what persists?

Feature comparison with documentation and verification status
Environment and runtime lifetimeIsleDeveloper advertises no per-session runtime cap, with 100 included environment-hours monthly. Free sessions are limited to 30 minutes.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 filesIsleStop/archive retains files and pauses billing for later resume; named artifact checkpoints have additional format and size limits.View evidence ↗Sandbox0The writable RootFS survives successful checkpoints, including software, system configuration, dependencies, and user data.Read documentation →
Whole RootFSIsleThe reviewed saved-artifact and stop APIs do not establish a customer-configurable complete writable RootFS-retention contract.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 stateIsleStop/archive and resume are documented; process-memory continuation is not established.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Pause compute between tasks; resume on available capacity. Default resume starts fresh processes from the saved filesystem.Read documentation →
Memory and process stateIsleArtifact checkpoints capture saved design files, not unsaved editor memory; persistent Python between active calls is a different scope.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.

Application artifact checkpoints and a bounded shared project workspace are not automatic expansion of the complete Linux system filesystem. Sandbox0’s online RootFS growth applies to the general execution environment; managed application recovery remains a separate requirement.

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 Isle file/control workflow requires a running environment. It does not establish a general paused-compute file API. Sandbox0 supports persistent RootFS file operations during pauses, with separate restrictions for retained memory checkpoints.

See paused file operations →

A saved design bundle is not the entire machine

Current KiCad checkpoints capture validated saved workspace files in a versioned bundle, excluding locks, caches, and other documented paths. The workspace and bundle each have a 256 MiB bound. Unsaved editor changes are not captured. These artifact-level recovery rules do not establish a general full-RootFS or RAM checkpoint, even though stop/archive can retain files for later resume.

Source 1 ↗

Persistent Python is scoped to a running execution-enabled environment

Newer Isle images provide a persistent Python namespace between calls with shared application files. Execution capability and generation must be checked; per-cell timeout, output, and concurrency limits still apply. The application and desktop operations have their own lifecycle, and retained variables across cells do not prove that arbitrary processes survive stop/resume.

Source 1 ↗

Plan hours and per-session duration have different limits

The Free offer includes five environment-hours per month with a 30-minute environment runtime and one concurrent environment. Developer includes 100 environment-hours, five concurrent environments, and no per-session runtime cap. That absence of a session cap does not mean unlimited monthly hours, concurrency, or per-cell execution time.

Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗

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.

Isle

Pricing reviewed 2026-10-18

Free
$0 per month
5 environment-hours/month, 30-minute runtime, one concurrent environment.
Rate source ↗
Developer
$29 per month
100 environment-hours/month, no per-session runtime cap, five concurrent environments.
Rate source ↗
Enterprise
Custom workload terms
Custom environments, capacity, and support require an effective offer.
Rate source ↗
Stopped environment runtime
Billing pauses after stop/archive
Rate source ↗

These prices include a managed application environment, not an interchangeable raw-vCPU/RAM meter. The reviewed page does not establish a numeric overage rate beyond included hours. Confirm effective allowances, artifact retention, and required application capabilities; model-provider costs are a separate decision.

Check current Isle 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 Isle

  1. Save the application project and export valid artifacts, required libraries, checkpoint bundles, traces, and any externally held workflow state.
  2. Decide which application-aware features to retain or rebuild; package compatible tools and implement observation, input, and artifact handling around the target runtime.
  3. Validate real saved-file results and application compatibility alongside system persistence, RootFS growth, paused file access, runtime policy, and full application cost.

Common questions

Is Sandbox0 a drop-in Isle 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 ↗www.tryisle.com/llms-full.txt ↗www.tryisle.com/ ↗Sandbox0 RootFS capacity →

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