Agent sandboxes / Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox alternative

A Volcano Engine AgentKit alternative

AgentKit contains an agent Runtime, sandbox tools, MCP services and gateway products, while linked veFaaS documentation defines its own E2B-compatible sandbox surface. These components have different meters and lifecycle details. Compare the exact execution component rather than treating the entire stack as one VM rate.

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

When Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox fits

AgentKit fits teams using Volcano Engine’s managed agent and MCP infrastructure, tool sandbox integration and gateway governance. The linked veFaaS surface supports E2B-style commands, files, code contexts and volume APIs, reducing some integration work for supported workloads.

When to consider Sandbox0

Consider Sandbox0 when you want a compatible Linux runtime whose whole writable RootFS persists and grows online, plus supported file access while compute remains paused. Agent hosting, gateways, MCP governance and model inference remain distinct services to retain or implement.

Capabilities

Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox and Sandbox0: what persists?

Feature comparison with documentation and verification status
Environment and runtime lifetimeVolcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandboxA timeout API exists, but the reviewed compatibility guide does not establish a universal maximum or indefinite lifetime.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 filesVolcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandboxThe documented veFaaS pause stores a disk snapshot for later recovery.View evidence ↗Sandbox0The writable RootFS survives successful checkpoints, including software, system configuration, dependencies, and user data.Read documentation →
Whole RootFSVolcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandboxThe linked API specifies a disk snapshot but does not establish an unconditional whole-RootFS contract across every AgentKit component.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 stateVolcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandboxThe linked veFaaS E2B-compatible lifecycle supports pause and resume; connect wakes a paused instance.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Pause compute between tasks; resume on available capacity. Default resume starts fresh processes from the saved filesystem.Read documentation →
Memory and process stateVolcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandboxThe reviewed PauseSandbox API only supports disk; arbitrary-memory retention elsewhere in AgentKit is not 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.

The reviewed rate card and E2B compatibility guide do not establish automatic online expansion of the entire writable RootFS. Separate Volume APIs and disk snapshots are real features, but neither alone proves that installed system state grows in place while the same agent runs.

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.

veFaaS E2B connect explicitly wakes paused instances. A separate no-wake rootfs mutation interface is not established by the reviewed compatibility guide. Sandbox0 supports paused persistent-file operations, with writes limited to filesystem-only pauses.

See paused file operations →

Agent Runtime and tool sandbox are separate line items

The current rate card separates sandbox CPU/RAM from the higher agent Runtime CPU/RAM rates. Network and optional gateway resources add other meters, and Runtime/MCP gateways are separately ordered. Price the components actually deployed instead of applying the sandbox rate to the complete managed-agent stack.

Source 1 ↗

The documented veFaaS pause API is disk-only

PauseSandbox currently accepts Type=disk and describes a disk snapshot. General wording about retaining state must not be read as a promise to retain arbitrary running process memory. Check the actual sandbox/runtime interface and account access before depending on pause behavior throughout AgentKit.

Source 1 ↗

E2B compatibility includes a wake-on-connect path

The veFaaS compatibility guide lists instance lifecycle, command/PTY, filesystem, code context and Volume APIs. Connecting to a paused instance resumes it, and timeout setters refresh its maximum lifetime. A list of compatible methods is not a no-wake filesystem contract or a guarantee of identical behavior across every E2B backend.

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.

Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox

Pricing reviewed 2026-10-18

AgentKit tool-sandbox CPU
CNY ¥0.0000405 per vCPU-second
Sandbox tool meter, separate from agent Runtime CPU.
Rate source ↗
AgentKit tool-sandbox memory
CNY ¥0.0000102 per GB-second
Preserve the vendor’s GB unit.
Rate source ↗
Tool-sandbox public outbound traffic
CNY ¥0.8 per GB
Rate source ↗
Agent Runtime CPU
CNY ¥0.000097375 per vCPU-second
A different component; memory and other runtime costs are additional.
Rate source ↗
Shared gateway instance beyond allowance
CNY ¥1 per instance-hour
Account/region allowances and deployment mode apply; do not add this to every sandbox automatically.
Rate source ↗

Published amounts are CNY list rates, subject to console orders and announcements. Runtime, sandbox, MCP and gateway resources meter separately. The linked veFaaS lifecycle documentation is not proof that every AgentKit product has the same pause or storage policy. No foreign-exchange conversion or equal-throughput savings claim is used.

Check current Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox 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 Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox

  1. Map the actual AgentKit Runtime, sandbox, gateway, MCP and veFaaS resources, effective limits and account pause support; export required disk and external-volume data.
  2. Port compatible Linux tools and execution calls while retaining or replacing model integration, agent hosting, MCP and gateway functions explicitly.
  3. Test fresh-process versus memory requirements, whole-system retention, online RootFS growth, paused file access and all deployed resource/network/gateway meters.

Common questions

Is Sandbox0 a drop-in Volcano Engine AgentKit / veFaaS sandbox 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 ↗docs.volcengine.com/docs/agentkit/Billing_items ↗docs.volcengine.com/docs/vefaas/PauseSandbox ↗docs.volcengine.com/docs/vefaas/E2Bcompatibilityinstructions ↗Sandbox0 RootFS capacity →

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