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Standalone VMs (sandboxes)

A standalone VM, also called a sandbox, is a VM with its own reserved vCPU and memory. It does not share capacity with your other VMs. Its capacity is metered by the second at an hourly rate. Metering starts when the VM is created, pauses while the VM is stopped, and ends when you delete it.

Use one for work you want to create and delete on its own, such as running agent-written code, a CI job, or a preview, without drawing on the capacity your other VMs share.

Create a standalone VM

new --standalone

--sandbox is an alias, and the usual new flags work:

new --sandbox --name=sbx1 --tag=sandbox

You can also copy an existing VM into a standalone VM with cp <vm> --standalone, or turn a VM in a pool into one with pool detach --vm=<vm>. --standalone cannot be combined with --pool or --no-pool.

The whole lifecycle works over SSH, so scripts and agents can create, use, and delete sandboxes:

ssh exe.dev new --sandbox --name=sbx1
ssh sbx1.exe.xyz "python3 -c 'print(2+2)'"
ssh exe.dev rm sbx1

Who can create one

  • Personal: any Personal account can create standalone VMs.
  • Work and Enterprise: a team admin chooses who can create them. It is off until an admin sets it:
team settings standalone admins-only   # admins and the billing owner
team settings standalone all-users     # every member
team settings standalone off           # nobody

Admins can also change this setting at exe.dev/team. The earlier Individual and Team plans do not include standalone VMs.

Pricing

A standalone VM's reserved capacity is metered at $0.105 per 2 vCPU / 4 GiB unit-hour, the same rate as pool capacity. Time is measured by the second, with no minimum charge and no rounding up to the hour. Usage adds up on your monthly invoice, which is rounded to the cent. See Usage.

Size Units Per hour About, if it runs all month
1 vCPU / 2 GiB 0.5 $0.0525 $38.35
2 vCPU / 4 GiB 1 $0.105 $76.70
4 vCPU / 8 GiB 2 $0.21 $153.40
8 vCPU / 16 GiB 4 $0.42 $306.80
16 vCPU / 32 GiB 8 $0.84 $613.60

The monthly column is approximate and uses the same 730.5-hour average month as exe.dev/pricing. The table is the full metered cost of each size.

  • Personal: this is in addition to your subscription.
  • Work: standalone VMs and pools together count toward the included 2 vCPUs + 4 GiB of capacity, applied to whatever is running at the same time. Capacity beyond it is metered at the rates above. Each standalone VM also carries its own disk and bandwidth allowance, based on its size, while it runs.
  • Enterprise: standalone capacity is covered by your contract.

For example:

  • A 2 vCPU standalone VM that runs for 10 seconds is billed 1 unit × 10/3600 hours ≈ 0.0028 unit-hours, or about $0.0003.
  • An 8 vCPU standalone VM that runs for 15 minutes is billed 4 units × 15/60 hours = 1 unit-hour, or $0.105.
  • On Work, a team whose 2 vCPU default pool already uses the included capacity runs a 4 vCPU standalone VM for 10 hours. That is 2 units × 10 hours = 20 unit-hours, or $2.10.

A stopped standalone VM is not billed for its vCPU and memory. It keeps its disk, and it still counts toward your VM limits.

Resize and delete

  • resize <vm> --cpu=N --memory=M changes the VM and its reserved capacity together. Billing follows the new size. pool resize does not apply to standalone VMs.
  • A standalone VM has up to 2 GiB of memory per vCPU (a 4 vCPU standalone VM can have up to 8 GiB).
  • On Work, it can be created or resized up to 32 vCPUs, the largest pool size that takes effect without approval. On Personal, it can be as large as your plan's vCPUs. Email support@exe.dev if you need more.
  • rm <vm> deletes the VM and its capacity, and billing stops.
  • A standalone VM cannot move into a pool. pool adopt refuses it.

Find your standalone VMs

ls --group=type lists them under "Standalone VMs". On a team, pool list shows team-billed standalone VMs by VM name, marked "(standalone VM)", and team usage shows their capacity, disk, and bandwidth.

Next steps