> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.2501.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Standalone VMs

> Provision standalone VMs for ad-hoc agent testing outside of scenario runs

`sandbox create` provisions a standalone VM, not tied to any specific scenario, and registers it as a host and agent in the DB. Use it when you want a persistent environment for ad-hoc tasks, manual testing, or experimenting with agent behavior outside of a scenario run.

***

## `sandbox create`

```bash theme={null}
2501 runner sandbox create --template <name> -m <mode> [options]
```

After creation, the runner prints SSH access details and the delete command:

```
Target ready: my-target
SSH:      ssh -i ~/.ssh/runner_key debian@10.0.0.7 -p 22
Agents:   agt_...
Hosts:    hst_...
Delete:   2501 runner sandbox delete -s my-target -m lima
```

| Option | Default | Description |
| - | - | - |
| `--template <name>` | required | VM template to boot (e.g. `debian-docker`, `debian-k3s`). |
| `-m, --mode <mode>` | required | VM provider: `incus` \| `lima`. |
| `-n, --name <name>` | auto-generated | Name for the VM, host, and agent. |
| `--specialty <key>` | `SERVICES_MANAGER` | Specialty key for the registered agent. |
| `--vm-templates-path <path>` | auto-detected | Path to VM templates directory. |
| `--env-file <path>` | auto-detected | Path to env file. |

***

## `sandbox delete`

Deletes a standalone target created with `sandbox create`: destroys the VM and removes the host and agent from the DB.

```bash theme={null}
2501 runner sandbox delete -s <name> -m <mode>
```

| Option | Description |
| - | - |
| `-s, --name <name>` | required. Name of the target (as given at create time). |
| `-m, --mode <mode>` | required. VM provider: `incus` \| `lima`. |
| `--env-file <path>` | Path to env file (auto-detected if omitted). |

<Note>
  Use `sandbox restore` (see [VM from Scenario](/0.16/benchmark/sandbox-scenario)) for environments created with `sandbox prepare`, not `sandbox delete`. The runner will error if you mix them up.
</Note>


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