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Version: MVP

Sandbox backends

3 min readReferenceUpdated 2026-05-19

What you'll find here

The craik.sandbox_backend contract — what it records, how isolation modes pair with backend kinds, the policy boundary, and the provider-neutrality rule.

Metadata-only.

The contract does not execute commands, start containers, connect to remote hosts, drive browsers, load secrets, or grant authority by itself.

What it records

Stable backend id and name

Backend kind

local_process · container · remote_shell · browser_tool.

Isolation mode

process · container · remote · browser.

Capability names & operations

Policy requirements

Envelopes · grants · receipts · redaction.

Non-secret runtime references

And metadata.

Documentation links

Isolation modes

Backend kind and isolation mode must match.

Backend kindIsolation mode
local_processprocess
containercontainer
remote_shellremote
browser_toolbrowser

This keeps local, containerized, remote shell, and browser/tool execution paths comparable while preserving their different trust boundaries.

Policy boundary

Every declared capability requires both a grant and a receipt.

Sandbox backends require policy envelopes, capability grants, receipts, and redaction.

Provider neutrality

Sandbox backend records must not contain provider ids, model routing choices, or secret-like metadata keys.

Provider routing

Chooses a model provider.

Sandbox routing

Chooses an execution backend.

Those decisions stay separate so policy can audit each boundary independently.

Backend pages

Local process backend

Host process execution boundaries.

Remote shell backend

SSH and remote command boundaries.

Browser tool boundary

Browser automation and tool execution boundaries.

Docker sandbox backend

Containerized execution boundaries.

What's next