Crabbox

Crabbox

Use Crabbox when a project needs remote proof, larger cloud capacity, a fresh

PR checkout, a reusable warmed box, GitHub Actions-style setup, durable run

logs/results, UI proof artifacts, or sync from a dirty local checkout.

Detect Crabbox

• Treat repo-root crabbox.yaml or .crabbox.yaml as an intentional signal to

use this skill for validation work. .crabbox.yml is not a supported config

filename.

• If neither config exists, command -v crabbox still identifies an installed

CLI. Run crabbox doctor before depending on it for remote work.

• Inspect config before executing it. Detection does not imply permission to

expose secrets, bypass command approval, or start paid infrastructure.

Source Of Truth

• Run Crabbox from the repository root; sync mirrors the current checkout.
• Treat repo-local crabbox.yaml or .crabbox.yaml as executable project

automation. Review it before remote runs, especially provider, actions,

jobs, profiles, env.allow, artifacts, and cleanup policy.

• Verify the installed binary before relying on examples:

command -v crabbox && crabbox --version && crabbox --help | sed -n '1,120p'.

• Use crabbox providers or crabbox providers --json for the current

provider/capability matrix; provider docs can lag the compiled binary.

• Use crabbox doctor for live readiness checks and crabbox config show to

inspect merged config without printing secrets.

• Prefer local targeted tests for tight edit loops. Move to Crabbox for broad

suites, package-heavy checks, Docker/E2E/live-provider proof, cross-OS proof,

UI proof, or commands that bog down the local machine.

Auth And Config

Brokered operation needs a coordinator URL and token. First login usually needs

an explicit broker URL:

crabbox login --url <broker-url>
crabbox whoami
crabbox doctor

After broker.url is configured, crabbox login can reuse it. Trusted operator

automation can store a shared token without putting it on argv:

printf '%s' "$CRABBOX_COORDINATOR_TOKEN" |
  crabbox login --url <broker-url> --provider aws --token-stdin

Config precedence is flags > env > repo config > user config > defaults.

Default user config is ~/Library/Application Support/crabbox/config.yaml on

macOS, ~/.config/crabbox/config.yaml on Linux, or

$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/crabbox/config.yaml when set. crabbox config path prints

the active user config path.

Keep provider and broker tokens out of repo config and command arguments. Use

environment variables, a credential store, coordinator-managed secrets, or a

short-lived token command.

Choose The Remote Surface

• crabbox run -- <command>: one command on a fresh or reused box.
• crabbox warmup: create a reusable lease and run commands later with --id.
• crabbox prewarm: warm a reusable lease and hydrate it from configured

GitHub Actions.

• crabbox job run <name>: use a repo-local named flow that expands to

warmup, optional hydration, run, and stop.

• crabbox run --pool <key>: borrow a hydrated broker ready-pool lease, run,

then return/drain/release it according to --pool-return.

• crabbox run --fresh-pr ...: ignore local sync and check out a GitHub PR on

the remote; add --apply-local-patch to test local uncommitted changes on

top of that PR.

• crabbox run --provider ssh: use an existing macOS, Linux, or Windows host.
• crabbox warmup --desktop --browser: provision a visible desktop/browser for

UI testing, WebVNC, screenshots, and artifacts.

If remote proof is blocked, name the missing capability precisely: auth,

coordinator, capacity, provider support, target OS, hydration, secret access,

artifact storage, desktop support, or a delegated-provider limitation.

Common Remote Proof

One-shot command:

crabbox run --preflight --timing-json -- pnpm test

Warm and reuse a lease:

crabbox warmup --class beast --idle-timeout 90m
crabbox status --id <cbx_id-or-slug> --wait
crabbox run --id <cbx_id-or-slug> -- pnpm test:changed
crabbox run --id <cbx_id-or-slug> --full-resync -- pnpm test:changed
crabbox stop <cbx_id-or-slug>

Use a repo-local job when configured:

crabbox job list
crabbox job run --dry-run <job-name>
crabbox job run <job-name>
crabbox job run --id <cbx_id-or-slug> <job-name>

Use a ready-pool lease when the coordinator has hydrated pool capacity:

crabbox pool ready
crabbox run --pool <pool-key> -- pnpm test
crabbox run --pool <pool-key> --pool-return drain -- pnpm test:flaky

Use GitHub Actions hydration when the repository already owns setup in CI:

crabbox warmup --idle-timeout 90m
crabbox actions hydrate --id <cbx_id-or-slug>
crabbox run --id <cbx_id-or-slug> -- pnpm test

Use --github-runner only when the workflow needs full GitHub Actions

semantics such as repository secrets, OIDC, service containers, job containers,

or unsupported uses: steps:

crabbox actions hydrate --github-runner --id <cbx_id-or-slug>

Sync And Fresh Checkouts

Normal sync transfers tracked files plus non-ignored untracked files, excludes

ignored dependency/build/cache output, honors .crabboxignore and

sync.exclude, seeds the remote checkout from origin when possible, and skips

rsync when the sync fingerprint matches.

Use crabbox sync-plan before large runs. Unexpected counts usually mean

local generated churn; update .crabboxignore or sync.exclude instead of

forcing huge uploads.

crabbox sync-plan
crabbox run --debug --timing-json -- pnpm test
crabbox run --full-resync -- pnpm test

Use fresh PR checkout when local dependency churn or dirty sync would confuse

the result:

crabbox run --fresh-pr example-org/my-app#123 --script ./scripts/e2e-smoke.sh
crabbox run --fresh-pr 123 --apply-local-patch -- pnpm test

--fresh-pr accepts owner/repo#number, GitHub PR URLs, or a numeric PR from

the current GitHub origin. Non-GitHub hosts are rejected. Fresh PR checkout is

an SSH-run sync feature; delegated providers reject it. Native Windows SSH

targets are supported.

When a warm lease smells stale, prefer --full-resync (alias --fresh-sync) to

reset the remote workdir, skip the sync fingerprint fast path, reseed Git when

possible, and upload the checkout from scratch.

Scripts, Shells, And Windows Targets

Use plain argv after -- for one executable. Use --shell for multi-statement

shell snippets, pipes, or shell expansion:

crabbox run --id <lease> -- go test ./...
crabbox run --id <lease> --shell 'corepack enable && pnpm install --frozen-lockfile && pnpm test'

Prefer uploaded scripts for multi-line commands. Scripts are included in failure

bundles and avoid brittle quoted shell strings:

crabbox run --script ./scripts/e2e-smoke.sh --timing-json
printf '%s\n' 'echo CRABBOX_PHASE:test' 'pnpm test' | crabbox run --script-stdin

Native Windows targets use PowerShell and tar-based manifest sync. Prefer plain

argv for one executable such as dotnet test; use --shell for multi-statement

PowerShell and --script <file.ps1> for longer scripts.

Hyper-V Windows leases

hyperv needs a Generation 2 VHDX, DHCP, and a known local administrator

password in trusted config or CRABBOX_HYPERV_GUEST_PASSWORD. It installs

pinned, verified OpenSSH and MinGit packages when missing, using PowerShell

Direct. See docs/providers/hyperv.md for template and lifecycle details.

For provider testing, prefer an elevated headless runner; early PowerShell

Direct failures can show credential UI. Keep passwords out of arguments and

logs, and verify the lease becomes ready, runs over SSH, and releases.

Secrets And Environment Forwarding

Crabbox does not forward the whole local environment. Forwarding is name-based:

only allowlisted names that are actually set locally or in an allowed profile

cross the boundary. Avoid allowlisting secret-shaped names unless the run is an

explicit live-secret smoke.

crabbox run --allow-env CI,NODE_OPTIONS -- pnpm test
crabbox run \
  --env-from-profile ~/.project-live.profile \
  --allow-env API_TOKEN \
  --preflight \
  --script ./scripts/live-smoke.sh

--env-from-profile parses simple export NAME=value and NAME=value lines

without executing the profile. Crabbox prints redacted presence/length metadata,

not values. POSIX SSH leases can persist a helper for later commands on a lease

you control:

crabbox run \
  --id <lease> \
  --env-from-profile ~/.project-live.profile \
  --allow-env API_TOKEN \
  --env-helper live \
  -- true
crabbox run --id <lease> -- ./.crabbox/env/live ./scripts/live-smoke.sh

The generated helper and matching secret profile remain in the remote workdir

until cleanup, lease reset, or --full-resync; do not persist helpers on shared

or untrusted leases.

Profiles, Presets, Proof, And Results

Repo config can define profiles, presets, doctor requirements, artifact globs,

required artifacts, and proof templates. Use them for stable validation lanes

instead of encoding project knowledge in agent prompts.

crabbox run \
  --profile live-qa \
  --preset qa-live \
  --scenario login-regression \
  --emit-proof /tmp/proof.md \
  --stop-after success

Use --preflight for a target capability snapshot before the command, not as

an installer. Use --preflight-tools to tune probes:

crabbox run --preflight --preflight-tools node,bun,docker -- bun test
crabbox run --preflight --preflight-tools default,uv -- node --test

Attach structured results and proof artifacts when the command emits them:

crabbox run --junit reports/junit.xml -- ./scripts/test-with-junit.sh
crabbox run --artifact-glob 'reports/**' --require-artifact reports/summary.json -- pnpm test:e2e
crabbox run --download reports/summary.json=.crabbox/logs/summary.json -- pnpm test:e2e

--require-artifact fails the run if the remote command exits 0 but the proof

file is missing. Keep required artifacts bounded and scrubbed; do not collect

raw datasets, secrets, credentials, signed URLs, or unredacted customer rows.

Run Handles And Observability

Coordinator-backed runs print a durable run_... handle before leasing starts.

Keep that run ID in status updates and PR notes.

crabbox history --limit 20
crabbox history --lease <cbx_id-or-slug> --limit 20
crabbox attach <run_id>
crabbox attach <run_id> --after <seq>
crabbox events <run_id> --after <seq> --limit 100
crabbox events <run_id> --json
crabbox logs <run_id>
crabbox results <run_id>

Use --timing-json on run, warmup, and actions hydrate when a stable

machine-readable timing record is needed. Commands can mark subphases by

printing markers on stdout or stderr:

echo CRABBOX_PHASE:install
pnpm install --frozen-lockfile
echo CRABBOX_PHASE:test
pnpm test

Output events are capped previews. Use logs for retained output tails and

results for parsed test summaries.

Desktop, WebVNC, And UI Proof

Create desktop/browser leases for visual QA, headed browser automation, or UI

proof:

crabbox warmup --desktop --browser
crabbox warmup --provider aws --os ubuntu:26.04 --desktop --browser --desktop-env wayland
crabbox warmup --provider aws --os ubuntu:26.04 --desktop --browser --desktop-env gnome

ubuntu:26.04 is the default portable Linux OS selector where the provider

catalog supports it. Use --os ubuntu:24.04 only when a test must stay on the

previous LTS. Explicit provider image flags still win over --os.

For human demos, prefer WebVNC over native VNC because crabbox webvnc --open

preloads the lease password in the browser fragment:

crabbox webvnc --id <lease> --open --take-control
crabbox webvnc status --id <lease>
crabbox webvnc reset --id <lease> --open --take-control
crabbox vnc --id <lease> --open

For input automation, use first-class helpers instead of hand-written

xdotool:

crabbox desktop doctor --id <lease>
crabbox desktop launch --id <lease> --browser --url https://example.com --webvnc --open --take-control
crabbox desktop click --id <lease> --x 640 --y 420
crabbox desktop paste --id <lease> --text "[email protected]"
printf '[email protected]' | crabbox desktop paste --id <lease>
crabbox desktop type --id <lease> --text "[email protected]"
crabbox desktop key --id <lease> ctrl+l
crabbox screenshot --id <lease> --output desktop.png

When desktop/WebVNC hangs, trust the inline rescue output first: problem: and

rescue: lines usually name exact next commands such as webvnc status/reset,

desktop doctor, or native vnc --open.

Use artifacts for UI QA proof instead of committing screenshots or videos to a

product repo branch:

crabbox artifacts collect --id <lease> --all --output artifacts/<slug>
crabbox artifacts publish --dir artifacts/<slug> --pr <number>
crabbox artifacts list <artifact-manifest-url-or-dir>
crabbox artifacts pull <artifact-manifest-url-or-dir> --output /tmp/<slug>-proof

artifacts publish uses brokered storage when configured, or explicit S3/R2 /

Cloudflare/local hosting flags. Use --dry-run before public PR comments when

reviewing generated Markdown or storage commands.

Provider Boundaries

SSH-lease providers support the full sync/run surface when the target supports

it: scripts, fresh PR checkouts, captures, downloads, Actions hydration, SSH,

ports, WebVNC, code-server, desktop, browser, cache volumes, and cleanup.

Delegated-run providers own command transport. Expect them to reject SSH-run

features such as --capture-stdout, --capture-stderr, --capture-on-fail,

--script, --script-stdin, --fresh-pr, local captures, --download,

--full-resync, and --env-helper unless crabbox providers --json and the

provider docs advertise the matching capability. --keep-on-failure is still

useful for one-shot delegated providers that Crabbox would otherwise stop after

a failed command.

Module-runtime delegated providers, such as Cloudflare Dynamic Workers, run

source modules rather than Linux shell commands. Use --script <file> or

--script-stdin for module source; trailing -- <command>, SSH, rsync, ports,

Actions hydration, desktop, browser, and code-server do not apply unless the

provider explicitly documents them.

Use --market spot|on-demand on AWS warmup or one-shot run when account

quota or capacity testing needs a temporary market override. An explicit

--type means exact type; Crabbox reports quota/capacity/policy failures

instead of silently falling back.

Local And Static Targets

Use local-container for fast local proof when the host has Docker or Podman.

warmup creates a container but does not sync; for an interactive synced

container, use run --keep --sync-only:

crabbox run --provider local-container --keep --slug local-smoke --sync-only
eval "$(crabbox ssh --provider local-container --id local-smoke)"

Pass --local-container-runtime docker or --local-container-runtime podman

when the engine matters, and keep that flag on reused lease commands such as

run --id, ssh, status, and stop. crabbox ssh prints an SSH command;

use eval "$(crabbox ssh ...)" to connect. After login, cd into the workdir

printed by run --sync-only.

Use static SSH for existing machines:

crabbox run --provider ssh --target macos --static-host mac.example.com -- xcodebuild test
crabbox run --provider ssh --target windows --windows-mode normal --static-host win.example.com -- dotnet test

Static hosts are host-managed: Crabbox does not provision or delete them.

Useful Commands

crabbox providers
crabbox providers --json
crabbox doctor
crabbox config path
crabbox config show
crabbox whoami
crabbox sync-plan
crabbox warmup --class beast
crabbox prewarm
crabbox status --id <lease> --wait
crabbox inspect --id <lease> --json
crabbox run --id <lease> --preflight --timing-json -- pnpm test
crabbox job list
crabbox job run --dry-run <job-name>
crabbox pool ready
crabbox history --lease <lease>
crabbox events <run_id> --json
crabbox attach <run_id>
crabbox logs <run_id>
crabbox results <run_id>
crabbox cache stats --id <lease>
crabbox cache volumes
crabbox ssh --id <lease>
crabbox connect <lease>
crabbox ports --id <lease> --publish 8080
crabbox cp --id <lease> ./coverage.xml SANDBOX:/tmp/coverage.xml
crabbox webvnc --id <lease> --open
crabbox code --id <lease> --open
crabbox egress start --id <lease> --profile discord --daemon
crabbox desktop doctor --id <lease>
crabbox desktop proof --id <lease> --output artifacts/<slug>-proof -- ./scripts/visual-smoke.sh
crabbox artifacts collect --id <lease> --all --output artifacts/<slug>
crabbox artifacts publish --dir artifacts/<slug> --pr <number> --dry-run
crabbox usage --scope org
crabbox pause <lease>
crabbox resume <lease>
crabbox stop <lease>

Failure Triage

• Provider missing or old CLI: verify crabbox --help and crabbox providers

list the provider, then rebuild or install a current binary.

• Bad local config: compare crabbox config show, pass --provider ...

explicitly, and run crabbox doctor.

• Sync surprise: run crabbox sync-plan, add excludes, then retry with

--debug --timing-json or --full-resync.

• Raw box missing Node/pnpm/Docker: use --preflight; hydrate first if the

repo has an Actions workflow, or include setup in the command/script.

• Command failed: keep the run_... handle, inspect results, then rerun the

focused failing shard/file before a full suite.

• Desktop unhealthy: run desktop doctor, then follow problem: / rescue:

output from webvnc status or webvnc reset.

• Cleanup uncertain: use crabbox list, crabbox inspect --json, and only

stop leases or provider resources you created.

• Broker/auth confusion: use crabbox doctor, crabbox whoami, and

crabbox config show before asking for cloud credentials.

Cleanup

Brokered leases have coordinator-owned idle expiry and local lease claims.

Default idle timeout is 30 minutes unless config or flags set a different

value. Still stop boxes you created when done:

crabbox stop <cbx_id-or-slug>

When crabbox list prints orphan=no-active-lease, treat it as an operator

review hint: verify the provider machine is not referenced by an active

coordinator lease before deleting anything, especially if keep=true is set.