New tool2026-11-06via GitHubAI Coding Tools for Developers

sandbox-mcp

Name: sandbox-mcp
Author: Scott Hanselman (shanselman on GitHub)

sandbox-mcp is a CLI (sbx) and optional MCP server from Scott Hanselman that boots a fresh, disposable Windows Sandbox, deploys your app into it, drives the UI with native UI Automation, collects screenshots, recordings and crash evidence, then destroys the guest.

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Free (open source)MITJavaScript (portable ZIP bundles its own Node.js; PowerShell guest agent)★ 305 (as of 2026-11-08)by Scott Hanselman (shanselman on GitHub)

Why it matters

For Windows app developers and the coding agents working for them: it answers "does this install and run on a clean customer PC?" by testing in a pristine, throwaway Windows guest instead of a dev box full of runtimes, and keeps the evidence on the host.

Highlights

sbx run (MCP: sandbox_run) does the whole loop in one call: boot a fresh guest, copy or install the app, launch it, observe, collect evidence, destroy the guest and write a report.unverified
sbx deps checks an app's dependencies on the host without running it; runtime prerequisites such as the VC++ redistributable are only installed when you explicitly opt in (--provision auto), and the report marks that run as provisioned rather than clean.
Native UI Automation tools inspect, click, type, toggle and wait on controls in WinUI, WPF, WinForms and Win32 apps, alongside screenshots, bounded recordings (HTML flipbook, MP4 if host ffmpeg is present) and event-log crash reports.
Extra workflows for installer testing (snapshot, install, uninstall, report what was left behind) and for detonating untrusted files with networking off by default.
Guest networking can be off, firewalled or on; the host shares only three folders, and every operation is logged to audit.jsonl in the run folder.

Taken from the project's own README, docs or launch page. Claims about speed or accuracy are the maker's unless stated otherwise.

Try it if: You ship a Windows desktop app and want your agent to prove it installs, launches and works on a clean PC before customers find the missing runtime.

Worth knowing: Windows Sandbox allows only one guest at a time, and enabling it needs an admin PowerShell command and a restart. With networking on, the guest has normal internet access; the README recommends networking off for anything untrusted and a dedicated analysis machine for real malware work. Timing figures (about 15 s boot, 40-50 s GUI runs) are the maker's own measurements.

Quick facts

Pricing	Free
Free or paid	Free (open source)
License	MIT
Language	JavaScript (portable ZIP bundles its own Node.js; PowerShell guest agent)
Platform	Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise or Education with Windows Sandbox enabled (Store version with the wsb CLI, 24H2+); x64 only, no ARM64 package; Windows Home and Server can't run it
GitHub stars	★ 305 (as of 2026-11-08)
Maker	Scott Hanselman (shanselman on GitHub)

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What we couldn't verify

highlights[0] (end-to-end timings are the maker's figures, not tested by us)

Checked 2026-11-08 from the tool's own pages. Prices and star counts change, so confirm on the official site. Listing here is not a ranking or an endorsement.