Skip to main content
A running machine pauses once it has been idle for minutes, and wakes on the next use, with its memory and processes kept.
  • Paid plans: any whole minute from to , or 0 to turn it off. A part minute, or a value outside that range, is refused.
  • Free plan: fixed at minutes. Another value is refused.
The setting stays across pause and resume. To set it at create, use --auto-suspend (autoSuspendAfterSeconds).

​
What counts as idle

Idle means no coding agent working, no terminal or SSH traffic, and no CPU load. An exec, a file read, a public port request, or a task lease in progress keeps the machine busy. When a signal is missing or unclear, the machine counts as busy.

​
Keep a machine awake during a silent task

A task that waits without output (for example on a model API) can still be paused as idle. To keep the machine awake, hold a lease:
Renew the lease before ttlSeconds runs out.

​
What wakes a machine

A machine that paused itself (autoSuspendedAt set) resumes on use. A request that wakes it waits up to 45 seconds for the resume, then runs. If the resume is still running after that, the answer is a retryable 409 operation_conflict naming the operation. Rows that differ say so. A GitHub Actions job keeps its CI machine awake while the job runs. It does not wake a paused one.
A machine you paused or stopped does not wake on use, instabox wake included: run instabox resume or instabox start. Until then its public URLs return 503 (Sandbox offline), with the command to run in the body.

​
Set a maximum runtime

maxRunMinutes pauses a machine after that many minutes of continuous running, even while it is busy. Explicit runtime settings and the default fixed limit are not extended by activity or leases.
  • -1 is unlimited. 0 pauses the machine at once and keeps it from waking until you change the setting.
  • Free machines run at most minutes at a time. The service manages this limit and may pause a run earlier; only an admin can override it. instabox get reports the current limit as maxRunMinutes, measured from runStartedAt.
  • Paid machines default to -1. Set it at create (--max-run-minutes) or later with instabox max-run or PATCH /v1/machines/{id}.
Whichever comes first, idle pause or maximum runtime, pauses the machine. The next wake starts a fresh run.

​
Cooldown after a maximum runtime

A pause for maximum runtime starts a cooldown. An idle pause has none. The cooldown is 5 minutes plus a random 0 to 15, so machines that reach their limit together do not all wake together.
Until the cooldown ends, every way of waking or starting the machine (exec, SSH, file reads, public URLs, wake, resume, and start) is refused with 409 machine_cooldown. Stopping, pausing, or changing settings does not shorten a cooldown already started.
The refusal is retryable: true, with a Retry-After header and retryAfterSeconds in the body. Both give the seconds left. The machine’s cooldownUntil (instabox get) says when the cooldown ends, and instabox ssh prints it. Wait that long, then retry. After the cooldown, a machine whose maxRunMinutes is 0 still refuses to wake with 409 max_run_disabled until you change the setting.
On the free plan, back-to-back max-run pauses rest longer. By default:Each step is a base (5, 60, or 120 minutes) plus the same random 0 to 15. The count starts over when a run ends with no cooldown owed (an idle pause, or you pause or stop the machine). It also starts over when a run starts 2 hours or more after the last cooldown ended. A new or forked machine starts at the 1st step. Restoring a machine in place keeps its count. A machine on a paid plan always gets the 1st step. The length is fixed when the pause starts, and cooldownUntil says exactly when it ends.
A lock after a security check paused the machine is not a max-run step, and it can last up to 24 hours. The lock is a cooldown, so it keeps the count. A run started less than 2 hours after the lock ends continues the count, and that run’s max-run pause can get the 2nd or 3rd step.

Lifecycle

Pause, resume, stop, and start by hand.

Storage and retention

What is kept, for how long, and the archive and delete deadlines.