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Choose a machine kind when you create it to control sandbox execution timeout behavior. The dashboard calls persistent machines Keep it and temporary machines Delete it after.

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Temporary machines

Temporary timeouts have a 24-hour maximum. To change an existing machine’s timeout, save a request such as {"timeout":900} as timeout.json:
The timeout replaces the deadline with now plus the requested seconds and can shorten it. A timeout request still needs available credit and admission. Inspect the updated machine deadline before scheduling work beyond it.

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Persistent machines

Idle pause defaults to 900 seconds. Choose 300–86400 seconds, or --idle-timeout never to keep running and billed. Persistent machines have no lifetime expiry. Funded access through exec, files, desktop, or application HTTP can wake them. Paused machines pay storage only. If renewal cannot be funded, persistent machines pause for credit grace. Inspect grace_deadline and warnings and add credit before that deadline. Machines are deleted after their grace deadline.

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Template defaults

Base, agents, and CI default to temporary. OpenClaw, Hermes, computer, devbox, and devbox-computer default to persistent. An explicit kind overrides the template default; CI and swarms are always temporary. Custom builds default to temporary unless configured otherwise. Read pause and resume, prepaid credit, and run a job.