crabbox/docs/providers

Provider Reference

Read when:

• choosing a Crabbox provider for a repo or one-off command;
• debugging provider-specific provisioning, sync, or command execution;
• changing provider registration, flags, config, or backend behavior.

Crabbox supports managed SSH lease providers, delegated run providers, and one static SSH provider for existing machines.

Provider	Backend kind	Targets	Best for
AWS	SSH lease	Linux, Windows, macOS	broad managed capacity, Windows, EC2 Mac
Azure	SSH lease	Linux, Windows	Azure-backed Linux and native Windows capacity
Hetzner	SSH lease	Linux	fast Linux capacity at low cost
Static SSH	SSH lease	Linux, macOS, Windows	reusing an existing host
Blacksmith Testbox	delegated run	Linux	existing Blacksmith Testbox workflows
Daytona	hybrid delegated run + SSH	Linux	Daytona snapshot sandboxes
Islo	delegated run	Linux	Islo-owned sandbox execution

Shared Rules

Core Crabbox owns provider selection, config loading, friendly slugs, local repo claims, timing summaries, command rendering, and normalized list/status output. Providers own only their backend boundary: provisioning or delegated command execution.

Use --provider <name> for one command, or set provider: <name> in Crabbox config. Provider flags are registered by provider packages before command-line parsing, so provider-specific flags work even when that provider is not the default.

crabbox warmup --provider aws --class beast
crabbox run --provider hetzner -- pnpm test
crabbox run --provider blacksmith-testbox --id tbx_123 -- pnpm test

Brokered Versus Direct

AWS, Azure, and Hetzner can run through the Crabbox coordinator or directly from the CLI. Coordinator mode is the normal shared-team path: the Worker owns cloud credentials, cost state, cleanup alarms, and lease accounting.

Direct mode is for local operator debugging or non-brokered setups. It uses local provider credentials and best-effort cleanup through provider labels.

Delegated providers do not use the Crabbox coordinator:

• Blacksmith uses the authenticated Blacksmith CLI.
• Daytona uses Daytona API and SDK/toolbox APIs.
• Islo uses the Islo API and SDK auth.

Feature Matrix

Provider	run	warmup	ssh	VNC/code	Crabbox sync	Provider sync
AWS	yes	yes	yes	yes	yes	no
Azure	yes	yes	yes	Linux VNC/code	yes	no
Hetzner	yes	yes	yes	Linux VNC/code	yes	no
Static SSH	yes	resolves host	yes	host-dependent	yes	no
Blacksmith Testbox	yes	yes	no	no	no	yes
Daytona	yes	yes	yes	no	archive via Daytona toolbox	no
Islo	yes	yes	no	no	no	yes

Actions runner hydration requires a normal SSH lease on Linux and is core-over-SSH. Use AWS, Hetzner, or Static SSH for that path.

Implementation

Provider implementation lives under internal/providers/<name>. The command orchestration and renderer surface stays in internal/cli.

Related docs:

• Provider backends
• Feature overview
• Source map