Execute commands in sandbox

You can execute commands in a running sandbox and receive its output by using the following command.

Bash

novita-sandbox-cli sandbox exec <sandbox-id> <command>

--background flag lets you run a command in the background and return immediately. The command will print the process ID (PID) to stderr:

Bash

novita-sandbox-cli sandbox exec --background <sandbox-id> "sleep 60 && echo done"

--cwd flag specifies the working directory for the command.

Bash

novita-sandbox-cli sandbox exec --cwd /home/user <sandbox-id> ls

--user flag specifies the user to run the command.

Bash

novita-sandbox-cli sandbox exec --user root <sandbox-id> apt-get update

--env flag lets you set environment variables. Repeat the flag to set multiple variables.

Bash

novita-sandbox-cli sandbox exec --env NODE_ENV=production --env DEBUG=true <sandbox-id> node app.js

Last modified on June 4, 2026

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