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reviewed
microsandbox is the stronger fit when you need an open-source runtime on your own devices. Daytona offers managed container, Linux VM, Windows VM, and GPU sandboxes; its current core is privately developed. [1][2][26]
Daytona’s public repository says core development moved to a private codebase in June 2026. the old AGPL code remains available but receives no further fixes or releases. its current SDKs remain open source. [2][3]
microsandbox runs locally without a control plane, with full memory snapshots and managed device settings. its hosted cloud uses the same CLI and SDKs, with disk snapshots today and access by request during private beta. [20][21][22]
01
the legacy Daytona core and current clients are separate codebases. the client repository licenses SDKs under Apache-2.0 and the CLI under AGPL-3.0. that does not publish the current hosted runtime. microsandbox publishes the runtime you execute locally, as well as its SDKs. [2][3][26]
02
Daytona’s VM classes support memory snapshots and forks; its container class has a different isolation boundary. microsandbox always uses a guest kernel and supports full local checkpoints. cloud memory snapshots are not yet available on microsandbox. [1][5][21]
Windows also means different things here: microsandbox runs Linux sandboxes on a Windows host. Daytona’s Windows class runs Windows inside the sandbox. [1][26]
common questions
the legacy AGPL core remains public, but Daytona says current core development moved private in June 2026. current SDKs are Apache-2.0 and the CLI is AGPL-3.0. [2][3]
both. Linux VM and Windows VM classes have a separate kernel. its container and GPU classes use container isolation. [1]
for local or cloud code execution, yes. check dependencies on Daytona’s Windows guests, GPUs, computer-use APIs, or hosted memory snapshots before migrating. microsandbox’s full checkpoints are local-only. [1][7][20][21]
primary sources
put the boundary on your own machine before you choose anything else.
run it locally