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https://github.com/textcortex/claude-code-sandbox

Run Claude Code safely in local Docker containers without having to approve every permission
https://github.com/textcortex/claude-code-sandbox

Last synced: 3 months ago
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Run Claude Code safely in local Docker containers without having to approve every permission

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README 

          
# Claude Code Sandbox



> [!WARNING]

>

> - This work is alpha and might have security issues, use at your own risk.

> - Check [TODO.md](./TODO.md) for the roadmap.

> - Email [dev@textcortex.com](mailto:dev@textcortex.com) for inquiries.



Run Claude Code as an autonomous agent inside Docker containers with automatic GitHub integration. Bypass all permissions safely.



Screenshot 2025-05-27 at 14 48 25



## Why Claude Code Sandbox?



The primary goal of Claude Code Sandbox is to enable **full async agentic workflows** by allowing Claude Code to execute without permission prompts. By running Claude in an isolated Docker container with the `--dangerously-skip-permissions` flag, Claude can:



- Execute any command instantly without asking for permission

- Make code changes autonomously

- Run build tools, tests, and development servers

- Create commits and manage git operations

- Work continuously without interrupting the user



Access Claude through a **browser-based terminal** that lets you monitor and interact with the AI assistant while you work on other tasks. This creates a truly autonomous development assistant, similar to [OpenAI Codex](https://chatgpt.com/codex) or [Google Jules](https://jules.dev), but running locally on your machine with full control.



## Overview



Claude Code Sandbox allows you to run Claude Code in isolated Docker containers, providing a safe environment for AI-assisted development. It automatically:



- Creates a new git branch for each session

- Monitors for commits made by Claude

- Provides interactive review of changes

- Handles credential forwarding securely

- Enables push/PR creation workflows

- Runs custom setup commands for environment initialization



## Installation



Install Claude Code Sandbox globally from npm:



```bash

npm install -g @textcortex/claude-code-sandbox

```



### Prerequisites



- Node.js >= 18.0.0

- Docker or Podman

- Git

- Claude Code (`npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code@latest`)



## Usage



### Quick Start



Simply run in any git repository:



```bash

claude-sandbox

```



This will:



1. Create a new branch (`claude/[timestamp]`)

2. Start a Docker container with Claude Code

3. Launch a web UI at `http://localhost:3456`

4. Open your browser automatically



### Commands



#### `claude-sandbox` (default)



Start a new container with web UI (recommended):



```bash

claude-sandbox

```



#### `claude-sandbox start`



Explicitly start a new container with options:



```bash

claude-sandbox start [options]



Options:

  -c, --config     Configuration file (default: ./claude-sandbox.config.json)

  -n, --name       Container name prefix

  --no-web               Disable web UI (use terminal attach)

  --no-push              Disable automatic branch pushing

  --no-pr                Disable automatic PR creation

```



#### `claude-sandbox attach [container-id]`



Attach to an existing container:



```bash

# Interactive selection

claude-sandbox attach



# Specific container

claude-sandbox attach abc123def456



Options:

  --no-web               Use terminal attach instead of web UI

```



#### `claude-sandbox list`



List all Claude Sandbox containers:



```bash

claude-sandbox list

claude-sandbox ls        # alias



Options:

  -a, --all              Show all containers (including stopped)

```



#### `claude-sandbox stop [container-id]`



Stop containers:



```bash

# Interactive selection

claude-sandbox stop



# Specific container

claude-sandbox stop abc123def456



# Stop all

claude-sandbox stop --all

```



#### `claude-sandbox logs [container-id]`



View container logs:



```bash

claude-sandbox logs

claude-sandbox logs abc123def456



Options:

  -f, --follow           Follow log output

  -n, --tail      Number of lines to show (default: 50)

```



#### `claude-sandbox clean`



Remove stopped containers:



```bash

claude-sandbox clean

claude-sandbox clean --force  # Remove all containers

```



#### `claude-sandbox config`



Show current configuration:



```bash

claude-sandbox config

```



### Configuration



Create a `claude-sandbox.config.json` file (see `claude-sandbox.config.example.json` for reference):



```json

{

  "dockerImage": "claude-code-sandbox:latest",

  "dockerfile": "./custom.Dockerfile",

  "detached": false,

  "autoPush": true,

  "autoCreatePR": true,

  "autoStartClaude": true,

  "envFile": ".env",

  "environment": {

    "NODE_ENV": "development"

  },

  "setupCommands": ["npm install", "npm run build"],

  "volumes": ["/host/path:/container/path:ro"],

  "mounts": [

    {

      "source": "./data",

      "target": "/workspace/data",

      "readonly": false

    },

    {

      "source": "/home/user/configs",

      "target": "/configs",

      "readonly": true

    }

  ],

  "allowedTools": ["*"],

  "maxThinkingTokens": 100000,

  "bashTimeout": 600000,

  "containerPrefix": "my-project",

  "claudeConfigPath": "~/.claude.json"

}

```



#### Configuration Options



- `dockerImage`: Base Docker image to use (default: `claude-code-sandbox:latest`)

- `dockerfile`: Path to custom Dockerfile (optional)

- `detached`: Run container in detached mode

- `autoPush`: Automatically push branches after commits

- `autoCreatePR`: Automatically create pull requests

- `autoStartClaude`: Start Claude Code automatically (default: true)

- `envFile`: Load environment variables from file (e.g., `.env`)

- `environment`: Additional environment variables

- `setupCommands`: Commands to run after container starts (e.g., install dependencies)

- `volumes`: Legacy volume mounts (string format)

- `mounts`: Modern mount configuration (object format)

- `allowedTools`: Claude tool permissions (default: all)

- `maxThinkingTokens`: Maximum thinking tokens for Claude

- `bashTimeout`: Timeout for bash commands in milliseconds

- `containerPrefix`: Custom prefix for container names

- `claudeConfigPath`: Path to Claude configuration file

- `dockerSocketPath`: Custom Docker/Podman socket path (auto-detected by default)



#### Mount Configuration



The `mounts` array allows you to mount files or directories into the container:



- `source`: Path on the host (relative paths are resolved from current directory)

- `target`: Path in the container (relative paths are resolved from /workspace)

- `readonly`: Optional boolean to make the mount read-only (default: false)



Example use cases:



- Mount data directories that shouldn't be in git

- Share configuration files between host and container

- Mount build artifacts or dependencies

- Access host system resources (use with caution)



## Features



### Podman Support



Claude Code Sandbox now supports Podman as an alternative to Docker. The tool automatically detects whether you're using Docker or Podman by checking for available socket paths:



- **Automatic detection**: The tool checks for Docker and Podman sockets in standard locations

- **Custom socket paths**: Use the `dockerSocketPath` configuration option to specify a custom socket

- **Environment variable**: Set `DOCKER_HOST` to override socket detection



Example configuration for Podman:



```json

{

  "dockerSocketPath": "/run/user/1000/podman/podman.sock"

}

```



The tool will automatically detect and use Podman if:



- Docker socket is not available

- Podman socket is found at standard locations (`/run/podman/podman.sock` or `$XDG_RUNTIME_DIR/podman/podman.sock`)



### Web UI Terminal



Launch a browser-based terminal interface to interact with Claude Code:



```bash

claude-sandbox --web

```



This will:



- Start the container in detached mode

- Launch a web server on `http://localhost:3456`

- Open your browser automatically

- Provide a full terminal interface with:

  - Real-time terminal streaming

  - Copy/paste support

  - Terminal resizing

  - Reconnection capabilities



Perfect for when you want to monitor Claude's work while doing other tasks.



### Automatic Credential Discovery



Claude Code Sandbox automatically discovers and forwards:



**Claude Credentials:**



- Anthropic API keys (`ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`)

- macOS Keychain credentials (Claude Code)

- AWS Bedrock credentials

- Google Vertex credentials

- Claude configuration files (`.claude.json`, `.claude/`)



**GitHub Credentials:**



- GitHub CLI authentication (`gh auth`)

- GitHub tokens (`GITHUB_TOKEN`, `GH_TOKEN`)

- Git configuration (`.gitconfig`)



### Sandboxed Execution



- Claude runs with `--dangerously-skip-permissions` flag (safe in container)

- Creates isolated branch for each session

- Full access to run any command within the container

- Files are copied into container (not mounted) for true isolation

- Git history preserved for proper version control



### Commit Monitoring



When Claude makes a commit:



1. Real-time notification appears

2. Full diff is displayed with syntax highlighting

3. Interactive menu offers options:

   - Continue working

   - Push branch to remote

   - Push branch and create PR

   - Exit



### Working with Multiple Containers



Run multiple Claude instances simultaneously:



```bash

# Terminal 1: Start main development

claude-sandbox start --name main-dev



# Terminal 2: Start feature branch work

claude-sandbox start --name feature-auth



# Terminal 3: List all running containers

claude-sandbox list



# Terminal 4: Attach to any container

claude-sandbox attach

```



## Docker Environment



### Default Image



The default Docker image includes:



- Ubuntu 22.04

- Git, GitHub CLI

- Node.js, npm

- Python 3

- Claude Code (latest)

- Build essentials



### Custom Dockerfile



Create a custom environment:



```dockerfile

FROM claude-code-sandbox:latest



# Add your tools

RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y \

    rust \

    cargo \

    postgresql-client



# Install project dependencies

COPY package.json /tmp/

RUN cd /tmp && npm install



# Custom configuration

ENV CUSTOM_VAR=value

```



Reference in config:



```json

{

  "dockerfile": "./my-custom.Dockerfile"

}

```



## Workflow Example



1. **Start Claude Sandbox:**



   ```bash

   cd my-project

   claude-sandbox

   ```



2. **Interact with Claude:**



   ```

   > Help me refactor the authentication module to use JWT tokens

   ```



3. **Claude works autonomously:**



   - Explores codebase

   - Makes changes

   - Runs tests

   - Commits changes



4. **Review and push:**

   - See commit notification

   - Review syntax-highlighted diff

   - Choose to push and create PR



## Security Considerations



- Credentials are mounted read-only

- Containers are isolated from host

- Branch restrictions prevent accidental main branch modifications

- All changes require explicit user approval before pushing



## Troubleshooting



### Claude Code not found



Ensure Claude Code is installed globally:



```bash

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code@latest

```



### Docker permission issues



Add your user to the docker group:



```bash

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

# Log out and back in for changes to take effect

```



### Container cleanup



Remove all Claude Sandbox containers and images:



```bash

npm run purge-containers

```



### Credential discovery fails



Set credentials explicitly:



```bash

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your-key

export GITHUB_TOKEN=your-token

```



Or use an `.env` file with `envFile` config option.



### Build errors



Ensure you're using Node.js >= 18.0.0:



```bash

node --version

```



## Development



### Building from Source



To build and develop Claude Code Sandbox from source:



```bash

git clone https://github.com/textcortex/claude-code-sandbox.git

cd claude-code-sandbox

npm install

npm run build

npm link  # Creates global 'claude-sandbox' command

```



### Available Scripts



- `npm run build` - Build TypeScript to JavaScript

- `npm run dev` - Watch mode for development

- `npm start` - Run the CLI

- `npm run lint` - Run ESLint

- `npm test` - Run tests

- `npm run purge-containers` - Clean up all containers



## Contributing



1. Fork the repository

2. Create a feature branch

3. Make your changes

4. Run tests: `npm test`

5. Run linter: `npm run lint`

6. Submit a pull request



## License



MIT