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sandbox_exec

Execute shell commands in an isolated Debian Linux sandbox to run code safely without affecting the host system. Use stdin for data input and set timeouts for long operations.

Instructions

Execute a shell command in an isolated Debian Linux sandbox. Commands run in bash. Each call is independent — no state (shell variables, working directory) persists between calls (however filesystem does persist). Use the working_directory parameter or chain commands with && to control execution context.

To write files or pass data without shell escaping, use the stdin parameter (e.g., command="cat > file.txt" with content in stdin). Commands time out after 120 seconds by default (override with the timeout parameter for long-running operations).

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
commandNoShell command string (mutually exclusive with args).
argsNoList of arguments for direct execution (mutually exclusive with command).
stdinNoContent to pipe to stdin.
working_directoryNoWorking directory for the command (must be absolute).
timeoutNoTimeout in seconds (defaults to server config).

Implementation Reference

  • The _create_handler function creates and returns the sandbox_exec_handler, which is the core handler that executes tool logic. It sanitizes inputs, validates them, gets/creates the sandbox from context, constructs ExecRequest, executes the command via sandbox.exec(), and returns the formatted CallToolResult.
    def _create_handler(config: ServerConfig) -> Callable[..., Any]:
        """Create the sandbox_exec handler with server config bound via closure.
    
        Args:
            config: The server configuration containing defaults.
    
        Returns:
            An async handler function for the sandbox_exec tool.
        """
    
        async def sandbox_exec_handler(
            command: str | None = None,
            args: list[str] | None = None,
            stdin: str | None = None,
            working_directory: str | None = None,
            timeout: int | None = None,
            ctx: Context[ServerSession, SessionContext] | None = None,
        ) -> CallToolResult:
            """Handle a sandbox_exec tool call.
    
            Args:
                command: Shell command string (mutually exclusive with args).
                args: List of arguments for direct execution (mutually exclusive with command).
                stdin: Content to pipe to stdin.
                working_directory: Working directory for the command (must be absolute).
                timeout: Timeout in seconds (defaults to server config).
                ctx: FastMCP context object (injected automatically).
    
            Returns:
                A CallToolResult with the execution result or error.
            """
            # --- Input sanitization ---
            if args is not None and len(args) == 0:
                args = None
            if command is not None and len(command) == 0:
                command = None
            if working_directory is not None and len(working_directory) == 0:
                working_directory = None
            if stdin is not None and len(stdin) == 0:
                stdin = None
    
            # --- Input validation ---
            error = _validate_inputs(command, args, stdin, working_directory, timeout)
            if error is not None:
                return CallToolResult(
                    content=[TextContent(type="text", text=error)],
                    isError=True,
                )
    
            # --- Get sandbox from context ---
            # ctx should always be provided by FastMCP, but handle None for safety
            if ctx is None:
                return CallToolResult(
                    content=[
                        TextContent(type="text", text="Internal error: no context provided")
                    ],
                    isError=True,
                )
    
            session_context = ctx.request_context.lifespan_context
    
            # --- Lazy sandbox creation ---
            try:
                sandbox = await session_context.get_or_create_sandbox()
            except BackendError as e:
                return CallToolResult(
                    content=[TextContent(type="text", text=str(e))],
                    isError=True,
                )
    
            # --- Construct ExecRequest ---
            request = ExecRequest(
                command=command,
                args=args,
                stdin=stdin,
                working_directory=working_directory,
                timeout=timeout if timeout is not None else config.default_timeout,
                output_limit=config.output_limit,
            )
    
            # --- Execute ---
            try:
                result = await sandbox.exec(request)
            except SandboxDiedError as e:
                return CallToolResult(
                    content=[TextContent(type="text", text=str(e))],
                    isError=True,
                )
    
            # --- Format response ---
            response_json = json.dumps(
                {
                    "stdout": result.stdout,
                    "stderr": result.stderr,
                    "exit_code": result.exit_code,
                    "exec_duration_ms": result.exec_duration_ms,
                }
            )
    
            return CallToolResult(
                content=[TextContent(type="text", text=response_json)],
                isError=False,
            )
    
        return sandbox_exec_handler
  • ExecRequest dataclass defines the validated input parameters for command execution, including command/args (mutually exclusive), stdin, working_directory, timeout, and output_limit. Includes __post_init__ validation for mutual exclusivity and constraints.
    @dataclass(frozen=True, slots=True, kw_only=True)
    class ExecRequest:
        """Validated parameters for a command execution.
    
        Constructed by the MCP layer after input validation. The MCP layer
        resolves defaults (effective timeout, configured output limit) so
        the backend always receives concrete values.
    
        kw_only=True forces callers to use keyword arguments, which is
        clearer for a dataclass with many optional fields.
        """
    
        # Exactly one of command or args must be provided
        command: str | None = None
        args: list[str] | None = None
    
        # Optional parameters
        stdin: str | None = None
        working_directory: str | None = None
    
        # Always provided by MCP layer (defaults resolved before reaching backend)
        timeout: int  # seconds
        output_limit: int  # bytes
    
        def __post_init__(self) -> None:
            # Validate mutual exclusivity of command/args
            if self.command is not None and self.args is not None:
                raise ValueError("command and args are mutually exclusive")
            if self.command is None and self.args is None:
                raise ValueError("either command or args must be provided")
    
            # Validate working_directory is absolute
            if self.working_directory is not None and not self.working_directory.startswith(
                "/"
            ):
                raise ValueError("working_directory must be an absolute path")
    
            # Validate timeout
            if self.timeout < 1:
                raise ValueError("timeout must be at least 1 second")
    
            # Validate output_limit
            if self.output_limit < 1:
                raise ValueError("output_limit must be positive")
  • ExecResult dataclass defines the output schema for execution results, containing stdout, stderr, exit_code, and exec_duration_ms fields.
    @dataclass(frozen=True, slots=True)
    class ExecResult:
        """Result of a command execution.
    
        The return type from every exec call. Immutable, with no optional
        fields — every execution produces all four values.
    
        Maps directly to the MCP response schema (Functional spec §2.2).
        The MCP layer serializes this to JSON for the tool response.
        """
    
        stdout: str
        stderr: str
        exit_code: int
        exec_duration_ms: int
  • Tool registration via mcp.add_tool() - registers the sandbox_exec wrapper function with name 'sandbox_exec' and the assembled description.
    mcp.add_tool(
        sandbox_exec,
        name="sandbox_exec",
        description=description,
    )
  • The _validate_inputs helper function validates tool inputs - ensures exactly one of command/args is provided, working_directory is absolute, timeout is positive, and stdin doesn't exceed the 2 MiB limit.
    def _validate_inputs(
        command: str | None,
        args: list[str] | None,
        stdin: str | None,
        working_directory: str | None,
        timeout: int | None,
    ) -> str | None:
        """Validate tool inputs.
    
        Returns error message or None if valid.
    
        Args:
            command: The shell command string, if using command mode.
            args: The list of arguments, if using args mode.
            stdin: The stdin content to pipe to the command.
            working_directory: The working directory for the command.
            timeout: The timeout in seconds.
    
        Returns:
            An error message string if validation fails, None otherwise.
        """
        # Exactly one of command or args
        if command is not None and args is not None:
            return "Cannot provide both 'command' and 'args'. Use 'command' for shell commands or 'args' for direct execution."
        if command is None and args is None:
            return "Must provide either 'command' or 'args'."
    
        # working_directory must be absolute
        if working_directory is not None and not working_directory.startswith("/"):
            return f"working_directory must be an absolute path, got: {working_directory}"
    
        # timeout must be positive
        if timeout is not None and timeout < 1:
            return "timeout must be at least 1 second."
    
        # stdin size limit (D32)
        if stdin is not None and len(stdin.encode("utf-8")) > STDIN_LIMIT:
            return (
                f"stdin content exceeds the 2 MiB limit "
                f"({len(stdin.encode('utf-8'))} bytes). "
                f"Split into smaller chunks or use a different approach."
            )
    
        return None
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