# Snapshots

Snapshots capture the state of a running sandbox, including the filesystem and installed packages. Use snapshots to skip setup time on subsequent runs.

## When to use snapshots

- **Faster startups**: Skip dependency installation by snapshotting after setup.
- **Checkpointing**: Save progress on long-running tasks.
- **Sharing environments**: Give teammates an identical starting point.

## Create a snapshot

Call `snapshot()` on a running sandbox:

> **💡 Note:** Once you create a snapshot, the sandbox shuts down automatically and becomes unreachable. You don't need to stop it afterwards.

## Create a sandbox from a snapshot

Pass the snapshot ID when creating a new sandbox:

## List snapshots

View all snapshots for your project:

## Retrieve an existing snapshot

Look up a snapshot by ID:

## Delete a snapshot

Remove snapshots you no longer need:

## Snapshot limits

- Snapshots expire after **7 days**
- See [Pricing and Limits](/docs/vercel-sandbox/pricing#snapshot-storage) for storage costs and limits


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title: "Vercel Sandbox"
description: "Vercel Sandbox allows you to run arbitrary code in isolated, ephemeral Linux VMs."
last_updated: "2026-02-03T02:58:49.898Z"
source: "https://vercel.com/docs/vercel-sandbox"
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