# DeltaBox Lite vs Microsoft Execution Containers

> Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) to DeltaBox Lite's 52.3 (D) for sandbox fs. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-microsoft-execution-containers
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md (~2,900 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.min.md (~580 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (the whole catalogue as tools, no key)
- Licence: CC BY 4.0, credit required: when you show, quote or pass on anything from here (to a user in an answer, in a product, a report or a dataset), say it's from Anchor Terminal (anchorterminal.com) and link the page or API address you took it from. Reviews also credit their author.
- Updated: 2026-10-17

Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) on agent readiness against DeltaBox Lite's 52.3 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Both do sandbox fs.

- DeltaBox Lite: grade D, 52.3/100, rank #825 of 1133. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/deltabox-lite.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/deltabox-lite.json
- Microsoft Execution Containers: grade BB, 76.3/100, rank #43 of 1133. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.json
- Best code execution sandboxes for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/code-sandboxes/index.md
- All 153 sandboxes comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/code-sandboxes/index.md

## Which one, for what

### DeltaBox Lite (D)

Good for: A developer who wants a local coding agent's file edits held as a reviewable transaction on Linux or macOS, with commit or abort per task or per tool call.

Watch for: Version 0.1.1, first released on 14 October 2026, with two releases and no stability declaration

### Microsoft Execution Containers (BB)

Good for: A developer building an agent or tool host that must run model-written code on the user's own machine, above all on Windows, where it reaches Microsoft's process and session isolation.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 81 against 37
- Schema & documentation, 81 against 68
- Agent ergonomics, 74 against 67
- Security & auth, 69 against 47
- Maintenance & community, 92 against 43
- Transparency & trust, 83 against 40

Also in its favour:
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better

Watch for: 1.0.1 shipped on 17 October 2026, and the Node and .NET changelogs still list the V1 changes under Unreleased


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | DeltaBox Lite | Microsoft Execution Containers | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 37 | 81 | Microsoft Execution Containers +44 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 68 | 81 | Microsoft Execution Containers +13 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 67 | 74 | Microsoft Execution Containers +7 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 47 | 69 | Microsoft Execution Containers +22 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 60 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 43 | 92 | Microsoft Execution Containers +49 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 40 | 83 | Microsoft Execution Containers +43 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **52.3 · D** | **76.3 · BB** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | DeltaBox Lite | Microsoft Execution Containers |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | SDK + MCP | SDK + MCP |
| Vendor | DeltaBox (delta-box) | Microsoft |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | None | None |
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Read-only variant documented | no | yes |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-14 | 2026-10-17 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | couldn't be read |
| Customer content may train models |  |  |
| Terms restrict automated access |  |  |
| Terms restrict benchmarking |  |  |
| Terms or service can change without notice |  |  |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver |  |  |
| Popularity | none | 1.5k stars, 472k npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | 2.8/5 (4) | 3/5 (4) |

## Verdicts

**DeltaBox Lite.** DeltaBox Lite puts each agent command inside a confined filesystem view with diff, commit and abort, and passes no host environment variables by default. It is version 0.1.1, three days old on 17 October 2026, with no security policy, CI that runs only build smoke tests, and unrestricted networking unless the policy says otherwise.

**Microsoft Execution Containers.** MXC puts nine operating-system sandbox backends behind one typed request, with network access denied by default and a JSON Schema for the stable 1.0.0 contract. Version 1.0.0 shipped on 6 October 2026 and 1.0.1 on 17 October. Enforcement varies by backend, and `isolation_session` cannot restrict networking at all.

## Before you call either

### DeltaBox Lite

1. Skip step 5 of install-prompt.txt. Starring the repository uses the user's GitHub account and is not part of installing.
2. Pass `--commit` or `--abort` to `deltabox run` explicitly. The child's exit status is preserved after that decision.
3. Wrap redirection and pipes in `sh -c '...'`. An unquoted `>` is handled by the host shell and writes outside the sandbox.
4. Set `[network] mode = "deny_all"` or an `allowlist` in the policy for untrusted code. The default allows every destination.
5. Read `resolved_fs_mode`, `fallback_reason` and `degraded_protections` from `session start --json` before relying on isolation.

### Microsoft Execution Containers

1. Import from `@microsoft/mxc-sdk/v1`. The package root exports nothing.
2. Call `getPlatformSupport()` first and stop if `isSupported` is false. `getAvailableBackends()` is advisory and launch-time validation still applies.
3. Set `network.egress.default` to `allow` only when the task needs it. Omitted network policy resolves to deny in every direction.
4. Never pass `--audit` to an executor for untrusted code. It turns off all sandbox security for the workload.
5. Read `ExecutionResult.warnings` after each run. Security warnings arrive there and are not written to stdout or stderr.

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, DeltaBox Lite or Microsoft Execution Containers?

Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) on agent readiness against DeltaBox Lite's 52.3 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories.

### Are DeltaBox Lite and Microsoft Execution Containers open source?

Yes. DeltaBox Lite is open source (Apache-2.0). Microsoft Execution Containers is open source (MIT).


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "deltabox-lite", "b": "microsoft-execution-containers"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare deltabox-lite microsoft-execution-containers`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/deltabox-lite.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.json

## Other comparisons with DeltaBox Lite or Microsoft Execution Containers

- [Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Code Interpreter vs DeltaBox Lite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agentcore-code-interpreter-vs-deltabox-lite.md)
- [Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Code Interpreter vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agentcore-code-interpreter-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Blaxel Sandboxes vs DeltaBox Lite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/blaxel-sandboxes-vs-deltabox-lite.md)
- [Blaxel Sandboxes vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/blaxel-sandboxes-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Cloudflare Sandbox SDK vs DeltaBox Lite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-sandbox-sdk-vs-deltabox-lite.md)
- [Cloudflare Sandbox SDK vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-sandbox-sdk-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Daytona vs DeltaBox Lite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/daytona-vs-deltabox-lite.md)
- [Daytona vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/daytona-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Deno Sandbox vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deno-sandbox-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [E2B vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/e2b-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Freestyle vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freestyle-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Modal Sandboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-modal-sandboxes.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Morph Cloud](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-morph-cloud.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Offscreen](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-offscreen.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Runloop Devboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-runloop.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Sprites](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-sprites.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Together Code Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-together-code-sandbox.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Vercel Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-vercel-sandbox.md)
- [Agent 37 Cloud vs DeltaBox Lite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent37-vs-deltabox-lite.md)
- [Agent 37 Cloud vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent37-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Deno Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-deno-sandbox.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs E2B](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-e2b.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Freestyle](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-freestyle.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Modal Sandboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-modal-sandboxes.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Morph Cloud](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-morph-cloud.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Offscreen](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-offscreen.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Runloop Devboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-runloop.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Sprites](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-sprites.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Together Code Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-together-code-sandbox.md)
- [DeltaBox Lite vs Vercel Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deltabox-lite-vs-vercel-sandbox.md)

---

Query this catalogue directly over MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (Streamable HTTP, no key). How: https://www.anchorterminal.com/agents/#mcp