Introduction

Sandbox organizations provide isolated testing environments where you can experiment with infrastructure packages without affecting production systems. Each sandbox operates as an independent organization with full IPMHub functionality while maintaining your existing licensing structure.

Key Features

  • Complete Isolation: Dedicated organization with “-sandbox” suffix, fully separated from production
  • Full Platform Access: All IPMHub features including publishing, workspace management, and CLI operations
  • Production Integration: Use packages from your main organization as nested dependencies
  • Protected Boundaries: Technical controls prevent sandbox packages from contaminating production
  • Quarterly Reset: Automatic cleanup every 4 months keeps environments fresh

How Sandbox Organizations Work

Organization Structure

When you request a sandbox, IPMHub creates a new organization with your organization name plus a “-sandbox” suffix:

  • Production org: mycompany
  • Sandbox org: mycompany-sandbox

The sandbox is completely separate - packages, versions, and tracked workspaces exist independently from production.

User Management

Access Control

Organization owners control who gets sandbox access. Users can have different roles in production versus sandbox:

  • Different permissions per environment (e.g., Reader in production, Contributor in sandbox)
  • Users share your existing license allocation
  • No additional user licenses required

Automatic Environment Refresh

Quarterly Reset Schedule

Every 4 months, IPMHub automatically removes:

  • All packages and their versions
  • All tracked workspaces
  • Package metadata and history

What Stays Intact

  • User accounts and permissions
  • Organization settings
  • Client secrets
  • Role assignments

Reset Notifications

Teams receive advance warning before the scheduled cleanup operations.

Use Cases

Learning and Development

  • Staging environment for package development
  • Run training workshops on IPMHub features
  • Practice complex dependency modeling
  • Learn infrastructure package concepts safely

Innovation Testing

  • Develop proof-of-concept projects before production commitment
  • Evaluate new IPMHub features
  • Test complex nested package architectures
  • Experiment with different package structures

Production Integration

While sandbox packages stay isolated, you can:

  • Reference production packages as dependencies in sandbox projects
  • Test how production packages work together
  • Validate integration patterns before production deployment
  • Build on existing production modules

Setup

Requesting a Sandbox

Contact sales@ipmhub.io to request sandbox environment setup for your organization.

Best Practices

Managing the Reset Cycle

  • Document important experiments before reset dates
  • Export valuable packages to production before cleanup
  • Use the 4-month cycle to encourage clean, focused experimentation
  • Treat sandbox as temporary by design

Access Management

  • Grant sandbox access to team members who need to experiment
  • Use different roles to control what users can do in each environment
  • Review sandbox permissions quarterly during reset periods

Integration Patterns

  • Reference production packages as dependencies to build on existing work
  • Test integration patterns in sandbox before applying to production
  • Use sandbox to validate upgrade paths for production packages

Technical Boundaries

Isolation Guarantees

  • Sandbox packages cannot be referenced in production packages
  • Production packages remain unaffected by sandbox experiments
  • Technical controls enforce separation
  • No cross-contamination between environments

Shared Resources

While isolated, sandboxes share:

  • Your organization’s license pool
  • User authentication system
  • IPMHub platform infrastructure

Common Questions

Can I keep packages after a reset? No. The quarterly reset removes all packages and versions. Export important work to production before reset dates.

Do I need extra licenses for sandbox users? No. Sandbox users share your existing license allocation.

Can I turn off the quarterly reset? No. The reset is built-in to prevent sandboxes from becoming secondary production environments.

What happens to tracked workspaces during reset? All tracked workspaces are deleted. The workspace history and revisions are removed.

Can sandbox packages reference production packages? Yes. You can use production packages as nested dependencies in sandbox projects.

Can I sync packages from production to sandbox? Yes. Use the Sync from Production feature to copy package metadata to your sandbox.

Getting Started

After your sandbox is provisioned:

  1. Organization owners receive access to the new sandbox organization
  2. Invite and assign roles to team members who need sandbox access
  3. Users can start creating and publishing packages in the sandbox
  4. Use the Sync from Production feature to copy package metadata from your production organization