Sprites.dev API Knowledge

Overview

Sprites.dev provides persistent cloud sandboxes (called "sprites") for running code remotely. Key features:

•Persistent ext4 filesystems that survive hibernation
•Auto-hibernation after 30 seconds of inactivity (no compute cost when idle)
•Instant wake on any request
•Session management for long-running processes
•Filesystem API for direct file operations

CLI Reference

Sprite Management

bash

sprite create <name>          # Create new sprite
sprite list                   # List all sprites
sprite use <name>             # Set active sprite for directory
sprite use                    # Show current active sprite
sprite destroy <name>         # Delete sprite (permanent)

Command Execution

bash

sprite exec "command"                    # One-off execution
sprite exec -detachable "command"        # Detachable session
sprite exec -env KEY=VAL "command"       # With environment variables
sprite exec -dir /path "command"         # With working directory
sprite exec -file local:/remote "cmd"    # Upload file before exec

Session Management

bash

sprite sessions list          # List running sessions
sprite sessions attach <id>   # Reattach to session
sprite sessions kill <id>     # Terminate session

Detach from session: Press Ctrl+\ (keeps running in background)

Port Forwarding

bash

sprite proxy <port>           # Forward sprite port to localhost

Filesystem API

Base URL: https://api.sprites.dev/v1 Auth: Authorization: Bearer <token>

Write File

bash

curl -X PUT \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/octet-stream" \
  --data-binary "@localfile.txt" \
  "https://api.sprites.dev/v1/sprites/NAME/fs/write?path=remote.txt&workingDir=/home/sprite&mkdir=true"

Read File

bash

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  "https://api.sprites.dev/v1/sprites/NAME/fs/read?path=file.txt&workingDir=/home/sprite"

List Directory

bash

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  "https://api.sprites.dev/v1/sprites/NAME/fs/list?path=.&workingDir=/home/sprite"

Delete

bash

curl -X DELETE \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"path":"file.txt","workingDir":"/home/sprite","recursive":false,"asRoot":false}' \
  "https://api.sprites.dev/v1/sprites/NAME/fs/delete"

Authentication

Token stored in ~/.sprites/sprites.json after running sprite org auth.

Extract token:

bash

jq -r '.token' ~/.sprites/sprites.json

Best Practices

•Use detachable sessions for long-running processes (dev servers, builds, tests)
•Sync git-tracked files rather than entire directories to avoid bloat
•Port forward for accessing web UIs running in sprites
•Check sessions before creating new ones to avoid orphaned processes
•Sprites hibernate automatically - no need to manually stop them
•Use checkpoints for creating clean restore points (filesystem snapshots)

Common Patterns

Development Server

bash

sprite create my-dev
sprite use my-dev
# sync files
sprite exec -detachable "npm run dev"
sprite proxy 3000
# Access at localhost:3000

CI-style Execution

bash

sprite exec "npm install && npm test && npm run build"

Background Build

bash

sprite exec -detachable "npm run build:watch"
sprite sessions list  # to monitor