A New Chapter for DevNet Sandbox

[jokearns1]

Hi @All 
We have some news to share. Please read the message below:

Beginning August 1st, the current Sandbox platform will temporarily transition offline as we build something entirely new from the ground up, a platform designed to deliver a more focused, seamless, and compelling experience for developers at every stage of their journey. We are aiming to have DevNet Sandbox back online early 2027. 

Since its launch in 2014, the DevNet Sandbox has been a trusted resource for developers worldwide—providing hands-on access to Cisco technologies for learning, prototyping, and innovation. After more than a decade of serving our vibrant developer community, we're excited to announce that we are embarking on a bold reimagining of the Sandbox experience. Beginning August 1st, the current Sandbox platform will temporarily transition offline as we build something entirely new from the ground up—a platform designed to deliver a more focused, seamless, and compelling experience for developers at every stage of their journey. 

Innovation at the Core 

This isn't just a refresh—it's a reinvention. We're taking this opportunity to rethink what a modern developer sandbox should look like, how it should function, and what unique value it can deliver. Our team is actively exploring new approaches to orchestration, access, and service delivery that will set the next-generation Sandbox apart. Our goal is to emerge with a platform that not only meets the evolving needs of today's developers but anticipates where the industry is headed—particularly as AI, automation, and programmability continue to reshape how we build and deploy technology. 

What to Expect 

We're targeting Q1CY27 to begin rolling out the new Sandbox experience, and we'll be engaging our developer community along the way for feedback and early access as components come online. In the interim, we remain committed to supporting critical developer needs on a case-by-case basis. We deeply appreciate the passion and loyalty of the DevNet community, and we can't wait to share what's next. Stay tuned to developer.cisco.com and our community channels for updates as we build the future of DevNet Sandbox together. 
 
DevNet Sandbox Rebuild – Talking Points 

• DevNet Sandbox is being temporarily taken offline beginning August 1st to undergo a complete rebuild, with the goal of reintroducing a new experience starting in early January. 

• This is a deliberate reinvention, not just a refresh. We're using this opportunity to reimagine the platform from the ground up—rethinking how developers access, interact with, and benefit from Cisco's technology portfolio. 

• The new Sandbox will deliver a more focused, seamless, and modern developer experience, designed to align with where the industry is headed—particularly around AI, automation, and programmability. 

• We remain committed to supporting developers during the transition. Critical needs will be accommodated on a case-by-case basis, and we'll engage the community for feedback and early access as new components roll out. 

• Developers should stay connected via developer.cisco.com and DevNet community channels for updates, timelines, and opportunities to help shape the future of the Sandbox experience. 

We are also looking at ways to keep our Always On environments available from August 1st to December. Some of these labs rely on automation to spin up and tear down user credentials. We are investigating at alternatives to this. 

Please reply if you have any comments or concerns. If you feel more comfortable reaching out 1-1, please do so on the forum
Also, let us know what you would like to see in the next iteration of Sandbox. 
All feedback is good. 

Thank you for your continued support, 

The Sandbox Team. 

[jokearns1]

Hi @All 

First, thank you for all your feedback. We appreciate that this is a sensitive subject and that there are many opinions surrounding it.

Since my last message, a few things have changed. We have been working behind the scenes to keep Sandbox available while we migrate to a new system, and we have some good news to share.

Sandbox will remain available beyond August 1, 2026. Private reservation and Always-On labs will continue to operate as normal while we work on the migration to the new platform.

We expect to require a shorter maintenance window of approximately two to three weeks later in the year. However, it will not be the four month down time as originally communicated. We will provide further details as soon as they are available.

The situation has been continually evolving, and we have been doing our best to ensure that the Sandbox community is supported throughout. We will continue to communicate any changes or updates promptly.

Thank you for your patience and continued commitment to the service. Please reach out here or contact us directly if you have any questions.

We will also post this update as a separate community thread to ensure that all members are aware of the news.

Thanks again,

Support

[fracjackmac]

Hello @jokearns1, 

I just made it down to the entry in the thread that tells us the current environment will be available beyond August 1st, and this is wonderful news!!

Thanks goes out to you and the rest of the team for finding a way to keep the platform running while the new one is being built out.

Excellent news!!!

[christianodom91]

Hi everyone,

I'm new to all this and I'm currently taking a course that requires me to use the Catalyst 9000 Always-On Sandbox.

I launched a new sandbox, waited until it became Active, and used the generated username and password exactly as shown in both the resource card and the I/O tab.

Here's what I've verified:

• SSH connectivity to devnetsandboxiosxec9k.cisco.com is successful.
• TCP port 22 is open.
• The SSH handshake completes successfully and the server presents its host key.
• I tested using both Windows OpenSSH and PuTTY.
• Both clients prompt for the generated password, but authentication fails every time with "Permission denied" (OpenSSH) or "Access denied" (PuTTY).
• I deleted and recreated the sandbox to generate a new username/password, but the issue persists.

I've spent quite a bit of time troubleshooting and have ruled out my local machine, SSH client, firewall, and network connection. From reading previous community posts, I noticed Cisco has acknowledged similar authentication issues with Always-On sandboxes that required the environment to be reset.

Could someone from the Sandbox team please check whether the Catalyst 9000 Always-On sandbox authentication is working correctly or whether this environment needs to be reset?

Thank you for your help!

[Jesus Illescas]

@christianodom91 I pinged the sandbox team and asked them to reset the Catalyst 9000 Always-On Sandbox.

For future request, I recommend to open new posts for new issues, unless your issue matches an un-resolved post, this helps us to track.

[Jesus Illescas]

@christianodom91 the sandbox team reset the "Catalyst 9000 Always-On Sandbox" and is working now. Start a new reservation.

[fracjackmac]

Sad to see this workhorse go, but it is definitely in need of an overhaul.

Thanks for making the platform available!

I wish there were an interim solution available while we await the new and improved environment ...