generated: '2026-08-19'
method: searched
source: https://docs.abloatai.com/branch-development + https://docs.abloatai.com/api-keys + https://docs.abloatai.com/deployment
model: branch-isolation
note: >-
  Ablo has NO shared sandbox mode and says so explicitly. There is no test-vs-live key pair, no
  magic test values and no fixture generator. Isolation is achieved structurally instead: every Git
  branch gets its own immutable Ablo branch plane with its own schema and its own expiring
  credential, and Production is simply the protected root of that same tree. This is a real testing
  story — arguably a stronger one than test-mode keys, because a branch is a full plane rather than
  a parallel universe with different behaviour — but it means an evaluator cannot make a call
  against Ablo without an account.
shared_sandbox: false
shared_sandbox_quote: 'The branch uses a throwaway hosted data plane; Production remains the protected root. There is no shared Sandbox mode.'
test_credentials:
  model: expiring branch-bound credentials, not test-mode keys
  mint_cli: 'npx ablo dev --no-watch --branch <git-or-ci-ref>'
  mint_api: 'POST /v1/branches/{id}/credentials (mintBranchCredential) — "Mint an expiring branch-bound test credential"'
  ttl_flag: '--branch-ttl-hours <1-168>'
  written_to: '.env.local (gitignored) as ABLO_API_KEY'
  prefix: sk_
  note: 'The prefix is the same as production. The plane binding, not the prefix, is what makes it safe.'
legacy_test_mode:
  exists: true
  deprecated: true
  detail: >-
    Older sk_live_… / sk_test_… / rk_live_… spellings still authenticate during migration, but the
    docs state the live/test segment is "a legacy hint, not the source of truth" — the persisted
    branch binding controls the key. Rotation mints the current unsegmented spelling. Do not treat
    sk_test_ as a sandbox signal on this provider.
free_tier_as_evaluation:
  plan: Free
  price: 0
  card_required: false
  operations: 100000/month, 10000/day
  quote: 'Build against the real engine without a card.'
  note: 'The Free tier, not a sandbox, is the intended evaluation path — real engine, hard-stopped quota, no billing risk.'
local_development:
  postgres: 'ablo dev --local serves a local Postgres over an outbound signed connector.'
  api_host_override: 'ABLO_API_URL points the CLI at a different control plane.'
  openapi_local_server: 'The published OpenAPI declares http://localhost:8787/api as a second server ("Local development"), so a local engine exists, though the docs do not document running it standalone.'
  read_only_verification: 'ablo check reports the live column-by-column fit read-only, before anything runs.'
  dry_run: 'ablo migrate --dry-run'
webhook_testing:
  local_forwarding: false
  note: '`ablo dev` prepares an isolated schema branch but does NOT forward webhook deliveries. You must register an HTTPS tunnel URL and remove the endpoint afterwards.'
sdk_testing:
  subpath: '@abloatai/abloatai/testing'
  note: 'A ./testing export exists on the SDK (listed in the MCP get_api_surface subpaths); its contents are not documented on the public docs site.'
magic_test_values: []
magic_test_values_note: 'None published — Ablo has no cards, accounts or identifiers to simulate; the product coordinates the customer''s own rows.'
x-evidence:
  - {url: 'https://docs.abloatai.com/branch-development', http_status: 200}
  - {url: 'https://docs.abloatai.com/api-keys', http_status: 200}
  - {url: 'https://docs.abloatai.com/pricing', http_status: 200}