generated: '2026-08-19'
method: searched
source: https://blogs.cisco.com/developer/crossworkautomationsandbox01
published: true
name: Cisco Crosswork Automation Sandbox (Cisco DevNet Sandbox)
summary: >-
  Cisco does not offer a Crosswork test mode, test keys or a hosted sandbox API — the product has no vendor-hosted
  surface at all. What it offers instead is a full lab: DevNet Sandbox runs a production Crosswork suite against a
  real multi-platform network that a developer can reserve, free, and drive with the real northbound APIs. That is
  a materially different thing from a sandbox API, and worth being precise about: an agent cannot reach it, a
  human must reserve it and connect over VPN first.
type: reserved-lab
model:
  test_vs_live_keys: false
  test_key_prefix: null
  test_data_fixtures: false
  time_simulation: false
  note: >-
    None of the usual sandbox machinery applies. There are no test-vs-live modes, no test credentials published,
    no fixture or trigger tooling, and no test clock. The lab is a real deployment with real credentials issued per
    reservation, so no test values exist to record — and none are invented here.
access:
  cost: free
  requires_account: true
  account: Cisco DevNet account
  reservation_required: true
  setup_time: 15-45 minutes (DevNet Sandbox reservation setup)
  connectivity: VPN, with per-reservation credentials emailed to the requester
  agent_reachable: false
contents:
- Cisco Crosswork cluster
- Cisco Crosswork Data Gateway (CDG)
- Cisco Network Services Orchestrator (NSO)
- Cisco IOS XE and IOS XR routers
scenarios:
- Device management
- Health Insights monitoring
- Network automation workflows
urls:
  topology: https://devnetsandbox.cisco.com/RM/Diagram/Index/7b60491f-6dc2-4c1c-8c7f-b5a87f667d6e?diagramType=Topology
  runbook: https://devnetsandbox.cisco.com/sandbox-instructions/Crosswork/Crosswork-Learning-Lab.pdf
  sandbox_home: https://developer.cisco.com/site/sandbox/
  first_reservation_guide: https://developer.cisco.com/docs/sandbox/first-reservation-guide/
  announcement: https://blogs.cisco.com/developer/crossworkautomationsandbox01
checked: '2026-08-19'