generated: '2026-08-11'
method: searched
source: https://infer.flow7.org/docs — the "Provider-free sandbox smoke test" and "Simulation boundary" sections.
description: >-
  Infer ships a real, self-serve sandbox that requires no funding and no supplier. Its distinguishing
  feature is honesty about what it does NOT prove: a sandbox request runs Infer's own local demo
  fixture, not the named model and not a supplier, and Infer says so in the product rather than in
  fine print. The sandbox exists to validate auth, request shape, response parsing and receipt wiring
  before a buyer funds a live wallet.
sandbox_available: true
signup_required: true
funding_required: false
base_url: https://infer.flow7.org/v1
environments:
  - name: sandbox
    key_env_var: INFER_SANDBOX_API_KEY
    key_label_in_console: Internal test environment
    credit:
      amount_usd: 0.05
      type: one-time simulated
      claim_path: Wallet -> "Claim sandbox test credit"
      cash_value: none
      can_fund_live_requests: false
    what_runs: Infer's local demo fixture
    response_markers:
      relay.environment: sandbox
      relay.resolved_model_class: Infer local sandbox fixture
    assertion_guidance: >-
      Infer explicitly instructs clients NOT to assert on the returned model name or response text in
      sandbox — only on relay.environment and relay.resolved_model_class.
  - name: live
    key_env_var: INFER_API_KEY
    funding_required: true
    first_funding_minimum_usd: 20
    preflight: The selected model must show operational on GET /api/public/status before a paid request.
setup_steps:
  - Create an account at https://infer.flow7.org/signup and confirm the one-time verification link.
  - Open Wallet and select "Claim sandbox test credit".
  - Create a sandbox key with "Internal test environment" selected; copy it once.
  - Set it as INFER_SANDBOX_API_KEY in a shell or secret manager — never in a URL, repository, or chat.
  - Send the published smoke-test request below.
smoke_test:
  method: POST
  url: https://infer.flow7.org/v1/responses
  headers:
    Authorization: "Bearer $INFER_SANDBOX_API_KEY"
    Content-Type: application/json
    Idempotency-Key: sandbox-smoke-test
  body:
    model: infer/auto/code:low-cost
    input: Confirm the sandbox request path.
    max_output_tokens: 32
  verbatim_from: https://infer.flow7.org/docs
  retry_rule: >-
    Use a NEW Idempotency-Key value for every new attempt, especially after a terminal failure — the
    published value sandbox-smoke-test is single-use.
test_credentials:
  published_test_keys: none
  note: >-
    Infer publishes NO shared test key, test token, or hosted playground credential. Sandbox keys are
    per-workspace and created by the customer. There are no vendor test values to record here, which
    is the correct posture for an inference API.
simulation_boundary:
  verbatim_claim: >-
    "Sandbox requests run only Infer's local demo fixture. They do not run the named model or a
    supplier and are not evidence of model quality, supplier identity, latency, availability, or
    production behavior."
  source: https://infer.flow7.org/docs
time_simulation:
  supported: false
fixture_or_trigger_tooling:
  - name: Codex provider doctor
    url: https://infer.flow7.org/tools/codex-provider-doctor
    kind: local diagnostic
    version: 0.1.0
    credential_free_pass: true
    note: >-
      Runs on the caller's machine. The safe default pass sends no key and never reaches /responses;
      four optional paid probes (JSON, SSE, tools, structured output) require a typed RUN PAID CHECKS
      confirmation in the terminal and are capped at 96 output tokens per request. Distributed as a
      packaged Agent Skill — see packages/ and skills/.
  - name: Receipt inspector
    url: https://infer.flow7.org/tools/receipt-inspector
    kind: local inspector
    note: Inspects an Infer charge record locally.
  - name: Route sheet
    url: https://infer.flow7.org/tools/route-sheet
    kind: price estimator
    note: Estimates current selector pricing for one request and a monthly request count.
related:
  - authentication/infer-by-flow7-authentication.yml
  - plans/infer-by-flow7-plans-pricing.yml
  - conventions/infer-by-flow7-conventions.yml