generated: '2026-08-13'
description: "Kentico provides sample projects and SaaS environments for testing, but no hosted API sandbox."
docs: "https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/installation"
method: searched
source: https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/installation
note: >-
  Kentico ships no hosted API sandbox and no test-vs-live key modes — there is
  nothing to, because Xperience by Kentico is software the customer runs.
  What Kentico DOES publish, and what is captured here, is the test surface a
  developer actually gets: a sample project with sample data, non-production
  SaaS environments with their own URLs, and an in-app virtual inbox that
  intercepts outbound email so email channels can be exercised without sending.
  No test credentials, card numbers or magic values are published, and none are
  invented here.

test_vs_live:
  key_modes: false
  key_prefixes: []
  note: >-
    Headless channel API keys are per-channel and per-environment; Kentico
    publishes no test/live prefix convention. A non-production environment gets
    its own Xperience instance and therefore its own keys.

sample_project:
  name: Dancing Goat
  description: >-
    The reference sample application Kentico uses throughout its documentation
    and guides. Installed from the project templates with sample content, and
    the project Kentico names when telling developers to try the preview
    Management API / Management MCP server.
  install: |
    dotnet new install Kentico.Xperience.Templates
    dotnet new kentico-xperience-mvc -n DancingGoat.Web
    # then install the database with the kentico-xperience-dbmanager dotnet tool
  docs: https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/installation
  repos:
    - https://github.com/Kentico/xperience-by-kentico-training-guides
    - https://github.com/Kentico/xperience-by-kentico-kickstart
    - https://github.com/Kentico/xperience-by-kentico-labs-kenticopilot

environments:
  model: SaaS environments per project
  tiers:
    - name: QA
      description: >-
        Default deployment target. Any project user can upload a deployment
        package here, from the Portal UI or the Xperience Portal API.
    - name: STAGING
      description: >-
        Non-production. Direct uploads require the DevOps Engineer or Tenant
        Administrator role.
    - name: PROD
      description: >-
        Production. Direct uploads only in extraordinary circumstances, and only
        for DevOps Engineer / Tenant Administrator roles.
  restore_points:
    retention: 30 days (or more, depending on plan)
    note: >-
      Restore points and on-demand exports let a non-production environment be
      reset to a known state; exports can be downloaded to inspect database
      integrity, versions, and file counts.
  docs: https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/deployment/deploy-to-the-saas-environment/manage-saas-deployments

email_testing:
  tool: Xperience Virtual Inbox
  package: Kentico.Xperience.VirtualInbox
  version: 1.3.0
  published: '2026-03-19'
  repo: https://github.com/Kentico/xperience-by-kentico-virtual-inbox
  description: >-
    An in-app hosted virtual inbox for email channel development and testing,
    explicitly also intended for AI agent email access — outbound email is
    captured in the application rather than delivered.

local_development:
  management_api: >-
    The management API and Management MCP server are documented as LOCAL
    DEVELOPMENT ONLY. Kentico states they provide only basic authentication and
    no per-operation authorization, and must not be enabled on production or any
    publicly available instance.
  ci_behavior: >-
    Continuous Integration serialization is automatically disabled for all
    Management MCP requests to avoid concurrent file operations; run
    `dotnet run --no-build -- --kxp-ci-store` afterwards to serialize changes.
  docs: https://docs.kentico.com/documentation/developers-and-admins/api/management-api/configure-management-mcp-server

e2e_testing:
  repo: https://github.com/Kentico/xperience-by-kentico-labs-e2e-testing
  description: >-
    Kentico Labs project driving end-to-end automated tests with AI agents,
    Playwright and Xperience by Kentico.

test_values_published: false
test_cards: []
test_clocks: false