Sandbox Deletion and Removal Lifecycle
Deleting sandbox contents and removing a sandbox definition are different operations. SandMan performs both outside sandboxed applications; neither operation is controlled by the Delete V1/V2 file- or registry-virtualization settings.
| Operation | Result |
|---|---|
| Delete Contents (clean the box) | Discards or resets stored sandbox changes while retaining the sandbox definition. With retained snapshots, the resulting state may be a saved snapshot rather than an empty directory. |
| Remove Sandbox | Removes the sandbox definition. Ordinary manual removal first handles its stored contents; removal can fail if the storage is not empty. |
File-root scope: For ordinary boxes, Delete Contents and Remove Sandbox operate on the currently resolved file root. Changing FileRootPath does not move data from the previous root, so files left there are not cleaned up by those operations. Quick Recovery scans the current root, not the previous one. Handle old-root data separately before changing roots.
Automatic content cleanup
AutoDelete=y asks SandMan to clean the contents when it observes a previously active box reach zero running processes. The setting is off when absent. It does not itself remove the sandbox definition. On the normal box-close path, SandMan runs OnBoxTerminate first, then checks NeverDelete and AutoDelete. If cleanup is eligible, recovery may offer recoverable files before deletion; cancelling that workflow stops this cleanup, while no visible recoverable files can allow it to continue silently. Recovery is not a guarantee that every valuable file will be found.
If cleanup proceeds, SandMan runs OnBoxDelete before the normal content-cleanup operation. The trigger is host-side automation, not the command that performs deletion. SandMan can run cleanup through a waiting non-queued path or through a queued job. A startup cleanup option can also invoke box-closed handling for an already empty box.
Snapshots and cleanup results
Automatic cleanup can discard only live changes and return the box to a retained active or default snapshot state. AutoDeleteSnapshotTarget selects that target for automatic cleanup; it does not turn on AutoDelete. Manual Delete Contents has its own snapshot choices, including whether to delete all snapshots. See Box Snapshots.
Cleanup can fail after some content has changed; it is not a transaction with guaranteed rollback. The underlying folder deletion waits for access and retries failures, but can still return an error. A snapshot restore can fail separately.
Automatic definition removal
AutoRemove=y is a separate box setting. SandMan consults it when content-cleanup completion is handled and then attempts to remove the definition. It does not start cleanup on box close by itself: with AutoDelete=n, closing the last process alone does not remove the box. A later manual SandMan cleanup can nevertheless reach the same removal transition.
The New Box Wizard's Remove after use option writes both AutoDelete=y and AutoRemove=y. With ordinary cleanup that leaves storage empty, this pairs content cleanup with definition removal. Snapshot-retaining cleanup may leave storage present, in which case the underlying removal operation refuses to remove the definition.
Do not treat cleanup and removal as an all-or-nothing transaction. A failed queued cleanup job does not reach the BoxCleaned completion transition; the non-queued waiting path can attempt the AutoRemove transition even when its cleanup progress reports an error. The underlying ordinary removal still rejects a box whose storage is not empty. Check the actual result before assuming the definition or data is gone.
Protection settings
NeverDelete=y blocks automatic content cleanup and is checked by the ordinary full-cleanup and queued cleanup paths. NeverRemove=y guards the normal manual SandMan Remove Sandbox action. They protect different operations and are not filesystem access controls.
In Sandbox Options > File Options > Box Delete options, the tri-state Protect this sandbox from deletion or emptying checkbox maps as follows:
| Checkbox | Saved settings | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Checked | NeverDelete=y, NeverRemove=y |
Protect contents and the definition through their respective normal paths. |
| Partially checked | NeverRemove=y; NeverDelete off |
Protect the definition through manual removal, but allow ordinary content cleanup. |
| Unchecked | Both off | Neither protection is selected. |
These protections have path-specific limits. For an ordinary box, NeverDelete can prevent the cleanup needed for manual removal. In the non-queued manual cleanup path, an OnBoxDelete command can run before the ordinary full-cleanup guard rejects a protected box. That path can also select a retained snapshot without passing through that NeverDelete guard; removal of an unmounted image-backed box has another special path. Do not use NeverDelete as a universal data-preservation guarantee. Conversely, the current AutoRemove transition after cleanup does not consult NeverRemove, even though normal manual removal does. A hand-written combination of AutoRemove=y and NeverRemove=y therefore has different results on the automatic and manual routes.
Manual actions
For Delete Contents, SandMan asks for confirmation or offers a recovery window according to its preferences, terminates running sandboxed processes, and starts normal or snapshot-aware content cleanup. OnBoxDelete runs before that cleanup where applicable. The definition normally remains, but AutoRemove=y can initiate a subsequent removal attempt after cleanup.
For Remove Sandbox, SandMan asks for confirmation, handles mounted image storage, checks NeverRemove for an ordinary box, and requests cleanup in removal mode before removing the definition. This direct removal mode does not run OnBoxDelete. Ordinary removal requires empty storage; a failed cleanup or remaining image can prevent definition removal. Internal temporary/shadow objects have a separate path and are not a normal user-facing configuration option.
Configuration and applying changes
These are box lifecycle settings, not image- or program-qualified resource rules. The current SandMan Boolean consumers for AutoDelete, AutoRemove, NeverDelete, and NeverRemove read box values directly and use n when absent; their calls do not request GlobalSettings or template fallback. AutoDeleteSnapshotTarget is read from effective configuration, including applicable global/template values, when automatic cleanup begins. The lifecycle switches are evaluated at their corresponding box-close, cleanup, or manual-removal event, so changing them does not normally require restarting sandboxed processes, the service, or Windows.
Sandboxie Plus and Classic
This page describes current SandMan behavior. The older Delete Settings page preserves the Sandboxie Control / Classic interface. Classic's DeleteCommand selects its legacy deletion command and remains distinct from SandMan's pre-cleanup OnBoxDelete trigger.
Version history
The older AutoDelete and NeverDelete settings have no established introduction version in current setting metadata. AutoRemove was added in Sandboxie Plus 1.7.1; NeverRemove in 1.10.1; and AutoDeleteSnapshotTarget in 1.18.2. These versions do not imply that the full lifecycle or Classic interface began in those releases.