Home > Article > Computer Tutorials > How to install, configure and use the "Windows Sandbox" feature
Windows Sandbox is a feature built into the Windows 11 and Windows 10 operating systems that allows users to install and test unverified applications or visit websites in a lightweight virtual environment while protecting the main system from potential threats.
In general, this system provides a safe and isolated testing environment, similar to a virtual machine, but easier to use.
Next, this article will provide detailed steps to install, configure, and use the Windows Sandbox feature on Windows 11.
Windows Sandbox (also known as Windows Sandbox) is essentially a lightweight virtualization solution focused on providing efficient and secure virtual environments. Compared with traditional virtual machines, Windows Sandbox has the following characteristics:
Both Windows Sandbox and traditional virtual machines can be used to isolate applications or test environments, but there are some key differences between the two:
characteristic | Windows Sandbox | Traditional virtual machine |
---|---|---|
Install | No need to install the system, just enable it | Need to install virtual machine software and operating system |
performance | The performance is poor, but the startup speed is faster | Good performance, but slow startup speed |
flexibility | Less flexibility, can only run Windows 11 or Windows 10 | High flexibility, can run any operating system |
safety | Higher security and less risk of escape | Higher security and less risk of escape |
Although Windows Sandbox is not as resilient as traditional virtual machines, it provides excellent security and helps users safely run unverified applications or visit potentially risky websites.
To successfully install and run the Windows Sandbox feature, the system must meet the following conditions:
In Windows 10 and 11 systems, you can verify whether hardware virtualization is enabled through the "Performance" tab of "Task Manager".
Use "Task Manager" to view virtualization enablement status
If not enabled, please enable it in the motherboard UEFI. This function may be displayed as "Virtualization Technology", "Intel Virtual Technology" or "SVM mode", etc.
Here are two ways to enable Windows Sandbox in Windows 10 and Windows 11:
1Use the Windows R
shortcut key to open the "Run" dialog box, enter optionalfeatures
, and then press the Enter key.
2 In the "Windows Features" window, find and check the "Windows Sandbox" option.
Use "Windows Features" to install Windows Sandbox
3 Click the "OK" button to start the installation process.
4 After the installation is completed, restart the system according to the system prompts.
1Use the Windows R
shortcut key to open "Run", enter powershell
, and then press Ctrl Shift Enter
to open the Windows PowerShell window with administrator privileges.
2Execute the following command in the PowerShell window:
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Containers-DisposableClientVM -All
Install Windows Sandbox using PowerShell
3After the installation is completed, the system will prompt you to restart your computer.
After the restart is complete, you can find "Windows Sandbox" in the "Start" menu. After opening it, you will see a clean Windows desktop environment,
Using Windows Sandbox
In a Sandbox environment, you can:
Ctrl Alt Break
or Pause
to switch between windowed and full-screen modes. By customizing the configuration of Windows Sandbox, you can better control the performance and behavior of your virtual environment. The following are the steps:
1 Create a wsb file: In any text editor (such as Notepad), create a new text file and save it with a .wsb
extension, such as SandboxCFG.wsb
.
2 Edit XML configuration: Use the following XML structure as a template and edit the configuration according to your needs:
Enable Enable C:UsersYourNameDocuments C:UsersWDAGUtilityAccountDesktopDocuments false 4096 explorer.exe C:UsersWDAGUtilityAccountDesktopDocuments
3 Save the configuration: After completing the configuration editing, save the .wsb
file.
4 Start Windows Sandbox: Double-click the created .wsb
file to start a custom configured Windows Sandbox instance.
Every element in the configuration file is optional, and you can add or exclude any settings as needed. For example, if you do not need to map the folder, you can completely omit the part. Likewise, the
element can be omitted if the memory size is not allocated manually. For more configuration items, please refer to: Windows Sandbox Configuration.
Overall, Windows Sandbox is a useful feature built into Windows 11 and Windows 10 that can help you safely test applications or visit potentially risky websites. It uses hardware virtualization and kernel isolation technology to isolate the sandbox environment from the main system, thereby providing good security.
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