Line up the alternatives. Only detachbox says yes all the way down
Orca, Conductor, a DIY VPS, GitHub Codespaces, Claude Code on the web, Codex cloud, Terminalbox and exe.dev. Row by row, on what keeps an agent working while you are gone.
From $39 a month · Docker and sudo included · Cancel from the dashboard any time
| What a long run needs | detachboxYour Compute | OrcaDesktop app on your laptop | ConductorMac app; Pro adds a cloud | DIY VPSHetzner or DigitalOcean, tmux | GitHub CodespacesCloud dev environment | Claude Code on the webIn Claude plans | Codex cloudIn ChatGPT plans | TerminalboxHosted terminals | exe.devHosted VMs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keeps working with the lid closed | YesAn agent runs until you end its terminal | NoStops when the laptop sleeps | PartlyStops with the Mac; its cloud sleeps after 4 h idle, ends by 24 h | YesRuns until you delete the server | PartlyIdle stop at 5 to 240 min; a 12 h cap even when active | PartlyPauses after a few idle minutes | PartlyRuns while you sleep; state kept up to 7 days | YesPaid plans stay on; free pauses after 6 h detached | YesVMs stay on |
| Moves to your next subscription at a limit | YesMid-task, in your order or soonest reset first | PartlyManual swap, for new sessions only | NoNot documented | NoOnly a script you write | NoNot offered | NoOne account per session | NoBuy credits or fall back to an API key | NoNot documented | NoYou pick the account by name |
| Every subscription's limits on one screen | YesEvery window and reset, on every page and on your phone | YesYes, while Orca runs on your laptop or server | PartlyClaude usage per chat | NoEach CLI shows its own plan | NoNot offered | NoIts own plan only | NoIts own plan only | NoLeft to each provider | NoVM usage only, no AI limits |
| Picks up the work when a limit resets | YesClaude Code, Codex and OpenCode, weekly limits too | PartlyClaude Code's own continue† | PartlyCodex retries rate-limited requests | PartlyClaude Code's own continue† | PartlyClaude Code's own continue†, if still running | NoUsage credits to keep going | NoFinishes the current turn, then offers credits | PartlyClaude Code's own continue† | PartlyClaude Code's own continue† |
| A real terminal on your phone | YesYour terminals in any phone browser: key bar, dictation, photo key | YesNative app, key row, dictation; the desktop must stay on | PartlyiPhone chat for cloud workspaces, no terminal | PartlyA third-party terminal app you set up | PartlyVS Code in a browser, documented for tablets | NoChat only, no shell | NoA task view, no shell | PartlyA browser terminal, no key bar | YesiOS terminal and transcription; no Android app |
| Pings you, and takes your answer from the ping | YesPush, Telegram and email; tap the answer in the ping | PartlyDesktop and phone push; you reply in the app | PartlyMac notifications; phone push not documented | PartlyDIY hooks; Claude's Remote Control push | NoNo agent notifications | PartlyNotifies when done; phone push not documented | PartlyPush, email or SMS; replies from it not documented | NoNo notifications documented | PartlyiOS push for its own agent; hooks by hand |
| Control through ChatGPT or Claude | YesChatGPT by voice; Claude, Grok and Muse in chat | PartlyDictation only | YesHosted MCP for ChatGPT and Claude: cloud, beta | PartlyClaude's Remote Control; /voice fails remotely | NoNeither | PartlyDictation in the Claude app, no voice mode | PartlyChatGPT Voice in the desktop app or a paired iPhone | NoNeither | YesVoice and MCP, for its own agent and VMs |
| Private HTTPS previews, public links for clients | YesEvery port private on HTTPS; make a port public to share it | NoPublic links for static HTML and Markdown only | NoPorts forwarded to your Mac | PartlyYour client installs Tailscale, or you open a public Funnel | YesPrivate to you, or public to anyone with the link | NoNo preview URL | PartlyHosts built sites; no link to the agent's dev server | NoNo custom ports | YesA private proxy your client signs up for, plus one public port |
| Open and share files in the browser | YesCode, Markdown, PDF and CSV in a viewer; links that expire | PartlyDesktop viewers; public links for HTML, Markdown | PartlyViewers in the Mac app, no sharing | PartlyWhatever you set up | PartlyEditor and Markdown preview, no share link | PartlyA diff of the changed files | PartlyChanged files only | PartlyUpload, download, rename | PartlyCopy files by hand; no file view |
| Paste a screenshot into the agent | Yes⌘V or Ctrl+V in the browser terminal; the agent gets the file | YesIn the desktop app | YesIn the Mac app | PartlyThrough Claude's Remote Control only | Not documentedNot documented | YesIn the chat | YesIn the web composer | NoNot documented; upload on the Files page | YesFor its own agent only |
| Service keys the agent uses but never reads | YesKeys stay in Sallyport; a call can wait for your yes | NoKeys in the agent's environment | NoEnvironment variables the agent can read | NoEnv vars and files the agent can read | NoExported as environment variables | YesNetwork secrets added by a proxy | YesA placeholder swapped at the proxy | NoPlain environment variables | YesIntegrations hold them; no approval step |
| Parallel agents without port clashes | YesA container per terminal; 3 to 30 at once by size | PartlyWorktrees share one set of ports | PartlyPort ranges locally; a microVM each in the cloud | PartlyPorts and Docker sorted by hand | YesA VM each, each one billed | YesA VM per session | YesA VM per task | PartlyOne shared home; ports not stated | YesA VM each, from one shared pool |
| Docker and sudo | YesIn every terminal, with compose | YesOn your own computer | YesLocally; cloud has sudo, Docker not documented | YesYou install Docker | YesIn the default image | PartlyRoot and Docker for Claude; no user shell | Partlysudo in the image; Docker not documented | NoNo root, nesting disabled | YesRoot and Docker |
| Runs on your Claude or ChatGPT plan | YesClaude and ChatGPT plans, or keys from seven providers | YesThe subscriptions you already have | YesClaude sign-in or Sign in with ChatGPT | YesSigned in by hand | YesSigned in inside each codespace | PartlyClaude only | PartlyChatGPT only | YesYour own provider accounts | PartlyChatGPT yes; Claude Pro and Max not documented |
| Setup before the first agent runs | Sign in, connect a subscription, open a terminal | Low on the laptop; high for always-on and the phone | Low; Mac only, GitHub required | About ten steps by hand | Medium; a rebuild drops the Claude login | Low; GitHub required | Low to medium: GitHub and an environment | Low | Low |
| Cheapest always-on plan, per month | $39 flat: 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, 50 GB disk, 3 terminals | Free app; always-on is a second computer you keep | Free locally; Pro $50, its cloud ends by 24 h | Hetzner CPX22 €19.99 or a $24 Droplet, plus your AI plan | $134.90 for 2 cores and 50 GB, still capped at 12 h | In Claude Pro at $20; not always on | In ChatGPT Plus at $20; not always on | €6: 1 terminal, 2 vCPU, 4 GB | $15: 2 vCPU and 4 GB shared by its VMs |
† Claude Code's own CLI picks the work up after a reset under 24 hours, in an interactive session left open. Codex and OpenCode get nothing from it. ? means not documented: the vendor's docs say neither yes nor no.
Read from each vendor's docs and pricing, 17 October 2026.
One alternative at a time
Each comparison goes line by line and tells you which jobs to hand to which tool.
- lid closedvs your laptopThe laptop stops the agent when the lid closes. Your Compute keeps going.
- laptop appvs Orca and ConductorDesktop apps make the laptop a better place for agents. detachbox makes the laptop optional.
- €19.99 + an eveningvs a DIY VPSA bare VPS is cheap until you count the evening of setup.
- $0.18 an hourvs GitHub CodespacesCodespaces bills every hour and stops at 12 hours. Your Compute stays on all month for one flat price.
- €6vs TerminalboxBoth stay on. detachbox adds Docker, three terminals and a limits board for $39.
- In your planvs cloud agentsEach cloud session or task gets a new environment. Your Compute keeps the repo, the history and a warm database for the next one.
- API ratesvs Cursor background agentsCursor meters agent runs at API rates. detachbox runs your own plan at a flat price.
- $20–$200vs DevinDevin is its own agent on its own plans. detachbox runs the agents you already use.
Questions about this
What about caffeinate or keeping the lid open?
They keep the laptop awake at home. They fail on the train, in a backpack and when the battery runs out. Your Compute stays on without any of that.
Can I keep using Orca or Conductor?
Yes. Keep them at the desk. Agents on your Compute push branches you pull into the app, and they keep working after the lid closes.
Is a VPS more powerful?
No. At the same size you get the same CPU and memory. A VPS adds a kernel of its own; detachbox adds everything an agent needs, ready at login.
Will a codespace keep my agent running?
For 12 hours at most. GitHub stops every codespace after 12 hours, even while you use it. An idle timeout of 5 to 240 minutes stops it sooner, and every hour it runs is billed. Your Compute runs all month for one flat price.
Why does Docker matter for an agent?
It lets the agent start the Postgres, Redis and queue your app runs on, right beside the app, and test the whole stack before staging sees it.
Do I pay for the model twice?
No. Claude Code and Codex on detachbox run on the subscriptions you already pay for. Compute costs from $39 a month, every project included.
Can I keep using Cursor with detachbox?
Yes, side by side. Keep Cursor for the code you write at the desk and give the long jobs to agents on your Compute. They push branches you pull into Cursor, and keep running after the editor closes.
Is detachbox an agent like Devin?
No, detachbox is the compute. The agent is the one you choose: Claude Code, Codex or OpenCode, preinstalled and running with approvals off.
Put tonight's run on the column that says yes
Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode, set up at login, on your own subscriptions or keys. Drive them from any browser, your phone or ChatGPT. Docker, sudo, private previews and the limits board come with every size, from $39 a month.
Get my ComputeYour first overnight run works, or your money back · Cancel from the dashboard; it runs to the end of the paid month