Windows Sandbox for automated application (package) testing

[Catalin]

Hello everyone,

Today we're gonna discuss about a really powerful feature from Windows (Pro and Enterprise), called Windows Sandbox.

Definition: Windows Sandbox provides a lightweight desktop environment to safely run applications in isolation. Software installed inside the Windows Sandbox environment remains "sandboxed" and runs separately from the host machine. A sandbox is temporary. When it's closed, all the software and files and the state are deleted.

Now, you may wonder why one would use this over a normal VM.

The main reason is quickness - Windows Sandbox emulates your current OS (e.g. if you have Windows 11, you will have a Windows 11 Sandbox). This means that you do not need to configure it at all, as opposed to a VM where you have to configure it and install the desired OS.

Another reason is the fact that we can automate it specifically for application testing - this is the topic for today.

The automation is done through a file with the .WSB (Windows Sanbox) extension and is basically an XML file.

More details about this file and its' parameters can be found here:

Windows Sandbox Configuration

Here are the things we can configure:

• vGPU (virtualized GPU): Enable or disable the virtualized GPU. If vGPU is disabled, the sandbox uses Windows Advanced Rasterization Platform (WARP)

• Networking: Enable or disable network access within the sandbox

• Mapped folders: Share folders from the host with read or write permissions. Exposing host directories might allow malicious software to affect the system or steal data

• Logon command: A command that's executed when Windows Sandbox starts

• Audio input: Shares the host's microphone input into the sandbox

• Video input: Shares the host's webcam input into the sandbox

• Protected client: Places increased security settings on the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) session to the sandbox

• Printer redirection: Shares printers from the host into the sandbox

• Clipboard redirection: Shares the host clipboard with the sandbox so that text and files can be pasted back and forth

• Memory in MB: The amount of memory, in megabytes, to assign to the sandbox

Now, the most important for us, as you would have guessed, is the Logon command, which will basically alow us to launch a Sandbox that will execute an installation package.

In addition to that, we have the Mapped folders, which will basically let us copy a folder from our machine over to our Sandbox so we have access to the installation packages.

Note: for this, I would advise having a predefined folder where you keep your installation packages, e.g.:

Code: Select all

C:\AppPackages

A really simple configuration file looks something like this:

Code: Select all

<Configuration>
<VGpu>Default</VGpu>
<Networking>Default</Networking>
<MappedFolders>
    <MappedFolder>
        <HostFolder>C:\AppPackages\MyApp</HostFolder>
        <ReadOnly>true</ReadOnly>
    </MappedFolder>
</MappedFolders>
<LogonCommand>
    <Command>msiexec /i C:\Users\WDAGutilityAccount\Desktop\MyApp\advinst.msi</Command>
</LogonCommand>
</Configuration>

The above will copy the MyApp folder over, which contains the MSI for Advanced Installer.

The default location is the desktop, as we can see a bit below.

Note: the WDAGutilityAccount is the account name that comes by default on all Windows Sandboxes.

After saving it, you can simply double click on it and it will launch Windows Sandbox + the installer for Advanced Installer.

Hope you can see how useful this can be, especially for application installation testing.

Best regards,
Catalin