maritime

Computers on demand

Windows desktops

A Windows desktop for software that only runs on Windows. It is a computer with os: "windows": the same actions, batch, file, viewer and takeover contract as a Linux computer, so your model code does not change.

At a glance

What it is
The same computer on Windows Server 2022 (desktop experience), licence included: the same actions, files, viewer and takeover. exec runs PowerShell.
Use it for
Desktop software that only runs on Windows.
Use something else when
A browser or a Linux app: Linux desktop. A mobile app: Android phone.
Start it
POST /api/v1/computers with "os": "windows", or New sandbox (?type=windows), where the deployment has Windows hosts.
Lifecycle
Creating one takes a few minutes. It sleeps after 5 idle minutes and hibernates, so its memory is kept; waking takes about 60 to 90 seconds. Its disk is kept until you delete it.
Price
$0.18 an hour awake, per second, Windows licence included. Asleep: $0.08 per GB-month of disk.
Limits
The Linux desktop limits. With no Windows host, creating one returns 403 machine_unavailable.
Related
Linux desktops, Images, Add-ons.
Windows desktops run where Maritime has hosts for them, and New sandbox in the dashboard offers a Windows desktop there. Where a deployment has none, creating one returns 403 machine_unavailable.

When to use it

  • Desktop apps with no web version and no API.
  • Workflows your customers run on Windows, where the agent has to see the same screens.

If the software runs on Linux or in a browser, a Linux computer is the simpler choice.

Create one

From the dashboard, open New sandbox (/dashboard/new-sandbox?type=windows), name the desktop and click Start.

Pass os when the computer is created. An existing computer keeps its own operating system, so the same externalUserId always returns the same desktop.

curl -X POST https://api.maritime.sh/api/v1/computers \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $MARITIME_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"externalUserId": "u_123", "os": "windows"}'

Then drive it exactly as in Computers: the computer action: screenshot, act, verify.

How it differs from a Linux computer

  • It runs under QEMU/KVM, not Firecracker. Screen and input come from the virtual machine, not from software inside Windows.
  • run_shell (REST: exec) runs PowerShell.
  • The file API keeps the same paths: /data is C:\data and /home/desk is C:\Users\agent.

Lifetime and limits

  • It runs Windows Server 2022 (desktop experience), licence included. Creating one takes a few minutes. It sleeps after 5 idle minutes and hibernates, so its memory is kept, and waking takes about 60 to 90 seconds.
  • Its disk is kept until you delete the computer. Deleting it deletes the disk.
  • It is billed at $0.18 an hour while awake and $0.08 per GB-month of disk while asleep, and it counts toward your awake-at-once limit while it is awake, like any computer. It runs on the free trial (a card on file) or any plan, where Windows hosts are available.
  • Rate limits, file sizes and errors are the same as for Linux computers.

Full numbers: Computers: limits and errors.

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