Clarification: What counts as 'active commands' for idle timeout?

[shtefcs]

Question

The documentation states:

"If the box sits idle with no active commands, it automatically transitions to Paused after 30 minutes."

We need clarification on what exactly counts as "active commands" / activity that resets the 30-minute idle timer:

1. SDK API calls (e.g., `box.exec.command()`, `box.files.read()`) — do these reset the timer?
2. Preview URL requests (e.g., `GET https://xxx-3000.preview.box.upstash.com/\`) — does HTTP traffic to the preview URL count as activity?
3. Internal container traffic — the dev server inside the box makes internal HTTP requests (HMR, module resolution). Do these count?
4. `box.getStatus()` or `Box.get()` — do read-only status checks reset the timer?

Why this matters

We run a health check that polls the preview URL every 30 seconds. If preview URL requests reset the idle timer, the box never auto-pauses as long as our health check runs — even if the user is completely AFK. We'd need to implement our own idle detection to pause proactively.

If preview URL requests do NOT reset the timer, the 30-minute auto-pause works as intended and we don't need custom idle detection.

Related

• We use Upstash Box as a coding agent sandbox with a preview panel (iframe)
• The health check ensures the preview shows current content
• We want to minimize unnecessary compute costs for AFK users