Before you use Cloud Shell, be aware of the following limitations.
Limits | Limitations |
Number of virtual machines | Cloud Shell creates only one virtual machine at a time, regardless of how many session windows are open. All session windows automatically connect to this virtual machine. |
Session window | You can open up to five session windows. |
Destruction on inactivity | A session is stopped after 30 minutes of inactivity or when all session windows are closed. The virtual machine is destroyed 15 minutes after the session stops. When you restart Cloud Shell, a new virtual machine is created. |
Destruction on expiration | The virtual machine created for Cloud Shell has a 1-hour lifetime. After 1 hour, Cloud Shell immediately destroys the virtual machine. When you restart Cloud Shell, a new virtual machine is created. |
Cloud Shell mounts 10 GB of temporary storage space. You can store files in the /home/shell folder, but this space is reset when the virtual machine is destroyed. For persistent storage, you can mount a bucket. The bucket is automatically loaded each time you start Cloud Shell. | |
Prohibited use | Long-term use and malicious processes, such as compute-intensive or network-intensive tasks, are not supported. This can cause your session to be stopped or disabled without warning. |