fix graph break for compile

* don't set peft_config on grpo to prevent double peft wrap

* remove overrides needed to support bug

* fix grpo tests

* require more CPU for multigpu to help with torch compile for vllm

.github/workflows/main.yml

@@ -31,6 +31,11 @@ jobs:
             python_version: "3.11"
             pytorch: 2.7.0
             axolotl_extras:
+          - cuda: 128
+            cuda_version: 12.8.1
+            python_version: "3.11"
+            pytorch: 2.7.0
+            axolotl_extras:
     runs-on: axolotl-gpu-runner
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
@@ -94,6 +99,11 @@ jobs:
             python_version: "3.11"
             pytorch: 2.7.0
             axolotl_extras:
+          - cuda: 128
+            cuda_version: 12.8.1
+            python_version: "3.11"
+            pytorch: 2.7.0
+            axolotl_extras:
     runs-on: axolotl-gpu-runner
     steps:
       - name: Checkout

.github/workflows/tests.yml

@@ -295,6 +295,7 @@ jobs:
           find "$(pip cache dir)/http-v2" -type f -mtime +14 -exec rm {} \;
 
   docker-e2e-tests-1st:
+    # Run this job first as a gate for running the remainder of the test matrix
     if: ${{ ! contains(github.event.commits[0].message, '[skip e2e]') && github.repository_owner == 'axolotl-ai-cloud' }}
     # this job needs to be run on self-hosted GPU runners...
     runs-on: [self-hosted, modal]
@@ -341,6 +342,8 @@ jobs:
     # this job needs to be run on self-hosted GPU runners...
     runs-on: [self-hosted, modal]
     timeout-minutes: 90
+    # Only run the remainder of the matrix if the first e2e check passed;
+    # this is to save on wasted compute costs for known failures that get caught in the first run
     needs: [pre-commit, pytest, docker-e2e-tests-1st]
 
     strategy:
@@ -365,6 +368,12 @@ jobs:
             pytorch: 2.7.0
             num_gpus: 1
             axolotl_extras:
+          - cuda: 128
+            cuda_version: 12.8.1
+            python_version: "3.11"
+            pytorch: 2.7.0
+            num_gpus: 1
+            axolotl_extras:
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4

_quarto.yml

@@ -139,7 +139,8 @@ quartodoc:
         - utils.optimizers.adopt
         - utils.data.pretraining
         - utils.data.sft
-        - utils.gradient_checkpointing.unsloth
+        - utils.gradient_checkpointing.offload_cpu
+        - utils.gradient_checkpointing.offload_disk
     - title: Schemas
       desc: Pydantic data models for Axolotl config
       contents:

cicd/multigpu.py

@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ def run_cmd(cmd: str, run_folder: str):
     image=cicd_image,
     gpu=GPU_CONFIG,
     timeout=90 * 60,
-    cpu=8.0,
+    cpu=16.0,
     memory=131072 * N_GPUS,
     volumes=VOLUME_CONFIG,
 )

docs/config.qmd

@@ -539,7 +539,7 @@ train_on_inputs: false
 # Note that training loss may have an oscillating pattern with this enabled.
 group_by_length: false
 
-# Whether to use gradient checkpointing. Available options are: true, false, "offload".
+# Whether to use gradient checkpointing. Available options are: true, false, "offload", "offload_disk".
 # https://huggingface.co/docs/transformers/v4.18.0/en/performance#gradient-checkpointing
 gradient_checkpointing: false
 # additional kwargs to pass to the trainer for gradient checkpointing
@@ -633,7 +633,9 @@ weight_decay:
 # adamw hyperparams
 adam_beta1:
 adam_beta2:
+adam_beta3:  # only used for CAME Optimizer
 adam_epsilon:
+adam_epsilon2:  # only used for CAME Optimizer
 # Gradient clipping max norm
 max_grad_norm:
 

docs/getting-started.qmd

@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ the `alpaca` dataset format, which has the following format:
 Please see our [Dataset Formats](dataset-formats) for more dataset formats and how to
 format them.
 
-2. Prepare your JSONL data in the specified format (in this case, the expected `alpaca
+2. Prepare your JSONL data in the specified format (in this case, the expected `alpaca`
 format):
 
 ```json
@@ -120,6 +120,12 @@ axolotl train my_training.yml
 
 ## Common Tasks {#sec-common-tasks}
 
+::: {.callout-tip}
+
+The same yaml file is used for training, inference, and merging.
+
+:::
+
 ### Testing Your Model {#sec-testing}
 
 After training, test your model:
@@ -128,6 +134,16 @@ After training, test your model:
 axolotl inference my_training.yml --lora-model-dir="./outputs/lora-out"
 ```
 
+More details can be found in [Inference](inference.qmd).
+
+### Using a UI {#sec-ui}
+
+Launch a Gradio interface:
+
+```bash
+axolotl inference my_training.yml --lora-model-dir="./outputs/lora-out" --gradio
+```
+
 ### Preprocessing Data {#sec-preprocessing}
 
 For large datasets, preprocess first:
@@ -136,14 +152,22 @@ For large datasets, preprocess first:
 axolotl preprocess my_training.yml
 ```
 
-### Using a UI {#sec-ui}
+Please make sure to set `dataset_prepared_path: ` in your config to set the path to save the prepared dataset.
 
-Launch a Gradio interface:
+More details can be found in [Dataset Preprocessing](dataset_preprocessing.qmd).
+
+### Merging LoRA weights {#sec-merging-lora}
+
+To merge the LoRA weights back into the base model, run:
 
 ```bash
-axolotl inference my_training.yml --lora-model-dir="./outputs/lora-out" --gradio
+axolotl merge-lora my_training.yml --lora-model-dir="./outputs/lora-out"
 ```
 
+The merged model will be saved in the `{output_dir}/merged` directory.
+
+More details can be found in [Merging LoRA weights](inference.qmd#sec-merging).
+
 ## Next Steps {#sec-next-steps}
 
 Now that you have the basics, you might want to:
@@ -156,6 +180,7 @@ Now that you have the basics, you might want to:
 Check our other guides for details on these topics:
 
 - [Configuration Guide](config.qmd) - Full configuration options
+- [Dataset Loading](dataset-loading.qmd) - Loading datasets from various sources
 - [Dataset Formats](dataset-formats) - Working with different data formats
 - [Multi-GPU Training](multi-gpu.qmd)
 - [Multi-Node Training](multi-node.qmd)

src/axolotl/core/trainer_builder.py

@@ -387,8 +387,12 @@ class HFCausalTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
             training_arguments_kwargs["adam_beta1"] = self.cfg.adam_beta1
         if self.cfg.adam_beta2:
             training_arguments_kwargs["adam_beta2"] = self.cfg.adam_beta2
+        if self.cfg.adam_beta3:
+            training_arguments_kwargs["adam_beta3"] = self.cfg.adam_beta3
         if self.cfg.adam_epsilon:
             training_arguments_kwargs["adam_epsilon"] = self.cfg.adam_epsilon
+        if self.cfg.adam_epsilon2:
+            training_arguments_kwargs["adam_epsilon2"] = self.cfg.adam_epsilon2
         if self.cfg.max_grad_norm:
             training_arguments_kwargs["max_grad_norm"] = self.cfg.max_grad_norm
 
@@ -713,7 +717,7 @@ class HFCausalTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
 
                 beta1 = training_arguments_kwargs.get("adam_beta1", 0.9)
                 beta2 = training_arguments_kwargs.get("adam_beta2", 0.999)
-                beta3 = training_arguments_kwargs.get("adam_beta2", 0.9999)
+                beta3 = training_arguments_kwargs.get("adam_beta3", 0.9999)
                 eps1 = training_arguments_kwargs.get("adam_epsilon", 1e-30)
                 eps2 = training_arguments_kwargs.get("adam_epsilon2", 1e-16)
                 adam_kwargs["betas"] = (beta1, beta2, beta3)
@@ -1170,7 +1174,8 @@ class HFRLTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
         if self.eval_dataset:
             trainer_kwargs["eval_dataset"] = self.eval_dataset
         if self.cfg.adapter and self.peft_config:
-            trainer_kwargs["peft_config"] = self.peft_config
+            if self.cfg.rl is not RLType.GRPO:
+                trainer_kwargs["peft_config"] = self.peft_config
         if self.cfg.precompute_ref_log_probs is not None:
             trainer_kwargs["precompute_ref_log_probs"] = (
                 self.cfg.precompute_ref_log_probs

src/axolotl/core/trainers/grpo/trainer.py

@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@
 # pylint: disable=too-many-lines,duplicate-code,protected-access,no-member
 
 import warnings
-from contextlib import nullcontext
 from typing import Any
 
 import datasets
@@ -14,7 +13,7 @@ from accelerate.utils import (
     broadcast_object_list,
     gather,
     gather_object,
-    is_peft_model,
+    is_peft_available,
 )
 from datasets import Dataset, IterableDataset
 from torch import nn
@@ -30,15 +29,13 @@ from transformers import (
     TrainerCallback,
 )
 from transformers.trainer_utils import seed_worker
-from transformers.utils import is_peft_available
 from trl import GRPOTrainer
 from trl.data_utils import (
     apply_chat_template,
     is_conversational,
     maybe_apply_chat_template,
 )
-from trl.extras.profiling import profiling_context, profiling_decorator
+from trl.extras.profiling import profiling_context
-from trl.import_utils import is_deepspeed_available
 from trl.models import unwrap_model_for_generation
 from trl.trainer.grpo_config import GRPOConfig
 from trl.trainer.grpo_trainer import RewardFunc, nanstd
@@ -52,62 +49,12 @@ if is_peft_available():
     # pylint: disable=unused-import
     from peft import PeftConfig
 
-if is_deepspeed_available():
-    import deepspeed
-
 
 class AxolotlGRPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, GRPOTrainer):
     """Extend the base GRPOTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
 
     _tag_names = ["trl", "grpo", "axolotl"]
 
-    @profiling_decorator
-    def _move_model_to_vllm(self):
-        # For DeepSpeed ZeRO-3, we need to gather all parameters before operations
-        deepspeed_plugin = self.accelerator.state.deepspeed_plugin
-        zero_stage_3 = deepspeed_plugin is not None and deepspeed_plugin.zero_stage == 3
-        gather_if_zero3 = (
-            deepspeed.zero.GatheredParameters if zero_stage_3 else nullcontext
-        )
-
-        if is_peft_model(self.model):
-            # With PEFT and DeepSpeed ZeRO Stage 3, we must gather the full model at once before merging, as merging
-            # adapters in a sharded manner is not supported.
-            with gather_if_zero3(list(self.model.parameters())):
-                self.model.merge_adapter()
-
-                # Update vLLM weights while parameters are gathered
-                for name, param in self.model.named_parameters():
-                    # When using PEFT, we need to recover the original parameter name and discard some parameters
-                    name = (
-                        name.removeprefix("base_model.model.")
-                        .removeprefix("base_model.model.")
-                        .replace(".base_layer", "")
-                    )
-                    if self.model.prefix in name:
-                        continue
-                    # When module to save, remove its prefix and discard the original module
-                    if "original_module" in name:
-                        continue
-                    name = name.replace("modules_to_save.default.", "")
-
-                    if self.accelerator.is_main_process:
-                        self.vllm_client.update_named_param(name, param.data)
-
-                # Unmerge adapters while parameters are still gathered
-                self.model.unmerge_adapter()
-                # Parameters will automatically be repartitioned when exiting the context
-        else:
-            # For non-PEFT models, simply gather and update each parameter individually.
-            for name, param in self.model.named_parameters():
-                with gather_if_zero3([param]):
-                    if self.accelerator.is_main_process:
-                        self.vllm_client.update_named_param(name, param.data)
-
-        # Reset cache on main process
-        if self.accelerator.is_main_process:
-            self.vllm_client.reset_prefix_cache()
-
 
 class AxolotlGRPOSequenceParallelTrainer(AxolotlGRPOTrainer):
     """Extend the base GRPOTrainer for sequence parallelism handling"""

src/axolotl/core/training_args.py

@@ -227,6 +227,19 @@ class AxolotlTrainingMixins:
         },
     )
 
+    adam_beta3: Optional[float] = field(
+        default=None,
+        metadata={
+            "help": "The beta3 hyperparameter used in some optimizers such as CAME"
+        },
+    )
+    adam_epsilon2: Optional[float] = field(
+        default=None,
+        metadata={
+            "help": "The epsilon2 hyperparameter used in some optimizers such as CAME"
+        },
+    )
+
     # multi-modal section
 
     image_size: int | tuple[int, int] | None = field(

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/cohere.py

@@ -20,25 +20,15 @@ from cut_cross_entropy.transformers.utils import (
 from transformers.cache_utils import Cache
 from transformers.modeling_outputs import CausalLMOutputWithPast
 from transformers.models.cohere.modeling_cohere import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    COHERE_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     KwargsForCausalLM,
 )
 from transformers.processing_utils import Unpack
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 
 _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(COHERE_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/gemma.py

@@ -17,25 +17,15 @@ from cut_cross_entropy.transformers.utils import (
 from transformers.cache_utils import Cache
 from transformers.modeling_outputs import CausalLMOutputWithPast
 from transformers.models.gemma.modeling_gemma import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    GEMMA_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     KwargsForCausalLM,
 )
 from transformers.processing_utils import Unpack
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 
 _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(GEMMA_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/gemma3.py

@@ -20,15 +20,11 @@ from torch import nn
 from transformers.cache_utils import Cache, HybridCache
 from transformers.modeling_outputs import CausalLMOutputWithPast
 from transformers.models.gemma3.modeling_gemma3 import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    GEMMA3_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     Gemma3CausalLMOutputWithPast,
     logger,
 )
 from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
     is_torchdynamo_compiling,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
 )
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 
@@ -38,10 +34,6 @@ _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(GEMMA3_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,
@@ -170,10 +162,6 @@ def cce_forward(
 
 
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(GEMMA3_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=Gemma3CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward_multimodal(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/llama.py

@@ -19,15 +19,9 @@ from transformers.modeling_outputs import (
     CausalLMOutputWithPast,
 )
 from transformers.models.llama.modeling_llama import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    LLAMA_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     KwargsForCausalLM,
 )
 from transformers.processing_utils import Unpack
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 from transformers.utils.generic import can_return_tuple
 
@@ -36,10 +30,6 @@ _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 @can_return_tuple
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(LLAMA_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: Optional[torch.LongTensor] = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/llama4.py

@@ -16,22 +16,12 @@ from torch import nn
 from transformers.cache_utils import Cache
 from transformers.modeling_outputs import CausalLMOutputWithPast
 from transformers.models.llama4.modeling_llama4 import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    LLAMA4_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     Llama4CausalLMOutputWithPast,
 )
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 
 _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(LLAMA4_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,
@@ -160,9 +150,6 @@ def cce_forward(
     )
 
 
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=Llama4CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward_multimodal(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,  # type: ignore

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/mistral3.py

@@ -19,15 +19,11 @@ from transformers.models.mistral3.modeling_mistral3 import (
     Mistral3CausalLMOutputWithPast,
 )
 from transformers.models.mistral.modeling_mistral import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    MISTRAL_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     KwargsForCausalLM,
 )
 from transformers.processing_utils import Unpack
 from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
     is_torchdynamo_compiling,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
 )
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 
@@ -35,10 +31,6 @@ _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(MISTRAL_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor | None = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/qwen2_moe.py

@@ -13,16 +13,10 @@ from cut_cross_entropy.transformers.utils import (
     apply_lce,
 )
 from transformers.models.qwen2_moe.modeling_qwen2_moe import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    QWEN2MOE_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     MoeCausalLMOutputWithPast,
     MoeModelOutputWithPast,
     load_balancing_loss_func,
 )
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 from transformers.utils.generic import can_return_tuple
 
@@ -31,10 +25,6 @@ _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 @can_return_tuple
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(QWEN2MOE_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=MoeCausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def forward(
     self,
     input_ids: Optional[torch.LongTensor] = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/qwen2_vl.py

@@ -14,22 +14,12 @@ from cut_cross_entropy.transformers.utils import (
 )
 from torch.nn import CrossEntropyLoss
 from transformers.models.qwen2_vl.modeling_qwen2_vl import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    QWEN2_VL_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     Qwen2VLCausalLMOutputWithPast,
 )
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 
 _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(QWEN2_VL_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=Qwen2VLCausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def cce_forward_multimodal(
     self,
     input_ids: Optional[torch.LongTensor] = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/cut_cross_entropy/monkeypatch/qwen3_moe.py

@@ -12,20 +12,13 @@ from cut_cross_entropy.transformers.utils import (
     TransformersModelT,
     apply_lce,
 )
-from transformers.modeling_outputs import CausalLMOutputWithPast
 from transformers.models.qwen3_moe.modeling_qwen3_moe import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    QWEN3_MOE_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     KwargsForCausalLM,
     MoeCausalLMOutputWithPast,
     MoeModelOutputWithPast,
     load_balancing_loss_func,
 )
 from transformers.processing_utils import Unpack
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 from transformers.utils.generic import can_return_tuple
 
@@ -34,10 +27,6 @@ _PATCH_OPTS: PatchOptions | None = None
 
 @can_return_tuple
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(QWEN3_MOE_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def forward(
     self,
     input_ids: Optional[torch.LongTensor] = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/liger/models/deepseekv2.py

@@ -14,10 +14,6 @@ from torch.nn import CrossEntropyLoss
 from transformers.modeling_outputs import CausalLMOutputWithPast
 
 
-# @add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(DeepseekV2_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-# @replace_return_docstrings(
-#    output_type=CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-# )
 def lce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor = None,

src/axolotl/integrations/liger/models/jamba.py

@@ -13,21 +13,11 @@ from liger_kernel.transformers.fused_linear_cross_entropy import (
 from torch.nn import CrossEntropyLoss
 from transformers.modeling_outputs import MoeCausalLMOutputWithPast
 from transformers.models.jamba.modeling_jamba import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    JAMBA_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     HybridMambaAttentionDynamicCache,
     load_balancing_loss_func,
 )
-from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
-)
 
 
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(JAMBA_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=MoeCausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def lce_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor = None,

src/axolotl/monkeypatch/gemma3.py

@@ -7,24 +7,16 @@ from typing import Optional, Tuple, Union
 import torch
 from transformers.cache_utils import Cache
 from transformers.models.gemma3.modeling_gemma3 import (
-    _CONFIG_FOR_DOC,
-    GEMMA3_INPUTS_DOCSTRING,
     Gemma3CausalLMOutputWithPast,
     logger,
 )
 from transformers.utils import (
-    add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward,
     is_torchdynamo_compiling,
-    replace_return_docstrings,
 )
 from transformers.utils.deprecation import deprecate_kwarg
 
 
 @deprecate_kwarg("num_logits_to_keep", version="4.50", new_name="logits_to_keep")
-@add_start_docstrings_to_model_forward(GEMMA3_INPUTS_DOCSTRING)
-@replace_return_docstrings(
-    output_type=Gemma3CausalLMOutputWithPast, config_class=_CONFIG_FOR_DOC
-)
 def new_forward(
     self,
     input_ids: torch.LongTensor = None,

src/axolotl/monkeypatch/utils.py

@@ -16,15 +16,24 @@ from transformers.utils import is_torch_bf16_gpu_available
 
 @torch.jit.script
 def get_max_seqlen_in_batch(attention_mask: torch.Tensor) -> torch.Tensor:
-    max_num = int(torch.max(attention_mask).item())
+    # Keep max_num as a tensor instead of extracting to Python int
-    batch_size, _ = attention_mask.shape
+    max_num = torch.max(attention_mask)
-    counts = torch.zeros((batch_size, max_num), dtype=torch.int32)
+
-    for i in range(1, max_num + 1):
+    # Create a range tensor for comparison
-        mask = attention_mask == i
+    range_tensor = torch.arange(
-        counts[:, i - 1] = torch.sum(mask, dim=-1).to(dtype=torch.int32)
+        1, max_num + 1, device=attention_mask.device, dtype=attention_mask.dtype
+    )
+
+    # Vectorized approach - compare attention_mask with each value in range
+    mask = attention_mask.unsqueeze(-1) == range_tensor.unsqueeze(0).unsqueeze(0)
+
+    # Sum along sequence dimension to get counts
+    counts = mask.sum(dim=1).to(dtype=torch.int32)
+
+    # Flatten and filter non-zero values
     result = counts.flatten()
-    nonzero_indices = torch.nonzero(result).squeeze(-1)
+    nonzero_mask = result != 0
-    return result[nonzero_indices]
+    return result[nonzero_mask]
 
 
 @torch.jit.script

src/axolotl/train.py

@@ -521,6 +521,11 @@ def train(
     """
     print_axolotl_text_art()
 
+    if cfg.activation_memory_budget is not None:
+        torch._functorch.config.activation_memory_budget = (  # pylint: disable=protected-access
+            cfg.activation_memory_budget
+        )
+
     # Setup model, tokenizer, (causal or RLHF) trainer, etc.
     (
         trainer,

src/axolotl/utils/callbacks/mlflow_.py

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 """MLFlow module for trainer callbacks"""
 
 import logging
+import os
 from shutil import copyfile
 from tempfile import NamedTemporaryFile
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
@@ -16,6 +17,11 @@ if TYPE_CHECKING:
 LOG = logging.getLogger("axolotl.callbacks")
 
 
+def should_log_artifacts() -> bool:
+    truths = ["TRUE", "1", "YES"]
+    return os.getenv("HF_MLFLOW_LOG_ARTIFACTS", "FALSE").upper() in truths
+
+
 class SaveAxolotlConfigtoMlflowCallback(TrainerCallback):
     # pylint: disable=duplicate-code
     """Callback to save axolotl config to mlflow"""
@@ -32,13 +38,18 @@ class SaveAxolotlConfigtoMlflowCallback(TrainerCallback):
     ):
         if is_main_process():
             try:
-                with NamedTemporaryFile(
+                if should_log_artifacts():
-                    mode="w", delete=False, suffix=".yml", prefix="axolotl_config_"
+                    with NamedTemporaryFile(
-                ) as temp_file:
+                        mode="w", delete=False, suffix=".yml", prefix="axolotl_config_"
-                    copyfile(self.axolotl_config_path, temp_file.name)
+                    ) as temp_file:
-                    mlflow.log_artifact(temp_file.name, artifact_path="")
+                        copyfile(self.axolotl_config_path, temp_file.name)
+                        mlflow.log_artifact(temp_file.name, artifact_path="")
+                        LOG.info(
+                            "The Axolotl config has been saved to the MLflow artifacts."
+                        )
+                else:
                     LOG.info(
-                        "The Axolotl config has been saved to the MLflow artifacts."
+                        "Skipping logging artifacts to MLflow (hf_mlflow_log_artifacts is false)"
                     )
             except (FileNotFoundError, ConnectionError) as err:
                 LOG.warning(f"Error while saving Axolotl config to MLflow: {err}")

src/axolotl/utils/data/rl.py

@@ -72,6 +72,7 @@ def map_dataset(cfg, data_set, ds_transform_fn, tokenizer, **map_kwargs):
     data_set = data_set.map(
         ds_transform_fn,
         desc="Mapping RL Dataset",
+        num_proc=cfg.dataset_processes,
         **map_kwargs,
     )
 

src/axolotl/utils/data/sft.py

@@ -484,7 +484,7 @@ def get_dataset_wrapper(
     }
 
     LOG.info(
-        f"Loading dataset with base_type: {d_base_type} and prompt_style: {d_prompt_style}"
+        f"Loading dataset: {config_dataset['path']} with base_type: {d_base_type} and prompt_style: {d_prompt_style}"
     )
 
     if (

src/axolotl/utils/gradient_checkpointing/__init__.py

@@ -5,8 +5,11 @@ from functools import partial
 
 from packaging import version
 
-from axolotl.utils.gradient_checkpointing.unsloth import (
+from axolotl.utils.gradient_checkpointing.offload_cpu import (
-    Unsloth_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer,
+    CPU_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer,
+)
+from axolotl.utils.gradient_checkpointing.offload_disk import (
+    Disco,
 )
 
 transformers_version = version.parse(importlib.metadata.version("transformers"))
@@ -26,12 +29,31 @@ def hf_grad_checkpoint_offload_wrapper(
     decoder_layer, *args, use_reentrant=None
 ):  # pylint: disable=unused-argument
     if uses_gc_layers(decoder_layer):
-        return Unsloth_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer.apply(
+        return CPU_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer.apply(
             decoder_layer,
             *args,
         )
 
-    return Unsloth_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer.apply(
+    return CPU_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer.apply(
+        (
+            decoder_layer.func.__self__
+            if isinstance(decoder_layer, partial)
+            else decoder_layer.__self__
+        ),
+        *args,
+    )
+
+
+def hf_grad_checkpoint_disk_offload_wrapper(
+    decoder_layer, *args, use_reentrant=None
+):  # pylint: disable=unused-argument
+    if uses_gc_layers(decoder_layer):
+        return Disco.apply(
+            decoder_layer,
+            *args,
+        )
+
+    return Disco.apply(
         (
             decoder_layer.func.__self__
             if isinstance(decoder_layer, partial)

src/axolotl/utils/gradient_checkpointing/offload_cpu.py

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-"""Unsloth checkpointing"""
+"""CPU offloaded checkpointing"""
 
 # Copyright 2023-present Daniel Han-Chen & the Unsloth team. All rights reserved.
 #
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ else:
     torch_cuda_amp_custom_bwd = torch.amp.custom_bwd(device_type="cuda")
 
 
-class Unsloth_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer(  # pylint: disable=invalid-name
+class CPU_Offloaded_Gradient_Checkpointer(  # pylint: disable=invalid-name
     torch.autograd.Function
 ):
     """

src/axolotl/utils/gradient_checkpointing/offload_disk.py

@@ -0,0 +1,531 @@
+"""
+DISCO - DIsk-based Storage and Checkpointing with Optimized prefetching
+"""
+
+# Copyright 2025 Axolotl AI. All rights reserved.
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+
+import atexit
+import concurrent.futures
+import logging
+import os
+import queue
+import shutil
+import tempfile
+import threading
+import time
+import uuid
+from collections import deque
+from concurrent.futures import Future
+from typing import Dict
+
+import torch
+
+torch_cuda_amp_custom_fwd = torch.amp.custom_fwd(device_type="cuda")
+torch_cuda_amp_custom_bwd = torch.amp.custom_bwd(device_type="cuda")
+
+# Setup logger
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+
+class DiskOffloadManager:
+    """
+    Manages offloaded tensors and handles prefetching in a separate thread.
+    Includes synchronization to prevent race conditions.
+    """
+
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        prefetch_size: int = 3,
+        prefetch_to_gpu: bool = True,
+        save_workers: int = 4,
+    ):
+        """
+        Args:
+            prefetch_size: Maximum number of tensors to prefetch in the background.
+            prefetch_to_gpu: Whether to prefetch tensors directly to GPU memory.
+            save_workers: Maximum number of concurrent save operations.
+        """
+        self.temp_dir = tempfile.mkdtemp(prefix="disco_")
+
+        # Track tensor paths and their status
+        self.tensor_paths: deque = deque()  # Ordered history of tensor paths (LIFO)
+        self.file_locks: Dict[str, threading.Lock] = (
+            {}
+        )  # Maps file_path -> threading.Lock()
+        # Maps file_path -> status ("saving", "ready", "prefetching", "loaded", "deleted")
+        self.file_status: Dict[str, str] = {}
+
+        self.max_prefetch = prefetch_size
+        self.prefetch_to_gpu = prefetch_to_gpu
+
+        # Thread synchronization
+        self.manager_lock = threading.RLock()  # Used for thread-safe operations
+
+        # Prefetch queue and cache
+        self.prefetch_queue: queue.Queue = queue.Queue()
+        self.prefetch_cache: Dict[str, torch.Tensor] = {}  # Maps file_path -> tensor
+
+        # Save queue and thread pool
+        self.save_queue: queue.Queue = queue.Queue()
+        self.save_pool = concurrent.futures.ThreadPoolExecutor(max_workers=save_workers)
+        self.save_futures: Dict[str, Future] = {}
+        self.save_semaphore = threading.Semaphore(
+            save_workers * 2
+        )  # Limit concurrent save operations
+
+        # Start prefetch worker thread
+        self.stop_event = threading.Event()
+        # start multiple threads for prefetching
+        self.prefetch_worker_count = 2
+        self.prefetch_workers = []
+        for _ in range(self.prefetch_worker_count):
+            worker = threading.Thread(target=self._prefetch_worker, daemon=True)
+            worker.start()
+            self.prefetch_workers.append(worker)
+
+        # Start save worker thread
+        self.save_worker = threading.Thread(target=self._save_worker, daemon=True)
+        self.save_worker.start()
+        self.idx = 0
+
+        atexit.register(self.cleanup)
+
+    def _save_worker(self):
+        """Background thread that processes the save queue"""
+        while not self.stop_event.is_set():
+            try:
+                save_item = self.save_queue.get(timeout=0.5)
+                if save_item is None:
+                    continue
+
+                tensor, file_path = save_item
+
+                # Submit the save task to the thread pool
+                future = self.save_pool.submit(
+                    self._save_tensor_to_disk, tensor, file_path
+                )
+                with self.manager_lock:
+                    self.save_futures[file_path] = future
+
+                self.save_queue.task_done()
+
+            except queue.Empty:
+                time.sleep(0.01)  # Small sleep to prevent CPU spinning
+                continue
+
+    def _save_tensor_to_disk(self, tensor: torch.Tensor, file_path: str):
+        """Actually save the tensor to disk"""
+        try:
+            # Save tensor to disk
+            cpu_tensor = tensor.detach().cpu()
+            torch.save(cpu_tensor, file_path)
+            del cpu_tensor
+
+            with self.manager_lock:
+                # Mark file as ready
+                self.file_status[file_path] = "ready"
+
+            # Release semaphore
+            self.save_semaphore.release()
+
+            return True
+        except FileNotFoundError as e:
+            logger.error(f"Error saving tensor to {file_path}: {e}")
+            with self.manager_lock:
+                self.file_status[file_path] = "error"
+
+            # Release semaphore
+            self.save_semaphore.release()
+
+            return False
+
+    def _prefetch_worker(self):
+        """Background thread that loads tensors from disk ahead of time"""
+        while not self.stop_event.is_set():
+            try:
+                file_path = self.prefetch_queue.get(timeout=0.5)
+                if file_path is None:
+                    continue
+
+                # Check if file is available and not already in cache
+                with self.manager_lock:
+                    if (
+                        file_path not in self.file_status
+                        or self.file_status[file_path] == "deleted"
+                    ):
+                        self.prefetch_queue.task_done()
+                    if file_path in self.prefetch_cache:
+                        self.prefetch_queue.task_done()
+                        continue
+
+                    # If file is still being saved, wait for it
+                    if (
+                        self.file_status[file_path] == "saving"
+                        and file_path in self.save_futures
+                    ):
+                        # Re-queue this prefetch request with a little delay
+                        self.prefetch_queue.task_done()
+                        time.sleep(0.1)
+                        self.prefetch_queue.put(file_path)
+                        continue
+
+                    # Mark file as being prefetched
+                    self.file_status[file_path] = "prefetching"
+
+                # Load tensor from disk and store in cache
+                try:
+                    if os.path.exists(file_path):
+                        if self.prefetch_to_gpu:
+                            tensor = torch.load(
+                                file_path,
+                                map_location=torch.device("cuda"),
+                                weights_only=True,
+                            )
+                        else:
+                            tensor = torch.load(file_path, weights_only=True)
+
+                        with self.manager_lock:
+                            self.prefetch_cache[file_path] = tensor
+                            self.file_status[file_path] = "ready"
+                    else:
+                        with self.manager_lock:
+                            if self.file_status.get(file_path) != "deleted":
+                                logger.warning(
+                                    f"Prefetch error: File not found {file_path}"
+                                )
+                                self.file_status[file_path] = "missing"
+
+                except FileNotFoundError as e:
+                    with self.manager_lock:
+                        if self.file_status.get(file_path) != "deleted":
+                            logger.warning(f"Prefetch error for {file_path}: {e}")
+                            self.file_status[file_path] = "error"
+
+                self.prefetch_queue.task_done()
+
+            except queue.Empty:
+                time.sleep(0.01)  # Small sleep to prevent CPU spinning
+                continue
+
+    def save_tensor(self, tensor: torch.Tensor):
+        """Save tensor to disk asynchronously and return file path with thread-safe operations"""
+        # Generate unique file path
+        self.idx += 1
+        file_path: str = os.path.join(
+            self.temp_dir, f"{self.idx:06d}-{uuid.uuid4()}.pt"
+        )
+
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            # Mark file as being saved
+            self.file_locks[file_path] = threading.Lock()
+            self.file_status[file_path] = "saving"
+            # Add to history
+            self.tensor_paths.append(file_path)
+
+        # Acquire semaphore to limit concurrent save operations
+        self.save_semaphore.acquire()  # pylint: disable=consider-using-with
+        # Queue tensor for saving in background
+        self.save_queue.put((tensor.detach(), file_path))
+
+        return file_path
+
+    def wait_for_save(self, file_path, timeout=None) -> None:
+        """Wait for a tensor to be saved to disk"""
+        start_time = time.time()
+        while timeout is None or time.time() - start_time < timeout:
+            with self.manager_lock:
+                if self.file_status.get(file_path) == "ready":
+                    return
+                if self.file_status.get(file_path) in ["error", "missing", "deleted"]:
+                    return
+
+                if file_path in self.save_futures:
+                    future = self.save_futures[file_path]
+                    if future.done():
+                        return
+
+            # Small sleep to prevent CPU spinning
+            time.sleep(0.01)
+
+        # Timeout
+        logger.warning(f"Timeout waiting for tensor to be saved: {file_path}")
+        return
+
+    def load_tensor(self, file_path, target_device="cuda"):
+        """Load tensor from disk or prefetch cache with proper synchronization"""
+        # Wait for tensor to be saved if it's still in progress
+        self.wait_for_save(file_path)
+
+        tensor = None
+
+        # Try to get from cache first
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            # Check if tensor is already in cache
+            if file_path in self.prefetch_cache:
+                tensor = self.prefetch_cache[file_path]
+                del self.prefetch_cache[file_path]
+                self.file_status[file_path] = "loaded"
+
+        if tensor is not None:
+            # Ensure tensor is on correct device
+            if target_device != "cpu" and tensor.device.type == "cpu":
+                tensor = tensor.to(target_device, non_blocking=True)
+            return tensor
+
+        # If not in cache, load directly from disk
+        try:
+            if not os.path.exists(file_path):
+                logger.error(f"File not found for loading: {file_path}")
+                raise FileNotFoundError(f"File not found: {file_path}")
+
+            tensor = torch.load(file_path, weights_only=True)
+
+            with self.manager_lock:
+                self.file_status[file_path] = "loaded"
+
+            if target_device != "cpu":
+                tensor = tensor.to(target_device, non_blocking=True)
+
+            return tensor
+
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.error(f"Error loading tensor from {file_path}: {e}")
+            raise
+
+    def _safe_delete_file(self, file_path):
+        """Safely delete a file with proper synchronization"""
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            # Make sure any save operation is completed
+            if file_path in self.save_futures:
+                future = self.save_futures[file_path]
+                try:
+                    if not future.done():
+                        future.cancel()
+                    del self.save_futures[file_path]
+                except FileNotFoundError as e:
+                    logger.warning(
+                        f"Error canceling save operation for {file_path}: {e}"
+                    )
+
+            # Only delete if file exists and is not being prefetched
+            status = self.file_status.get(file_path)
+            if status in ["ready", "loaded", "error", "missing"]:
+                try:
+                    if os.path.exists(file_path):
+                        os.remove(file_path)
+                    self.file_status[file_path] = "deleted"
+                    return True
+                except FileNotFoundError as e:
+                    logger.warning(f"Error deleting file {file_path}: {e}")
+            return False
+
+    def trigger_prefetch(self, n=None):
+        """Trigger prefetching of the next N tensors with proper synchronization"""
+        if n is None:
+            n = self.max_prefetch
+
+        prefetch_paths = []
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            # Find files that are ready to be prefetched (not already in cache or being prefetched)
+            for path in reversed(self.tensor_paths):
+                if (
+                    path not in self.prefetch_cache
+                    and self.file_status.get(path) == "ready"
+                ):
+                    prefetch_paths.append(path)
+                    if len(prefetch_paths) >= n:
+                        break
+
+        # Queue files for prefetching
+        for path in prefetch_paths:
+            self.prefetch_queue.put(path)
+
+    def cleanup_tensor(self, file_path: str):
+        """Clean up a specific tensor file after it's been used"""
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            if file_path in self.tensor_paths:
+                self.tensor_paths.remove(file_path)
+
+            # Remove from prefetch cache if present
+            if file_path in self.prefetch_cache:
+                del self.prefetch_cache[file_path]
+
+            # Remove from save futures if present
+            if file_path in self.save_futures:
+                future = self.save_futures[file_path]
+                if not future.done():
+                    future.cancel()
+                del self.save_futures[file_path]
+
+        # Try to delete the file
+        self._safe_delete_file(file_path)
+
+    def cleanup(self):
+        """Clean up all temp files and stop prefetch thread with proper synchronization"""
+        self.stop_event.set()
+
+        # Cancel all pending save operations
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            for _, future in self.save_futures.items():
+                if not future.done():
+                    future.cancel()
+            self.save_futures.clear()
+
+        # Drain the save queue
+        while not self.save_queue.empty():
+            try:
+                self.save_queue.get_nowait()
+                self.save_queue.task_done()
+            except queue.Empty:
+                break
+
+        # Shutdown the save pool
+        self.save_pool.shutdown(wait=False)
+
+        # Join the save worker thread
+        if self.save_worker.is_alive():
+            self.save_worker.join(timeout=2.0)
+
+        # Join the prefetch worker threads
+        for thread in self.prefetch_workers:
+            if thread.is_alive():
+                thread.join(timeout=2.0)
+
+        # Clear cache and remove all temporary files
+        with self.manager_lock:
+            self.prefetch_cache.clear()
+            paths_to_delete = list(self.tensor_paths)
+            self.tensor_paths.clear()
+
+        # Delete all temporary files
+        for path in paths_to_delete:
+            self._safe_delete_file(path)
+
+        # Remove temp directory
+        try:
+            if os.path.exists(self.temp_dir):
+                shutil.rmtree(self.temp_dir, ignore_errors=True)
+        except FileNotFoundError as e:
+            logger.warning(f"Error removing temporary directory {self.temp_dir}: {e}")
+
+
+class Disco(torch.autograd.Function):
+    """
+    Disco: DIsk-based Storage and Checkpointing with Optimized prefetching
+    Advanced disk-based gradient checkpointer with prefetching.
+    """
+
+    # Shared manager instance across all checkpointing operations
+    _manager = None
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def get_instance(prefetch_size=1, prefetch_to_gpu=True, save_workers=4):
+        """Get or create the offload manager"""
+        if Disco._manager is None:
+            Disco._manager = DiskOffloadManager(
+                prefetch_size=prefetch_size,
+                prefetch_to_gpu=prefetch_to_gpu,
+                save_workers=save_workers,
+            )
+        return Disco._manager
+
+    @staticmethod
+    @torch_cuda_amp_custom_fwd
+    def forward(
+        ctx,
+        forward_function,
+        hidden_states,
+        *args,
+        prefetch_size=1,
+        prefetch_to_gpu=True,
+        save_workers=4,
+    ):
+        """Forward pass that offloads activations to disk asynchronously"""
+        # Get or create the manager
+        manager = Disco.get_instance(
+            prefetch_size=prefetch_size,
+            prefetch_to_gpu=prefetch_to_gpu,
+            save_workers=save_workers,
+        )
+
+        # Save tensor to disk asynchronously
+        file_path = manager.save_tensor(hidden_states)
+
+        # Run forward pass immediately without waiting for save to complete
+        with torch.no_grad():
+            output = forward_function(hidden_states, *args)
+
+        # Store what we need for backward
+        ctx.save_for_backward(torch.tensor([0]))  # Dummy tensor
+        ctx.file_path = file_path
+        ctx.forward_function = forward_function
+        ctx.args = args
+
+        return output
+
+    @staticmethod
+    @torch_cuda_amp_custom_bwd
+    def backward(ctx, *grad_outputs):
+        """Backward pass that loads activations from disk with prefetching"""
+        # Get the manager
+        manager = Disco._manager
+
+        # Trigger prefetching for future tensors
+        # This happens at the start of backward, so should have time to complete
+        manager.trigger_prefetch()
+
+        # Load hidden states from disk or prefetch cache
+        file_path = ctx.file_path
+        try:
+            # Ensure the file is saved before we try to load it
+            manager.wait_for_save(file_path)
+
+            hidden_states = manager.load_tensor(file_path)
+            hidden_states.requires_grad = True
+
+            # Compute gradients
+            with torch.enable_grad():
+                output = ctx.forward_function(hidden_states, *ctx.args)
+
+                # Handle tuple outputs properly
+                if isinstance(output, tuple):
+                    if len(grad_outputs) == len(output):
+                        torch.autograd.backward(output, grad_outputs)
+                    else:
+                        torch.autograd.backward(output, grad_outputs[0])
+                else:
+                    torch.autograd.backward(output, grad_outputs[0])
+
+            # Clean up the file after we're done with it
+            manager.cleanup_tensor(file_path)
+
+            return (
+                (
+                    None,  # forward_function
+                    hidden_states.grad,  # hidden_states grad
+                )
+                + (None,) * len(ctx.args)  # for each arg
+                + (
+                    None,  # prefetch_size
+                    None,  # prefetch_to_gpu
+                    None,  # save_workers
+                )
+            )
+
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.error(f"Error in backward pass: {e}")
+            # Clean up the file even on error
+            manager.cleanup_tensor(file_path)
+            raise

src/axolotl/utils/models.py

@@ -70,7 +70,10 @@ from axolotl.utils.distributed import (
     is_local_main_process,
     is_main_process,
 )
-from axolotl.utils.gradient_checkpointing import hf_grad_checkpoint_offload_wrapper
+from axolotl.utils.gradient_checkpointing import (
+    hf_grad_checkpoint_disk_offload_wrapper,
+    hf_grad_checkpoint_offload_wrapper,
+)
 from axolotl.utils.lora_embeddings import get_linear_embedding_layers
 from axolotl.utils.model_shard_quant import load_sharded_model, load_sharded_model_quant
 from axolotl.utils.schemas.enums import RLType
@@ -620,6 +623,10 @@ class ModelLoader:
 
         if self.cfg.gradient_checkpointing in ["unsloth", "offload"]:
             transformers.modeling_utils.checkpoint = hf_grad_checkpoint_offload_wrapper
+        if self.cfg.gradient_checkpointing == "offload_disk":
+            transformers.modeling_utils.checkpoint = (
+                hf_grad_checkpoint_disk_offload_wrapper
+            )
 
         if self.cfg.flash_attention:
             self.patch_attention()

src/axolotl/utils/schemas/config.py

@@ -178,10 +178,11 @@ class AxolotlInputConfig(
 
     # torch_dtype: torch.dtype | None
 
-    gradient_checkpointing: Literal["unsloth", "offload"] | bool | None = Field(
+    gradient_checkpointing: Literal["offload", "offload_disk"] | bool | None = Field(
         default=False
     )
     gradient_checkpointing_kwargs: dict[str, Any] | None = None
+    activation_memory_budget: float | None = None
 
     unfrozen_parameters: list[str] | None = None
 
@@ -1079,6 +1080,19 @@ class AxolotlInputConfig(
             )
         return data
 
+    @model_validator(mode="before")
+    @classmethod
+    def check_activation_memory_budget_w_compile(cls, data):
+        if data.get("activation_memory_budget") is not None and not data.get(
+            "torch_compile"
+        ):
+            LOG.warning(
+                "activation_memory_budget is enabled, but torch_compile is not set. "
+                "Automatically setting torch_compile to true."
+            )
+            data["torch_compile"] = True
+        return data
+
     @model_validator(mode="before")
     @classmethod
     def check_npu_config(cls, data):

tests/e2e/multigpu/solo/test_grpo.py

@@ -166,7 +166,6 @@ def oai_gsm8k_transform(cfg, *args, **kwargs):
 """
             )
 
-    @pytest.mark.skip(reason="flaky test")
     @pytest.mark.parametrize(
         "num_gpus",
         [1, 2],
@@ -231,8 +230,6 @@ def oai_gsm8k_transform(cfg, *args, **kwargs):
             "NCCL_P2P_LEVEL": "LOC",
             **current_env,
             "CUDA_VISIBLE_DEVICES": "1",
-            "VLLM_DISABLE_COMPILE_CACHE": "1",
-            # "VLLM_USE_V1": "0",
         }
         vllm_process = start_vllm(
             cfg.base_model,
@@ -266,7 +263,6 @@ def oai_gsm8k_transform(cfg, *args, **kwargs):
         finally:
             recursive_kill(vllm_process)
 
-    @pytest.mark.skip(reason="flaky test")
     @pytest.mark.parametrize(
         "num_gpus",
         [1, 2],
@@ -325,8 +321,6 @@ def oai_gsm8k_transform(cfg, *args, **kwargs):
             "NCCL_P2P_LEVEL": "LOC",  # nccl can be brittle, assume P2P isn't reliable
             **current_env,
             "CUDA_VISIBLE_DEVICES": "1",
-            "VLLM_DISABLE_COMPILE_CACHE": "1",
-            # "VLLM_USE_V1": "0",
         }
         vllm_process = start_vllm(
             cfg.base_model,

tests/e2e/patched/test_activation_checkpointing.py

@@ -26,10 +26,15 @@ class TestActivationCheckpointing:
     E2E tests for activation checkpointing
     """
 
+    @pytest.mark.parametrize(
+        "gradient_checkpointing",
+        ["offload", "offload_disk"],
+    )
     def test_activation_checkpointing_offload(
         self,
         temp_dir,
         fix_checkpoint_after_test,  # pylint: disable=unused-argument,redefined-outer-name
+        gradient_checkpointing,
     ):
         # pylint: disable=duplicate-code
         cfg = DictDefault(
@@ -64,7 +69,7 @@ class TestActivationCheckpointing:
                 "sample_packing": True,
                 "bf16": True,
                 "save_safetensors": True,
-                "gradient_checkpointing": "offload",
+                "gradient_checkpointing": gradient_checkpointing,
             }
         )