reworking SP logic into composed handler

docs/config.qmd

@@ -686,9 +686,10 @@ ddp_broadcast_buffers:
 # E.g., if 4 GPUs are available, set this value to 2 to split each sequence into two equal-sized
 # subsequences, or set to 4 to split into four equal-sized subsequences.
 # See https://axolotl-ai-cloud.github.io/axolotl/docs/sequence_parallelism.html for more details.
-sequence_parallel_degree:
+sequence_parallel_degree: 4  # Set to the number of GPUs to split sequences across
-# Optional; strides across the key dimension. Larger values use more memory but should make training faster.
+flash_attention: true  # SP requires flash attention
-# Must evenly divide the number of KV heads in your model.
+micro_batch_size: 1  # SP requires this is set to 1
+# (optional) strides across the key dimension; larger values use more memory but should make training a bit faster
 heads_k_stride: 1
 
 # Path to torch distx for optim 'adamw_anyprecision'

docs/sequence_parallelism.qmd

@@ -23,9 +23,10 @@ Use sequence parallelism when:
 To enable sequence parallelism, add the following to your configuration file:
 
 ```yaml
-# Set to a divisor (> 1) of the number of GPUs available
+sequence_parallel_degree: 4  # Split each sequence into 4 parts, one per GPU
-sequence_parallel_degree: 4  # Split sequences across 4 GPUs
+flash_attention: true  # SP requires flash attention
-# Optional; strides across the key dimension. Larger values use more memory but should make training faster.
+micro_batch_size: 1  # SP requires this is set to 1
+# (optional) strides across the key dimension; larger values use more memory but should make training a bit faster
 heads_k_stride: 1
 ```
 
@@ -66,15 +67,16 @@ sequence_len: 8192
 ...
 
 sequence_parallel_degree: 4  # Split each sequence into 4 parts, one per GPU
-flash_attention: true  # Required with sequence parallelism
+flash_attention: true  # SP requires flash attention
-# Optional; strides across the key dimension. Larger values use more memory but should make training faster.
+micro_batch_size: 1  # SP requires this is set to 1
+# (optional) strides across the key dimension; larger values use more memory but should make training a bit faster
 heads_k_stride: 1
 
 ...
 ```
 
-This will train the Llama 3 8B model with 8K context length, with each sequence split
+This will train the Llama 3 8B model with 8192 context length, with each sequence split
-into 2 subsequences of length 4096 across 2 GPUs.
+into 4 subsequences of length 2048 across 4 GPUs.
 
 ## Sample Packing with Sequence Parallelism
 
@@ -86,12 +88,14 @@ Sequence parallelism is compatible with Axolotl's sample packing functionality.
 
 ## Effect on Batch Size
 
+First, note that sequence parallelism supports only the case where `micro_batch_size: 1`.
+
 When using sequence parallelism, your effective global batch size is **divided** by the `sequence_parallel_degree`. This happens because:
 
 - Each group of `sequence_parallel_degree` GPUs works on the same batch (just different parts of each sequence)
 - The number of batches processed per step decreases
 
 For example:
-- With 8 GPUs and no sequence parallelism: 8 different batches processed per step
+- With 8 GPUs and no sequence parallelism: 8 different batches are processed per step
 - With 8 GPUs and `sequence_parallel_degree=4`: Only 2 different batches processed per step (each split across 4 GPUs)
-- If your per-GPU `micro_batch_size` is 2, the global batch size decreases from 16 to 4
+- If your per-GPU `micro_batch_size` is 1, the global batch size decreases from 8 to 2

examples/llama-3/instruct-dpo-lora-8b.yml

@@ -82,3 +82,6 @@ deepspeed:
 weight_decay: 0.0
 fsdp:
 fsdp_config:
+
+special_tokens:
+  pad_token: "<|end_of_text|>"

src/axolotl/core/trainer_builder.py

@@ -1043,6 +1043,10 @@ class HFRLTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
         if self.cfg.rpo_alpha is not None:
             training_args_kwargs["rpo_alpha"] = self.cfg.rpo_alpha
 
+        training_args_kwargs["sequence_parallel_degree"] = (
+            self.cfg.sequence_parallel_degree
+        )
+
         training_args_cls = None
         blocklist_args_kwargs = []
         if self.cfg.rl == "simpo":
@@ -1161,6 +1165,7 @@ class HFRLTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
             dpo_trainer_kwargs["dataset_tags"] = [
                 d["path"] for d in self.cfg.datasets if not Path(d["path"]).is_dir()
             ]
+
         dpo_trainer = trainer_cls(
             *trainer_cls_args,
             args=training_args,
@@ -1178,21 +1183,3 @@ class HFRLTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
             dpo_trainer.add_callback(callback)
 
         return dpo_trainer
-
-
-class HFPPOTrainerBuilder(TrainerBuilderBase):
-    """
-    HF Factory class for PPO Trainer
-    """
-
-    def get_callbacks(self):
-        callbacks = super().get_callbacks()
-        return callbacks
-
-    def get_post_trainer_create_callbacks(self, trainer):
-        callbacks = super().get_post_trainer_create_callbacks(trainer=trainer)
-        return callbacks
-
-    def build(self, total_num_steps):
-        # build PPOConfig
-        pass

src/axolotl/core/trainers/__init__.py

@@ -3,16 +3,16 @@
 # pylint: disable=unused-import
 # flake8: noqa
 
-from .base import AxolotlTrainer
+from axolotl.core.trainers.base import AxolotlTrainer
-from .dpo.trainer import AxolotlDPOTrainer
+from axolotl.core.trainers.dpo import AxolotlDPOTrainer
-from .grpo.trainer import AxolotlGRPOTrainer
+from axolotl.core.trainers.grpo import AxolotlGRPOTrainer
-from .mamba import AxolotlMambaTrainer
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mamba import AxolotlMambaTrainer
-from .relora import ReLoRATrainer
+from axolotl.core.trainers.relora import ReLoRATrainer
-from .trl import (
+from axolotl.core.trainers.trl import (
     AxolotlCPOTrainer,
     AxolotlKTOTrainer,
     AxolotlORPOTrainer,
+    AxolotlPPOTrainer,
     AxolotlPRMTrainer,
     AxolotlRewardTrainer,
-    TRLPPOTrainer,
 )

src/axolotl/core/trainers/base.py

@@ -8,10 +8,11 @@ import logging
 import os
 from collections import defaultdict
 from functools import wraps
-from typing import Literal
+from typing import Any, Literal
 
 import datasets
 import torch
+import torch.nn as nn
 from datasets import Dataset
 from torch.utils.data import (
     BatchSampler,
@@ -25,12 +26,8 @@ from transformers.trainer_utils import PREFIX_CHECKPOINT_DIR, seed_worker
 from trl.trainer.utils import pad_to_length
 from typing_extensions import override
 
-from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import (
+from axolotl.core.trainers.handlers import SequenceParallelHandler
-    OptimizerMixin,
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import TrainerMixins
-    RngLoaderMixin,
-    SchedulerMixin,
-    SequenceParallelMixin,
-)
 from axolotl.core.trainers.utils import (
     sanitize_kwargs_for_ds_tagging,
     sanitize_kwargs_for_tagging,
@@ -40,9 +37,7 @@ from axolotl.utils.samplers import MultipackBatchSampler, get_dataset_lengths
 LOG = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 
-class AxolotlTrainer(
+class AxolotlTrainer(TrainerMixins, Trainer):
-    SchedulerMixin, OptimizerMixin, RngLoaderMixin, SequenceParallelMixin, Trainer
-):
     """Extend the base Trainer for axolotl helpers"""
 
     args = None  # type: "AxolotlTrainingArguments"  # type: ignore[name-defined]
@@ -68,9 +63,7 @@ class AxolotlTrainer(
         if self.args.orpo_alpha:
             self.loss_fct = torch.nn.CrossEntropyLoss(reduction="none")
 
-        # Initialize sequence parallelism if enabled
+        self.sequence_parallel_handler = SequenceParallelHandler(self.args)
-        if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
-            self._setup_sequence_parallel()
 
     def _wrap_model(self, model, training=True, dataloader=None):
         if self.args.torch_compile:
@@ -131,7 +124,7 @@ class AxolotlTrainer(
 
         # Determine the base sampler first
         if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
-            base_sampler = self._sp_get_train_sampler(self.train_dataset)
+            base_sampler = self.sequence_parallel_handler._get_train_sampler(self.train_dataset)
         elif self.args.curriculum_sampling:
             base_sampler = SequentialSampler(self.train_dataset)
         elif use_sample_packing:
@@ -167,7 +160,7 @@ class AxolotlTrainer(
 
         # Determine the base sampler
         if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
-            base_sampler = self._sp_get_eval_sampler(eval_dataset)
+            base_sampler = self.sequence_parallel_handler._get_eval_sampler(eval_dataset)
         elif use_multipack:
             base_sampler = SequentialSampler(eval_dataset)
         else:
@@ -239,7 +232,10 @@ class AxolotlTrainer(
             return dataloader
 
         # Otherwise prepare with accelerator
-        return self.accelerator.prepare_data_loader(dataloader)
+        dataloader = self.accelerator.prepare_data_loader(dataloader)
+
+        return dataloader
+    
 
     def get_train_dataloader(self) -> DataLoader:
         """Get dataloader for training"""
@@ -348,7 +344,57 @@ class AxolotlTrainer(
             dataloader_params["drop_last"] = self.args.dataloader_drop_last
 
         return DataLoader(bench_dataset, **dataloader_params)
-        # return self.accelerator.prepare(DataLoader(bench_dataset, **dataloader_params))
+
+    def training_step(
+        self,
+        model: nn.Module,
+        inputs: dict[str, torch.Tensor | Any],
+        num_items_in_batch: int | None = None,
+    ) -> torch.Tensor:
+        """
+        Perform a training step on a batch of inputs. Overrides the
+        `transformers.trainer.Trainer` method to handle sequence parallelism if
+        enabled.
+
+        Args:
+            model: Model to perform training step for.
+            inputs: Dictionary mapping of inputs.
+            num_items_in_batch: The number of items in the batch.
+        """
+        # Set up sequence parallelism for this step if enabled
+        if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
+            self.sequence_parallel_handler._update_ring_flash_attn_params(inputs)
+
+        # Proceed with normal training step
+        return super().training_step(model, inputs, num_items_in_batch)  # type: ignore
+
+    def prediction_step(
+        self,
+        model: nn.Module,
+        inputs: dict[str, torch.Tensor | Any],
+        prediction_loss_only: bool,
+        ignore_keys: list[str] | None = None,
+    ) -> tuple[torch.Tensor | None, torch.Tensor | None, torch.Tensor | None]:
+        """
+        Perform a prediction step on a batch of inputs. Overrides the
+        `transformers.trainer.Trainer` method to handle sequence parallelism if
+        enabled.
+
+        Args:
+            model: Model to perform prediction step for.
+            inputs: Dictionary mapping of inputs.
+            prediction_loss_only: Whether to return only the loss.
+            ignore_keys: Keys to ignore in the inputs.
+
+        Returns:
+            Tuple of (loss, logits, labels).
+        """
+        # Set up sequence parallelism for this prediction step if enabled
+        if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
+            self.sequence_parallel_handler._update_ring_flash_attn_params(inputs)
+
+        # Proceed with normal prediction step
+        return super().prediction_step(model, inputs, prediction_loss_only, ignore_keys)  # type: ignore
 
     @override
     def compute_loss(

src/axolotl/core/trainers/dpo/__init__.py

@@ -1,14 +1,10 @@
-"""
+"""DPO Specific Strategy for training"""
-DPO Specific Strategy for training
-"""
 
 from axolotl.core.trainers.dpo.trainer import AxolotlDPOTrainer
 
 
 class DPOStrategy:
-    """
+    """Strategy for DPO training"""
-    Strategy for DPO training
-    """
 
     @classmethod
     def get_trainer_class(cls):

src/axolotl/core/trainers/dpo/args.py

@@ -1,6 +1,4 @@
-"""
+"""Axolotl specific DPO args"""
-Axolotl specific DPO args
-"""
 
 from dataclasses import dataclass
 
@@ -11,6 +9,4 @@ from axolotl.core.training_args import AxolotlTrainingMixins
 
 @dataclass
 class AxolotlDPOConfig(AxolotlTrainingMixins, DPOConfig):
-    """
+    """DPO config for DPO training"""
-    DPO config for DPO training
-    """

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

@@ -1,10 +1,7 @@
-"""
+"""DPO trainer for axolotl"""
-DPO trainer for axolotl
-"""
 
-import gc
 from functools import wraps
-from typing import Any, Dict, Union
+from typing import Any
 
 import torch
 from peft.optimizers import create_loraplus_optimizer
@@ -13,7 +10,8 @@ from transformers import Trainer
 from transformers.utils import is_sagemaker_mp_enabled
 from trl import DPOTrainer
 
-from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin
+from axolotl.core.trainers.handlers import SequenceParallelHandler
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import TrainerMixins
 from axolotl.core.trainers.utils import (
     sanitize_kwargs_for_ds_tagging,
     sanitize_kwargs_for_tagging,
@@ -23,18 +21,18 @@ if is_sagemaker_mp_enabled():
     import smdistributed.modelparallel.torch as smp
 
 
-class AxolotlDPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, DPOTrainer):
+class AxolotlDPOTrainer(TrainerMixins, DPOTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base DPOTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base DPOTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "dpo"]
 
     def __init__(self, *args, dataset_tags=None, **kwargs):
         super().__init__(*args, **kwargs)
+        
         self.dataset_tags = dataset_tags
         self.optimizer = None
         self.model_accepts_loss_kwargs = False
+        self.sequence_parallel_handler = SequenceParallelHandler(args=self.args)
 
     def create_optimizer(self):
         # pylint: disable=duplicate-code
@@ -88,7 +86,7 @@ class AxolotlDPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, DPOTrainer):
         max_prompt_length,
         max_completion_length,
         add_special_tokens,
-    ) -> Dict:
+    ) -> dict:
         res = DPOTrainer.tokenize_row(
             features,
             processing_class,
@@ -117,10 +115,9 @@ class AxolotlDPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, DPOTrainer):
     def training_step(
         self,
         model: nn.Module,
-        inputs: Dict[str, Union[torch.Tensor, Any]],
+        inputs: dict[str, torch.Tensor | Any | None],
         num_items_in_batch=None,
     ) -> torch.Tensor:
-        loss: torch.Tensor = super().training_step(model, inputs, num_items_in_batch)
+        self.sequence_parallel_handler.prepare_for_training_step(self, inputs)
-        gc.collect()
+
-        torch.cuda.empty_cache()
+        return super().training_step(model, inputs, num_items_in_batch)
-        return loss

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

@@ -1,6 +1,4 @@
-"""
+"""Axolotl GRPO trainer"""
-Axolotl GRPO trainer
-"""
 
 from contextlib import nullcontext
 
@@ -8,16 +6,14 @@ from accelerate.utils import is_deepspeed_available, is_peft_model
 from trl import GRPOTrainer
 from trl.extras.profiling import profiling_decorator
 
-from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import TrainerMixins
 
 if is_deepspeed_available():
     import deepspeed
 
 
-class AxolotlGRPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, GRPOTrainer):
+class AxolotlGRPOTrainer(TrainerMixins, GRPOTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base GRPOTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base GRPOTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     _tag_names = ["trl", "grpo", "axolotl"]
 

src/axolotl/core/trainers/handlers/__init__.py

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+"""Init for trainer handlers"""
+
+from axolotl.core.trainers.handlers.sequence_parallel import SequenceParallelHandler

src/axolotl/core/trainers/handlers/sequence_parallel.py

@@ -0,0 +1,123 @@
+"""Handler class for sequence parallel trainer logic"""
+
+import torch
+import torch.distributed as dist
+import torch.nn.functional as F
+from torch.utils.data import DistributedSampler
+
+
+class SequenceParallelHandler:
+    """
+    Handler class that encapsulates sequence parallelism functionality.
+    This replaces the SequenceParallelMixin with a composition-based approach.
+    """
+    
+    def __init__(self, args=None):
+        """
+        Initialize the sequence parallel handler.
+        
+        Args:
+            args: The arguments object containing sequence parallelism settings.
+        """
+        self.args = args
+        self.ring_attn_group = None
+        
+        # Set up sequence parallelism if enabled
+        if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
+            self._setup_sequence_parallel()
+    
+    def _setup_sequence_parallel(self):
+        """Set up sequence parallelism environment."""
+        from ring_flash_attn import update_ring_flash_attn_params
+        from axolotl.monkeypatch.attention.ring_attn import get_ring_attn_group
+
+        self.update_ring_flash_attn_params = update_ring_flash_attn_params
+        self.ring_attn_group = get_ring_attn_group()
+    
+    def create_sequence_parallel_sampler(
+        self,
+        dataset,
+        shuffle=True,
+        is_eval=False,
+    ):
+        """
+        Helper method to create sampler for sequence parallelism (SP).
+        
+        Args:
+            dataset: Dataset to sample from.
+            shuffle: Whether to shuffle the dataset.
+            is_eval: Whether we are creating a sampler for evaluation or training.
+            
+        Returns:
+            Distributed sampler.
+        """
+        num_sp_groups = self.args.world_size // self.args.sequence_parallel_degree
+        sp_group_id = dist.get_rank() // self.args.sequence_parallel_degree
+        
+        return DistributedSampler(
+            dataset,
+            num_replicas=num_sp_groups,
+            rank=sp_group_id,
+            seed=self.args.seed if shuffle else None,
+            shuffle=shuffle,
+            drop_last=not is_eval,
+        )
+    
+    def _get_train_sampler(self, dataset):
+        """
+        Get a training sampler configured for sequence parallelism.
+        
+        Args:
+            dataset: The training dataset.
+            
+        Returns:
+            Configured sequence parallel sampler.
+        """
+        return self.create_sequence_parallel_sampler(
+            dataset,
+            shuffle=not self.args.curriculum_sampling,
+        )
+    
+    def _get_eval_sampler(self, eval_dataset):
+        """
+        Get an evaluation sampler configured for sequence parallelism.
+        
+        Args:
+            eval_dataset: The evaluation dataset.
+            
+        Returns:
+            Configured sequence parallel sampler.
+        """
+        return self.create_sequence_parallel_sampler(
+            eval_dataset, shuffle=False, is_eval=True
+        )
+    
+    def _update_ring_flash_attn_params(self, inputs):
+        """
+        Calculate the cu_seqlens for the current forward pass and pass the value to
+        the substituted ring_flash_attn.
+        
+        Args:
+            inputs: Current batch of inputs.
+        """
+        # At this point, inputs should already be partitioned by the sequence
+        # parallel data collator
+        batch_size = inputs["input_ids"].shape[0]
+        seq_len = inputs["input_ids"].shape[1]
+        packed_seq_lens = [seq_len] * batch_size
+        
+        # Calculate the full sequence length across all GPUs in this SP group
+        total_seq_len = seq_len * self.args.sequence_parallel_degree
+        
+        cu_seqlens = torch.cumsum(
+            torch.tensor(
+                packed_seq_lens, device=torch.cuda.current_device(), dtype=torch.int32
+            ),
+            dim=-1,
+            dtype=torch.int32,
+        )
+        cu_seqlens = F.pad(
+            F.pad(cu_seqlens, (1, 0), value=0), (0, 1), value=total_seq_len
+        )
+        
+        self.update_ring_flash_attn_params(cu_seqlens, self.ring_attn_group)

src/axolotl/core/trainers/mixins/__init__.py

@@ -3,7 +3,12 @@
 # pylint: disable=unused-import
 # flake8: noqa
 
-from .optimizer import OptimizerMixin
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins.optimizer import OptimizerMixin
-from .rng_state_loader import RngLoaderMixin
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins.rng_state_loader import RngLoaderMixin
-from .scheduler import SchedulerMixin
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins.scheduler import SchedulerMixin
-from .sequence_parallel import SequenceParallelMixin
+
+
+class TrainerMixins(
+    OptimizerMixin, RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin
+):
+    """Stub class combining all mixins for Axolotl trainers."""

src/axolotl/core/trainers/mixins/rng_state_loader.py

@@ -21,9 +21,7 @@ LOG = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 
 class RngLoaderMixin(Trainer):
-    """
+    """Mixin for method override to load RNG states from a checkpoint"""
-    mixin for method override to load RNG states from a checkpoint
-    """
 
     def _load_rng_state(self, checkpoint):
         # Load RNG states from `checkpoint`

src/axolotl/core/trainers/mixins/sequence_parallel.py

@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 """Module for Axolotl trainer sequence parallelism mixin"""
+# TODO(Dan): remove
 
 import logging
 from typing import Any
@@ -7,7 +8,6 @@ import torch
 import torch.distributed as dist
 import torch.nn.functional as F
 from datasets import Dataset
-from torch import nn
 from torch.utils.data import DistributedSampler, Sampler
 
 from axolotl.monkeypatch.attention.ring_attn import get_ring_attn_group
@@ -71,12 +71,12 @@ class SequenceParallelMixin:
             drop_last=not is_eval,
         )
 
-    def _sp_get_train_sampler(self, dataset) -> Sampler | None:
+    def _get_train_sampler(self, dataset) -> Sampler | None:
         """
         Get a training sampler configured for sequence parallelism.
 
         Args:
-            dataset: The training dataset
+            dataset: The training dataset.
 
         Returns:
             Configured sequence parallel sampler.
@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ class SequenceParallelMixin:
             shuffle=not self.args.curriculum_sampling,
         )
 
-    def _sp_get_eval_sampler(self, eval_dataset) -> Sampler | None:
+    def _get_eval_sampler(self, eval_dataset) -> Sampler | None:
         """
         Get an evaluation sampler configured for sequence parallelism.
 
@@ -130,53 +130,3 @@ class SequenceParallelMixin:
         )
 
         update_ring_flash_attn_params(cu_seqlens, self.ring_attn_group)
-
-    def training_step(
-        self,
-        model: nn.Module,
-        inputs: dict[str, torch.Tensor | Any],
-        num_items_in_batch: int | None = None,
-    ) -> torch.Tensor:
-        """
-        Perform a training step on a batch of inputs. Overrides the
-        `transformers.trainer.Trainer` method to handle sequence parallelism if
-        enabled.
-
-        Args:
-            model: Model to perform training step for.
-            inputs: Dictionary mapping.
-        """
-        # Set up sequence parallelism for this step if enabled
-        if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
-            self._update_ring_flash_attn_params(inputs)
-
-        # Proceed with normal training step
-        return super().training_step(model, inputs, num_items_in_batch)  # type: ignore
-
-    def prediction_step(
-        self,
-        model: nn.Module,
-        inputs: dict[str, torch.Tensor | Any],
-        prediction_loss_only: bool,
-        ignore_keys: list[str] | None = None,
-    ) -> tuple[torch.Tensor | None, torch.Tensor | None, torch.Tensor | None]:
-        """
-        Perform a prediction step on a batch of inputs. Overrides the
-        `transformers.trainer.Trainer` method to handle sequence parallelism if
-        enabled.
-
-        Args:
-            model: Model to perform prediction step for.
-            inputs: Dictionary mapping of inputs.
-            prediction_loss_only: Whether to return only the loss.
-            ignore_keys: Keys to ignore in the inputs.
-
-        Returns:
-            Tuple of (loss, logits, labels).
-        """
-        # Set up sequence parallelism for this prediction step if enabled
-        if self.args.sequence_parallel_degree > 1:
-            self._update_ring_flash_attn_params(inputs)
-
-        # Proceed with normal prediction step
-        return super().prediction_step(model, inputs, prediction_loss_only, ignore_keys)  # type: ignore

src/axolotl/core/trainers/trl.py

@@ -13,11 +13,10 @@ from trl import (
     RewardTrainer,
 )
 
-from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import RngLoaderMixin
+from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins import TrainerMixins
-from axolotl.core.trainers.mixins.scheduler import SchedulerMixin
 
 
-class TRLPPOTrainer(PPOTrainer):
+class AxolotlPPOTrainer(TrainerMixins, PPOTrainer):
     """Wrapper for TRL PPO trainer to handle customizations"""
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "ppo"]
@@ -75,10 +74,8 @@ class TRLPPOTrainer(PPOTrainer):
             )
 
 
-class AxolotlORPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, ORPOTrainer):
+class AxolotlORPOTrainer(TrainerMixins, ORPOTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base ORPOTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base ORPOTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "orpo"]
 
@@ -155,18 +152,14 @@ class AxolotlORPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, ORPOTrainer):
         return loss, metrics
 
 
-class AxolotlKTOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, KTOTrainer):
+class AxolotlKTOTrainer(TrainerMixins, KTOTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base KTOTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base KTOTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "kto"]
 
 
-class AxolotlCPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, CPOTrainer):
+class AxolotlCPOTrainer(TrainerMixins, CPOTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base CPOTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base CPOTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "cpo"]
 
@@ -245,17 +238,13 @@ class AxolotlCPOTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, CPOTrainer):
         return loss, metrics
 
 
-class AxolotlRewardTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, RewardTrainer):
+class AxolotlRewardTrainer(TrainerMixins, RewardTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base RewardTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base RewardTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "reward"]
 
 
-class AxolotlPRMTrainer(RngLoaderMixin, SchedulerMixin, PRMTrainer):
+class AxolotlPRMTrainer(TrainerMixins, PRMTrainer):
-    """
+    """Extend the base trl.PRMTrainer for axolotl helpers"""
-    Extend the base trl.PRMTrainer for axolotl helpers
-    """
 
     tag_names = ["axolotl", "prm"]

src/axolotl/core/training_args.py

@@ -12,9 +12,7 @@ from trl import CPOConfig, KTOConfig, ORPOConfig, PRMConfig, RewardConfig
 
 @dataclass
 class AxolotlTrainingMixins:
-    """
+    """Mixin class for the Axolotl training args."""
-    Mixin class for the Axolotl training args.
-    """
 
     # pylint: disable=duplicate-code
     model_type: Optional[str] = field(

src/axolotl/monkeypatch/attention/ring_attn.py

@@ -6,11 +6,22 @@ package, specifically the `hf_adapter.substitute_hf_flash_attn` function to patc
 their sequence parallel version of Flash Attention 2.
 """
 
+import torch
 import torch.distributed as dist
+import torch.nn.functional as F
 from accelerate.logging import get_logger
+from transformers.modeling_utils import ALL_ATTENTION_FUNCTIONS
 
 from axolotl.logging_config import configure_logging
 
+try:
+    from ring_flash_attn import update_ring_flash_attn_params
+except ImportError:
+    # We pass silently here, but raise an ImportError in our Axolotl config validation
+    # if cfg.sequence_parallel_degree > 1 and `ring-flash-attn` is not installed.
+    pass
+
+
 configure_logging()
 LOG = get_logger(__name__)
 
@@ -32,12 +43,120 @@ def set_ring_attn_group(ring_attn_group: dist.ProcessGroup | None):
     Setter for ring attention group on this rank.
 
     Args:
-        Process group for ring attention.
+        ring_attn_group: Process group for ring attention.
     """
     global RING_ATTN_GROUP  # pylint: disable=global-statement
     RING_ATTN_GROUP = ring_attn_group
 
 
+def patch_flash_attention_for_sequential_batch(sequence_parallel_degree: int):
+    """
+    Patch flash attention a second time to handle batched data. This is a hack to
+    accommodate certain RL trainers which batch data even when `micro_batch_size: 1` is
+    specified in the Axolotl config.
+    
+    Args:
+        sequence_parallel_degree: Sequence parallelism factor.
+    """
+    # Store the original flash attention function
+    original_flash_attention = ALL_ATTENTION_FUNCTIONS["flash_attention_2"]
+
+    def sequential_batch_flash_attention(
+        module: torch.nn.Module,
+        query: torch.Tensor,
+        key: torch.Tensor,
+        value: torch.Tensor,
+        attention_mask: torch.Tensor | None,
+        dropout: float = 0.0,
+        scaling: float | None = None,
+        sliding_window: int | None = None,
+        softcap: float | None = None,
+        **kwargs,
+    ) -> tuple[torch.Tensor, None]:
+        # Check if we have a batch dimension > 1
+        batch_size = query.shape[0]
+        
+        if batch_size <= 1:
+            return original_flash_attention(
+                module,
+                query,
+                key,
+                value,
+                attention_mask,
+                dropout,
+                scaling,
+                sliding_window,
+                softcap,
+                **kwargs
+            )
+        
+        # Process each item in the batch separately
+        outputs = []
+        
+        for i in range(batch_size):
+            # Extract single batch item
+            q_item = query[i:i+1]
+            k_item = key[i:i+1]
+            v_item = value[i:i+1]
+            
+            # Handle attention mask - it might be None or have different shapes
+            mask_item = None
+            if attention_mask is not None:
+                # The mask could have different formats depending on implementation
+                if attention_mask.dim() >= 3 and attention_mask.shape[0] == batch_size:
+                    mask_item = attention_mask[i:i+1]
+                else:
+                    # For broadcast masks that don't have a batch dimension
+                    mask_item = attention_mask
+            
+            # At this point, inputs should already be partitioned by the sequence
+            # parallel data collator
+            batch_size = q_item.shape[0]
+            seq_len = q_item.shape[2]
+            packed_seq_lens = [seq_len] * batch_size
+
+            # Calculate the full sequence length across all GPUs in this SP group
+            total_seq_len = seq_len * sequence_parallel_degree
+
+            cu_seqlens = torch.cumsum(
+                torch.tensor(
+                    packed_seq_lens, device=torch.cuda.current_device(), dtype=torch.int32
+                ),
+                dim=-1,
+                dtype=torch.int32,
+            )
+            cu_seqlens = F.pad(
+                F.pad(cu_seqlens, (1, 0), value=0), (0, 1), value=total_seq_len
+            )
+
+            update_ring_flash_attn_params(cu_seqlens, get_ring_attn_group())
+            
+            # Call the original function for a single batch item
+            output, _ = original_flash_attention(
+                module,
+                q_item,
+                k_item,
+                v_item,
+                mask_item,
+                dropout,
+                scaling,
+                sliding_window,
+                softcap,
+                **kwargs
+            )
+            
+            outputs.append(output)
+            
+            dist.barrier()
+        
+        # Concatenate results along batch dimension
+        concatenated_output = torch.cat(outputs, dim=0)
+        return concatenated_output, None
+    
+    # Replace the original function with our sequential version
+    ALL_ATTENTION_FUNCTIONS["flash_attention_2"] = sequential_batch_flash_attention
+
+
 def register_ring_attn(sequence_parallel_degree: int, heads_k_stride: int | None):
     """
     Create ring attention group and substitute flash attn with ring flash attn.
@@ -98,3 +217,4 @@ def register_ring_attn(sequence_parallel_degree: int, heads_k_stride: int | None
     substitute_hf_flash_attn(
         process_group=get_ring_attn_group(), heads_k_stride=heads_k_stride
     )
+    patch_flash_attention_for_sequential_batch(sequence_parallel_degree)

src/axolotl/utils/models.py

@@ -1351,9 +1351,7 @@ def load_model(
     reference_model: bool = False,
     **kwargs,  # pylint: disable=unused-argument
 ) -> Tuple[PreTrainedModel, Optional[PeftConfig]]:
-    """
+    """Load a model for a given configuration and tokenizer."""
-    Load a model for a given configuration and tokenizer.
-    """
     model_loader = ModelLoader(
         cfg,
         tokenizer,
@@ -1362,12 +1360,16 @@ def load_model(
         reference_model=reference_model,
         **kwargs,
     )
+
     return model_loader.load_model()
 
 
-def load_adapter(model, cfg, adapter, inference=False):
+def load_adapter(
-    # type: (PreTrainedModel, DictDefault, Optional[str], bool) -> Tuple[PreTrainedModel, Optional[PeftConfig]]
+    model: PreTrainedModel,
-
+    cfg: DictDefault,
+    adapter: str | None,
+    inference: bool = False,
+) -> tuple[PreTrainedModel, PeftConfig | None]:
     if adapter is None:
         return model, None
     if hasattr(model, "enable_input_require_grads"):
@@ -1380,8 +1382,9 @@ def load_adapter(model, cfg, adapter, inference=False):
     raise NotImplementedError(f"{adapter} peft adapter not available")
 
 
-def load_llama_adapter(model, cfg):
+def load_llama_adapter(
-    # type: (PreTrainedModel, DictDefault) -> Tuple[PreTrainedModel, Optional[PeftConfig]]
+    model: PreTrainedModel, cfg: DictDefault
+) -> tuple[PreTrainedModel, PeftConfig | None]:
     from peft import AdaptionPromptConfig, get_peft_model
 
     peft_config = AdaptionPromptConfig(
@@ -1405,7 +1408,7 @@ def load_llama_adapter(model, cfg):
     return model, peft_config
 
 
-def find_all_linear_names(model):
+def find_all_linear_names(model: PreTrainedModel):
     cls = (bnb.nn.Linear4bit, bnb.nn.Linear8bitLt, torch.nn.Linear)
     lora_module_names = set()
     for name, module in model.named_modules():