LocalAI/.agents/adding-backends.md

Adding a New Backend

When adding a new backend to LocalAI, you need to update several files to ensure the backend is properly built, tested, and registered. Here's a step-by-step guide based on the pattern used for adding backends like moonshine:

1. Create Backend Directory Structure

Create the backend directory under the appropriate location:

• Python backends: backend/python/<backend-name>/
• Go backends: backend/go/<backend-name>/
• C++ backends: backend/cpp/<backend-name>/
• Rust backends: backend/rust/<backend-name>/

For Python backends, you'll typically need:

• backend.py - Main gRPC server implementation
• Makefile - Build configuration
• install.sh - Installation script for dependencies
• protogen.sh - Protocol buffer generation script
• requirements.txt - Python dependencies
• run.sh - Runtime script
• test.py / test.sh - Test files

For Rust backends, you'll typically need (see backend/rust/kokoros/ as a reference):

• Cargo.toml - Crate manifest; depend on the upstream project as a submodule under sources/
• build.rs - Invokes tonic_build to generate gRPC stubs from backend/backend.proto (use the BACKEND_PROTO_PATH env var so the Makefile can inject the canonical copy)
• src/ - The gRPC server implementation (implement Backend via tonic)
• Makefile - Copies backend.proto into the crate, runs cargo build --release, then package.sh
• package.sh - Uses ldd to bundle the binary's dynamic deps and ld.so into package/lib/
• run.sh - Sets LD_LIBRARY_PATH/SSL_CERT_DIR and execs the binary via the bundled lib/ld.so
• sources/<UpstreamProject>/ - Git submodule with the upstream Rust crate

2. Add Build Configurations to .github/backend-matrix.yml

The build matrix is data-only YAML at .github/backend-matrix.yml (not inside backend.yml itself). backend.yml (master push) and backend_pr.yml (PR) load it via scripts/changed-backends.js, which also handles per-file path filtering so only touched backends rebuild on PRs and master pushes alike. Add build matrix entries to .github/backend-matrix.yml for each platform/GPU type you want to support. Look at similar backends for reference — chatterbox/faster-whisper for Python, piper/silero-vad for Go, kokoros for Rust.

Without an entry here no image is ever built or pushed, and the gallery entry in backend/index.yaml will point at a tag that does not exist. The dockerfile: field must point at ./backend/Dockerfile.<lang> matching the language bucket from step 1 (e.g. Dockerfile.python, Dockerfile.golang, Dockerfile.rust). The tag-suffix must match the uri: in the corresponding backend/index.yaml image entry exactly.

scripts/changed-backends.js registration — REQUIRED for any new dockerfile suffix. This is the single most common omission, because it has no effect on the PR that adds the backend (when no prior path filter could catch it anyway) — it only breaks the next PR that touches your backend's directory, which then gets zero CI jobs and looks broken for unrelated reasons. Edit scripts/changed-backends.js:inferBackendPath and add a branch BEFORE the more-generic suffixes:

if (item.dockerfile.endsWith("<your-dockerfile-suffix>")) {
    return `backend/cpp/<your-backend>/`;   // or backend/python|go|rust/...
}

The endsWith() test is against the matrix entry's dockerfile: value (e.g. ./backend/Dockerfile.ds4 → endsWith("ds4")). Specificity order matters here just like it does for importers: more-specific suffixes go BEFORE more-generic ones (e.g. ds4 before llama-cpp even though both end with letters, because some upstream might one day call itself super-ds4-llama-cpp). Verify locally before pushing:

# Confirm your dockerfile suffix is unique enough
node -e "
const yaml = require('js-yaml'); const fs = require('fs');
const m = yaml.load(fs.readFileSync('.github/backend-matrix.yml','utf8'));
for (const e of m.include.filter(e => e.backend === '<your-backend>')) {
  console.log(e.dockerfile, '->', e.dockerfile.endsWith('<suffix>'));
}"

A quick way to find the right insertion point: grep -n 'item.dockerfile.endsWith' scripts/changed-backends.js.

bump_deps.yaml registration — REQUIRED for any backend pinning an upstream commit. If your backend's Makefile has a *_VERSION?=<sha> pin to a third-party repo, the daily auto-bump bot at .github/workflows/bump_deps.yaml won't notice it unless you register the backend in its matrix. The bot runs .github/bump_deps.sh which greps for ^$VAR?= in the Makefile you list — so the pin MUST live in the Makefile (not in a separate shell script). The bump for ds4 (#9761) had to walk this back because the original landed the pin in prepare.sh, which the bot can't see. Pattern (for antirez/ds4):

# .github/workflows/bump_deps.yaml
matrix:
  include:
    - repository: "antirez/ds4"
      variable: "DS4_VERSION"
      branch: "main"
      file: "backend/cpp/ds4/Makefile"

And the corresponding Makefile shape (mirror backend/cpp/llama-cpp/Makefile):

DS4_VERSION?=ae302c2fa18cc6d9aefc021d0f27ae03c9ad2fc0
DS4_REPO?=https://github.com/antirez/ds4
...
ds4:
	mkdir -p ds4
	cd ds4 && git init -q && \
	git remote add origin $(DS4_REPO) && \
	git fetch --depth 1 origin $(DS4_VERSION) && \
	git checkout FETCH_HEAD

If you have a prepare.sh doing the clone, delete it — the recipe belongs in the Makefile target so make purge && make works as a clean-and-rebuild and so the bump bot finds the pin.

Placement in file:

• CPU builds: Add after other CPU builds (e.g., after cpu-chatterbox)
• CUDA 12 builds: Add after other CUDA 12 builds (e.g., after gpu-nvidia-cuda-12-chatterbox)
• CUDA 13 builds: Add after other CUDA 13 builds (e.g., after gpu-nvidia-cuda-13-chatterbox)

Additional build types you may need:

• ROCm/HIP: Use build-type: 'hipblas' with base-image: "rocm/dev-ubuntu-24.04:7.2.1"
• Intel/SYCL: Use build-type: 'intel' or build-type: 'sycl_f16'/sycl_f32 with base-image: "intel/oneapi-basekit:2025.3.2-0-devel-ubuntu24.04"
• L4T (ARM): Use build-type: 'l4t' with platforms: 'linux/arm64' and runs-on: 'ubuntu-24.04-arm'

Per-arch native builds (linux/amd64 + linux/arm64):

Multi-arch backends are NOT a single matrix entry with platforms: 'linux/amd64,linux/arm64'. Instead, add two entries — one with platforms: 'linux/amd64' + platform-tag: 'amd64' + runs-on: 'ubuntu-latest', one with platforms: 'linux/arm64' + platform-tag: 'arm64' + runs-on: 'ubuntu-24.04-arm' — both sharing the same tag-suffix. The script detects the shared tag-suffix and emits a merge-matrix entry, so backend-merge-jobs (in backend.yml/backend_pr.yml) automatically assembles the manifest list from per-arch digest artifacts. See -cpu-faster-whisper in .github/backend-matrix.yml for a reference shape.

llama-cpp / ik-llama-cpp / turboquant variants only — builder-base-image:

Entries whose dockerfile is ./backend/Dockerfile.{llama-cpp,ik-llama-cpp,turboquant} must also set a builder-base-image field pointing at a prebuilt base from quay.io/go-skynet/ci-cache:base-grpc-* (CI builds these via .github/workflows/base-images.yml). The mapping is by (build-type, platforms) — see existing entries for the pattern. CI uses these prebuilt bases to skip the gRPC compile (~25–35 min cold). Local make backends/<name> ignores builder-base-image and uses the from-source path inside the Dockerfile, so you don't need quay access for local builds.

3. Add Backend Metadata to backend/index.yaml

Step 3a: Add Meta Definition

Add a YAML anchor definition in the ## metas section (around line 2-300). Look for similar backends to use as a template such as diffusers or chatterbox

Step 3b: Add Image Entries

Add image entries at the end of the file, following the pattern of similar backends such as diffusers or chatterbox. Include both latest (production) and master (development) tags.

Note on integrity: OCI backends installed from a gallery whose verification: block is set are verified against a keyless-cosign policy before extraction; tarball/HTTP backends use the optional sha256: field. New backends do not need any extra YAML — the gallery-level verification: block covers every entry. See .agents/backend-signing.md for the producer-side CI step.

4. Update the Makefile

The Makefile needs to be updated in several places to support building and testing the new backend:

Step 4a: Add to .NOTPARALLEL

Add backends/<backend-name> to the .NOTPARALLEL line (around line 2) to prevent parallel execution conflicts:

.NOTPARALLEL: ... backends/<backend-name>

Step 4b: Add to prepare-test-extra

Add the backend to the prepare-test-extra target to prepare it for testing. Use the path matching your language bucket (backend/python/, backend/go/, backend/rust/, …):

prepare-test-extra: protogen-python
	...
	$(MAKE) -C backend/<lang>/<backend-name>

For Rust backends the target is usually the crate build target itself (e.g. $(MAKE) -C backend/rust/<backend-name> <backend-name>-grpc) so the binary is in place before test runs.

Step 4c: Add to test-extra

Add the backend to the test-extra target to run its tests — applies to Go and Rust backends too, not only Python:

test-extra: prepare-test-extra
	...
	$(MAKE) -C backend/<lang>/<backend-name> test

Each backend's own Makefile should define a test target so this line works regardless of language. Integration tests that need large model downloads should be gated behind an env var (see backend/rust/kokoros/'s KOKOROS_MODEL_PATH pattern) so CI only runs unit tests.

Step 4d: Add Backend Definition

Add a backend definition variable in the backend definitions section (around line 428-457). The format depends on the backend type:

For Python backends with root context (like faster-whisper, coqui):

BACKEND_<BACKEND_NAME> = <backend-name>|python|.|false|true

For Python backends with ./backend context (like chatterbox, moonshine):

BACKEND_<BACKEND_NAME> = <backend-name>|python|./backend|false|true

For Go backends:

BACKEND_<BACKEND_NAME> = <backend-name>|golang|.|false|true

For Rust backends:

BACKEND_<BACKEND_NAME> = <backend-name>|rust|.|false|true

The language field (python/golang/rust/…) must match a backend/Dockerfile.<lang> file.

Step 4e: Generate Docker Build Target

Add an eval call to generate the docker-build target (around line 480-501):

$(eval $(call generate-docker-build-target,$(BACKEND_<BACKEND_NAME>)))

Step 4f: Add to docker-build-backends

Add docker-build-<backend-name> to the docker-build-backends target (around line 507):

docker-build-backends: ... docker-build-<backend-name>

Determining the Context:

• If the backend is in backend/python/<backend-name>/ and uses ./backend as context in the workflow file, use ./backend context
• If the backend is in backend/python/<backend-name>/ but uses . as context in the workflow file, use . context
• Check similar backends to determine the correct context

Documenting the backend (README + docs)

A backend is not "added" until it is discoverable. Update the user-facing docs:

• docs/content/features/backends.md - add the backend to the right category in the "LocalAI supports various types of backends" list (and add a new category if it introduces a new modality, e.g. sound classification).
• If the backend introduces a new API surface (a new endpoint or a realtime capability), document it under docs/content/ where its area lives (audio, vision, etc.) and follow the api-endpoints checklist in api-endpoints-and-auth.md.

If the backend is a native C/C++/GGML engine created and maintained by the LocalAI team (a from-scratch port like parakeet.cpp, ced.cpp, vibevoice.cpp, rf-detr.cpp, not a wrapper around a third-party runtime), it ALSO belongs in the top-level README.md table under "native C/C++/GGML engines ... developed and maintained by the LocalAI project itself". Add a row linking the upstream engine repo with a one-line description. This is the project's showcase of its own engines; a new in-house backend that is missing from it is a documentation bug.

5. Verification Checklist

After adding a new backend, verify:

• Backend directory structure is complete with all necessary files
• Build configurations added to .github/backend-matrix.yml for all desired platforms (per-arch entries with platform-tag for multi-arch; builder-base-image for llama-cpp / ik-llama-cpp / turboquant)
• Meta definition added to backend/index.yaml in the ## metas section
• Image entries added to backend/index.yaml for all build variants (latest + development)
• Tag suffixes match between workflow file and index.yaml
• Makefile updated with all 6 required changes (.NOTPARALLEL, prepare-test-extra, test-extra, backend definition, docker-build target eval, docker-build-backends)
• No YAML syntax errors (check with linter)
• No Makefile syntax errors (check with linter)
• Follows the same pattern as similar backends (e.g., if it's a transcription backend, follow faster-whisper pattern)
• Documented: added to the category list in docs/content/features/backends.md (and any new endpoint/realtime capability documented under docs/content/)
• If it is an in-house native C/C++/GGML engine, added to the maintained-engines table in the top-level README.md

Bundling runtime shared libraries (package.sh)

The final Dockerfile.python stage is FROM scratch — there is no system libc, no apt, no fallback library path. Only files explicitly copied from the builder stage end up in the backend image. That means any runtime dlopen your backend (or its Python deps) needs must be packaged into ${BACKEND}/lib/.

Pattern:

1. Make sure the library is installed in the builder stage of backend/Dockerfile.python (add it to the top-level apt-get install).
2. Drop a package.sh in your backend directory that copies the library — and its soname symlinks — into $(dirname $0)/lib. See backend/python/vllm/package.sh for a reference implementation that walks /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu, /usr/lib/aarch64-linux-gnu, etc.
3. Dockerfile.python already runs package.sh automatically if it exists, after package-gpu-libs.sh.
4. libbackend.sh automatically prepends ${EDIR}/lib to LD_LIBRARY_PATH at run time, so anything packaged this way is found by dlopen.

How to find missing libs: when a Python module silently fails to register torch ops or you see AttributeError: '_OpNamespace' '...' object has no attribute '...', run the backend image's Python with LD_DEBUG=libs to see which dlopen failed. The filename in the error message (e.g. libnuma.so.1) is what you need to package.

To verify packaging works without trusting the host:

make docker-build-<backend>
CID=$(docker create --entrypoint=/run.sh local-ai-backend:<backend>)
docker cp $CID:/lib /tmp/check && docker rm $CID
ls /tmp/check    # expect the bundled .so files + symlinks

Then boot it inside a fresh ubuntu:24.04 (which intentionally does not have the lib installed) to confirm it actually loads from the backend dir.

Importer integration

When you add a new backend, you MUST also make it importable via the model import form (/import-model). The import form dropdown is sourced dynamically from GET /backends/known — it reads the importer registry at core/gallery/importers/importers.go, so the steps below are the ONLY way to make your backend show up.

Required steps:

1. If your backend has unambiguous detection signals (unique file extension, HF pipeline_tag, unique repo name pattern, unique artefact like modules.json):
   • Create an importer file at core/gallery/importers/<backend>.go following the Match/Import pattern in llama-cpp.go.
   • Register it in importers.go:defaultImporters in specificity order — more specific detectors must appear BEFORE more generic ones (e.g. sentencetransformers before transformers, stablediffusion-ggml before llama-cpp, vllm-omni before vllm). First match wins.
2. If your backend is a drop-in replacement (same artefacts as another backend, e.g. ik-llama-cpp and turboquant both consume GGUF the same way llama-cpp does):
   • Do NOT create a new importer. Extend the existing importer's Import() to swap the emitted backend: field when preferences.backend matches. See llama-cpp.go for the pattern.
3. If your backend has no reliable auto-detect signal (preference-only — e.g. sglang, tinygrad, whisperx):
   • Do NOT create an importer. Instead add the backend name to the curated pref-only slice in core/http/endpoints/localai/backend.go that feeds /backends/known. A single line addition.
4. Always add a table-driven test in core/gallery/importers/importers_test.go (Ginkgo/Gomega):
   • Use a real public HuggingFace repo URI as the test fixture (existing tests already hit the live HF API — follow that pattern).
   • Cover detection (auto-match without preferences), preference-override (explicit backend: in preferences wins), and — if the backend's modality has a common pipeline_tag but ambiguous artefacts — an ambiguity test asserting errors.Is(err, importers.ErrAmbiguousImport).

Rules of thumb:

• When in doubt, lean pref-only. A wrong auto-detect is worse than a forced preference.
• Never silently emit a modality mismatch (e.g. emit llama-cpp for a TTS repo because .gguf is present). Return ErrAmbiguousImport instead.
• Registration order is the single most common source of bugs. Check by running go test ./core/gallery/importers/... — the existing suite will fail if you've shadowed a pre-existing detector.

6. Example: Adding a Python Backend

For reference, when moonshine was added:

• Files created: backend/python/moonshine/{backend.py, Makefile, install.sh, protogen.sh, requirements.txt, run.sh, test.py, test.sh}
• Workflow entries: 3 build configurations (CPU, CUDA 12, CUDA 13)
• Index entries: 1 meta definition + 6 image entries (cpu, cuda12, cuda13 x latest/development)
• Makefile updates:
  • Added to .NOTPARALLEL line
  • Added to prepare-test-extra and test-extra targets
  • Added BACKEND_MOONSHINE = moonshine|python|./backend|false|true
  • Added eval for docker-build target generation
  • Added docker-build-moonshine to docker-build-backends