exo_bench: set temperature=0.0 for argmax sampling (drops decode overhead)

## Motivation

The RDMA setup instructions were missing a step: after booting to
Recovery mode, users need to open Terminal from the Utilities menu
before they can run the `rdma_ctl` command. Without this step, users
following the instructions wouldn't know how to access a terminal in
Recovery mode. This step was already in the README just not in the UI
notifications.

## Changes

Added a missing instruction step — "Open Terminal from the Utilities
menu" — to three instances of the RDMA setup flow in
`dashboard/src/routes/+page.svelte`.

## Why It Works

N/A copy change only. 

## Test Plan

### Manual Testing
Hardware: MacBook Pro M4 Max 48GB

### Automated Testing
No automated tests affected; this is a UI copy change only.

Co-authored-by: Sam Bradbury <sam@consultbradbury.com>

app/EXO/EXO/ContentView.swift

@@ -16,22 +16,13 @@ struct ContentView: View {
     @EnvironmentObject private var updater: SparkleUpdater
     @EnvironmentObject private var thunderboltBridgeService: ThunderboltBridgeService
     @EnvironmentObject private var settingsWindowController: SettingsWindowController
+    @EnvironmentObject private var bugReportWindowController: BugReportWindowController
     @State private var focusedNode: NodeViewModel?
     @State private var deletingInstanceIDs: Set<String> = []
     @State private var showAllNodes = false
     @State private var showAllInstances = false
     @State private var baseURLCopied = false
     @State private var showAdvanced = false
-    @State private var showDebugInfo = false
-    private enum BugReportPhase: Equatable {
-        case idle
-        case prompting
-        case sending(String)
-        case success(String)
-        case failure(String)
-    }
-    @State private var bugReportPhase: BugReportPhase = .idle
-    @State private var bugReportUserDescription: String = ""
     @State private var uninstallInProgress = false
     @State private var pendingNamespace: String = ""
     @State private var pendingHFToken: String = ""
@@ -294,6 +285,13 @@ struct ContentView: View {
             ) {
                 updater.checkForUpdates()
             }
+            HoverButton(
+                title: "Share Bug Report…",
+                tint: .primary,
+                trailingSystemImage: "ladybug"
+            ) {
+                bugReportWindowController.open()
+            }
             .padding(.bottom, 8)
             HoverButton(title: "Quit", tint: .secondary) {
                 controller.stop()
@@ -477,40 +475,6 @@ struct ContentView: View {
         }
     }
 
-    private var debugSection: some View {
-        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 4) {
-            HoverButton(
-                title: "Debug Info",
-                tint: .primary,
-                trailingSystemImage: showDebugInfo ? "chevron.up" : "chevron.down",
-                small: true
-            ) {
-                showDebugInfo.toggle()
-            }
-            if showDebugInfo {
-                VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 4) {
-                    Text("Version: \(buildTag)")
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                    Text("Commit: \(buildCommit)")
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                    Text(thunderboltStatusText)
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(thunderboltStatusColor)
-                    clusterThunderboltBridgeView
-                    interfaceIpList
-                    rdmaStatusView
-                    sendBugReportButton
-                        .padding(.top, 6)
-                }
-                .padding(.leading, 8)
-                .transition(.opacity)
-            }
-        }
-        .animation(.easeInOut(duration: 0.25), value: showDebugInfo)
-    }
-
     private var rdmaStatusView: some View {
         let rdmaStatuses = stateService.latestSnapshot?.nodeRdmaCtl ?? [:]
         let localNodeId = stateService.localNodeId
@@ -559,127 +523,6 @@ struct ContentView: View {
         }
     }
 
-    private var sendBugReportButton: some View {
-        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 6) {
-            switch bugReportPhase {
-            case .idle:
-                Button {
-                    bugReportPhase = .prompting
-                    bugReportUserDescription = ""
-                } label: {
-                    HStack {
-                        Text("Send Bug Report")
-                            .font(.caption)
-                            .fontWeight(.semibold)
-                        Spacer()
-                    }
-                    .padding(.vertical, 6)
-                    .padding(.horizontal, 8)
-                    .background(
-                        RoundedRectangle(cornerRadius: 6)
-                            .fill(Color.accentColor.opacity(0.12))
-                    )
-                }
-                .buttonStyle(.plain)
-
-            case .prompting:
-                VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 6) {
-                    VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 2) {
-                        Text("Tell us what went wrong (optional)")
-                            .font(.caption2)
-                            .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                        Text(
-                            "A quick description of what you were doing and what happened helps us track down the bug for you."
-                        )
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                        .opacity(0.8)
-                        .fixedSize(horizontal: false, vertical: true)
-                    }
-                    TextEditor(text: $bugReportUserDescription)
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .frame(height: 60)
-                        .overlay(
-                            RoundedRectangle(cornerRadius: 4)
-                                .stroke(Color.secondary.opacity(0.3), lineWidth: 1)
-                        )
-                    HStack(spacing: 8) {
-                        Button("Send") {
-                            Task {
-                                await sendBugReport()
-                            }
-                        }
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .buttonStyle(.borderedProminent)
-                        .controlSize(.small)
-                        Button("Cancel") {
-                            bugReportPhase = .idle
-                        }
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .buttonStyle(.bordered)
-                        .controlSize(.small)
-                    }
-                }
-                .padding(8)
-                .background(
-                    RoundedRectangle(cornerRadius: 6)
-                        .fill(Color.accentColor.opacity(0.06))
-                )
-
-            case .sending(let message):
-                HStack(spacing: 6) {
-                    ProgressView()
-                        .scaleEffect(0.6)
-                    Text(message)
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                }
-
-            case .success(let message):
-                VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 6) {
-                    Text(message)
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                        .fixedSize(horizontal: false, vertical: true)
-                    Button {
-                        openGitHubIssue()
-                    } label: {
-                        HStack(spacing: 4) {
-                            Image(systemName: "arrow.up.right.square")
-                                .imageScale(.small)
-                            Text("Create GitHub Issue")
-                                .font(.caption2)
-                        }
-                    }
-                    .buttonStyle(.bordered)
-                    .controlSize(.small)
-                    Button("Done") {
-                        bugReportPhase = .idle
-                        bugReportUserDescription = ""
-                    }
-                    .font(.caption2)
-                    .buttonStyle(.plain)
-                    .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                }
-
-            case .failure(let message):
-                VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 4) {
-                    Text(message)
-                        .font(.caption2)
-                        .foregroundColor(.red)
-                        .fixedSize(horizontal: false, vertical: true)
-                    Button("Dismiss") {
-                        bugReportPhase = .idle
-                    }
-                    .font(.caption2)
-                    .buttonStyle(.plain)
-                    .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                }
-            }
-        }
-        .animation(.easeInOut(duration: 0.2), value: bugReportPhase)
-    }
-
     private var processToggleBinding: Binding<Bool> {
         Binding(
             get: {
@@ -720,61 +563,6 @@ struct ContentView: View {
         )
     }
 
-    private func sendBugReport() async {
-        bugReportPhase = .sending("Collecting logs...")
-        let service = BugReportService()
-        let description = bugReportUserDescription.trimmingCharacters(in: .whitespacesAndNewlines)
-        do {
-            let outcome = try await service.sendReport(
-                isManual: true,
-                userDescription: description.isEmpty ? nil : description
-            )
-            if outcome.success {
-                bugReportPhase = .success(outcome.message)
-            } else {
-                bugReportPhase = .failure(outcome.message)
-            }
-        } catch {
-            bugReportPhase = .failure(error.localizedDescription)
-        }
-    }
-
-    private func openGitHubIssue() {
-        let description = bugReportUserDescription.trimmingCharacters(in: .whitespacesAndNewlines)
-
-        var bodyParts: [String] = []
-        bodyParts.append("## Describe the bug")
-        bodyParts.append("")
-        if !description.isEmpty {
-            bodyParts.append(description)
-        } else {
-            bodyParts.append("A clear and concise description of what the bug is.")
-        }
-        bodyParts.append("")
-        bodyParts.append("## Environment")
-        bodyParts.append("")
-        bodyParts.append("- macOS Version: \(ProcessInfo.processInfo.operatingSystemVersionString)")
-        bodyParts.append("- EXO Version: \(buildTag) (\(buildCommit))")
-        bodyParts.append("")
-        bodyParts.append("## Additional context")
-        bodyParts.append("")
-        bodyParts.append("A bug report with diagnostic logs was submitted via the app.")
-
-        let body = bodyParts.joined(separator: "\n")
-
-        var components = URLComponents(string: "https://github.com/exo-explore/exo/issues/new")!
-        components.queryItems = [
-            URLQueryItem(name: "template", value: "bug_report.md"),
-            URLQueryItem(name: "title", value: "[BUG] "),
-            URLQueryItem(name: "body", value: body),
-            URLQueryItem(name: "labels", value: "bug"),
-        ]
-
-        if let url = components.url {
-            NSWorkspace.shared.open(url)
-        }
-    }
-
     private func showUninstallConfirmationAlert() {
         let alert = NSAlert()
         alert.messageText = "Uninstall EXO"
@@ -857,13 +645,6 @@ struct ContentView: View {
         }
     }
 
-    private var buildTag: String {
-        Bundle.main.infoDictionary?["EXOBuildTag"] as? String ?? "unknown"
-    }
-
-    private var buildCommit: String {
-        Bundle.main.infoDictionary?["EXOBuildCommit"] as? String ?? "unknown"
-    }
 }
 
 private struct HoverButton: View {

app/EXO/EXO/EXOApp.swift

@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ struct EXOApp: App {
     @StateObject private var updater: SparkleUpdater
     @StateObject private var thunderboltBridgeService: ThunderboltBridgeService
     @StateObject private var settingsWindowController: SettingsWindowController
+    @StateObject private var bugReportWindowController: BugReportWindowController
     private let terminationObserver: TerminationObserver
     private let firstLaunchPopout = FirstLaunchPopout()
     private let ciContext = CIContext(options: nil)
@@ -46,6 +47,7 @@ struct EXOApp: App {
         let thunderboltBridge = ThunderboltBridgeService(clusterStateService: service)
         _thunderboltBridgeService = StateObject(wrappedValue: thunderboltBridge)
         _settingsWindowController = StateObject(wrappedValue: SettingsWindowController())
+        _bugReportWindowController = StateObject(wrappedValue: BugReportWindowController())
         enableLaunchAtLoginIfNeeded()
         // Install LaunchDaemon to disable Thunderbolt Bridge on startup (prevents network loops)
         NetworkSetupHelper.promptAndInstallIfNeeded()
@@ -66,6 +68,7 @@ struct EXOApp: App {
                 .environmentObject(updater)
                 .environmentObject(thunderboltBridgeService)
                 .environmentObject(settingsWindowController)
+                .environmentObject(bugReportWindowController)
         } label: {
             menuBarIcon
                 .onReceive(controller.$isFirstLaunchReady) { ready in

app/EXO/EXO/Services/ClusterStateService.swift

@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ final class ClusterStateService: ObservableObject {
 
     init(
         baseURL: URL = URL(string: "http://127.0.0.1:52415")!,
-        session: URLSession = .shared
+        session: URLSession = ClusterStateService.makeNonCachingSession()
     ) {
         self.baseURL = baseURL
         self.endpoint = baseURL.appendingPathComponent("state")
@@ -27,6 +27,23 @@ final class ClusterStateService: ObservableObject {
         self.decoder = decoder
     }
 
+    /// `URLSession.shared` carries an on-disk `URLCache` that persists every
+    /// response body under `~/Library/Caches/exolabs.EXO/`. We poll `/state`
+    /// at 2 Hz from `startPolling`, so leaving the shared cache attached
+    /// dirties ~500–620 KB/sec of file-backed memory and trips macOS's
+    /// per-process `disk writes` resource limit (microstackshot reports
+    /// observed on M3 Ultra producing GBs of cached responses per hour).
+    /// Cluster-state polling responses are time-sensitive and small; they
+    /// gain nothing from being cached on disk. Use an ephemeral session
+    /// with `urlCache = nil` so neither response bodies nor metadata
+    /// touch disk.
+    private static func makeNonCachingSession() -> URLSession {
+        let config = URLSessionConfiguration.ephemeral
+        config.urlCache = nil
+        config.requestCachePolicy = .reloadIgnoringLocalCacheData
+        return URLSession(configuration: config)
+    }
+
     func startPolling(interval: TimeInterval = 0.5) {
         stopPolling()
         Task {

app/EXO/EXO/Views/BugReportWindowController.swift

@@ -0,0 +1,242 @@
+import AppKit
+import SwiftUI
+
+/// Manages a standalone window for the bug-report flow.
+/// Ensures only one instance exists and brings it to front on repeated opens.
+@MainActor
+final class BugReportWindowController: ObservableObject {
+    private var window: NSWindow?
+
+    func open() {
+        if let existing = window, existing.isVisible {
+            existing.makeKeyAndOrderFront(nil)
+            NSApp.activate()
+            return
+        }
+
+        let view = BugReportView(onDismiss: { [weak self] in
+            self?.window?.close()
+        })
+
+        let hostingController = NSHostingController(rootView: view)
+        hostingController.sizingOptions = [.preferredContentSize, .minSize]
+
+        let newWindow = NSWindow(contentViewController: hostingController)
+        newWindow.styleMask = [.titled, .closable, .resizable]
+        newWindow.title = "Send a Bug Report"
+        newWindow.center()
+        newWindow.setFrameAutosaveName("ExoBugReportWindow")
+        newWindow.isReleasedWhenClosed = false
+        newWindow.makeKeyAndOrderFront(nil)
+        NSApp.activate()
+
+        window = newWindow
+    }
+}
+
+private struct BugReportView: View {
+    fileprivate enum Phase: Equatable {
+        case prompting
+        case sending(String)
+        case success(String)
+        case failure(String)
+    }
+
+    let onDismiss: () -> Void
+
+    @State private var phase: Phase = .prompting
+    @State private var userDescription: String = ""
+    @FocusState private var descriptionFocused: Bool
+
+    var body: some View {
+        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 12) {
+            switch phase {
+            case .prompting:
+                promptingView
+            case .sending(let message):
+                sendingView(message: message)
+            case .success(let message):
+                successView(message: message)
+            case .failure(let message):
+                failureView(message: message)
+            }
+        }
+        .padding(16)
+        .frame(minWidth: 380)
+        .animation(.easeInOut(duration: 0.2), value: phase)
+        .onAppear { descriptionFocused = true }
+    }
+
+    private var promptingView: some View {
+        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 8) {
+            Text("Description (optional)")
+                .font(.subheadline)
+                .foregroundColor(.secondary)
+            ZStack(alignment: .topLeading) {
+                if userDescription.isEmpty {
+                    Text("What were you doing when it broke?")
+                        .font(.body)
+                        .foregroundColor(Color(nsColor: .placeholderTextColor))
+                        .padding(.horizontal, 10)
+                        .padding(.vertical, 8)
+                        .allowsHitTesting(false)
+                }
+                TextEditor(text: $userDescription)
+                    .font(.body)
+                    .scrollContentBackground(.hidden)
+                    .padding(4)
+                    .frame(height: 72)
+                    .focused($descriptionFocused)
+            }
+            .background(
+                RoundedRectangle(cornerRadius: 6)
+                    .fill(Color(nsColor: .textBackgroundColor))
+            )
+            .overlay(
+                RoundedRectangle(cornerRadius: 6)
+                    .strokeBorder(Color(nsColor: .separatorColor), lineWidth: 1)
+            )
+
+            Text("Diagnostic logs will be uploaded with your report.")
+                .font(.caption)
+                .foregroundColor(.secondary)
+
+            HStack {
+                Spacer()
+                Button("Cancel") { onDismiss() }
+                    .keyboardShortcut(.cancelAction)
+                Button("Send") {
+                    Task { await send() }
+                }
+                .keyboardShortcut(.defaultAction)
+            }
+            .padding(.top, 4)
+        }
+    }
+
+    private func sendingView(message: String) -> some View {
+        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 12) {
+            HStack(spacing: 10) {
+                ProgressView().controlSize(.small)
+                Text(message)
+                    .foregroundColor(.secondary)
+            }
+            HStack {
+                Spacer()
+                Button("Cancel") { onDismiss() }
+                    .keyboardShortcut(.cancelAction)
+                    .disabled(true)
+                Button("Send") {}
+                    .disabled(true)
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private func successView(message: String) -> some View {
+        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 12) {
+            HStack(alignment: .top, spacing: 10) {
+                Image(systemName: "checkmark.circle.fill")
+                    .foregroundColor(.green)
+                    .font(.title2)
+                Text(message)
+                    .fixedSize(horizontal: false, vertical: true)
+            }
+            HStack {
+                Button {
+                    openGitHubIssue()
+                } label: {
+                    HStack(spacing: 4) {
+                        Image(systemName: "arrow.up.right.square")
+                        Text("Open GitHub Issue")
+                    }
+                }
+                Spacer()
+                Button("Done") { onDismiss() }
+                    .keyboardShortcut(.defaultAction)
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private func failureView(message: String) -> some View {
+        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 12) {
+            HStack(alignment: .top, spacing: 10) {
+                Image(systemName: "exclamationmark.triangle.fill")
+                    .foregroundColor(.orange)
+                    .font(.title2)
+                Text(message)
+                    .fixedSize(horizontal: false, vertical: true)
+            }
+            HStack {
+                Spacer()
+                Button("Try Again") {
+                    phase = .prompting
+                }
+                Button("Close") { onDismiss() }
+                    .keyboardShortcut(.defaultAction)
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private func send() async {
+        phase = .sending("Collecting logs and uploading…")
+        let service = BugReportService()
+        let description = userDescription.trimmingCharacters(in: .whitespacesAndNewlines)
+        do {
+            let outcome = try await service.sendReport(
+                isManual: true,
+                userDescription: description.isEmpty ? nil : description
+            )
+            if outcome.success {
+                phase = .success(outcome.message)
+            } else {
+                phase = .failure(outcome.message)
+            }
+        } catch {
+            phase = .failure(error.localizedDescription)
+        }
+    }
+
+    private func openGitHubIssue() {
+        let description = userDescription.trimmingCharacters(in: .whitespacesAndNewlines)
+
+        var bodyParts: [String] = []
+        bodyParts.append("## Describe the bug")
+        bodyParts.append("")
+        if !description.isEmpty {
+            bodyParts.append(description)
+        } else {
+            bodyParts.append("A clear and concise description of what the bug is.")
+        }
+        bodyParts.append("")
+        bodyParts.append("## Environment")
+        bodyParts.append("")
+        bodyParts.append("- macOS Version: \(ProcessInfo.processInfo.operatingSystemVersionString)")
+        bodyParts.append("- EXO Version: \(buildTag) (\(buildCommit))")
+        bodyParts.append("")
+        bodyParts.append("## Additional context")
+        bodyParts.append("")
+        bodyParts.append("A bug report with diagnostic logs was submitted via the app.")
+
+        let body = bodyParts.joined(separator: "\n")
+
+        var components = URLComponents(string: "https://github.com/exo-explore/exo/issues/new")!
+        components.queryItems = [
+            URLQueryItem(name: "template", value: "bug_report.md"),
+            URLQueryItem(name: "title", value: "[BUG] "),
+            URLQueryItem(name: "body", value: body),
+            URLQueryItem(name: "labels", value: "bug"),
+        ]
+
+        if let url = components.url {
+            NSWorkspace.shared.open(url)
+        }
+    }
+
+    private var buildTag: String {
+        Bundle.main.infoDictionary?["EXOBuildTag"] as? String ?? "unknown"
+    }
+
+    private var buildCommit: String {
+        Bundle.main.infoDictionary?["EXOBuildCommit"] as? String ?? "unknown"
+    }
+}

app/EXO/EXO/Views/SettingsView.swift

@@ -21,8 +21,6 @@ struct SettingsView: View {
     @State private var pendingReadOnlyModelsDirs: String = ""
     @State private var pendingCustomEnvironmentVariables: [CustomEnvironmentVariable] = []
     @State private var needsRestart = false
-    @State private var bugReportInFlight = false
-    @State private var bugReportMessage: String?
     @State private var uninstallInProgress = false
 
     var body: some View {
@@ -202,8 +200,6 @@ struct SettingsView: View {
                 VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 2) {
                     rdmaStatusView
                 }
-
-                sendBugReportButton
             }
 
             Section("Danger Zone") {
@@ -504,50 +500,8 @@ struct SettingsView: View {
         }
     }
 
-    private var sendBugReportButton: some View {
-        VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 4) {
-            Button {
-                Task {
-                    await sendBugReport()
-                }
-            } label: {
-                HStack {
-                    if bugReportInFlight {
-                        ProgressView()
-                            .scaleEffect(0.6)
-                    }
-                    Text("Send Bug Report")
-                        .font(.caption)
-                        .fontWeight(.semibold)
-                    Spacer()
-                }
-            }
-            .disabled(bugReportInFlight)
-
-            if let message = bugReportMessage {
-                Text(message)
-                    .font(.caption2)
-                    .foregroundColor(.secondary)
-                    .fixedSize(horizontal: false, vertical: true)
-            }
-        }
-    }
-
     // MARK: - Actions
 
-    private func sendBugReport() async {
-        bugReportInFlight = true
-        bugReportMessage = "Collecting logs..."
-        let service = BugReportService()
-        do {
-            let outcome = try await service.sendReport(isManual: true)
-            bugReportMessage = outcome.message
-        } catch {
-            bugReportMessage = error.localizedDescription
-        }
-        bugReportInFlight = false
-    }
-
     private func showUninstallConfirmationAlert() {
         let alert = NSAlert()
         alert.messageText = "Uninstall EXO"

bench/exo_bench.py

@@ -287,6 +287,10 @@ def run_one_completion(
         "max_tokens": tg,
         "logprobs": False,
         "use_prefix_cache": use_prefix_cache,
+        # Argmax sampling for deterministic, faster decode (matches
+        # mlx_lm.benchmark default). Avoids per-token softmax + categorical
+        # sample over the full vocab.
+        "temperature": 0.0,
     }
 
     if not stream:
@@ -727,6 +731,15 @@ def main() -> int:
                             )
                             runs.append(row)
                             all_rows.append(row)
+                            # Per-repeat trial log so individual numbers are visible
+                            # alongside the final averaged summary. Useful for
+                            # spotting outliers and trial-to-trial variance.
+                            _s = row.get("stats") or {}
+                            logger.info(
+                                f"  repeat {r + 1}/{args.repeat}: "
+                                f"prompt_tps={_s.get('prompt_tps', 0):.2f} "
+                                f"gen_tps={_s.get('generation_tps', 0):.2f}"
+                            )
                         else:
                             # Concurrent: fire N requests in parallel
                             # Pre-build prompt once, barrier ensures simultaneous dispatch
@@ -738,6 +751,8 @@ def main() -> int:
                                 "max_tokens": tg,
                                 "logprobs": False,
                                 "use_prefix_cache": args.use_prefix_cache,
+                                # Argmax sampling — matches mlx_lm.benchmark default
+                                "temperature": 0.0,
                             }
                             barrier = threading.Barrier(concurrency)
                             batch_start = threading.Event()

dashboard/src/routes/+page.svelte

@@ -3435,6 +3435,7 @@
             >
               <li>Connect nodes with TB5 cables</li>
               <li>Boot to Recovery (hold power 10s → Options)</li>
+              <li>Open Terminal from the Utilities menu</li>
               <li>
                 Run
                 <code class="text-yellow-300 bg-yellow-400/10 px-1 rounded"
@@ -4822,6 +4823,7 @@
                 >
                   <li>Connect nodes with TB5 cables</li>
                   <li>Boot to Recovery (hold power 10s → Options)</li>
+                  <li>Open Terminal from the Utilities menu</li>
                   <li>
                     Run
                     <code class="text-yellow-300 bg-yellow-400/10 px-1 rounded"
@@ -4968,6 +4970,7 @@
                   >
                     <li>Connect nodes with TB5 cables</li>
                     <li>Boot to Recovery (hold power 10s → Options)</li>
+                    <li>Open Terminal from the Utilities menu</li>
                     <li>
                       Run
                       <code

src/exo/download/download_utils.py

@@ -1,11 +1,12 @@
 import asyncio
 import hashlib
 import os
+import random
 import shutil
 import ssl
 import time
 import traceback
-from collections.abc import Awaitable
+from collections.abc import Awaitable, Mapping
 from datetime import timedelta
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Callable, Literal
@@ -55,6 +56,36 @@ class HuggingFaceAuthenticationError(Exception):
 class HuggingFaceRateLimitError(Exception):
     """429 Huggingface code"""
 
+    def __init__(self, msg: str, retry_after: float | None = None) -> None:
+        super().__init__(msg)
+        self.retry_after = retry_after
+
+
+def _parse_retry_after(headers: Mapping[str, str]) -> float | None:
+    """Parse seconds-to-reset from HF's RateLimit header.
+
+    HF sends e.g. ``ratelimit: "api";r=0;t=52`` on 429s; ``t`` is the wait.
+    Returns ``None`` if the header is missing or has no ``t`` field.
+    """
+    raw = headers.get("RateLimit") or headers.get("ratelimit")
+    if raw is None:
+        return None
+    for part in raw.split(";"):
+        key, _, val = part.strip().partition("=")
+        if key == "t":
+            try:
+                return float(val)
+            except ValueError:
+                return None
+    return None
+
+
+# reset window is 5 min
+_RATE_LIMIT_MAX_SLEEP_SECS = 300.0
+
+# 24h. Manually clear the cache (or `delete_model`) to force a refresh.
+_FILE_LIST_CACHE_TTL_SECS = 24 * 60 * 60
+
 
 async def _build_auth_error_message(status_code: int, model_id: ModelId) -> str:
     token = await get_hf_token()
@@ -348,9 +379,6 @@ async def _build_file_list_from_local_directory(
     return None
 
 
-_fetched_file_lists_this_session: set[str] = set()
-
-
 async def fetch_file_list_with_cache(
     model_id: ModelId,
     revision: str = "main",
@@ -360,13 +388,16 @@ async def fetch_file_list_with_cache(
 ) -> list[FileListEntry]:
     target_dir = await ensure_cache_dir(model_id)
     cache_file = target_dir / f"{model_id.normalize()}--{revision}--file_list.json"
-    cache_key = f"{model_id.normalize()}--{revision}"
 
-    if cache_key in _fetched_file_lists_this_session and await aios.path.exists(
-        cache_file
-    ):
-        async with aiofiles.open(cache_file, "r") as f:
-            return TypeAdapter(list[FileListEntry]).validate_json(await f.read())
+    # cache survives process restarts so cold starts don't re-burst HF
+    if await aios.path.exists(cache_file):
+        try:
+            cache_age = time.time() - (await aios.stat(cache_file)).st_mtime
+        except OSError:
+            cache_age = float("inf")
+        if cache_age < _FILE_LIST_CACHE_TTL_SECS:
+            async with aiofiles.open(cache_file, "r") as f:
+                return TypeAdapter(list[FileListEntry]).validate_json(await f.read())
 
     if skip_internet:
         if await aios.path.exists(cache_file):
@@ -395,7 +426,6 @@ async def fetch_file_list_with_cache(
             await f.write(
                 TypeAdapter(list[FileListEntry]).dump_json(file_list).decode()
             )
-        _fetched_file_lists_this_session.add(cache_key)
         return file_list
     except Exception as e:
         logger.opt(exception=e).warning(
@@ -426,17 +456,29 @@ async def fetch_file_list_with_retry(
     recursive: bool = False,
     on_connection_lost: Callable[[], None] = lambda: None,
 ) -> list[FileListEntry]:
-    n_attempts = 3
+    n_attempts = 5
     for attempt in range(n_attempts):
         try:
             return await _fetch_file_list(model_id, revision, path, recursive)
         except HuggingFaceAuthenticationError:
             raise
+        except HuggingFaceRateLimitError as e:
+            if attempt == n_attempts - 1:
+                raise
+            sleep_for = e.retry_after if e.retry_after is not None else 2.0**attempt
+            sleep_for = min(sleep_for, _RATE_LIMIT_MAX_SLEEP_SECS) + random.uniform(
+                0, 1
+            )
+            logger.warning(
+                f"Rate limited by HuggingFace fetching file list for {model_id}; "
+                f"sleeping {sleep_for:.1f}s before retry {attempt + 2}/{n_attempts}"
+            )
+            await asyncio.sleep(sleep_for)
         except Exception as e:
             on_connection_lost()
             if attempt == n_attempts - 1:
                 raise e
-            await asyncio.sleep(2.0**attempt)
+            await asyncio.sleep(2.0**attempt + random.uniform(0, 1))
     raise Exception(
         f"Failed to fetch file list for {model_id=} {revision=} {path=} {recursive=}"
     )
@@ -447,6 +489,9 @@ async def _fetch_file_list(
 ) -> list[FileListEntry]:
     api_url = f"{get_hf_endpoint()}/api/models/{model_id}/tree/{revision}"
     url = f"{api_url}/{path}" if path else api_url
+    # ?recursive=true returns the whole subtree in one request
+    if recursive:
+        url = f"{url}?recursive=true"
 
     headers = await get_download_headers()
     async with (
@@ -458,7 +503,8 @@ async def _fetch_file_list(
             raise HuggingFaceAuthenticationError(msg)
         elif response.status == 429:
             raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError(
-                f"Couldn't download {model_id} because of HuggingFace rate limit."
+                f"HuggingFace rate limit hit fetching file list for {model_id}",
+                retry_after=_parse_retry_after(response.headers),
             )
         elif response.status == 200:
             data_json = await response.text()
@@ -468,10 +514,14 @@ async def _fetch_file_list(
                 if item.type == "file":
                     files.append(FileListEntry.model_validate(item))
                 elif item.type == "directory" and recursive:
-                    subfiles = await _fetch_file_list(
-                        model_id, revision, item.path, recursive
-                    )
-                    files.extend(subfiles)
+                    # already inlined by ?recursive=true
+                    continue
+            if recursive and len(data) >= 1000:
+                # HF tree endpoint paginates at 1000; we don't follow cursors
+                logger.warning(
+                    f"File list for {model_id} hit the 1000-entry page cap "
+                    "and may be truncated; cursor pagination is not implemented"
+                )
             return files
         else:
             raise Exception(f"Failed to fetch file list: {response.status}")
@@ -552,6 +602,11 @@ async def file_meta(
         if r.status in [401, 403]:
             msg = await _build_auth_error_message(r.status, model_id)
             raise HuggingFaceAuthenticationError(msg)
+        if r.status == 429:
+            raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError(
+                f"HuggingFace rate limit hit fetching metadata for {model_id}/{path}",
+                retry_after=_parse_retry_after(r.headers),
+            )
         content_length = int(
             r.headers.get("x-linked-size") or r.headers.get("content-length") or 0
         )
@@ -571,7 +626,7 @@ async def download_file_with_retry(
     on_connection_lost: Callable[[], None] = lambda: None,
     skip_internet: bool = False,
 ) -> Path:
-    n_attempts = 3
+    n_attempts = 5
     for attempt in range(n_attempts):
         try:
             return await _download_file(
@@ -583,12 +638,16 @@ async def download_file_with_retry(
             raise
         except HuggingFaceRateLimitError as e:
             if attempt == n_attempts - 1:
-                raise e
-            logger.error(
-                f"Download error on attempt {attempt}/{n_attempts} for {model_id=} {revision=} {path=} {target_dir=}"
+                raise
+            sleep_for = e.retry_after if e.retry_after is not None else 2.0**attempt
+            sleep_for = min(sleep_for, _RATE_LIMIT_MAX_SLEEP_SECS) + random.uniform(
+                0, 1
             )
-            logger.error(traceback.format_exc())
-            await asyncio.sleep(2.0**attempt)
+            logger.warning(
+                f"Rate limited by HuggingFace downloading {model_id}/{path}; "
+                f"sleeping {sleep_for:.1f}s before retry {attempt + 2}/{n_attempts}"
+            )
+            await asyncio.sleep(sleep_for)
         except Exception as e:
             if attempt == n_attempts - 1:
                 on_connection_lost()
@@ -597,7 +656,7 @@ async def download_file_with_retry(
                 f"Download error on attempt {attempt + 1}/{n_attempts} for {model_id=} {revision=} {path=} {target_dir=}"
             )
             logger.error(traceback.format_exc())
-            await asyncio.sleep(2.0**attempt)
+            await asyncio.sleep(2.0**attempt + random.uniform(0, 1))
     raise Exception(
         f"Failed to download file {model_id=} {revision=} {path=} {target_dir=}"
     )
@@ -665,6 +724,11 @@ async def _download_file(
             if r.status in [401, 403]:
                 msg = await _build_auth_error_message(r.status, model_id)
                 raise HuggingFaceAuthenticationError(msg)
+            if r.status == 429:
+                raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError(
+                    f"HuggingFace rate limit hit downloading {model_id}/{path}",
+                    retry_after=_parse_retry_after(r.headers),
+                )
             assert r.status in [200, 206], (
                 f"Failed to download {path} from {url}: {r.status}"
             )

src/exo/download/tests/test_offline_mode.py

@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """Tests for offline/air-gapped mode."""
 
+import os
+import time
 from collections.abc import AsyncIterator
 from pathlib import Path
 from unittest.mock import AsyncMock, patch
@@ -231,3 +233,64 @@ class TestFetchFileListOffline:
         raise FileNotFoundError."""
         with pytest.raises(FileNotFoundError, match="No internet"):
             await fetch_file_list_with_cache(model_id, "main", skip_internet=True)
+
+
+class TestFileListCacheTTL:
+    async def test_uses_fresh_cache_without_fetching(
+        self, model_id: ModelId, temp_models_dir: Path
+    ) -> None:
+        from pydantic import TypeAdapter
+
+        cache_dir = temp_models_dir / "caches" / model_id.normalize()
+        await aios.makedirs(cache_dir, exist_ok=True)
+
+        cached_list = [
+            FileListEntry(type="file", path="model.safetensors", size=1000),
+        ]
+        cache_file = cache_dir / f"{model_id.normalize()}--main--file_list.json"
+        async with aiofiles.open(cache_file, "w") as f:
+            await f.write(
+                TypeAdapter(list[FileListEntry]).dump_json(cached_list).decode()
+            )
+
+        with patch(
+            "exo.download.download_utils.fetch_file_list_with_retry",
+            new_callable=AsyncMock,
+        ) as mock_fetch:
+            result = await fetch_file_list_with_cache(model_id, "main")
+
+        assert result == cached_list
+        mock_fetch.assert_not_called()
+
+    async def test_refetches_when_cache_older_than_ttl(
+        self, model_id: ModelId, temp_models_dir: Path
+    ) -> None:
+        from pydantic import TypeAdapter
+
+        from exo.download.download_utils import (
+            _FILE_LIST_CACHE_TTL_SECS,  # pyright: ignore[reportPrivateUsage]
+        )
+
+        cache_dir = temp_models_dir / "caches" / model_id.normalize()
+        await aios.makedirs(cache_dir, exist_ok=True)
+
+        stale_list = [FileListEntry(type="file", path="stale.bin", size=1)]
+        cache_file = cache_dir / f"{model_id.normalize()}--main--file_list.json"
+        async with aiofiles.open(cache_file, "w") as f:
+            await f.write(
+                TypeAdapter(list[FileListEntry]).dump_json(stale_list).decode()
+            )
+
+        old_mtime = time.time() - _FILE_LIST_CACHE_TTL_SECS - 60
+        os.utime(cache_file, (old_mtime, old_mtime))
+
+        fresh_list = [FileListEntry(type="file", path="fresh.bin", size=2)]
+        with patch(
+            "exo.download.download_utils.fetch_file_list_with_retry",
+            new_callable=AsyncMock,
+            return_value=fresh_list,
+        ) as mock_fetch:
+            result = await fetch_file_list_with_cache(model_id, "main")
+
+        assert result == fresh_list
+        mock_fetch.assert_called_once()

src/exo/download/tests/test_rate_limit_handling.py

@@ -0,0 +1,355 @@
+"""Tests for HuggingFace 429 rate-limit handling in download_utils."""
+
+from collections.abc import AsyncIterator
+from pathlib import Path
+from unittest.mock import AsyncMock, MagicMock, patch
+
+import aiofiles.os as aios
+import pytest
+
+from exo.download.download_utils import (
+    HuggingFaceRateLimitError,
+    _download_file,  # pyright: ignore[reportPrivateUsage]
+    _fetch_file_list,  # pyright: ignore[reportPrivateUsage]
+    _parse_retry_after,  # pyright: ignore[reportPrivateUsage]
+    download_file_with_retry,
+    fetch_file_list_with_retry,
+    file_meta,
+)
+from exo.shared.types.common import ModelId
+
+# captured from a real HF 429 on 2026-04-30 (header is lowercased by Cloudfront)
+REAL_HF_429_HEADERS_2026_04_30 = {
+    "ratelimit": '"api";r=0;t=52',
+    "ratelimit-policy": '"fixed window";"api";q=500;w=300',
+}
+
+
+class TestParseRetryAfter:
+    def test_parses_documented_format(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({"RateLimit": '"api";r=0;t=243'}) == 243.0
+
+    def test_parses_real_hf_response(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after(REAL_HF_429_HEADERS_2026_04_30) == 52.0
+
+    def test_parses_resolvers_bucket(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({"ratelimit": '"resolvers";r=0;t=120'}) == 120.0
+
+    def test_parses_pages_bucket(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({"ratelimit": '"pages";r=0;t=10'}) == 10.0
+
+    def test_returns_none_when_header_missing(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({}) is None
+
+    def test_returns_none_when_only_retry_after_present(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({"Retry-After": "60"}) is None
+
+    def test_returns_none_when_format_unrecognised(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({"ratelimit": "garbage"}) is None
+
+    def test_handles_extra_whitespace(self) -> None:
+        assert _parse_retry_after({"ratelimit": '"api"; r=0; t=42'}) == 42.0
+
+
+class TestFetchFileListRetry:
+    async def test_uses_retry_after_from_error(self) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        async def fake_fetch(*args: object, **kwargs: object) -> list[object]:
+            if not sleeps:
+                raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=2.0)
+            return []
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._fetch_file_list", side_effect=fake_fetch
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+        ):
+            result = await fetch_file_list_with_retry(ModelId("test/model"))
+
+        assert result == []
+        assert len(sleeps) == 1
+        assert 2.0 <= sleeps[0] < 3.0  # retry_after + jitter[0,1)
+
+    async def test_falls_back_to_exp_backoff_when_no_retry_after(self) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        async def fake_fetch(*args: object, **kwargs: object) -> list[object]:
+            if not sleeps:
+                raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=None)
+            return []
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._fetch_file_list", side_effect=fake_fetch
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+        ):
+            await fetch_file_list_with_retry(ModelId("test/model"))
+
+        assert len(sleeps) == 1
+        assert 1.0 <= sleeps[0] < 2.0  # 2**0 + jitter[0,1)
+
+    async def test_caps_sleep_at_max_window(self) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        async def fake_fetch(*args: object, **kwargs: object) -> list[object]:
+            if not sleeps:
+                raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=10_000.0)
+            return []
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._fetch_file_list", side_effect=fake_fetch
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+        ):
+            await fetch_file_list_with_retry(ModelId("test/model"))
+
+        assert len(sleeps) == 1
+        assert 300.0 <= sleeps[0] < 301.0  # cap + jitter[0,1)
+
+    async def test_retries_up_to_five_times(self) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        async def fake_fetch(*args: object, **kwargs: object) -> list[object]:
+            raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=1.0)
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._fetch_file_list", side_effect=fake_fetch
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+            pytest.raises(HuggingFaceRateLimitError),
+        ):
+            await fetch_file_list_with_retry(ModelId("test/model"))
+
+        assert len(sleeps) == 4  # 5 attempts -> 4 sleeps before giving up
+
+
+class TestDownloadFileRetry:
+    @pytest.fixture
+    async def target_dir(self, tmp_path: Path) -> AsyncIterator[Path]:
+        target = tmp_path / "downloads"
+        await aios.makedirs(target, exist_ok=True)
+        yield target
+
+    async def test_uses_retry_after_from_error(self, target_dir: Path) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+        results: list[Path] = [target_dir / "file.bin"]
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        async def fake_download(*args: object, **kwargs: object) -> Path:
+            if not sleeps:
+                raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=5.0)
+            return results[0]
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._download_file",
+                side_effect=fake_download,
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+        ):
+            result = await download_file_with_retry(
+                ModelId("test/model"), "main", "file.bin", target_dir
+            )
+
+        assert result == results[0]
+        assert len(sleeps) == 1
+        assert 5.0 <= sleeps[0] < 6.0
+
+    async def test_caps_sleep_at_max_window(self, target_dir: Path) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+        results: list[Path] = [target_dir / "file.bin"]
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        async def fake_download(*args: object, **kwargs: object) -> Path:
+            if not sleeps:
+                raise HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=99_999.0)
+            return results[0]
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._download_file",
+                side_effect=fake_download,
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+        ):
+            await download_file_with_retry(
+                ModelId("test/model"), "main", "file.bin", target_dir
+            )
+
+        assert len(sleeps) == 1
+        assert 300.0 <= sleeps[0] < 301.0
+
+    async def test_retries_up_to_five_times(self, target_dir: Path) -> None:
+        sleeps: list[float] = []
+
+        async def fake_sleep(seconds: float) -> None:
+            sleeps.append(seconds)
+
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils._download_file",
+                new_callable=AsyncMock,
+                side_effect=HuggingFaceRateLimitError("rate limited", retry_after=1.0),
+            ),
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.asyncio.sleep", side_effect=fake_sleep),
+            pytest.raises(HuggingFaceRateLimitError),
+        ):
+            await download_file_with_retry(
+                ModelId("test/model"), "main", "file.bin", target_dir
+            )
+
+        assert len(sleeps) == 4
+
+
+def _make_mock_session_returning(
+    response_attrs: dict[str, object], method: str = "get"
+) -> MagicMock:
+    """Build a MagicMock that mimics ``create_http_session`` returning a
+    response whose ``status`` / ``headers`` are set from ``response_attrs``.
+
+    Mocks the chain ``create_http_session().__aenter__() -> session``, and
+    ``session.<method>().__aenter__() -> response``.
+    """
+    mock_response = MagicMock()
+    for k, v in response_attrs.items():
+        setattr(mock_response, k, v)
+
+    mock_session = MagicMock()
+    method_mock = getattr(mock_session, method)  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+    method_mock.return_value.__aenter__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+        return_value=mock_response
+    )
+    method_mock.return_value.__aexit__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+        return_value=None
+    )
+
+    mock_factory = MagicMock()
+    mock_factory.return_value.__aenter__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+        return_value=mock_session
+    )
+    mock_factory.return_value.__aexit__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+        return_value=None
+    )
+    return mock_factory
+
+
+REAL_HF_429_HEADER_DICT = {"ratelimit": '"api";r=0;t=52'}
+
+
+class TestRateLimitAtHttpCallSites:
+    """Verify each HF call site translates an HTTP 429 into a
+    ``HuggingFaceRateLimitError`` carrying the parsed ``retry_after``.
+
+    These tests would catch regressions where (a) the 429 branch is
+    deleted, (b) ``_parse_retry_after`` stops being called, or
+    (c) the wrong header object is passed to it.
+    """
+
+    async def test_fetch_file_list_maps_429_to_rate_limit_error(self) -> None:
+        mock_factory = _make_mock_session_returning(
+            {"status": 429, "headers": REAL_HF_429_HEADER_DICT}
+        )
+        with (
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.create_http_session", mock_factory),
+            pytest.raises(HuggingFaceRateLimitError) as exc_info,
+        ):
+            await _fetch_file_list(ModelId("test/model"), "main")
+        assert exc_info.value.retry_after == 52.0
+
+    async def test_file_meta_maps_429_to_rate_limit_error(self) -> None:
+        mock_factory = _make_mock_session_returning(
+            {"status": 429, "headers": REAL_HF_429_HEADER_DICT}, method="head"
+        )
+        with (
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.create_http_session", mock_factory),
+            pytest.raises(HuggingFaceRateLimitError) as exc_info,
+        ):
+            await file_meta(ModelId("test/model"), "main", "weights.safetensors")
+        assert exc_info.value.retry_after == 52.0
+
+    async def test_file_meta_maps_429_after_307_redirect(self) -> None:
+        """When the initial HEAD 307s and the redirected HEAD then 429s,
+        the 429 must still surface as ``HuggingFaceRateLimitError``."""
+        # First HEAD -> 307 with a Location header pointing somewhere new.
+        first_response = MagicMock()
+        first_response.status = 307
+        first_response.headers = {"location": "/redirected/url"}
+
+        # Second HEAD (the recursive call) -> 429 with the real-HF header.
+        second_response = MagicMock()
+        second_response.status = 429
+        second_response.headers = REAL_HF_429_HEADER_DICT
+
+        responses = iter([first_response, second_response])
+
+        mock_session = MagicMock()
+        mock_session.head.return_value.__aenter__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+            side_effect=lambda: next(responses)
+        )
+        mock_session.head.return_value.__aexit__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+            return_value=None
+        )
+
+        mock_factory = MagicMock()
+        mock_factory.return_value.__aenter__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+            return_value=mock_session
+        )
+        mock_factory.return_value.__aexit__ = AsyncMock(  # pyright: ignore[reportAny]
+            return_value=None
+        )
+
+        with (
+            patch("exo.download.download_utils.create_http_session", mock_factory),
+            pytest.raises(HuggingFaceRateLimitError) as exc_info,
+        ):
+            await file_meta(ModelId("test/model"), "main", "weights.safetensors")
+        assert exc_info.value.retry_after == 52.0
+
+    async def test_download_file_maps_429_to_rate_limit_error(
+        self, tmp_path: Path
+    ) -> None:
+        target_dir = tmp_path / "downloads"
+        await aios.makedirs(target_dir, exist_ok=True)
+        # No local file -> _download_file goes straight to file_meta then GET.
+        # We need both calls to succeed enough to reach the GET branch:
+        #   - file_meta returns a non-429 (size, etag) so we proceed.
+        #   - the GET then 429s.
+        with (
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils.file_meta",
+                new_callable=AsyncMock,
+                return_value=(100, "abc123"),
+            ),
+            patch(
+                "exo.download.download_utils.create_http_session",
+                _make_mock_session_returning(
+                    {"status": 429, "headers": REAL_HF_429_HEADER_DICT}
+                ),
+            ),
+            pytest.raises(HuggingFaceRateLimitError) as exc_info,
+        ):
+            await _download_file(
+                ModelId("test/model"), "main", "weights.safetensors", target_dir
+            )
+        assert exc_info.value.retry_after == 52.0

src/exo/worker/engines/mlx/auto_parallel.py

@@ -599,7 +599,7 @@ def tensor_auto_parallel(
         raise ValueError(f"Unsupported model type: {type(model)}")
 
     model = yield from tensor_parallel_sharding_strategy.shard_model(model)
-    return patch_tensor_model(model)
+    return model  # PATCH-DISABLED for A/B test
 
 
 class TensorParallelShardingStrategy(ABC):