# Skypilot

> Use when launching cloud VMs, Kubernetes pods, or Slurm jobs for GPU/TPU/CPU workloads, training or fine-tuning models on cloud GPUs, deploying inference servers (vllm, TGI, etc.) with autoscaling, writing or debugging SkyPilot task YAML files, using spot/preemptible instances for cost savings, comparing GPU prices across clouds, managing compute across 25+ clouds, Kubernetes, Slurm, and on-prem clusters with failover between them, troubleshooting resource availability or SkyPilot errors, optimizing cost and GPU availability, or migrating an existing Slurm workload (converting sbatch scripts, salloc sessions, job arrays or srun invocations into SkyPilot task YAMLs, and mapping Slurm commands, directives and SLURM_* environment variables to their SkyPilot equivalents).

- Skill: `skypilot-org/skypilot` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 9 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add skypilot-org/skypilot`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/skypilot-org/skypilot/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector CAUTION)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: DevOps & Infra
- Author: skypilot-org (https://skillmd.com/u/skypilot-org)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/skypilot-org/skypilot

---


# SkyPilot Skill

SkyPilot is a unified framework to run AI workloads on any cloud, Slurm or Kubernetes. It provides a single interface to launch clusters, run jobs, and serve models across 25+ clouds (AWS, GCP, Azure, Coreweave, Nebius, Lambda, Together AI, RunPod, and more), Kubernetes clusters, and Slurm clusters.

## When to Use SkyPilot

**Use SkyPilot when you need to:**
- Manage compute resources on any cloud, Slurm, or Kubernetes cluster
- Launch CPU/GPU/TPU (GB300, GB200, B200, H200, H100, etc.) on any cloud, Kubernetes or Slurm
- Run training, fine-tuning, or batch inference jobs
- Serve models with autoscaling and multi-cloud replicas (SkyServe)
- Run long-running jobs with automatic lifecycle management and recovery (managed jobs)
- Find the cheapest or most available GPU across clouds

**Don't use SkyPilot for:**
- Local-only workloads (use Docker/conda directly)

## Capabilities: When to Use What

SkyPilot has three core abstractions. Use the right one for each stage of your workflow:

**1. SkyPilot Clusters** (`sky launch` / `sky exec`) — Interactive development and debugging
- Use during initial development, debugging, and experimentation
- Launch a cluster, SSH in or connect VSCode/Cursor (`code --remote ssh-remote+CLUSTER`), iterate quickly
- Cluster stays up until you stop/down it or autostop triggers
- Best for: prototyping, debugging, short experiments

**2. Managed Jobs** (`sky jobs launch`) — Long-running training and batch jobs
- Use when submitting long-running jobs that should run unattended
- Manages the full lifecycle: provisioning, execution, recovery, and teardown
- Automatically recovers from spot preemptions, quota limits, and transient failures
- Works across clouds, Kubernetes, and Slurm (handles preemptions and quota)
- Best for: training runs, fine-tuning, hyperparameter sweeps, batch inference

**3. SkyServe** (`sky serve up`) — Production model serving
- Use when serving models at scale with autoscaling
- Start with `sky launch` + open port to test your serving setup, then use `sky serve up` to scale
- Provides load balancing, autoscaling, and multi-cloud replicas
- Best for: model serving endpoints, API services

## Before You Start (Agent Bootstrap)

Bootstrap to confirm SkyPilot is installed, connected to an API server, and has cloud credentials. Once confirmed, skip straight to the user's task.

**Step 1: Check installation and API server connectivity**

```bash
sky api info
```
| Output contains | Meaning | Next action |
|-----------------|---------|-------------|
| Server version and status | Server is running and connected | **Bootstrap done.** Skip to user's task. |
| `No SkyPilot API server is connected` | No server connected | Go to "Start or connect a server" below. |
| `Could not connect to SkyPilot API server` | Remote server unreachable or auth expired | Tell the user and suggest `sky api login --relogin -e <endpoint>` to reconnect. |
| `command not found: sky` | SkyPilot not installed | Go to "Install SkyPilot" below. |

**Install SkyPilot** (only if `sky` command not found):
```bash
pip install "skypilot[aws,gcp,kubernetes]"  # Pick clouds the user needs
```
Ask the user which clouds they need if unclear, then re-run `sky api info`.

**Start or connect a server** (only if "not running"):

Ask the user:
> Do you have an existing SkyPilot API server to connect to, or should I start one locally?

- **Connect to existing server:** `sky api login -e <API_SERVER_URL>` — get the URL from the user.
- **Start locally:** `sky api start`

After either path, re-run `sky api info` to confirm the server is reachable.

**Step 2: Check cloud credentials** (only for fresh setups — skip if the server was already running)
```bash
sky check -o json
```
This shows which clouds are enabled or disabled. If the user's target cloud is not enabled, guide them through credential setup (see [Troubleshooting](references/troubleshooting.md#1-installation-and-credentials)).

## Essential Commands

Use `-o json` with status/query commands to get structured JSON output instead of tables.

**Clusters** — interactive development and debugging:

| Command | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| `sky launch -c NAME task.yaml` | Launch a cluster or run a task |
| `sky exec NAME task.yaml` | Run task on existing cluster (skips provisioning); syncs workdir each time |
| `sky exec NAME task.yaml -d` | Same, but detach immediately (don't stream logs) |
| `sky status -o json` | Show all clusters |
| `sky logs NAME` | Stream job logs from a cluster |
| `sky logs NAME --no-follow` | Print existing logs and exit immediately |
| `sky logs NAME --tail 50` | Print last 50 lines of logs and exit |
| `sky logs NAME --status` | Exit with code 0=succeeded, 100=failed, 101=not finished, 102=not found, 103=cancelled |
| `sky queue NAME -o json` | List jobs on a cluster with status (structured JSON) |
| `sky stop NAME` / `sky start NAME` | Stop/restart to save costs (preserves disk) |
| `sky down NAME` | Tear down a cluster completely |
| `sky gpus list -o json` | List available GPU types across clouds |

**Managed Jobs** — long-running unattended workloads:

| Command | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| `sky jobs launch task.yaml` | Launch a managed job (auto lifecycle + recovery) |
| `sky jobs queue -o json` | Show all managed jobs and their status |
| `sky jobs logs JOB_ID` | Stream logs from a managed job |
| `sky jobs cancel JOB_ID` | Cancel a managed job |

**SkyServe** — model serving with autoscaling:

| Command | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| `sky serve up serve.yaml -n NAME` | Start a model serving service |
| `sky serve status NAME` | Show service status and endpoint URL |
| `sky serve update NAME new.yaml` | Update a running service (rolling) |
| `sky serve down NAME` | Tear down a service |

For complete CLI reference, see [CLI Reference](references/cli-reference.md).

## Quick Start

```bash
# Launch a GPU cluster
sky launch -c mycluster --gpus H100 -- nvidia-smi

# Run a task from YAML
sky launch -c mycluster task.yaml

# SSH into cluster
ssh mycluster

# Connect VSCode or Cursor to the cluster for interactive development
code --remote ssh-remote+mycluster /home/user/sky_workdir
# or: cursor --remote ssh-remote+mycluster /home/user/sky_workdir

# Tear down
sky down mycluster
```

## Task YAML Structure

The task YAML is SkyPilot's primary interface. All fields are optional.

```yaml
# task.yaml
name: my-training-job

# Local directory to sync to remote ~/sky_workdir
workdir: .

# Number of nodes (for distributed training)
num_nodes: 1

resources:
  # GPU/TPU accelerators (SkyPilot auto-selects the cheapest cloud/region)
  accelerators: H200:8
  # Optional: pin to a specific cloud/region/infra
  # infra: aws  # or aws/us-east-1, k8s, ssh/my-pool
  # If infra is left out, SkyPilot automatically fails over across all
  # enabled clouds/regions to find the cheapest available option.
  # Use spot instances for cost savings
  use_spot: false
  # Disk size in GB
  disk_size: 256
  # Open ports for serving
  ports: 8080

# Environment variables (accessible in file_mounts, setup, and run)
envs:
  MODEL_NAME: my-model
  BATCH_SIZE: 32

# Setup: runs once on cluster creation, cached on reuse
setup: |
  pip install torch transformers

# Run: the main command
run: |
  python train.py --model $MODEL_NAME --batch-size $BATCH_SIZE
```

For complete YAML schema including file mounts, environment variables set by SkyPilot, and advanced fields, see [YAML Specification](references/yaml-spec.md).

## GPU and Cloud Selection

**IMPORTANT: Let SkyPilot choose the cloud and region.** Do NOT manually pick a cloud/region/instance by parsing `sky gpus list` output. SkyPilot's optimizer automatically selects the cheapest available option across all enabled clouds. Only specify `infra:` when the user explicitly requests a specific cloud or region.

**Default behavior (recommended):** Just specify the GPU type. SkyPilot finds the cheapest cloud/region automatically:

```yaml
resources:
  accelerators: H200:8  # SkyPilot picks the cheapest cloud/region with H200:8
```

If the user doesn't specify a GPU type, ask them what GPU they need (or what model/workload they're running so you can recommend one). Do NOT run `sky gpus list` and pick for them — present options and let the user decide, or use `any_of` to let SkyPilot maximize availability:

```yaml
# Let SkyPilot choose from multiple acceptable GPU types (cheapest wins)
resources:
  any_of:
    - accelerators: H100:8
    - accelerators: A100-80GB:8
    - accelerators: A100:8
```

Use `ordered` only when the user has a strict preference:

```yaml
# Try H100 first on AWS, fall back to GCP, then A100
resources:
  ordered:
    - infra: aws/us-east-1
      accelerators: H100:8
    - infra: gcp/us-central1
      accelerators: H100:8
    - infra: aws/us-west-2
      accelerators: A100-80GB:8
```

Only set `infra:` when the user explicitly says something like "use AWS" or "run on GCP us-central1":

```yaml
resources:
  infra: aws             # User asked for AWS specifically
  accelerators: H100:8
```

## Cluster Lifecycle

```bash
# Launch and run a task
sky launch -c mycluster task.yaml

# Launch with autostop at launch time (preferred: saves cost, no follow-up command needed)
sky launch -c mycluster task.yaml -i 30        # stop after 30 min idle
sky launch -c mycluster task.yaml -i 30 --down # tear down after 30 min idle

# Override or pass environment variables via CLI
sky launch -c mycluster task.yaml --env MODEL_NAME=llama3 --env BATCH_SIZE=64

# Re-run a different task on the same cluster (fast, skips provisioning)
sky exec mycluster another_task.yaml

# Run an inline command
sky exec mycluster -- python train.py --epochs 10

# Set autostop after launch (use if you forgot to set -i at launch time)
sky autostop mycluster -i 30        # stop after 30 min idle, preserving disk (can restart with sky start)
sky autostop mycluster -i 30 --down # tear down after 30 min idle (disk is deleted, cannot restart)

# Stop to save costs, restart later
sky stop mycluster
sky start mycluster

# Tear down completely
sky down mycluster
```

## Workdir Sync Behavior

`workdir:` is synced to `~/sky_workdir` on the remote via `rsync` before every `sky exec`. **rsync is additive — deleted local files are NOT removed from the remote.** This can cause experiments to run against stale build artifacts or old configs.

To ensure a clean slate, SSH and wipe before `sky exec`:
```bash
ssh mycluster "rm -rf ~/sky_workdir"
sky exec mycluster task.yaml
```

Or clean inside `run:` if only specific artifacts need removal:
```yaml
run: |
  find ~/sky_workdir/build -name '*.o' -delete 2>/dev/null || true
  cd ~/sky_workdir && make
```

## Managed Jobs

Use `sky jobs launch` for long-running jobs that should run unattended. SkyPilot manages the full lifecycle — provisioning, execution, recovery from preemptions/quota/failures, and teardown:

```yaml
# managed-job.yaml
name: training-job

resources:
  accelerators: A100:8

run: |
  python train.py --resume-from-checkpoint
```

```bash
# Launch as managed job
sky jobs launch managed-job.yaml

# Check status
sky jobs queue -o json

# Stream logs
sky jobs logs <job_id>

# Cancel
sky jobs cancel <job_id>
```

**Checkpoint pattern**: Your training script should save checkpoints to persistent storage (cloud bucket or volume) and resume from the latest checkpoint on restart. SkyPilot handles the cluster recovery; your script handles the state recovery.

## SkyServe: Model Serving

```yaml
# serve.yaml
resources:
  accelerators: A100:1
  ports: 8080

run: |
  python -m vllm.entrypoints.openai.api_server \
    --model meta-llama/Llama-3.1-8B-Instruct \
    --port 8080

service:
  readiness_probe: /v1/models
  replica_policy:
    min_replicas: 1
    max_replicas: 3
    target_qps_per_replica: 5
```

```bash
# Start service
sky serve up serve.yaml -n my-llm

# Check status / get endpoint
sky serve status my-llm
sky serve status my-llm --endpoint

# Update (rolling)
sky serve update my-llm new-serve.yaml

# Tear down
sky serve down my-llm
```

## Common Workflows

### Fine-Tuning Workflow
1. Write task YAML with `setup` (install deps) and `run` (training command)
2. Use `file_mounts` or `workdir` to sync code
3. `sky launch -c train task.yaml` to launch
4. `sky logs train` to monitor
5. `sky exec train -- python eval.py` to evaluate on same cluster
6. `sky down train` when done

### Hyperparameter Sweep
1. Create parameterized YAML with `envs`
2. Launch multiple managed jobs:
   ```bash
   for lr in 1e-4 1e-5 1e-6; do
     sky jobs launch sweep.yaml --env LR=$lr --name sweep-lr-$lr
   done
   ```
3. Monitor with `sky jobs queue -o json`

### Model Serving Deployment
1. Write serve YAML with `service:` section
2. `sky serve up serve.yaml -n my-service`
3. Get endpoint: `sky serve status my-service --endpoint`
4. Update model: `sky serve update my-service updated.yaml`

### Parallel Experiment Submission

Use `sky exec -d` to submit jobs to multiple VMs without blocking, then collect results:

```bash
# Submit all experiments (detached, returns after job is queued)
for i in 1 2 3 4; do
  sky exec exp-vm-0$i task.yaml --env LR=1e-$i -d
done

# Get the latest job ID from a cluster
job_id=$(sky queue exp-vm-01 -o json \
  | python3 -c "import sys, json; jobs = json.load(sys.stdin).get('exp-vm-01', []); print(max(j['job_id'] for j in jobs) if jobs else '')")

# Wait for a specific job and fetch last 50 lines
sky logs exp-vm-01 $job_id --status && sky logs exp-vm-01 $job_id --tail 50

# Check all jobs across a cluster at once
sky queue exp-vm-01 -o json
```

### Converting a Slurm Workload

When the user has an existing `sbatch` script, `salloc` workflow, or asks how a
Slurm command maps to SkyPilot, **read
[Migrating from Slurm](references/migrating-from-slurm.md) before writing any
YAML.** The mapping has non-obvious parts that are easy to get wrong:

- `--time` does **not** map to `autostop` — autostop is unsupported on Slurm.
  Use `config.slurm.sbatch_options.time`.
- A bare `srun <cmd>` should usually be **dropped**, not translated: `run`
  already executes on every node. Only MPI/PMIx launchers keep `srun`, and
  then they need `--overlap` and a rank-0 guard.
- `--account` / `--qos` / `--exclusive` and other unmodeled directives go
  through `config.slurm.sbatch_options`, which passes them to `sbatch`
  verbatim.
- `sbatch --array` maps to `sky jobs launch --num-jobs` with
  `$SKYPILOT_JOB_RANK`, not to a shell loop.

Validate the result with `sky launch --dryrun <yaml>` — note there is no
`--dryrun` on `sky jobs launch`, so dry-run via `sky launch` even when the
final command will be `sky jobs launch`.

Do not assume the user wants to leave Slurm. SkyPilot submits to an existing
Slurm cluster through its login node; migrating *to Kubernetes* is a separate
question, and the constraints differ.

## Agent Feedback Loop

When using SkyPilot programmatically, follow this loop:

1. **Validate**: `sky launch --dryrun task.yaml` (check resource availability/cost)
2. **Launch**: `sky launch -c mycluster task.yaml`
3. **Monitor**: `sky status -o json` and `sky queue mycluster -o json`
4. **Wait for completion**: `sky logs mycluster <JOB_ID>` (streams logs so you can observe progress and react to stalls; blocks until job finishes; get JOB_ID from `sky queue mycluster -o json`). For long-running jobs where you don't need intermediate output, use `sky logs mycluster <JOB_ID> --status` instead (blocks silently, exits 0 on success).
5. **Inspect output**: `sky logs mycluster <JOB_ID> --no-follow` or `sky logs mycluster <JOB_ID> --tail 100`
6. **Debug**: `ssh mycluster` (interactive)
7. **Iterate**: `sky exec mycluster updated_task.yaml` (run on existing cluster)
8. **Cleanup**: `sky down mycluster`

> **Never poll with `sleep` + `sky queue`** — use `sky logs CLUSTER JOB_ID` to stream logs and block until done. Use `--status` if you only need the exit code, or `--tail N` to fetch recent output after completion.

## Common Agent Mistakes

| Mistake | Why it's wrong | Do this instead |
|---------|---------------|-----------------|
| Manually picking cloud/region from `sky gpus list` output | SkyPilot optimizer does this automatically and better | Just set `accelerators:` and let SkyPilot choose |
| Using `sky launch` for long-running unattended jobs | No recovery if preempted or interrupted | Use `sky jobs launch` for unattended work |
| Forgetting `sky down` or autostop after work is done | Wastes money on idle clusters | Always clean up, or use `-i <minutes> --down` at launch |
| Hardcoding `infra: aws` without user asking | Limits availability and increases cost | Only set `infra:` when user explicitly requests a cloud |
| Not using `envs:` for configurable values | Hard to reuse or override from CLI | Use `envs:` in YAML + `--env KEY=VAL` for parameterization |
| Running `sky launch` without `-c <name>` | Creates randomly-named cluster, hard to reference | Always name clusters with `-c` |
| Parsing table output from status commands | Table formatting is for humans, fragile to parse | Use `-o json` for structured output |
| Using deprecated `cloud:`/`region:`/`zone:` fields | Deprecated in favor of `infra:` | Use `infra: aws/us-east-1` instead |
| Polling job status with `sleep` + `sky queue` | Wastes tokens, introduces timing bugs, fragile | Use `sky logs CLUSTER JOB_ID --status` to block until done |
| Assuming workdir sync removes remote files | rsync is additive; old remote files persist across `sky exec` calls | SSH and manually clean `~/sky_workdir`, or clean in `run:` script |
| Not using `--tail` when only last output matters | Streaming full logs wastes tokens for long jobs | Use `sky logs CLUSTER JOB_ID --tail 50` for last N lines |

## Common Issues Quick Reference

| Issue | Solution |
|-------|----------|
| GPU not available | Use `any_of` for fallback, or try different regions/clouds |
| Setup takes too long | SkyPilot caches setup; use `sky exec` to skip it on reruns |
| Task fails silently | Check `sky logs <cluster>` or `ssh <cluster>` to debug |
| Cluster stuck in INIT | `sky down <cluster>` and relaunch |
| Preemption/quota | Use `sky jobs launch` for automatic recovery and lifecycle management |
| Port not accessible | Ensure `ports:` is set in resources and security groups allow traffic |
| File sync slow | Use cloud bucket mounts instead of `workdir` for large datasets |
| Credentials error | Run `sky check -o json` and inspect which clouds are disabled |

## References

For detailed reference documentation:

- [CLI Reference](references/cli-reference.md) — All commands and flags
- [YAML Specification](references/yaml-spec.md) — Complete task YAML schema, file mounts, environment variables
- [Python SDK](references/python-sdk.md) — Programmatic API and SDK usage
- [Advanced Patterns](references/advanced-patterns.md) — Multi-cloud, distributed training, production patterns
- [Migrating from Slurm](references/migrating-from-slurm.md) — Converting `sbatch` scripts to task YAMLs, Slurm command/env-var mapping, Slurm-specific constraints
- [Troubleshooting](references/troubleshooting.md) — Error diagnosis and solutions
- [Examples](references/examples.md) — Copy-paste task YAML examples