feat: add external grpc and model autoloading

api/backend/embeddings.go

@@ -30,6 +30,10 @@ func ModelEmbedding(s string, tokens []int, loader *model.ModelLoader, c config.
 		model.WithContext(o.Context),
 	}
 
+	for k, v := range o.ExternalGRPCBackends {
+		opts = append(opts, model.WithExternalBackend(k, v))
+	}
+
 	if c.Backend == "" {
 		inferenceModel, err = loader.GreedyLoader(opts...)
 	} else {

api/backend/image.go

@@ -15,12 +15,20 @@ func ImageGeneration(height, width, mode, step, seed int, positive_prompt, negat
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("endpoint only working with stablediffusion models")
 	}
 
-	inferenceModel, err := loader.BackendLoader(
+	opts := []model.Option{
 		model.WithBackendString(c.Backend),
 		model.WithAssetDir(o.AssetsDestination),
 		model.WithThreads(uint32(c.Threads)),
 		model.WithContext(o.Context),
 		model.WithModelFile(c.ImageGenerationAssets),
+	}
+
+	for k, v := range o.ExternalGRPCBackends {
+		opts = append(opts, model.WithExternalBackend(k, v))
+	}
+
+	inferenceModel, err := loader.BackendLoader(
+		opts...,
 	)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err

api/backend/llm.go

@@ -1,14 +1,17 @@
 package backend
 
 import (
+	"os"
 	"regexp"
 	"strings"
 	"sync"
 
 	config "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/config"
 	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/options"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/gallery"
 	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/grpc"
 	model "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/model"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
 )
 
 func ModelInference(s string, loader *model.ModelLoader, c config.Config, o *options.Option, tokenCallback func(string) bool) (func() (string, error), error) {
@@ -27,12 +30,32 @@ func ModelInference(s string, loader *model.ModelLoader, c config.Config, o *opt
 		model.WithContext(o.Context),
 	}
 
+	for k, v := range o.ExternalGRPCBackends {
+		opts = append(opts, model.WithExternalBackend(k, v))
+	}
+
+	if c.Backend != "" {
+		opts = append(opts, model.WithBackendString(c.Backend))
+	}
+
+	// Check if the modelFile exists, if it doesn't try to load it from the gallery
+	if o.AutoloadGalleries { // experimental
+		if _, err := os.Stat(modelFile); os.IsNotExist(err) {
+			utils.ResetDownloadTimers()
+			// if we failed to load the model, we try to download it
+			err := gallery.InstallModelFromGalleryByName(o.Galleries, modelFile, loader.ModelPath, gallery.GalleryModel{}, utils.DisplayDownloadFunction)
+			if err != nil {
+				return nil, err
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
 	if c.Backend == "" {
 		inferenceModel, err = loader.GreedyLoader(opts...)
 	} else {
-		opts = append(opts, model.WithBackendString(c.Backend))
 		inferenceModel, err = loader.BackendLoader(opts...)
 	}
+
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}

api/backend/transcript.go

@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+package backend
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+
+	config "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/config"
+
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/options"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/grpc/proto"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/grpc/whisper/api"
+	model "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/model"
+)
+
+func ModelTranscription(audio, language string, loader *model.ModelLoader, c config.Config, o *options.Option) (*api.Result, error) {
+	opts := []model.Option{
+		model.WithBackendString(model.WhisperBackend),
+		model.WithModelFile(c.Model),
+		model.WithContext(o.Context),
+		model.WithThreads(uint32(c.Threads)),
+		model.WithAssetDir(o.AssetsDestination),
+	}
+
+	for k, v := range o.ExternalGRPCBackends {
+		opts = append(opts, model.WithExternalBackend(k, v))
+	}
+
+	whisperModel, err := o.Loader.BackendLoader(opts...)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	if whisperModel == nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("could not load whisper model")
+	}
+
+	return whisperModel.AudioTranscription(context.Background(), &proto.TranscriptRequest{
+		Dst:      audio,
+		Language: language,
+		Threads:  uint32(c.Threads),
+	})
+}

api/backend/tts.go

@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+package backend
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/options"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/grpc/proto"
+	model "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/model"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
+)
+
+func generateUniqueFileName(dir, baseName, ext string) string {
+	counter := 1
+	fileName := baseName + ext
+
+	for {
+		filePath := filepath.Join(dir, fileName)
+		_, err := os.Stat(filePath)
+		if os.IsNotExist(err) {
+			return fileName
+		}
+
+		counter++
+		fileName = fmt.Sprintf("%s_%d%s", baseName, counter, ext)
+	}
+}
+
+func ModelTTS(text, modelFile string, loader *model.ModelLoader, o *options.Option) (string, *proto.Result, error) {
+	opts := []model.Option{
+		model.WithBackendString(model.PiperBackend),
+		model.WithModelFile(modelFile),
+		model.WithContext(o.Context),
+		model.WithAssetDir(o.AssetsDestination),
+	}
+
+	for k, v := range o.ExternalGRPCBackends {
+		opts = append(opts, model.WithExternalBackend(k, v))
+	}
+
+	piperModel, err := o.Loader.BackendLoader(opts...)
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", nil, err
+	}
+
+	if piperModel == nil {
+		return "", nil, fmt.Errorf("could not load piper model")
+	}
+
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(o.AudioDir, 0755); err != nil {
+		return "", nil, fmt.Errorf("failed creating audio directory: %s", err)
+	}
+
+	fileName := generateUniqueFileName(o.AudioDir, "piper", ".wav")
+	filePath := filepath.Join(o.AudioDir, fileName)
+
+	modelPath := filepath.Join(o.Loader.ModelPath, modelFile)
+
+	if err := utils.VerifyPath(modelPath, o.Loader.ModelPath); err != nil {
+		return "", nil, err
+	}
+
+	res, err := piperModel.TTS(context.Background(), &proto.TTSRequest{
+		Text:  text,
+		Model: modelPath,
+		Dst:   filePath,
+	})
+
+	return filePath, res, err
+}

api/localai/gallery.go

@@ -4,13 +4,15 @@ import (
 	"context"
 	"fmt"
 	"os"
+	"strings"
 	"sync"
-	"time"
 
 	json "github.com/json-iterator/go"
 
 	config "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/config"
 	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/gallery"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
+
 	"github.com/gofiber/fiber/v2"
 	"github.com/google/uuid"
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
@@ -80,6 +82,8 @@ func (g *galleryApplier) Start(c context.Context, cm *config.ConfigLoader) {
 			case <-c.Done():
 				return
 			case op := <-g.C:
+				utils.ResetDownloadTimers()
+
 				g.updateStatus(op.id, &galleryOpStatus{Message: "processing", Progress: 0})
 
 				// updates the status with an error
@@ -90,13 +94,17 @@ func (g *galleryApplier) Start(c context.Context, cm *config.ConfigLoader) {
 				// displayDownload displays the download progress
 				progressCallback := func(fileName string, current string, total string, percentage float64) {
 					g.updateStatus(op.id, &galleryOpStatus{Message: "processing", Progress: percentage, TotalFileSize: total, DownloadedFileSize: current})
-					displayDownload(fileName, current, total, percentage)
+					utils.DisplayDownloadFunction(fileName, current, total, percentage)
 				}
 
 				var err error
 				// if the request contains a gallery name, we apply the gallery from the gallery list
 				if op.galleryName != "" {
-					err = gallery.InstallModelFromGallery(op.galleries, op.galleryName, g.modelPath, op.req, progressCallback)
+					if strings.Contains(op.galleryName, "@") {
+						err = gallery.InstallModelFromGallery(op.galleries, op.galleryName, g.modelPath, op.req, progressCallback)
+					} else {
+						err = gallery.InstallModelFromGalleryByName(op.galleries, op.galleryName, g.modelPath, op.req, progressCallback)
+					}
 				} else {
 					err = prepareModel(g.modelPath, op.req, cm, progressCallback)
 				}
@@ -119,31 +127,6 @@ func (g *galleryApplier) Start(c context.Context, cm *config.ConfigLoader) {
 	}()
 }
 
-var lastProgress time.Time = time.Now()
-var startTime time.Time = time.Now()
-
-func displayDownload(fileName string, current string, total string, percentage float64) {
-	currentTime := time.Now()
-
-	if currentTime.Sub(lastProgress) >= 5*time.Second {
-
-		lastProgress = currentTime
-
-		// calculate ETA based on percentage and elapsed time
-		var eta time.Duration
-		if percentage > 0 {
-			elapsed := currentTime.Sub(startTime)
-			eta = time.Duration(float64(elapsed)*(100/percentage) - float64(elapsed))
-		}
-
-		if total != "" {
-			log.Debug().Msgf("Downloading %s: %s/%s (%.2f%%) ETA: %s", fileName, current, total, percentage, eta)
-		} else {
-			log.Debug().Msgf("Downloading: %s", current)
-		}
-	}
-}
-
 type galleryModel struct {
 	gallery.GalleryModel
 	ID string `json:"id"`
@@ -165,10 +148,11 @@ func ApplyGalleryFromString(modelPath, s string, cm *config.ConfigLoader, galler
 	}
 
 	for _, r := range requests {
+		utils.ResetDownloadTimers()
 		if r.ID == "" {
-			err = prepareModel(modelPath, r.GalleryModel, cm, displayDownload)
+			err = prepareModel(modelPath, r.GalleryModel, cm, utils.DisplayDownloadFunction)
 		} else {
-			err = gallery.InstallModelFromGallery(galleries, r.ID, modelPath, r.GalleryModel, displayDownload)
+			err = gallery.InstallModelFromGallery(galleries, r.ID, modelPath, r.GalleryModel, utils.DisplayDownloadFunction)
 		}
 	}
 

api/localai/localai.go

@@ -1,17 +1,10 @@
 package localai
 
 import (
-	"context"
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/backend"
-	"fmt"
-	"os"
-	"path/filepath"
-
 	config "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/config"
 
 	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/options"
-	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/grpc/proto"
-	model "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/model"
-	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
 	"github.com/gofiber/fiber/v2"
 )
 
@@ -20,22 +13,6 @@ type TTSRequest struct {
 	Input string `json:"input" yaml:"input"`
 }
 
-func generateUniqueFileName(dir, baseName, ext string) string {
-	counter := 1
-	fileName := baseName + ext
-
-	for {
-		filePath := filepath.Join(dir, fileName)
-		_, err := os.Stat(filePath)
-		if os.IsNotExist(err) {
-			return fileName
-		}
-
-		counter++
-		fileName = fmt.Sprintf("%s_%d%s", baseName, counter, ext)
-	}
-}
-
 func TTSEndpoint(cm *config.ConfigLoader, o *options.Option) func(c *fiber.Ctx) error {
 	return func(c *fiber.Ctx) error {
 
@@ -45,40 +22,10 @@ func TTSEndpoint(cm *config.ConfigLoader, o *options.Option) func(c *fiber.Ctx)
 			return err
 		}
 
-		piperModel, err := o.Loader.BackendLoader(
+		filePath, _, err := backend.ModelTTS(input.Input, input.Model, o.Loader, o)
-			model.WithBackendString(model.PiperBackend),
-			model.WithModelFile(input.Model),
-			model.WithContext(o.Context),
-			model.WithAssetDir(o.AssetsDestination))
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
-
-		if piperModel == nil {
-			return fmt.Errorf("could not load piper model")
-		}
-
-		if err := os.MkdirAll(o.AudioDir, 0755); err != nil {
-			return fmt.Errorf("failed creating audio directory: %s", err)
-		}
-
-		fileName := generateUniqueFileName(o.AudioDir, "piper", ".wav")
-		filePath := filepath.Join(o.AudioDir, fileName)
-
-		modelPath := filepath.Join(o.Loader.ModelPath, input.Model)
-
-		if err := utils.VerifyPath(modelPath, o.Loader.ModelPath); err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-
-		if _, err := piperModel.TTS(context.Background(), &proto.TTSRequest{
-			Text:  input.Input,
-			Model: modelPath,
-			Dst:   filePath,
-		}); err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-
 		return c.Download(filePath)
 	}
 }

api/openai/transcription.go

@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 package openai
 
 import (
-	"context"
 	"fmt"
 	"io"
 	"net/http"
@@ -9,10 +8,9 @@ import (
 	"path"
 	"path/filepath"
 
+	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/backend"
 	config "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/config"
 	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api/options"
-	"github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/grpc/proto"
-	model "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/pkg/model"
 
 	"github.com/gofiber/fiber/v2"
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
@@ -61,25 +59,7 @@ func TranscriptEndpoint(cm *config.ConfigLoader, o *options.Option) func(c *fibe
 
 		log.Debug().Msgf("Audio file copied to: %+v", dst)
 
-		whisperModel, err := o.Loader.BackendLoader(
+		tr, err := backend.ModelTranscription(dst, input.Language, o.Loader, *config, o)
-			model.WithBackendString(model.WhisperBackend),
-			model.WithModelFile(config.Model),
-			model.WithContext(o.Context),
-			model.WithThreads(uint32(config.Threads)),
-			model.WithAssetDir(o.AssetsDestination))
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-
-		if whisperModel == nil {
-			return fmt.Errorf("could not load whisper model")
-		}
-
-		tr, err := whisperModel.AudioTranscription(context.Background(), &proto.TranscriptRequest{
-			Dst:      dst,
-			Language: input.Language,
-			Threads:  uint32(config.Threads),
-		})
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}

api/options/options.go

@@ -28,6 +28,10 @@ type Option struct {
 
 	BackendAssets     embed.FS
 	AssetsDestination string
+
+	ExternalGRPCBackends map[string]string
+
+	AutoloadGalleries bool
 }
 
 type AppOption func(*Option)
@@ -53,6 +57,19 @@ func WithCors(b bool) AppOption {
 	}
 }
 
+var EnableGalleriesAutoload = func(o *Option) {
+	o.AutoloadGalleries = true
+}
+
+func WithExternalBackend(name string, uri string) AppOption {
+	return func(o *Option) {
+		if o.ExternalGRPCBackends == nil {
+			o.ExternalGRPCBackends = make(map[string]string)
+		}
+		o.ExternalGRPCBackends[name] = uri
+	}
+}
+
 func WithCorsAllowOrigins(b string) AppOption {
 	return func(o *Option) {
 		o.CORSAllowOrigins = b

main.go

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"os/signal"
 	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
 	"syscall"
 
 	api "github.com/go-skynet/LocalAI/api"
@@ -40,6 +41,10 @@ func main() {
 				Name:    "f16",
 				EnvVars: []string{"F16"},
 			},
+			&cli.BoolFlag{
+				Name:    "autoload-galleries",
+				EnvVars: []string{"AUTOLOAD_GALLERIES"},
+			},
 			&cli.BoolFlag{
 				Name:    "debug",
 				EnvVars: []string{"DEBUG"},
@@ -108,6 +113,11 @@ func main() {
 				EnvVars: []string{"BACKEND_ASSETS_PATH"},
 				Value:   "/tmp/localai/backend_data",
 			},
+			&cli.StringSliceFlag{
+				Name:    "external-grpc-backends",
+				Usage:   "A list of external grpc backends",
+				EnvVars: []string{"EXTERNAL_GRPC_BACKENDS"},
+			},
 			&cli.IntFlag{
 				Name:    "context-size",
 				Usage:   "Default context size of the model",
@@ -138,7 +148,8 @@ For a list of compatible model, check out: https://localai.io/model-compatibilit
 		UsageText: `local-ai [options]`,
 		Copyright: "Ettore Di Giacinto",
 		Action: func(ctx *cli.Context) error {
-			app, err := api.App(
+
+			opts := []options.AppOption{
 				options.WithConfigFile(ctx.String("config-file")),
 				options.WithJSONStringPreload(ctx.String("preload-models")),
 				options.WithYAMLConfigPreload(ctx.String("preload-models-config")),
@@ -155,7 +166,22 @@ For a list of compatible model, check out: https://localai.io/model-compatibilit
 				options.WithThreads(ctx.Int("threads")),
 				options.WithBackendAssets(backendAssets),
 				options.WithBackendAssetsOutput(ctx.String("backend-assets-path")),
-				options.WithUploadLimitMB(ctx.Int("upload-limit")))
+				options.WithUploadLimitMB(ctx.Int("upload-limit")),
+			}
+
+			externalgRPC := ctx.StringSlice("external-grpc-backends")
+			// split ":" to get backend name and the uri
+			for _, v := range externalgRPC {
+				backend := v[:strings.IndexByte(v, ':')]
+				uri := v[strings.IndexByte(v, ':')+1:]
+				opts = append(opts, options.WithExternalBackend(backend, uri))
+			}
+
+			if ctx.Bool("autoload-galleries") {
+				opts = append(opts, options.EnableGalleriesAutoload)
+			}
+
+			app, err := api.App(opts...)
 			if err != nil {
 				return err
 			}

pkg/gallery/gallery.go

@@ -18,23 +18,15 @@ type Gallery struct {
 
 // Installs a model from the gallery (galleryname@modelname)
 func InstallModelFromGallery(galleries []Gallery, name string, basePath string, req GalleryModel, downloadStatus func(string, string, string, float64)) error {
-
-	// os.PathSeparator is not allowed in model names. Replace them with "__" to avoid conflicts with file paths.
-	name = strings.ReplaceAll(name, string(os.PathSeparator), "__")
-
-	models, err := AvailableGalleryModels(galleries, basePath)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-
 	applyModel := func(model *GalleryModel) error {
 		config, err := GetGalleryConfigFromURL(model.URL)
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 
+		installName := model.Name
 		if req.Name != "" {
-			model.Name = req.Name
+			installName = req.Name
 		}
 
 		config.Files = append(config.Files, req.AdditionalFiles...)
@@ -45,20 +37,58 @@ func InstallModelFromGallery(galleries []Gallery, name string, basePath string,
 			return err
 		}
 
-		if err := InstallModel(basePath, model.Name, &config, model.Overrides, downloadStatus); err != nil {
+		if err := InstallModel(basePath, installName, &config, model.Overrides, downloadStatus); err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 
 		return nil
 	}
 
+	models, err := AvailableGalleryModels(galleries, basePath)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	model, err := FindGallery(models, name)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	return applyModel(model)
+}
+
+func FindGallery(models []*GalleryModel, name string) (*GalleryModel, error) {
+	// os.PathSeparator is not allowed in model names. Replace them with "__" to avoid conflicts with file paths.
+	name = strings.ReplaceAll(name, string(os.PathSeparator), "__")
+
 	for _, model := range models {
 		if name == fmt.Sprintf("%s@%s", model.Gallery.Name, model.Name) {
-			return applyModel(model)
+			return model, nil
 		}
 	}
+	return nil, fmt.Errorf("no gallery found with name %q", name)
+}
+
+// InstallModelFromGalleryByName loads a model from the gallery by specifying only the name (first match wins)
+func InstallModelFromGalleryByName(galleries []Gallery, name string, basePath string, req GalleryModel, downloadStatus func(string, string, string, float64)) error {
+	models, err := AvailableGalleryModels(galleries, basePath)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	name = strings.ReplaceAll(name, string(os.PathSeparator), "__")
+	var model *GalleryModel
+	for _, m := range models {
+		if name == m.Name {
+			model = m
+		}
+	}
+
+	if model == nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("no model found with name %q", name)
+	}
 
-	return fmt.Errorf("no model found with name %q", name)
+	return InstallModelFromGallery(galleries, fmt.Sprintf("%s@%s", model.Gallery.Name, model.Name), basePath, req, downloadStatus)
 }
 
 // List available models

pkg/model/initializers.go

@@ -19,8 +19,6 @@ import (
 	process "github.com/mudler/go-processmanager"
 )
 
-const tokenizerSuffix = ".tokenizer.json"
-
 const (
 	LlamaBackend        = "llama"
 	BloomzBackend       = "bloomz"
@@ -45,7 +43,6 @@ const (
 	StableDiffusionBackend = "stablediffusion"
 	PiperBackend           = "piper"
 	LCHuggingFaceBackend   = "langchain-huggingface"
-	//GGLLMFalconBackend     = "falcon"
 )
 
 var AutoLoadBackends []string = []string{
@@ -75,75 +72,116 @@ func (ml *ModelLoader) StopGRPC() {
 	}
 }
 
-// starts the grpcModelProcess for the backend, and returns a grpc client
+func (ml *ModelLoader) startProcess(grpcProcess, id string, serverAddress string) error {
-// It also loads the model
+	// Make sure the process is executable
-func (ml *ModelLoader) grpcModel(backend string, o *Options) func(string) (*grpc.Client, error) {
+	if err := os.Chmod(grpcProcess, 0755); err != nil {
-	return func(s string) (*grpc.Client, error) {
+		return err
-		log.Debug().Msgf("Loading GRPC Model", backend, *o)
+	}
 
-		grpcProcess := filepath.Join(o.assetDir, "backend-assets", "grpc", backend)
+	log.Debug().Msgf("Loading GRPC Process", grpcProcess)
 
-		// Check if the file exists
+	log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service for %s will be running at: '%s'", id, serverAddress)
-		if _, err := os.Stat(grpcProcess); os.IsNotExist(err) {
-			return nil, fmt.Errorf("grpc process not found: %s. some backends(stablediffusion, tts) require LocalAI compiled with GO_TAGS", grpcProcess)
-		}
 
-		// Make sure the process is executable
+	grpcControlProcess := process.New(
-		if err := os.Chmod(grpcProcess, 0755); err != nil {
+		process.WithTemporaryStateDir(),
-			return nil, err
+		process.WithName(grpcProcess),
-		}
+		process.WithArgs("--addr", serverAddress))
+
+	ml.grpcProcesses[id] = grpcControlProcess
+
+	if err := grpcControlProcess.Run(); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
 
-		log.Debug().Msgf("Loading GRPC Process", grpcProcess)
+	log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service state dir: %s", grpcControlProcess.StateDir())
-		port, err := freeport.GetFreePort()
+	// clean up process
+	go func() {
+		c := make(chan os.Signal, 1)
+		signal.Notify(c, os.Interrupt, syscall.SIGTERM)
+		<-c
+		grpcControlProcess.Stop()
+	}()
+
+	go func() {
+		t, err := tail.TailFile(grpcControlProcess.StderrPath(), tail.Config{Follow: true})
 		if err != nil {
-			return nil, err
+			log.Debug().Msgf("Could not tail stderr")
 		}
+		for line := range t.Lines {
+			log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC(%s): stderr %s", strings.Join([]string{id, serverAddress}, "-"), line.Text)
+		}
+	}()
+	go func() {
+		t, err := tail.TailFile(grpcControlProcess.StdoutPath(), tail.Config{Follow: true})
+		if err != nil {
+			log.Debug().Msgf("Could not tail stdout")
+		}
+		for line := range t.Lines {
+			log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC(%s): stdout %s", strings.Join([]string{id, serverAddress}, "-"), line.Text)
+		}
+	}()
 
-		serverAddress := fmt.Sprintf("localhost:%d", port)
+	return nil
-
+}
-		log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service for '%s' (%s) will be running at: '%s'", backend, o.modelFile, serverAddress)
 
-		grpcControlProcess := process.New(
+// starts the grpcModelProcess for the backend, and returns a grpc client
-			process.WithTemporaryStateDir(),
+// It also loads the model
-			process.WithName(grpcProcess),
+func (ml *ModelLoader) grpcModel(backend string, o *Options) func(string) (*grpc.Client, error) {
-			process.WithArgs("--addr", serverAddress))
+	return func(s string) (*grpc.Client, error) {
+		log.Debug().Msgf("Loading GRPC Model", backend, *o)
 
-		ml.grpcProcesses[o.modelFile] = grpcControlProcess
+		var client *grpc.Client
 
-		if err := grpcControlProcess.Run(); err != nil {
+		getFreeAddress := func() (string, error) {
-			return nil, err
+			port, err := freeport.GetFreePort()
+			if err != nil {
+				return "", fmt.Errorf("failed allocating free ports: %s", err.Error())
+			}
+			return fmt.Sprintf("127.0.0.1:%d", port), nil
 		}
 
-		// clean up process
+		// Check if the backend is provided as external
-		go func() {
+		if uri, ok := o.externalBackends[backend]; ok {
-			c := make(chan os.Signal, 1)
+			log.Debug().Msgf("Loading external backend: %s", uri)
-			signal.Notify(c, os.Interrupt, syscall.SIGTERM)
+			// check if uri is a file or a address
-			<-c
+			if _, err := os.Stat(uri); err == nil {
-			grpcControlProcess.Stop()
+				serverAddress, err := getFreeAddress()
-		}()
+				if err != nil {
-
+					return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed allocating free ports: %s", err.Error())
-		go func() {
+				}
-			t, err := tail.TailFile(grpcControlProcess.StderrPath(), tail.Config{Follow: true})
+				// Make sure the process is executable
-			if err != nil {
+				if err := ml.startProcess(uri, o.modelFile, serverAddress); err != nil {
-				log.Debug().Msgf("Could not tail stderr")
+					return nil, err
+				}
+
+				log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service Started")
+
+				client = grpc.NewClient(serverAddress)
+			} else {
+				// address
+				client = grpc.NewClient(uri)
 			}
-			for line := range t.Lines {
+		} else {
-				log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC(%s): stderr %s", strings.Join([]string{backend, o.modelFile, serverAddress}, "-"), line.Text)
+			grpcProcess := filepath.Join(o.assetDir, "backend-assets", "grpc", backend)
+			// Check if the file exists
+			if _, err := os.Stat(grpcProcess); os.IsNotExist(err) {
+				return nil, fmt.Errorf("grpc process not found: %s. some backends(stablediffusion, tts) require LocalAI compiled with GO_TAGS", grpcProcess)
 			}
-		}()
+
-		go func() {
+			serverAddress, err := getFreeAddress()
-			t, err := tail.TailFile(grpcControlProcess.StdoutPath(), tail.Config{Follow: true})
 			if err != nil {
-				log.Debug().Msgf("Could not tail stdout")
+				return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed allocating free ports: %s", err.Error())
 			}
-			for line := range t.Lines {
+
-				log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC(%s): stderr %s", strings.Join([]string{backend, o.modelFile, serverAddress}, "-"), line.Text)
+			// Make sure the process is executable
+			if err := ml.startProcess(grpcProcess, o.modelFile, serverAddress); err != nil {
+				return nil, err
 			}
-		}()
 
-		log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service Started")
+			log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service Started")
 
-		client := grpc.NewClient(serverAddress)
+			client = grpc.NewClient(serverAddress)
+		}
 
 		// Wait for the service to start up
 		ready := false
@@ -158,11 +196,6 @@ func (ml *ModelLoader) grpcModel(backend string, o *Options) func(string) (*grpc
 
 		if !ready {
 			log.Debug().Msgf("GRPC Service NOT ready")
-			log.Debug().Msgf("Alive: ", grpcControlProcess.IsAlive())
-			log.Debug().Msgf(fmt.Sprintf("GRPC Service Exitcode:"))
-
-			log.Debug().Msgf(grpcControlProcess.ExitCode())
-
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf("grpc service not ready")
 		}
 
@@ -189,6 +222,13 @@ func (ml *ModelLoader) BackendLoader(opts ...Option) (model *grpc.Client, err er
 	log.Debug().Msgf("Loading model %s from %s", o.backendString, o.modelFile)
 
 	backend := strings.ToLower(o.backendString)
+
+	// if an external backend is provided, use it
+	_, externalBackendExists := o.externalBackends[backend]
+	if externalBackendExists {
+		return ml.LoadModel(o.modelFile, ml.grpcModel(backend, o))
+	}
+
 	switch backend {
 	case LlamaBackend, LlamaGrammarBackend, GPTJBackend, DollyBackend,
 		MPTBackend, Gpt2Backend, FalconBackend,
@@ -209,8 +249,6 @@ func (ml *ModelLoader) BackendLoader(opts ...Option) (model *grpc.Client, err er
 func (ml *ModelLoader) GreedyLoader(opts ...Option) (*grpc.Client, error) {
 	o := NewOptions(opts...)
 
-	log.Debug().Msgf("Loading model '%s' greedly", o.modelFile)
-
 	// Is this really needed? BackendLoader already does this
 	ml.mu.Lock()
 	if m := ml.checkIsLoaded(o.modelFile); m != nil {
@@ -221,16 +259,29 @@ func (ml *ModelLoader) GreedyLoader(opts ...Option) (*grpc.Client, error) {
 	ml.mu.Unlock()
 	var err error
 
-	for _, b := range AutoLoadBackends {
+	// autoload also external backends
-		log.Debug().Msgf("[%s] Attempting to load", b)
+	allBackendsToAutoLoad := []string{}
+	allBackendsToAutoLoad = append(allBackendsToAutoLoad, AutoLoadBackends...)
+	for _, b := range o.externalBackends {
+		allBackendsToAutoLoad = append(allBackendsToAutoLoad, b)
+	}
+	log.Debug().Msgf("Loading model '%s' greedly from all the available backends: %s", o.modelFile, strings.Join(allBackendsToAutoLoad, ", "))
 
-		model, modelerr := ml.BackendLoader(
+	for _, b := range allBackendsToAutoLoad {
+		log.Debug().Msgf("[%s] Attempting to load", b)
+		options := []Option{
 			WithBackendString(b),
 			WithModelFile(o.modelFile),
 			WithLoadGRPCLLMModelOpts(o.gRPCOptions),
 			WithThreads(o.threads),
 			WithAssetDir(o.assetDir),
-		)
+		}
+
+		for k, v := range o.externalBackends {
+			options = append(options, WithExternalBackend(k, v))
+		}
+
+		model, modelerr := ml.BackendLoader(options...)
 		if modelerr == nil && model != nil {
 			log.Debug().Msgf("[%s] Loads OK", b)
 			return model, nil

pkg/model/options.go

@@ -14,10 +14,21 @@ type Options struct {
 	context       context.Context
 
 	gRPCOptions *pb.ModelOptions
+
+	externalBackends map[string]string
 }
 
 type Option func(*Options)
 
+func WithExternalBackend(name string, uri string) Option {
+	return func(o *Options) {
+		if o.externalBackends == nil {
+			o.externalBackends = make(map[string]string)
+		}
+		o.externalBackends[name] = uri
+	}
+}
+
 func WithBackendString(backend string) Option {
 	return func(o *Options) {
 		o.backendString = backend

pkg/utils/logging.go

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package utils
+
+import (
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
+)
+
+var lastProgress time.Time = time.Now()
+var startTime time.Time = time.Now()
+
+func ResetDownloadTimers() {
+	lastProgress = time.Now()
+	startTime = time.Now()
+}
+
+func DisplayDownloadFunction(fileName string, current string, total string, percentage float64) {
+	currentTime := time.Now()
+
+	if currentTime.Sub(lastProgress) >= 5*time.Second {
+
+		lastProgress = currentTime
+
+		// calculate ETA based on percentage and elapsed time
+		var eta time.Duration
+		if percentage > 0 {
+			elapsed := currentTime.Sub(startTime)
+			eta = time.Duration(float64(elapsed)*(100/percentage) - float64(elapsed))
+		}
+
+		if total != "" {
+			log.Debug().Msgf("Downloading %s: %s/%s (%.2f%%) ETA: %s", fileName, current, total, percentage, eta)
+		} else {
+			log.Debug().Msgf("Downloading: %s", current)
+		}
+	}
+}

tests/models_fixtures/grpc.yaml

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+name: code-search-ada-code-001
+backend: huggingface
+embeddings: true
+parameters:
+  model: all-MiniLM-L6-v2