Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to common questions about AI Cluster Runtime (AICR). Each answer points to the full guide, which stays the source of truth.
For where to ask a question that is not covered here, see SUPPORT.md.
Snapshot
Does aicr snapshot need the NVIDIA driver or nvidia-smi on the node?
No. Snapshot GPU detection is driver-free: it enumerates PCI devices through sysfs and resolves the accelerator SKU from the device ID. You can snapshot a freshly provisioned node before any driver is installed. See GPU Detection Issues.
Can I capture a snapshot through the self-hosted aicrd API server?
No. A snapshot deploys an agent into the cluster to capture node configuration, which the CLI does using your kubeconfig. The API server only generates artifacts (recipe, query, and bundle), so use aicr snapshot instead. See API Reference and Agent Deployment.
Recipes
Why does aicr recipe fail with “requires additional criteria”?
A partial query can match several recipes, so AICR fails with an actionable error instead of silently returning a partial one. For example, no single recipe covers h100 and ubuntu without also stating --service (and, for some services, --intent). The error lists the supported combinations; add one and re-run. See Recipe Not Found.
Does AICR use the EFA device plugin or the AWS networking DRA driver on EKS?
EKS recipes currently install the aws-efa device plugin, which handles only EFA and needs EFA-enabled instance types. On a cluster that already runs the AWS networking DRA driver, that plugin is redundant and can cause duplication or crash-loops. Whether AICR keeps the plugin, migrates to the DRA driver, chooses per instance type or Kubernetes version, or detects an existing driver and skips the install is an open backlog item in #1326. See the Component Catalog.
Bundles
Why does aicr bundle --vendor-charts fail with “helm CLI not found on PATH”?
Vendoring runs helm pull to download the upstream chart archives, so the helm binary must be on your PATH. Install Helm and re-run, or drop --vendor-charts to get a bundle that references the chart registries. See Vendoring Charts for Air-Gap.
Can I bundle an older recipe with a newer aicr binary?
No, it is not supported. A recipe is a point-in-time artifact of the binary that produced it, and a newer binary may no longer contain a manifest the recipe references (“failed to load manifest”). Regenerate the recipe with the binary you are bundling with. See Bundle Generation Fails.
Are CRDs upgraded when a component’s Helm chart is upgraded?
Helm skips crds/ on upgrade, so whether CRDs update depends on the deployer, the component, and whether the recipe overrides the chart. Check the deployer table before upgrading: Upgrading components that own CRDs.