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The Thunder Compute CLI (tnr)

The Thunder Compute CLI enables you to manage Thunder Compute instances from your local machine.

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Instance Operations

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Create an Instance

Create a new Thunder Compute instance:

tnr create

This creates a new instance with default configuration and automatically assigns an instance ID.

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CPU Configuration

Configure custom vCPU count:

tnr create --vcpus <vcpu_count>

We recommend using the default 4 vCPU configuration for most use cases. Additional vCPUs are billed proportionally, with RAM scaling at 4GB per vCPU.

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GPU Configuration

Specify a GPU type:

tnr create --gpu <gpu_type>

Available GPU types:

  • t4 (default): NVIDIA T4 (16GB VRAM) - Best for most ML workloads
  • a100: NVIDIA A100 (40GB VRAM) - For large models and high-performance computing
  • a100xl : NVIDIA A100 (80GB VRAM) - For even larger models, the biggest and the best

Each instance includes one GPU by default. Contact support for multi-GPU configurations.

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Template Configuration

Create an instance with a predefined environment:

tnr create --template <template_name>

Available templates:

  • ollama: Ollama server environment
  • comfy-ui: ComfyUI for AI image generation
  • webui-forge: WebUI Forge for Stable Diffusion

After instance creation, start the server using <template_name>-start when connected.

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Start an Instance

tnr start <instance_ID>

Activates an existing inactive instance.

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Stop an Instance

tnr stop <instance_ID>

Stops a running instance.

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Delete an Instance

tnr delete <instance_ID>

This action permanently removes an instance and all associated data.

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Remote Access and Transfer

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Connect to an Instance

Basic connection:

tnr connect <instance_ID>

Connects to a running instance (default ID: 0). Functions as an SSH wrapper - you can also use standard SSH with the IP shown in tnr status.

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Port Forwarding

Connect with port forwarding:

tnr connect <instance_ID> -t PORT1 -t PORT2

Features:

  • Forward multiple ports using repeated -t/—tunnel flags
  • Example: tnr connect 0 -t 8000 -t 8080 forwards both ports 8000 and 8080
  • Enables local access to remote web servers, APIs, and services

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Copy Files

Transfer files between local and remote instances:

tnr scp <source_path> <destination_path>

Path format:

  • Remote: instance_id:path (e.g., 0:/home/user/data)
  • Local: Standard paths (e.g., ./data or /home/user/file.txt)
  • Must specify exactly one remote and one local path

Examples:

# Upload to instance
tnr scp ./local_file.txt 0:/remote/path/

# Download from instance
tnr scp 0:/remote/file.txt ./local_path/

File transfers have a 60-second connection timeout. SSH key setup, compression, and ~/ expansion are handled automatically.

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System Management

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Resize Disk

Increase persistent storage:

tnr resize <instance_ID> <new_size_GB>

Storage can only be increased, not decreased. For smaller storage needs, create a new instance.

Default storage allocation is 100GB. Stopped instances are still billed for persistent storage.

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View Instance Status

List all instances:

tnr status

Monitor status changes:

tnr status --wait

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Account Management

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Login

tnr login

Generates and saves an API token to ~/.thunder/token

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Logout

tnr logout

Removes the stored API token.

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API Token Management

  • Generate/manage tokens: console
  • Tokens never expire but can be revoked
  • Use unique tokens per device
QuickstartCompatibility