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Documentation: CLI command and env var are undocumented #270

Description

@XXXM1R0XXX

Description

The ClearML Agent README mentions the bootstrap feature:

"Boot agents up to 10x faster — git, git-lfs, agent, ssh and UV come precompiled for x86/arm in a single self-contained bootstrap"

However, the CLI command clearml-agent install-bootstrap and the CLEARML_BOOTSTRAP_UV_EXEC environment variable that powers this feature are not documented anywhere — not in the docs, not in clearml-agent --help.

Context

When using package_manager.type: uv with clearml-agent, two issues arise:

  1. Issue clearml-agent 2.0.3 fails to locate uv #251: Agent cannot find the uv binary at the expected path (clearml_agent_venv/bin/uv).
  2. Issue [Feature] UV not only from uv.lock #224 (closed): uv venv creates a venv without pip. Solved via uv_replace_pip: true in clearml.conf.

The install-bootstrap CLI command is a workaround for #251:

  • It downloads and unpacks a uv binary to /tmp/.clearml.bootstrap/uv/
  • It sets the CLEARML_BOOTSTRAP_UV_EXEC environment variable
  • The agent then uses this bootstrap binary instead of looking for uv in the venv

Problem

  • The install-bootstrap CLI command is not listed in clearml-agent --help
  • The CLEARML_BOOTSTRAP_UV_EXEC environment variable is not documented
  • The relationship between install-bootstrap, CLEARML_BOOTSTRAP_UV_EXEC, uv_replace_pip, and CLEARML_AGENT_FORCE_UV is unclear
  • Users have to reverse-engineer the behavior from source code

Reproduction

$ clearml-agent --help
# No mention of install-bootstrap

$ clearml-agent install-bootstrap --help
# Works, but not listed in main help

Expected behavior

  • install-bootstrap should be listed in the main --help output
  • Documentation should explain:
    • What install-bootstrap does (downloads precompiled uv to /tmp/.clearml.bootstrap/uv/)
    • When to use it (uv package manager setup, workaround for clearml-agent 2.0.3 fails to locate uv #251)
    • What CLEARML_BOOTSTRAP_UV_EXEC does
    • How it relates to uv_replace_pip and CLEARML_AGENT_FORCE_UV

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