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torchforge: PyTorch-Native Agentic RL Library
torchforge is Meta's PyTorch-native RL library that separates infrastructure concerns from algorithm concerns. It enables rapid RL research by letting you focus on algorithms while handling distributed training, inference, and weight sync automatically.
When to Use torchforge
Choose torchforge when you need:
- Clean separation between RL algorithms and infrastructure
- PyTorch-native abstractions (no Ray dependency)
- Easy algorithm experimentation (GRPO, DAPO, SAPO in ~100 lines)
- Scalable training with Monarch actor system
- Integration with TorchTitan for model parallelism
Consider alternatives when:
- You need production-ready stability → use miles or verl
- You want Megatron-native training → use slime
- torchforge is experimental and APIs may change
Key Features
- Algorithm isolation : Implement RL algorithms without touching infrastructure
- Scalability : From single GPU to thousands via Monarch
- Modern stack : TorchTitan (training), vLLM (inference), TorchStore (sync)
- Loss functions : GRPO, DAPO, CISPO, GSPO, SAPO built-in
Architecture Overview
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Application Layer (Your Code) │
│ - Define reward models, loss functions, sampling │
└─────────────────────┬───────────────────────────────────┘
│
┌─────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────────┐
│ Forge API Layer │
│ - Episode, Group dataclasses │
│ - Service interfaces (async/await) │
└─────────────────────┬───────────────────────────────────┘
│
┌─────────────────────▼───────────────────────────────────┐
│ Distributed Services (Monarch) │
│ ├── Trainer (TorchTitan FSDP) │
│ ├── Generator (vLLM inference) │
│ ├── Reference Model (frozen KL baseline) │
│ └── Reward Actors (compute rewards) │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Installation
# Create environment
conda create -n forge python=3.12
conda activate forge
# Install (handles PyTorch nightly + dependencies)
./scripts/install.sh
# Verify
python -c "import torch, forge, vllm; print('OK')"
ROCm Installation
./scripts/install_rocm.sh
Quick Start
SFT Training (2+ GPUs)
python -m apps.sft.main --config apps/sft/llama3_8b.yaml
GRPO Training (3+ GPUs)
python -m apps.grpo.main --config apps/grpo/qwen3_1_7b.yaml
Workflow 1: GRPO Training for Math Reasoning
Use this workflow for training reasoning models with group-relative advantages.
Prerequisites Checklist
- 3+ GPUs (GPU0: trainer, GPU1: ref_model, GPU2: generator)
- Model from HuggingFace Hub
- Training dataset (GSM8K, MATH, etc.)
Step 1: Create Configuration
# config/grpo_math.yaml
model: "Qwen/Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct"
dataset:
path: "openai/gsm8k"
split: "train"
streaming: true
training:
batch_size: 4
learning_rate: 1e-6
seq_len: 4096
dtype: bfloat16
gradient_accumulation_steps: 4
grpo:
n_samples: 8 # Responses per prompt
clip_low: 0.2
clip_high: 0.28
beta: 0.1 # KL penalty coefficient
temperature: 0.7
services:
generator:
procs: 1
num_replicas: 1
with_gpus: true
trainer:
procs: 1
num_replicas: 1
with_gpus: true
ref_model:
procs: 1
num_replicas: 1
with_gpus: true
Step 2: Define Reward Function
# rewards.py
# Reward functions are in forge.data.rewards
from forge.data.rewards import MathReward, ThinkingReward
import re
# Or define your own reward function
class CustomMathReward:
def __call__(self, prompt: str, response: str, target: str) -> float:
# Extract answer from response
match = re.search(r'\\boxed{([^}]+)}', response)
if not match:
return 0.0
answer = match.group(1).strip()
return 1.0 if answer == target else 0.0
Step 3: Launch Training
python -m apps.grpo.main --config config/grpo_math.yaml
Step 4: Monitor Progress
- Check W&B dashboard for loss curves
- Verify entropy is decreasing (policy becoming more deterministic)
- Monitor KL divergence (should stay bounded)
Workflow 2: Custom Loss Function
Use this workflow to implement new RL algorithms.
Step 1: Create Loss Class
# src/forge/losses/custom_loss.py
import torch
import torch.nn as nn
class CustomLoss(nn.Module):
def __init__(self, clip_range: float = 0.2, beta: float = 0.1):
super().__init__()
self.clip_range = clip_range
self.beta = beta
def forward(
self,
logprobs: torch.Tensor,
ref_logprobs: torch.Tensor,
advantages: torch.Tensor,
padding_mask: torch.Tensor,
) -> torch.Tensor:
# Compute importance ratio
ratio = torch.exp(logprobs - ref_logprobs)
# Clipped policy gradient
clipped_ratio = torch.clamp(
ratio,
1 - self.clip_range,
1 + self.clip_range
)
pg_loss = -torch.min(ratio * advantages, clipped_ratio * advantages)
# KL penalty
kl = ref_logprobs - logprobs
# Apply mask and aggregate
masked_loss = (pg_loss + self.beta * kl) * padding_mask
loss = masked_loss.sum() / padding_mask.sum()
return loss
Step 2: Integrate into Application
# apps/custom/main.py
from forge.losses.custom_loss import CustomLoss
loss_fn = CustomLoss(clip_range=0.2, beta=0.1)
# In training loop
loss = loss_fn(
logprobs=logprobs,
ref_logprobs=ref_logprobs,
advantages=advantages,
padding_mask=padding_mask,
)
Workflow 3: Multi-GPU Distributed Training
Use this workflow for scaling to multiple GPUs or nodes.
Configuration for Distributed
# config/distributed.yaml
model: "meta-llama/Meta-Llama-3.1-8B-Instruct"
parallelism:
tensor_parallel_degree: 2 # Split model across GPUs
pipeline_parallel_degree: 1
data_parallel_shard_degree: 2
services:
generator:
procs: 2 # 2 processes for TP=2
num_replicas: 1
with_gpus: true
trainer:
procs: 2
num_replicas: 1
with_gpus: true
Launch with SLURM
# Submit job
sbatch --nodes=2 --gpus-per-node=8 run_grpo.sh
Launch Locally (Multi-GPU)
# 8 GPU setup
python -m apps.grpo.main \
--config config/distributed.yaml \
--trainer.procs 4 \
--generator.procs 4
Core API Reference
Training Batch Format
torchforge uses dictionary-based batches for training:
# inputs: list of dicts with torch.Tensor values
inputs = [{"tokens": torch.Tensor}]
# targets: list of dicts with training signals
targets = [{
"response": torch.Tensor,
"ref_logprobs": torch.Tensor,
"advantages": torch.Tensor,
"padding_mask": torch.Tensor
}]
# train_step returns loss as float
loss = trainer.train_step(inputs, targets)
Completion
Generated output from vLLM:
@dataclass
class Completion:
text: str # Generated text
token_ids: list[int] # Token IDs
logprobs: list[float] # Log probabilities
metadata: dict # Custom metadata
Built-in Loss Functions
Loss Functions
Loss functions are in the forge.losses module:
from forge.losses import SimpleGRPOLoss, ReinforceLoss
# SimpleGRPOLoss for GRPO training
loss_fn = SimpleGRPOLoss(beta=0.1)
# Forward pass
loss = loss_fn(
logprobs=logprobs,
ref_logprobs=ref_logprobs,
advantages=advantages,
padding_mask=padding_mask
)
ReinforceLoss
from forge.losses.reinforce_loss import ReinforceLoss
# With optional importance ratio clipping
loss_fn = ReinforceLoss(clip_ratio=0.2)
Common Issues and Solutions
Issue: Not Enough GPUs
Symptoms : "Insufficient GPU resources" error
Solutions :
# Reduce service requirements
services:
generator:
procs: 1
with_gpus: true
trainer:
procs: 1
with_gpus: true
# Remove ref_model (uses generator weights)
Or use CPU for reference model:
ref_model:
with_gpus: false
Issue: OOM During Generation
Symptoms : CUDA OOM in vLLM
Solutions :
# Reduce batch size
grpo:
n_samples: 4 # Reduce from 8
# Or reduce sequence length
training:
seq_len: 2048
Issue: Slow Weight Sync
Symptoms : Long pauses between training and generation
Solutions :
# Enable RDMA (if available)
export TORCHSTORE_USE_RDMA=1
# Or reduce sync frequency
training:
sync_interval: 10 # Sync every 10 steps
Issue: Policy Collapse
Symptoms : Entropy drops to zero, reward stops improving
Solutions :
# Increase KL penalty
grpo:
beta: 0.2 # Increase from 0.1
# Or add entropy bonus
training:
entropy_coef: 0.01
Resources
Weekly Installs
64
Repository
orchestra-resea…h-skills
GitHub Stars
5.5K
First Seen
Feb 7, 2026
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