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GPU hardware is not available during docker build; runtime GPU queries in RUN will fail or return misleading results.
PropertyValue
SeverityError
CategoryCorrectness
DefaultEnabled
Auto-fixNo

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Description

Detects RUN instructions that query GPU hardware at build time. GPU devices are not attached during a normal docker build, so commands like nvidia-smi and runtime framework checks like torch.cuda.is_available() will either fail outright or return misleading results (e.g., zero devices, False). This rule does not fire on CMD or ENTRYPOINT, where GPU queries are expected to run at container startup.

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Why this matters

  • Build failures — nvidia-smi will exit non-zero when no GPU is present, breaking the build
  • Silent wrong results — torch.cuda.is_available() returns False at build time, which can cause downstream logic to skip GPU code paths or produce incorrect configuration
  • Misleading smoke tests — a passing build does not mean GPU support works; the check must happen at runtime
  • Official guidance — Hugging Face explicitly warns that GPU hardware is not available during docker build

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Detected patterns

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GPU query commands

CommandDescription
nvidia-smiNVIDIA System Management Interface (queries GPU hardware)
nvidia-debugdumpNVIDIA debug information dump
nvidia-persistencedNVIDIA persistence daemon (requires GPU)

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Python/ML framework runtime checks

PatternDescription
torch.cuda.is_available()PyTorch CUDA availability check
torch.cuda.device_count()PyTorch CUDA device count
torch.cuda.get_device_name()PyTorch CUDA device name query
torch.cuda.current_device()PyTorch current CUDA device
tf.test.is_gpu_available()TensorFlow GPU availability check
tf.config.list_physical_devices()TensorFlow physical device listing

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Examples

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Violation

FROM nvidia/cuda:12.2.0-devel-ubuntu22.04
RUN nvidia-smi

FROM nvidia/cuda:12.2.0-devel-ubuntu22.04
RUN python3 -c "import torch; print(torch.cuda.is_available())"

FROM tensorflow/tensorflow:2.14.0-gpu
RUN python -c "import tensorflow as tf; print(tf.test.is_gpu_available())"

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No violation

# GPU query in CMD runs at container startup — correct
FROM nvidia/cuda:12.2.0-runtime-ubuntu22.04
CMD ["nvidia-smi", "--loop=10"]

# GPU query in ENTRYPOINT runs at container startup — correct
FROM nvidia/cuda:12.2.0-runtime-ubuntu22.04
ENTRYPOINT ["python3", "-c", "import torch; print(torch.cuda.is_available())"]

# Normal package installation — no GPU query
FROM nvidia/cuda:12.2.0-runtime-ubuntu22.04
RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y python3 python3-pip

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Configuration

This rule has no rule-specific options. 
[rules.tally."gpu/no-buildtime-gpu-queries"]
severity = "error"

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References