Model Fine-tuning is the process of retraining a base language model on a specialized dataset so that it performs better in a specific domain or for a targeted use case.
Small models (<=1B parameters) --> for testing or light workloads
Medium models (7B-13B) --> balanced performance and cost
Large models (30B+) --> for complex tasks, usually requires multi-node setup
Instruction-tuned models are preferred if your task is prompt-response based
It depends on:
Model size (a few hours for small models, several days for very large ones)
Dataset size
Your hardware setup (hyperparameters & infrastructure)
Typically, it ranges from a few hours to several days.
You'll need:
Strictly follow the expected dataset structure for the model you're fine-tuning. More details about Data sample, visit here: https://fptcloud.com/en/documents/model-fine-tuning/?doc=select-dataset-format
Clean, diverse, and non-duplicated data.
A clear objective for fine-tuning (e.g., tech support, customer service, content writing, etc.).
It depends on the model size:
<1B parameters: 1 GPU (24 GB VRAM) is sufficient
7B models: 2-4 GPUs (40 GB VRAM each)
13B models: 4-8 GPUs recommended
30B+ models: Requires 8+ GPUs and multi-node setup
For small to medium models (up to 13B), a single node with multiple GPUs is enough.
For larger models (30B+), multi-node setups are recommended for better memory and performance.
At least 24GB VRAM per GPU for standard fine-tuning
Without LoRA/QLoRA methods, you can fine-tune on GPUs with 8-16GB VRAM
Yes. Larger datasets require more VRAM, RAM, and storage.
Datasets < 20GB --> can use Managed volume
Datasets > 20GB --> require Dedicated network volume