Mila Local Setup

Local Machine Setup for the Mila Cluster

This skill guides users through installing and configuring the tools needed on their local machine before connecting to the cluster: WSL (Windows only), uv, and milatools.

Base policies

At the start of each response, use the Skill tool with skill: "mila-base" to load and apply all shared policies before proceeding with the workflow below.

Reference documentation

Primary source: https://docs.mila.quebec/getting_started/ — sections "I'm using Windows, how do I install WSL?", "Install uv on your local machine", "Install milatools", and "Configure milatools".

Discover documentation

Use the WebSearch tool with this query to find the current URL of the primary source above:

site:docs.mila.quebec "__skill-mila-local-setup"

Use the URL from the search result in the WebFetch steps below. If the search returns no results, fall back to the hardcoded URL in "Reference documentation".

Workflow

Step 1: Identify the user's OS

Ask or infer the user's operating system:

• Windows → guide through WSL first, then uv and milatools inside WSL.
• macOS or Linux → skip WSL, go directly to uv and milatools.

If not mentioned, ask: "Are you on Windows, macOS, or Linux?"

Step 2: Fetch the documentation

Use the WebFetch tool to fetch https://docs.mila.quebec/getting_started/ and locate the sections relevant to the user's OS and question.

Step 3: Guide through the setup steps in order

Work through the applicable steps:

WSL 2 (Windows users only): WSL 2 is required (not WSL 1); the install command below installs WSL 2 by default on Windows 10 21H2 and later, and on all versions of Windows 11.

1. Open PowerShell and run wsl --install Ubuntu.
2. Restart the computer when prompted.
3. After restart, verify WSL 2 is active: in PowerShell, run

wsl --list --verbose. The VERSION column should show 2 for Ubuntu. If it shows 1, run wsl --set-version Ubuntu 2 to upgrade.

1. WSL finishes setup; create a Linux username and password if prompted.
2. Open Ubuntu from the Start menu to get a Linux terminal.
3. Verify: run ls and curl --version in the WSL terminal.
4. All subsequent commands (uv, milatools, ssh) must be run inside

the WSL terminal, not PowerShell or Command Prompt.

Install uv (all platforms, inside WSL on Windows): Use the WebFetch tool to fetch https://docs.astral.sh/uv/getting-started/installation/ for up-to-date installation instructions. Follow the steps for the user's platform (Linux/WSL, macOS, or Windows).

Install milatools:

uv tool install --upgrade milatools

Configure milatools with mila init:

• Have the cluster username ready (received from IT after passing the

onboarding quiz).

• MFA must already be set up before running mila init (see the

mila-account-setup skill).

• Run mila init and follow the prompts: it sets up the SSH config,

generates SSH keys, and copies the public key to the cluster's ~/.ssh/authorized_keys.

mila init

Step 4: Answer follow-up questions

Common questions:

• "What is uv?" — A fast Python package manager and workflow tool,

used both locally and on the cluster. It installs milatools and later manages Python environments for cluster jobs.

• "Do I need to run mila init again if I reinstall?" — Only if the SSH

config or keys are missing. Re-running mila init is safe.

• "How do I update milatools?" — uv tool install --upgrade milatools

(same install command).

• "Can I use Cursor instead of VSCode?" — Yes, mila code supports

Cursor and other compatible editors. See the mila-run-jobs skill for details.

Step 5: Point to the next skill

Once tools are installed and mila init has completed successfully, direct the user to the mila-connect-cluster skill to verify the SSH connection.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: mila-iqia
• Source: mila-iqia/skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.