chore(config): add libs note

Per @jashshah999, mention that spawn workers re-import modules and so
add some startup time vs fork. Also trim the failure-mode dump from
the inline comment — the linked issue covers the symptoms in detail.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

AGENTS.md

@@ -51,7 +51,6 @@ pre-commit run --all-files                           # Lint + format (ruff, typo
 ## Notes
 
 - **Mypy is gradual**: strict only for `lerobot.envs`, `lerobot.configs`, `lerobot.optim`, `lerobot.model`, `lerobot.cameras`, `lerobot.motors`, `lerobot.transport`. Add type annotations when modifying these modules.
-- **Imports**: prefer top-level imports; relative (`from .sibling import X`) across sibling files within a module, absolute (`from lerobot.module import X`) across modules.
-- **Optional dependencies**: many policies, envs, and robots are behind extras (e.g., `lerobot[aloha]`, see `pyproject.toml`). Guard optional imports with `TYPE_CHECKING or _foo_available` at module top + a `require_package(...)` check at use time. Reuse the `_foo_available` flags in `utils/import_utils.py`; don't call `is_package_available`.
+- **Optional dependencies**: many policies, envs, and robots are behind extras (e.g., `lerobot[aloha]`). New imports for optional packages must be guarded or lazy. See `pyproject.toml [project.optional-dependencies]`.
 - **Video decoding**: datasets can store observations as video files. `LeRobotDataset` handles frame extraction, but tests need ffmpeg installed.
 - **Prioritize use of `uv run`** to execute Python commands (not raw `python` or `pip`).

docs/source/bring_your_own_policies.mdx

@@ -165,8 +165,6 @@ Batches are flat dictionaries keyed by the constants in [`lerobot.utils.constant
 
 LeRobot uses `PolicyProcessorPipeline`s to normalize inputs and de-normalize outputs around your policy. For a concrete reference, see [`processor_act.py`](https://github.com/huggingface/lerobot/blob/main/src/lerobot/policies/act/processor_act.py) or [`processor_diffusion.py`](https://github.com/huggingface/lerobot/blob/main/src/lerobot/policies/diffusion/processor_diffusion.py).
 
-Pay close attention here: processors are the most common reproducibility pain point. A mismatch in normalization mode (`IDENTITY` vs `MEAN_STD` vs `MIN_MAX` vs `QUANTILES`/`QUANTILE10`) or in which features get normalized will train and eval without erroring, yet silently wreck results. Make sure the modes match how the checkpoint was trained, that the required stats exist (e.g. `QUANTILES` needs `q01`/`q99`), and that the pre- and post-processors stay consistent.
-
 ```python
 # processor_my_policy.py
 from typing import Any
@@ -306,9 +304,7 @@ Mirror an existing policy that's structurally similar to yours; the diff is smal
 
 ### Heavy / optional dependencies
 
-Most policies need a heavy backbone (transformers, diffusers, a specific VLM SDK). Wherever one exists, prefer loading it e.g from `transformers` or `diffusers` rather than re-implementing the architecture in-tree.
-
-The convention is **two-step gating**: a `TYPE_CHECKING`-guarded import at module top, and a `require_package` runtime check in the constructor. [`modeling_diffusion.py`](https://github.com/huggingface/lerobot/blob/main/src/lerobot/policies/diffusion/modeling_diffusion.py) is the canonical reference:
+Most policies need a heavy backbone (transformers, diffusers, a specific VLM SDK). The convention is **two-step gating**: a `TYPE_CHECKING`-guarded import at module top, and a `require_package` runtime check in the constructor. [`modeling_diffusion.py`](https://github.com/huggingface/lerobot/blob/main/src/lerobot/policies/diffusion/modeling_diffusion.py) is the canonical reference:
 
 ```python
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
@@ -378,7 +374,6 @@ The general expectations are in [`CONTRIBUTING.md`](https://github.com/huggingfa
 - [ ] Optional deps live behind a `[project.optional-dependencies]` extra and the `TYPE_CHECKING + require_package` guard.
 - [ ] `tests/policies/` updated; backward-compat artifact committed & policy-specific tests.
 - [ ] `src/lerobot/policies/<name>/README.md` symlinked into `docs/source/policy_<name>_README.md`; user-facing `docs/source/<name>.mdx` written and added to `_toctree.yml`.
-- [ ] `lerobot-train --policy.type my_policy ...` runs end-to-end for at least a few steps + save a checkpoint that can be loaded and run by `lerobot-eval` or `lerobot-rollout`.
 - [ ] `templates/lerobot_modelcard_template.md` has a description entry and a `policy_docs` link for your policy.
 - [ ] The models table in the root `README.md` lists your policy in the right category, linking to your doc page.
 - [ ] At least one reproducible benchmark eval in the policy MDX with a published checkpoint (sim benchmark, or real-robot dataset + checkpoint).

pyproject.toml

@@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ accelerate-dep = ["accelerate>=1.14.0,<2.0.0"]
 can-dep = ["python-can>=4.2.0,<5.0.0"]
 peft-dep = ["peft>=0.18.0,<1.0.0"]
 scipy-dep = ["scipy>=1.14.0,<2.0.0"]
-diffusers-dep = ["diffusers>=0.38.0,<0.40.0"]
+diffusers-dep = ["diffusers>=0.27.2,<0.36.0"]
 qwen-vl-utils-dep = ["qwen-vl-utils>=0.0.11,<0.1.0"]
 matplotlib-dep = ["matplotlib>=3.10.3,<4.0.0", "contourpy>=1.3.0,<2.0.0"] # NOTE: Explicitly listing contourpy helps the resolver converge faster.
 pyserial-dep = ["pyserial>=3.5,<4.0"]
@@ -261,7 +261,7 @@ annotations = [
 # Development
 dev = ["pre-commit>=3.7.0,<5.0.0", "debugpy>=1.8.1,<1.9.0", "lerobot[grpcio-dep]", "grpcio-tools>=1.73.1,<2.0.0", "mypy>=1.19.1", "ruff>=0.14.1", "lerobot[notebook]"]
 notebook = ["jupyter>=1.0.0,<2.0.0", "ipykernel>=6.0.0,<7.0.0"]
-test = ["pytest>=8.1.0,<10.0.0", "pytest-timeout>=2.4.0,<3.0.0", "pytest-cov>=5.0.0,<8.0.0", "mock-serial>=0.0.1,<0.1.0 ; sys_platform != 'win32'"]
+test = ["pytest>=8.1.0,<9.0.0", "pytest-timeout>=2.4.0,<3.0.0", "pytest-cov>=5.0.0,<8.0.0", "mock-serial>=0.0.1,<0.1.0 ; sys_platform != 'win32'"]
 video_benchmark = ["scikit-image>=0.23.2,<0.26.0", "pandas>=2.2.2,<2.4.0"]
 
 # Simulation

src/lerobot/configs/train.py

@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 import builtins
 import datetime as dt
 import json
+import multiprocessing
 import os
 import tempfile
 from dataclasses import dataclass, field
@@ -101,6 +102,12 @@ class TrainPipelineConfig(HubMixin):
     batch_size: int = 8
     prefetch_factor: int = 4
     persistent_workers: bool = True
+    # DataLoader worker start method. "spawn" is safer than "fork" with
+    # non-fork-safe libs (PyAV / torchcodec / ffmpeg), but adds some
+    # worker-startup time per run since workers re-import modules instead
+    # of inheriting parent state. Override with `--dataloader_multiprocessing_context=fork`
+    # when appropriate, or set it to `null` to use Python's platform default.
+    dataloader_multiprocessing_context: str | None = "spawn"
     steps: int = 100_000
     # Run policy in the simulation environment every N steps to measure reward/success (0 = disabled).
     env_eval_freq: int = 20_000
@@ -212,6 +219,17 @@ class TrainPipelineConfig(HubMixin):
             self.reward_model.pretrained_path = str(policy_dir)
 
     def validate(self) -> None:
+        available_contexts = multiprocessing.get_all_start_methods()
+        if (
+            self.dataloader_multiprocessing_context is not None
+            and self.dataloader_multiprocessing_context not in available_contexts
+        ):
+            raise ValueError(
+                "`dataloader_multiprocessing_context` must be None or one of "
+                f"{available_contexts} on this platform, got "
+                f"{self.dataloader_multiprocessing_context!r}."
+            )
+
         self._resolve_pretrained_from_cli()
 
         if self.policy is None and self.reward_model is None:

src/lerobot/robots/bi_so_follower/bi_so_follower.py

@@ -58,9 +58,6 @@ class BiSOFollower(BimanualMixin, Robot):
             port=config.left_arm_config.port,
             disable_torque_on_disconnect=config.left_arm_config.disable_torque_on_disconnect,
             max_relative_target=config.left_arm_config.max_relative_target,
-            position_p_coefficient=config.left_arm_config.position_p_coefficient,
-            position_i_coefficient=config.left_arm_config.position_i_coefficient,
-            position_d_coefficient=config.left_arm_config.position_d_coefficient,
             use_degrees=config.left_arm_config.use_degrees,
             cameras=left_arm_cameras,
         )
@@ -71,9 +68,6 @@ class BiSOFollower(BimanualMixin, Robot):
             port=config.right_arm_config.port,
             disable_torque_on_disconnect=config.right_arm_config.disable_torque_on_disconnect,
             max_relative_target=config.right_arm_config.max_relative_target,
-            position_p_coefficient=config.right_arm_config.position_p_coefficient,
-            position_i_coefficient=config.right_arm_config.position_i_coefficient,
-            position_d_coefficient=config.right_arm_config.position_d_coefficient,
             use_degrees=config.right_arm_config.use_degrees,
             cameras=config.right_arm_config.cameras,
         )

src/lerobot/robots/so_follower/config_so_follower.py

@@ -41,11 +41,6 @@ class SOFollowerConfig:
     # Set to `True` for backward compatibility with previous policies/dataset
     use_degrees: bool = True
 
-    # Position-mode PID gains written to Feetech STS3215 motors at connect time.
-    position_p_coefficient: int = 16
-    position_i_coefficient: int = 0
-    position_d_coefficient: int = 32
-
 
 @RobotConfig.register_subclass("so101_follower")
 @RobotConfig.register_subclass("so100_follower")

src/lerobot/robots/so_follower/so_follower.py

@@ -161,9 +161,11 @@ class SOFollower(Robot):
             self.bus.configure_motors()
             for motor in self.bus.motors:
                 self.bus.write("Operating_Mode", motor, OperatingMode.POSITION.value)
-                self.bus.write("P_Coefficient", motor, self.config.position_p_coefficient)
-                self.bus.write("I_Coefficient", motor, self.config.position_i_coefficient)
-                self.bus.write("D_Coefficient", motor, self.config.position_d_coefficient)
+                # Set P_Coefficient to lower value to avoid shakiness (Default is 32)
+                self.bus.write("P_Coefficient", motor, 16)
+                # Set I_Coefficient and D_Coefficient to default value 0 and 32
+                self.bus.write("I_Coefficient", motor, 0)
+                self.bus.write("D_Coefficient", motor, 32)
 
                 if motor == "gripper":
                     self.bus.write("Max_Torque_Limit", motor, 500)  # 50% of max torque to avoid burnout

src/lerobot/scripts/lerobot_train.py

@@ -71,6 +71,16 @@ from lerobot.utils.utils import (
 from .lerobot_eval import eval_policy_all
 
 
+def _dataloader_worker_kwargs(cfg: TrainPipelineConfig) -> dict[str, Any]:
+    """Return worker-only DataLoader options, disabling them for single-process loading."""
+    workers_enabled = cfg.num_workers > 0
+    return {
+        "prefetch_factor": cfg.prefetch_factor if workers_enabled else None,
+        "persistent_workers": cfg.persistent_workers and workers_enabled,
+        "multiprocessing_context": cfg.dataloader_multiprocessing_context if workers_enabled else None,
+    }
+
+
 def update_policy(
     train_metrics: MetricsTracker,
     policy: PreTrainedPolicy,
@@ -473,8 +483,7 @@ def train(cfg: TrainPipelineConfig, accelerator: "Accelerator | None" = None):
         pin_memory=device.type == "cuda",
         drop_last=False,
         collate_fn=collate_fn,
-        prefetch_factor=cfg.prefetch_factor if cfg.num_workers > 0 else None,
-        persistent_workers=cfg.persistent_workers and cfg.num_workers > 0,
+        **_dataloader_worker_kwargs(cfg),
     )
 
     # Build eval dataloader if a held-out split exists
@@ -500,8 +509,7 @@ def train(cfg: TrainPipelineConfig, accelerator: "Accelerator | None" = None):
             pin_memory=device.type == "cuda",
             drop_last=False,
             collate_fn=eval_collate_fn,
-            prefetch_factor=cfg.prefetch_factor if cfg.num_workers > 0 else None,
-            persistent_workers=cfg.persistent_workers and cfg.num_workers > 0,
+            **_dataloader_worker_kwargs(cfg),
         )
 
     # Prepare everything with accelerator

tests/robots/test_so100_follower.py

@@ -109,22 +109,3 @@ def test_send_action(follower):
 
     goal_pos = {m: (i + 1) * 10 for i, m in enumerate(follower.bus.motors)}
     follower.bus.sync_write.assert_called_once_with("Goal_Position", goal_pos)
-
-
-def test_configure_writes_position_pid_coefficients():
-    bus_mock = _make_bus_mock()
-    bus_mock.motors = ["shoulder_pan"]
-    robot = MagicMock()
-    robot.bus = bus_mock
-    robot.config = SO100FollowerConfig(
-        port="/dev/null",
-        position_p_coefficient=32,
-        position_i_coefficient=1,
-        position_d_coefficient=16,
-    )
-
-    SO100Follower.configure(robot)
-
-    bus_mock.write.assert_any_call("P_Coefficient", "shoulder_pan", 32)
-    bus_mock.write.assert_any_call("I_Coefficient", "shoulder_pan", 1)
-    bus_mock.write.assert_any_call("D_Coefficient", "shoulder_pan", 16)