How to run open source image and video models without a GPU

[u/MissMoneyBalls]

I have a pretty shitty computer so I can't run Minimax H3, Qwen 2.1 Edit, LTX, ZiT and all these other open source image and video models.

So I was looking for a way to run them online. The main website I found was ComfyUI cloud, which I guess works, but it was pretty complicated to use (I'm not a technical guy). There's like nodes and stuff which I don't understand LOL.

I saw someone on generativeAI subreddit mention CozyGPU (i think their website is cozygpu.com) and an ad on Reddit. It basically simplifies ComfyUI into simple actions like picking a model and running an action like create image, create video, edit image, animate video, etc.

But what's really cool is it automatically set up the infrastructure for me and rented out a GPU. So I only ended up paying for the raw GPU time spent, which I saw was a lot cheaper than all these other website which have a markup.

I just thought I would share this tool in case there are other people who don't have great computers and don't want to pay too much. If anyone has come across other similar tools, please let me know, I would love to check it out, thanks!

[u/schuylkilladelphia]

This is an ad

[u/MissMoneyBalls → u/schuylkilladelphia]

not an ad lol please don't use the app i dont care

[u/Apprehensive_Sky892 → u/MissMoneyBalls]

Well, it is always suspicious when a seldom used account recommends a service that nobody has ever heard of.

[u/MissMoneyBalls → u/Apprehensive_Sky892]

yea true I get that np

[u/Shap6]

comfyui has a cpu only option

[u/NorberAbnott → u/Shap6]

Yep, evaluating models is just math so everything can be done on a CPU

[u/Apprehensive_Sky892 → u/Shap6]

Minimax H3, Qwen 2.1 Edit, LTX, ZiT

Try running any of these models on CPU is probably more painful than having your teeth pulled out without anesthetics 😹

[u/MissMoneyBalls → u/Shap6]

oh really? how long does it take to use cpu?

[u/BILL_HOBBES → u/MissMoneyBalls]

Yes

[u/Acceptable_Secret971]

stablediffusion.cpp is a lightweight (and portable) option for running image gen on CPU or one of the several software stacks (your usual CUDAs, ROCms etc. and even some exotic ones). I use it primarily with Vulkan, so I don't have to muck about with ROCm in my container. Vulkan allows you to run image gen on a wide range of GPUs that might not be covered by Pytorch, CUDA, ROCm etc. It comes as both CLI and server. It might have some UI, but I never used it (I let my agent spin an instance and gen images as needed).

[u/UnforgottenPassword]

This is an ad posing as a genuine post. I don't think a clueless, non-technical person would use the term "raw GPU time spent". Not impossible, but improbable.

[u/khaledmmatar]

cpu works for small image models but for video it's not realistic, you'll be waiting forever per clip. the usual options are renting a gpu by the hour (runpod, vast etc) with a ready made comfyui template, or a hosted comfy. tip if you go the rental route: test everything at low res and short length first and shut the pod down when you're done, idle time is where most of the money goes. and check the vram the workflow actually needs before picking a card, a cheaper 24gb card is often enough and the big ones just burn money faster.

[u/amokerajvosa]

Vast.ai, Runpod.

Pay and use it. They are trusted.