# Adding a New API Provider

This guide will walk you through the process of adding a new API provider to Llama Stack.


- Begin by reviewing the [core concepts](../concepts/) of Llama Stack and choose the API your provider belongs to (Inference, Safety, VectorIO, etc.)
- Determine the provider type ({repopath}`Remote::llama_stack/providers/remote` or {repopath}`Inline::llama_stack/providers/inline`). Remote providers make requests to external services, while inline providers execute implementation locally.
- Add your provider to the appropriate {repopath}`Registry::llama_stack/providers/registry/`. Specify pip dependencies necessary.
- Update any distribution {repopath}`Templates::llama_stack/templates/` build.yaml and run.yaml files if they should include your provider by default. Run {repopath}`llama_stack/scripts/distro_codegen.py` if necessary.


Here are some example PRs to help you get started:
   - [Grok Inference Implementation](https://github.com/meta-llama/llama-stack/pull/609)
   - [Nvidia Inference Implementation](https://github.com/meta-llama/llama-stack/pull/355)
   - [Model context protocol Tool Runtime](https://github.com/meta-llama/llama-stack/pull/665)


## Testing the Provider

### 1. Integration Testing
- Create integration tests that use real provider instances and configurations
- For remote services, test actual API interactions
- Avoid mocking at the provider level since adapter layers tend to be thin
- Reference examples in {repopath}`tests/client-sdk`

### 2. Unit Testing (Optional)
- Add unit tests for provider-specific functionality
- See examples in {repopath}`llama_stack/providers/tests/inference/test_text_inference.py`

### 3. End-to-End Testing
1. Start a Llama Stack server with your new provider
2. Test using client requests
3. Verify compatibility with existing client scripts in the [llama-stack-apps](https://github.com/meta-llama/llama-stack-apps/tree/main) repository
4. Document which scripts are compatible with your provider

## Submitting Your PR

1. Ensure all tests pass
2. Include a comprehensive test plan in your PR summary
3. Document any known limitations or considerations
4. Submit your pull request for review