diff --git a/core/config/model_config.go b/core/config/model_config.go
index 50ac44625cb6..4f02776c48fd 100644
--- a/core/config/model_config.go
+++ b/core/config/model_config.go
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package config
 
 import (
+	"fmt"
 	"os"
 	"regexp"
 	"slices"
@@ -475,7 +476,7 @@ func (cfg *ModelConfig) SetDefaults(opts ...ConfigLoaderOption) {
 	cfg.syncKnownUsecasesFromString()
 }
 
-func (c *ModelConfig) Validate() bool {
+func (c *ModelConfig) Validate() (bool, error) {
 	downloadedFileNames := []string{}
 	for _, f := range c.DownloadFiles {
 		downloadedFileNames = append(downloadedFileNames, f.Filename)
@@ -489,17 +490,20 @@ func (c *ModelConfig) Validate() bool {
 		}
 		if strings.HasPrefix(n, string(os.PathSeparator)) ||
 			strings.Contains(n, "..") {
-			return false
+			return false, fmt.Errorf("invalid file path: %s", n)
 		}
 	}
 
 	if c.Backend != "" {
 		// a regex that checks that is a string name with no special characters, except '-' and '_'
 		re := regexp.MustCompile(`^[a-zA-Z0-9-_]+$`)
-		return re.MatchString(c.Backend)
+		if !re.MatchString(c.Backend) {
+			return false, fmt.Errorf("invalid backend name: %s", c.Backend)
+		}
+		return true, nil
 	}
 
-	return true
+	return true, nil
 }
 
 func (c *ModelConfig) HasTemplate() bool {
diff --git a/core/config/model_config_loader.go b/core/config/model_config_loader.go
index 9895a4a0e5f8..f0f2c3338c13 100644
--- a/core/config/model_config_loader.go
+++ b/core/config/model_config_loader.go
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ func (bcl *ModelConfigLoader) LoadMultipleModelConfigsSingleFile(file string, op
 	}
 
 	for _, cc := range c {
-		if cc.Validate() {
+		if valid, _ := cc.Validate(); valid {
 			bcl.configs[cc.Name] = *cc
 		}
 	}
@@ -184,7 +184,7 @@ func (bcl *ModelConfigLoader) ReadModelConfig(file string, opts ...ConfigLoaderO
 		return fmt.Errorf("ReadModelConfig cannot read config file %q: %w", file, err)
 	}
 
-	if c.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := c.Validate(); valid {
 		bcl.configs[c.Name] = *c
 	} else {
 		return fmt.Errorf("config is not valid")
@@ -362,7 +362,7 @@ func (bcl *ModelConfigLoader) LoadModelConfigsFromPath(path string, opts ...Conf
 			log.Error().Err(err).Str("File Name", file.Name()).Msgf("LoadModelConfigsFromPath cannot read config file")
 			continue
 		}
-		if c.Validate() {
+		if valid, _ := c.Validate(); valid {
 			bcl.configs[c.Name] = *c
 		} else {
 			log.Error().Err(err).Str("Name", c.Name).Msgf("config is not valid")
diff --git a/core/config/model_config_test.go b/core/config/model_config_test.go
index 9d49e270c751..342b10c47f8b 100644
--- a/core/config/model_config_test.go
+++ b/core/config/model_config_test.go
@@ -28,7 +28,9 @@ known_usecases:
 			config, err := readModelConfigFromFile(tmp.Name())
 			Expect(err).To(BeNil())
 			Expect(config).ToNot(BeNil())
-			Expect(config.Validate()).To(BeFalse())
+			valid, err := config.Validate()
+			Expect(err).To(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(valid).To(BeFalse())
 			Expect(config.KnownUsecases).ToNot(BeNil())
 		})
 		It("Test Validate", func() {
@@ -46,7 +48,9 @@ parameters:
 			Expect(config).ToNot(BeNil())
 			// two configs in config.yaml
 			Expect(config.Name).To(Equal("bar-baz"))
-			Expect(config.Validate()).To(BeTrue())
+			valid, err := config.Validate()
+			Expect(err).To(BeNil())
+			Expect(valid).To(BeTrue())
 
 			// download https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mudler/LocalAI/v2.25.0/embedded/models/hermes-2-pro-mistral.yaml
 			httpClient := http.Client{}
@@ -63,7 +67,9 @@ parameters:
 			Expect(config).ToNot(BeNil())
 			// two configs in config.yaml
 			Expect(config.Name).To(Equal("hermes-2-pro-mistral"))
-			Expect(config.Validate()).To(BeTrue())
+			valid, err = config.Validate()
+			Expect(err).To(BeNil())
+			Expect(valid).To(BeTrue())
 		})
 	})
 	It("Properly handles backend usecase matching", func() {
diff --git a/core/gallery/backends.go b/core/gallery/backends.go
index aee4b2d93928..9049664b3549 100644
--- a/core/gallery/backends.go
+++ b/core/gallery/backends.go
@@ -164,7 +164,7 @@ func InstallBackend(ctx context.Context, systemState *system.SystemState, modelL
 			return fmt.Errorf("failed copying: %w", err)
 		}
 	} else {
-		uri := downloader.URI(config.URI)
+		log.Debug().Str("uri", config.URI).Str("backendPath", backendPath).Msg("Downloading backend")
 		if err := uri.DownloadFileWithContext(ctx, backendPath, "", 1, 1, downloadStatus); err != nil {
 			success := false
 			// Try to download from mirrors
@@ -177,16 +177,27 @@ func InstallBackend(ctx context.Context, systemState *system.SystemState, modelL
 				}
 				if err := downloader.URI(mirror).DownloadFileWithContext(ctx, backendPath, "", 1, 1, downloadStatus); err == nil {
 					success = true
+					log.Debug().Str("uri", config.URI).Str("backendPath", backendPath).Msg("Downloaded backend")
 					break
 				}
 			}
 
 			if !success {
+				log.Error().Str("uri", config.URI).Str("backendPath", backendPath).Err(err).Msg("Failed to download backend")
 				return fmt.Errorf("failed to download backend %q: %v", config.URI, err)
 			}
+		} else {
+			log.Debug().Str("uri", config.URI).Str("backendPath", backendPath).Msg("Downloaded backend")
 		}
 	}
 
+	// sanity check - check if runfile is present
+	runFile := filepath.Join(backendPath, runFile)
+	if _, err := os.Stat(runFile); os.IsNotExist(err) {
+		log.Error().Str("runFile", runFile).Msg("Run file not found")
+		return fmt.Errorf("not a valid backend: run file not found %q", runFile)
+	}
+
 	// Create metadata for the backend
 	metadata := &BackendMetadata{
 		Name:        name,
diff --git a/core/gallery/backends_test.go b/core/gallery/backends_test.go
index 15900d25018b..756d2e7a23b8 100644
--- a/core/gallery/backends_test.go
+++ b/core/gallery/backends_test.go
@@ -563,8 +563,8 @@ var _ = Describe("Gallery Backends", func() {
 			)
 			Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
 			err = InstallBackend(context.TODO(), systemState, ml, &backend, nil)
-			Expect(err).To(HaveOccurred()) // Will fail due to invalid URI, but path should be created
 			Expect(newPath).To(BeADirectory())
+			Expect(err).To(HaveOccurred()) // Will fail due to invalid URI, but path should be created
 		})
 
 		It("should overwrite existing backend", func() {
diff --git a/core/gallery/gallery.go b/core/gallery/gallery.go
index 62362148ecef..0475b898c645 100644
--- a/core/gallery/gallery.go
+++ b/core/gallery/gallery.go
@@ -6,11 +6,13 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/lithammer/fuzzysearch/fuzzy"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/config"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/downloader"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/system"
+	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/xsync"
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
 
 	"gopkg.in/yaml.v2"
@@ -19,7 +21,7 @@ import (
 func GetGalleryConfigFromURL[T any](url string, basePath string) (T, error) {
 	var config T
 	uri := downloader.URI(url)
-	err := uri.DownloadWithCallback(basePath, func(url string, d []byte) error {
+	err := uri.ReadWithCallback(basePath, func(url string, d []byte) error {
 		return yaml.Unmarshal(d, &config)
 	})
 	if err != nil {
@@ -32,7 +34,7 @@ func GetGalleryConfigFromURL[T any](url string, basePath string) (T, error) {
 func GetGalleryConfigFromURLWithContext[T any](ctx context.Context, url string, basePath string) (T, error) {
 	var config T
 	uri := downloader.URI(url)
-	err := uri.DownloadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(ctx, basePath, "", func(url string, d []byte) error {
+	err := uri.ReadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(ctx, basePath, "", func(url string, d []byte) error {
 		return yaml.Unmarshal(d, &config)
 	})
 	if err != nil {
@@ -141,7 +143,7 @@ func AvailableGalleryModels(galleries []config.Gallery, systemState *system.Syst
 
 	// Get models from galleries
 	for _, gallery := range galleries {
-		galleryModels, err := getGalleryElements[*GalleryModel](gallery, systemState.Model.ModelsPath, func(model *GalleryModel) bool {
+		galleryModels, err := getGalleryElements(gallery, systemState.Model.ModelsPath, func(model *GalleryModel) bool {
 			if _, err := os.Stat(filepath.Join(systemState.Model.ModelsPath, fmt.Sprintf("%s.yaml", model.GetName()))); err == nil {
 				return true
 			}
@@ -182,7 +184,7 @@ func AvailableBackends(galleries []config.Gallery, systemState *system.SystemSta
 func findGalleryURLFromReferenceURL(url string, basePath string) (string, error) {
 	var refFile string
 	uri := downloader.URI(url)
-	err := uri.DownloadWithCallback(basePath, func(url string, d []byte) error {
+	err := uri.ReadWithCallback(basePath, func(url string, d []byte) error {
 		refFile = string(d)
 		if len(refFile) == 0 {
 			return fmt.Errorf("invalid reference file at url %s: %s", url, d)
@@ -194,6 +196,17 @@ func findGalleryURLFromReferenceURL(url string, basePath string) (string, error)
 	return refFile, err
 }
 
+type galleryCacheEntry struct {
+	yamlEntry   []byte
+	lastUpdated time.Time
+}
+
+func (entry galleryCacheEntry) hasExpired() bool {
+	return entry.lastUpdated.Before(time.Now().Add(-1 * time.Hour))
+}
+
+var galleryCache = xsync.NewSyncedMap[string, galleryCacheEntry]()
+
 func getGalleryElements[T GalleryElement](gallery config.Gallery, basePath string, isInstalledCallback func(T) bool) ([]T, error) {
 	var models []T = []T{}
 
@@ -204,16 +217,37 @@ func getGalleryElements[T GalleryElement](gallery config.Gallery, basePath strin
 			return models, err
 		}
 	}
+
+	cacheKey := fmt.Sprintf("%s-%s", gallery.Name, gallery.URL)
+	if galleryCache.Exists(cacheKey) {
+		entry := galleryCache.Get(cacheKey)
+		// refresh if last updated is more than 1 hour ago
+		if !entry.hasExpired() {
+			err := yaml.Unmarshal(entry.yamlEntry, &models)
+			if err != nil {
+				return models, err
+			}
+		} else {
+			galleryCache.Delete(cacheKey)
+		}
+	}
+
 	uri := downloader.URI(gallery.URL)
 
-	err := uri.DownloadWithCallback(basePath, func(url string, d []byte) error {
-		return yaml.Unmarshal(d, &models)
-	})
-	if err != nil {
-		if yamlErr, ok := err.(*yaml.TypeError); ok {
-			log.Debug().Msgf("YAML errors: %s\n\nwreckage of models: %+v", strings.Join(yamlErr.Errors, "\n"), models)
+	if len(models) == 0 {
+		err := uri.ReadWithCallback(basePath, func(url string, d []byte) error {
+			galleryCache.Set(cacheKey, galleryCacheEntry{
+				yamlEntry:   d,
+				lastUpdated: time.Now(),
+			})
+			return yaml.Unmarshal(d, &models)
+		})
+		if err != nil {
+			if yamlErr, ok := err.(*yaml.TypeError); ok {
+				log.Debug().Msgf("YAML errors: %s\n\nwreckage of models: %+v", strings.Join(yamlErr.Errors, "\n"), models)
+			}
+			return models, fmt.Errorf("failed to read gallery elements: %w", err)
 		}
-		return models, err
 	}
 
 	// Add gallery to models
diff --git a/core/gallery/importers/importers.go b/core/gallery/importers/importers.go
index 238aad6f1634..283a3349a5e4 100644
--- a/core/gallery/importers/importers.go
+++ b/core/gallery/importers/importers.go
@@ -2,11 +2,16 @@ package importers
 
 import (
 	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
+	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
 
+	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/config"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/gallery"
+	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/downloader"
 	hfapi "github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/huggingface-api"
 )
 
@@ -28,6 +33,10 @@ type Importer interface {
 	Import(details Details) (gallery.ModelConfig, error)
 }
 
+func hasYAMLExtension(uri string) bool {
+	return strings.HasSuffix(uri, ".yaml") || strings.HasSuffix(uri, ".yml")
+}
+
 func DiscoverModelConfig(uri string, preferences json.RawMessage) (gallery.ModelConfig, error) {
 	var err error
 	var modelConfig gallery.ModelConfig
@@ -42,20 +51,61 @@ func DiscoverModelConfig(uri string, preferences json.RawMessage) (gallery.Model
 	if err != nil {
 		// maybe not a HF repository
 		// TODO: maybe we can check if the URI is a valid HF repository
-		log.Debug().Str("uri", uri).Msg("Failed to get model details, maybe not a HF repository")
+		log.Debug().Str("uri", uri).Str("hfrepoID", hfrepoID).Msg("Failed to get model details, maybe not a HF repository")
 	} else {
 		log.Debug().Str("uri", uri).Msg("Got model details")
 		log.Debug().Any("details", hfDetails).Msg("Model details")
 	}
 
+	// handle local config files ("/my-model.yaml" or "file://my-model.yaml")
+	localURI := uri
+	if strings.HasPrefix(uri, downloader.LocalPrefix) {
+		localURI = strings.TrimPrefix(uri, downloader.LocalPrefix)
+	}
+
+	// if a file exists or it's an url that ends with .yaml or .yml, read the config file directly
+	if _, e := os.Stat(localURI); hasYAMLExtension(localURI) && (e == nil || downloader.URI(localURI).LooksLikeURL()) {
+		var modelYAML []byte
+		if downloader.URI(localURI).LooksLikeURL() {
+			err := downloader.URI(localURI).ReadWithCallback(localURI, func(url string, i []byte) error {
+				modelYAML = i
+				return nil
+			})
+			if err != nil {
+				log.Error().Err(err).Str("filepath", localURI).Msg("error reading model definition")
+				return gallery.ModelConfig{}, err
+			}
+		} else {
+			modelYAML, err = os.ReadFile(localURI)
+			if err != nil {
+				log.Error().Err(err).Str("filepath", localURI).Msg("error reading model definition")
+				return gallery.ModelConfig{}, err
+			}
+		}
+
+		var modelConfig config.ModelConfig
+		if e := yaml.Unmarshal(modelYAML, &modelConfig); e != nil {
+			return gallery.ModelConfig{}, e
+		}
+
+		configFile, err := yaml.Marshal(modelConfig)
+		return gallery.ModelConfig{
+			Description: modelConfig.Description,
+			Name:        modelConfig.Name,
+			ConfigFile:  string(configFile),
+		}, err
+	}
+
 	details := Details{
 		HuggingFace: hfDetails,
 		URI:         uri,
 		Preferences: preferences,
 	}
 
+	importerMatched := false
 	for _, importer := range defaultImporters {
 		if importer.Match(details) {
+			importerMatched = true
 			modelConfig, err = importer.Import(details)
 			if err != nil {
 				continue
@@ -63,5 +113,8 @@ func DiscoverModelConfig(uri string, preferences json.RawMessage) (gallery.Model
 			break
 		}
 	}
-	return modelConfig, err
+	if !importerMatched {
+		return gallery.ModelConfig{}, fmt.Errorf("no importer matched for %s", uri)
+	}
+	return modelConfig, nil
 }
diff --git a/core/gallery/importers/importers_test.go b/core/gallery/importers/importers_test.go
index 34814fe66c0d..f34be0d6e5bc 100644
--- a/core/gallery/importers/importers_test.go
+++ b/core/gallery/importers/importers_test.go
@@ -3,6 +3,8 @@ package importers_test
 import (
 	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
 
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/gallery/importers"
 	. "github.com/onsi/ginkgo/v2"
@@ -212,4 +214,139 @@ var _ = Describe("DiscoverModelConfig", func() {
 			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(BeEmpty())
 		})
 	})
+
+	Context("with local YAML config files", func() {
+		var tempDir string
+
+		BeforeEach(func() {
+			var err error
+			tempDir, err = os.MkdirTemp("", "importers-test-*")
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+		})
+
+		AfterEach(func() {
+			os.RemoveAll(tempDir)
+		})
+
+		It("should read local YAML file with file:// prefix", func() {
+			yamlContent := `name: test-model
+backend: llama-cpp
+description: Test model from local YAML
+parameters:
+  model: /path/to/model.gguf
+  temperature: 0.7
+`
+			yamlFile := filepath.Join(tempDir, "test-model.yaml")
+			err := os.WriteFile(yamlFile, []byte(yamlContent), 0644)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+
+			uri := "file://" + yamlFile
+			preferences := json.RawMessage(`{}`)
+
+			modelConfig, err := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(uri, preferences)
+
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(Equal("test-model"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.Description).To(Equal("Test model from local YAML"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.ConfigFile).To(ContainSubstring("backend: llama-cpp"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.ConfigFile).To(ContainSubstring("name: test-model"))
+		})
+
+		It("should read local YAML file without file:// prefix (direct path)", func() {
+			yamlContent := `name: direct-path-model
+backend: mlx
+description: Test model from direct path
+parameters:
+  model: /path/to/model.safetensors
+`
+			yamlFile := filepath.Join(tempDir, "direct-model.yaml")
+			err := os.WriteFile(yamlFile, []byte(yamlContent), 0644)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+
+			uri := yamlFile
+			preferences := json.RawMessage(`{}`)
+
+			modelConfig, err := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(uri, preferences)
+
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(Equal("direct-path-model"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.Description).To(Equal("Test model from direct path"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.ConfigFile).To(ContainSubstring("backend: mlx"))
+		})
+
+		It("should read local YAML file with .yml extension", func() {
+			yamlContent := `name: yml-extension-model
+backend: transformers
+description: Test model with .yml extension
+parameters:
+  model: /path/to/model
+`
+			yamlFile := filepath.Join(tempDir, "test-model.yml")
+			err := os.WriteFile(yamlFile, []byte(yamlContent), 0644)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+
+			uri := "file://" + yamlFile
+			preferences := json.RawMessage(`{}`)
+
+			modelConfig, err := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(uri, preferences)
+
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(Equal("yml-extension-model"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.Description).To(Equal("Test model with .yml extension"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.ConfigFile).To(ContainSubstring("backend: transformers"))
+		})
+
+		It("should ignore preferences when reading YAML files directly", func() {
+			yamlContent := `name: yaml-model
+backend: llama-cpp
+description: Original description
+parameters:
+  model: /path/to/model.gguf
+`
+			yamlFile := filepath.Join(tempDir, "prefs-test.yaml")
+			err := os.WriteFile(yamlFile, []byte(yamlContent), 0644)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+
+			uri := "file://" + yamlFile
+			// Preferences should be ignored when reading YAML directly
+			preferences := json.RawMessage(`{"name": "custom-name", "description": "Custom description", "backend": "mlx"}`)
+
+			modelConfig, err := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(uri, preferences)
+
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			// Should use values from YAML file, not preferences
+			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(Equal("yaml-model"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.Description).To(Equal("Original description"))
+			Expect(modelConfig.ConfigFile).To(ContainSubstring("backend: llama-cpp"))
+		})
+
+		It("should return error when local YAML file doesn't exist", func() {
+			nonExistentFile := filepath.Join(tempDir, "nonexistent.yaml")
+			uri := "file://" + nonExistentFile
+			preferences := json.RawMessage(`{}`)
+
+			modelConfig, err := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(uri, preferences)
+
+			Expect(err).To(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(BeEmpty())
+		})
+
+		It("should return error when YAML file is invalid/malformed", func() {
+			invalidYaml := `name: invalid-model
+backend: llama-cpp
+invalid: yaml: content: [unclosed bracket
+`
+			yamlFile := filepath.Join(tempDir, "invalid.yaml")
+			err := os.WriteFile(yamlFile, []byte(invalidYaml), 0644)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+
+			uri := "file://" + yamlFile
+			preferences := json.RawMessage(`{}`)
+
+			modelConfig, err := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(uri, preferences)
+
+			Expect(err).To(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(modelConfig.Name).To(BeEmpty())
+		})
+	})
 })
diff --git a/core/gallery/importers/llama-cpp.go b/core/gallery/importers/llama-cpp.go
index 669faf79076c..f1c4a4dc96e0 100644
--- a/core/gallery/importers/llama-cpp.go
+++ b/core/gallery/importers/llama-cpp.go
@@ -9,7 +9,9 @@ import (
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/config"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/gallery"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/schema"
+	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/downloader"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/functions"
+	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
 	"go.yaml.in/yaml/v2"
 )
 
@@ -20,14 +22,22 @@ type LlamaCPPImporter struct{}
 func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Match(details Details) bool {
 	preferences, err := details.Preferences.MarshalJSON()
 	if err != nil {
+		log.Error().Err(err).Msg("failed to marshal preferences")
 		return false
 	}
+
 	preferencesMap := make(map[string]any)
-	err = json.Unmarshal(preferences, &preferencesMap)
-	if err != nil {
-		return false
+
+	if len(preferences) > 0 {
+		err = json.Unmarshal(preferences, &preferencesMap)
+		if err != nil {
+			log.Error().Err(err).Msg("failed to unmarshal preferences")
+			return false
+		}
 	}
 
+	uri := downloader.URI(details.URI)
+
 	if preferencesMap["backend"] == "llama-cpp" {
 		return true
 	}
@@ -36,6 +46,10 @@ func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Match(details Details) bool {
 		return true
 	}
 
+	if uri.LooksLikeOCI() {
+		return true
+	}
+
 	if details.HuggingFace != nil {
 		for _, file := range details.HuggingFace.Files {
 			if strings.HasSuffix(file.Path, ".gguf") {
@@ -48,14 +62,19 @@ func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Match(details Details) bool {
 }
 
 func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Import(details Details) (gallery.ModelConfig, error) {
+
+	log.Debug().Str("uri", details.URI).Msg("llama.cpp importer matched")
+
 	preferences, err := details.Preferences.MarshalJSON()
 	if err != nil {
 		return gallery.ModelConfig{}, err
 	}
 	preferencesMap := make(map[string]any)
-	err = json.Unmarshal(preferences, &preferencesMap)
-	if err != nil {
-		return gallery.ModelConfig{}, err
+	if len(preferences) > 0 {
+		err = json.Unmarshal(preferences, &preferencesMap)
+		if err != nil {
+			return gallery.ModelConfig{}, err
+		}
 	}
 
 	name, ok := preferencesMap["name"].(string)
@@ -108,7 +127,40 @@ func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Import(details Details) (gallery.ModelConfig, error)
 		Description: description,
 	}
 
-	if strings.HasSuffix(details.URI, ".gguf") {
+	uri := downloader.URI(details.URI)
+
+	switch {
+	case uri.LooksLikeOCI():
+		ociName := strings.TrimPrefix(string(uri), downloader.OCIPrefix)
+		ociName = strings.TrimPrefix(ociName, downloader.OllamaPrefix)
+		ociName = strings.ReplaceAll(ociName, "/", "__")
+		ociName = strings.ReplaceAll(ociName, ":", "__")
+		cfg.Files = append(cfg.Files, gallery.File{
+			URI:      details.URI,
+			Filename: ociName,
+		})
+		modelConfig.PredictionOptions = schema.PredictionOptions{
+			BasicModelRequest: schema.BasicModelRequest{
+				Model: ociName,
+			},
+		}
+	case uri.LooksLikeURL() && strings.HasSuffix(details.URI, ".gguf"):
+		// Extract filename from URL
+		fileName, e := uri.FilenameFromUrl()
+		if e != nil {
+			return gallery.ModelConfig{}, e
+		}
+
+		cfg.Files = append(cfg.Files, gallery.File{
+			URI:      details.URI,
+			Filename: fileName,
+		})
+		modelConfig.PredictionOptions = schema.PredictionOptions{
+			BasicModelRequest: schema.BasicModelRequest{
+				Model: fileName,
+			},
+		}
+	case strings.HasSuffix(details.URI, ".gguf"):
 		cfg.Files = append(cfg.Files, gallery.File{
 			URI:      details.URI,
 			Filename: filepath.Base(details.URI),
@@ -118,7 +170,7 @@ func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Import(details Details) (gallery.ModelConfig, error)
 				Model: filepath.Base(details.URI),
 			},
 		}
-	} else if details.HuggingFace != nil {
+	case details.HuggingFace != nil:
 		// We want to:
 		// Get first the chosen quants that match filenames
 		// OR the first mmproj/gguf file found
@@ -195,7 +247,6 @@ func (i *LlamaCPPImporter) Import(details Details) (gallery.ModelConfig, error)
 			}
 			break
 		}
-
 	}
 
 	data, err := yaml.Marshal(modelConfig)
diff --git a/core/gallery/models.go b/core/gallery/models.go
index 7205886b633c..6b20ad7b2b40 100644
--- a/core/gallery/models.go
+++ b/core/gallery/models.go
@@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 
 	"dario.cat/mergo"
-	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/config"
 	lconfig "github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/config"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/downloader"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/model"
@@ -17,7 +16,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
 
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
-	"gopkg.in/yaml.v2"
+	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
 )
 
 /*
@@ -74,7 +73,7 @@ type PromptTemplate struct {
 // Installs a model from the gallery
 func InstallModelFromGallery(
 	ctx context.Context,
-	modelGalleries, backendGalleries []config.Gallery,
+	modelGalleries, backendGalleries []lconfig.Gallery,
 	systemState *system.SystemState,
 	modelLoader *model.ModelLoader,
 	name string, req GalleryModel, downloadStatus func(string, string, string, float64), enforceScan, automaticallyInstallBackend bool) error {
@@ -260,8 +259,8 @@ func InstallModel(ctx context.Context, systemState *system.SystemState, nameOver
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to unmarshal updated config YAML: %v", err)
 		}
 
-		if !modelConfig.Validate() {
-			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate updated config YAML")
+		if valid, err := modelConfig.Validate(); !valid {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate updated config YAML: %v", err)
 		}
 
 		err = os.WriteFile(configFilePath, updatedConfigYAML, 0600)
@@ -304,7 +303,7 @@ func DeleteModelFromSystem(systemState *system.SystemState, name string) error {
 	// Galleryname is the name of the model in this case
 	dat, err := os.ReadFile(configFile)
 	if err == nil {
-		modelConfig := &config.ModelConfig{}
+		modelConfig := &lconfig.ModelConfig{}
 
 		err = yaml.Unmarshal(dat, &modelConfig)
 		if err != nil {
@@ -369,7 +368,7 @@ func DeleteModelFromSystem(systemState *system.SystemState, name string) error {
 
 // This is ***NEVER*** going to be perfect or finished.
 // This is a BEST EFFORT function to surface known-vulnerable models to users.
-func SafetyScanGalleryModels(galleries []config.Gallery, systemState *system.SystemState) error {
+func SafetyScanGalleryModels(galleries []lconfig.Gallery, systemState *system.SystemState) error {
 	galleryModels, err := AvailableGalleryModels(galleries, systemState)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
diff --git a/core/http/app_test.go b/core/http/app_test.go
index 7935d2c91a2f..0e84530a7c53 100644
--- a/core/http/app_test.go
+++ b/core/http/app_test.go
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ func getModels(url string) ([]gallery.GalleryModel, error) {
 	response := []gallery.GalleryModel{}
 	uri := downloader.URI(url)
 	// TODO: No tests currently seem to exercise file:// urls. Fix?
-	err := uri.DownloadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(context.TODO(), "", bearerKey, func(url string, i []byte) error {
+	err := uri.ReadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(context.TODO(), "", bearerKey, func(url string, i []byte) error {
 		// Unmarshal YAML data into a struct
 		return json.Unmarshal(i, &response)
 	})
@@ -513,6 +513,124 @@ var _ = Describe("API test", func() {
 			})
 
 		})
+
+		Context("Importing models from URI", func() {
+			var testYamlFile string
+
+			BeforeEach(func() {
+				// Create a test YAML config file
+				yamlContent := `name: test-import-model
+backend: llama-cpp
+description: Test model imported from file URI
+parameters:
+  model: path/to/model.gguf
+  temperature: 0.7
+`
+				testYamlFile = filepath.Join(tmpdir, "test-import.yaml")
+				err := os.WriteFile(testYamlFile, []byte(yamlContent), 0644)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			})
+
+			AfterEach(func() {
+				err := os.Remove(testYamlFile)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			})
+
+			It("should import model from file:// URI pointing to local YAML config", func() {
+				importReq := schema.ImportModelRequest{
+					URI:         "file://" + testYamlFile,
+					Preferences: json.RawMessage(`{}`),
+				}
+
+				var response schema.GalleryResponse
+				err := postRequestResponseJSON("http://127.0.0.1:9090/models/import-uri", &importReq, &response)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+				Expect(response.ID).ToNot(BeEmpty())
+
+				uuid := response.ID
+				resp := map[string]interface{}{}
+				Eventually(func() bool {
+					response := getModelStatus("http://127.0.0.1:9090/models/jobs/" + uuid)
+					resp = response
+					return response["processed"].(bool)
+				}, "360s", "10s").Should(Equal(true))
+
+				// Check that the model was imported successfully
+				Expect(resp["message"]).ToNot(ContainSubstring("error"))
+				Expect(resp["error"]).To(BeNil())
+
+				// Verify the model config file was created
+				dat, err := os.ReadFile(filepath.Join(modelDir, "test-import-model.yaml"))
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+
+				content := map[string]interface{}{}
+				err = yaml.Unmarshal(dat, &content)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+				Expect(content["name"]).To(Equal("test-import-model"))
+				Expect(content["backend"]).To(Equal("llama-cpp"))
+			})
+
+			It("should return error when file:// URI points to non-existent file", func() {
+				nonExistentFile := filepath.Join(tmpdir, "nonexistent.yaml")
+				importReq := schema.ImportModelRequest{
+					URI:         "file://" + nonExistentFile,
+					Preferences: json.RawMessage(`{}`),
+				}
+
+				var response schema.GalleryResponse
+				err := postRequestResponseJSON("http://127.0.0.1:9090/models/import-uri", &importReq, &response)
+				// The endpoint should return an error immediately
+				Expect(err).To(HaveOccurred())
+				Expect(err.Error()).To(ContainSubstring("failed to discover model config"))
+			})
+		})
+
+		Context("Importing models from URI can't point to absolute paths", func() {
+			var testYamlFile string
+
+			BeforeEach(func() {
+				// Create a test YAML config file
+				yamlContent := `name: test-import-model
+backend: llama-cpp
+description: Test model imported from file URI
+parameters:
+  model: /path/to/model.gguf
+  temperature: 0.7
+`
+				testYamlFile = filepath.Join(tmpdir, "test-import.yaml")
+				err := os.WriteFile(testYamlFile, []byte(yamlContent), 0644)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			})
+
+			AfterEach(func() {
+				err := os.Remove(testYamlFile)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			})
+
+			It("should fail to import model from file:// URI pointing to local YAML config", func() {
+				importReq := schema.ImportModelRequest{
+					URI:         "file://" + testYamlFile,
+					Preferences: json.RawMessage(`{}`),
+				}
+
+				var response schema.GalleryResponse
+				err := postRequestResponseJSON("http://127.0.0.1:9090/models/import-uri", &importReq, &response)
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+				Expect(response.ID).ToNot(BeEmpty())
+
+				uuid := response.ID
+				resp := map[string]interface{}{}
+				Eventually(func() bool {
+					response := getModelStatus("http://127.0.0.1:9090/models/jobs/" + uuid)
+					resp = response
+					return response["processed"].(bool)
+				}, "360s", "10s").Should(Equal(true))
+
+				// Check that the model was imported successfully
+				Expect(resp["message"]).To(ContainSubstring("error"))
+				Expect(resp["error"]).ToNot(BeNil())
+			})
+		})
 	})
 
 	Context("Model gallery", func() {
diff --git a/core/http/endpoints/localai/edit_model.go b/core/http/endpoints/localai/edit_model.go
index 4c59add22c31..f84b4d21bd00 100644
--- a/core/http/endpoints/localai/edit_model.go
+++ b/core/http/endpoints/localai/edit_model.go
@@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ func EditModelEndpoint(cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, appConfig *config.Applicati
 		}
 
 		// Validate the configuration
-		if !req.Validate() {
+		if valid, _ := req.Validate(); !valid {
 			response := ModelResponse{
 				Success: false,
 				Error:   "Validation failed",
@@ -196,7 +196,7 @@ func EditModelEndpoint(cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, appConfig *config.Applicati
 func ReloadModelsEndpoint(cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, appConfig *config.ApplicationConfig) echo.HandlerFunc {
 	return func(c echo.Context) error {
 		// Reload configurations
-		if err := cl.LoadModelConfigsFromPath(appConfig.SystemState.Model.ModelsPath); err != nil {
+		if err := cl.LoadModelConfigsFromPath(appConfig.SystemState.Model.ModelsPath, appConfig.ToConfigLoaderOptions()...); err != nil {
 			response := ModelResponse{
 				Success: false,
 				Error:   "Failed to reload configurations: " + err.Error(),
diff --git a/core/http/endpoints/localai/import_model.go b/core/http/endpoints/localai/import_model.go
index d44d11ff8deb..77abcdfb60b3 100644
--- a/core/http/endpoints/localai/import_model.go
+++ b/core/http/endpoints/localai/import_model.go
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ func ImportModelEndpoint(cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, appConfig *config.Applica
 		modelConfig.SetDefaults()
 
 		// Validate the configuration
-		if !modelConfig.Validate() {
+		if valid, _ := modelConfig.Validate(); !valid {
 			response := ModelResponse{
 				Success: false,
 				Error:   "Invalid configuration",
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ func ImportModelEndpoint(cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, appConfig *config.Applica
 			return c.JSON(http.StatusInternalServerError, response)
 		}
 		// Reload configurations
-		if err := cl.LoadModelConfigsFromPath(appConfig.SystemState.Model.ModelsPath); err != nil {
+		if err := cl.LoadModelConfigsFromPath(appConfig.SystemState.Model.ModelsPath, appConfig.ToConfigLoaderOptions()...); err != nil {
 			response := ModelResponse{
 				Success: false,
 				Error:   "Failed to reload configurations: " + err.Error(),
diff --git a/core/http/endpoints/openai/realtime_model.go b/core/http/endpoints/openai/realtime_model.go
index a62e5a18a902..6bc00480224d 100644
--- a/core/http/endpoints/openai/realtime_model.go
+++ b/core/http/endpoints/openai/realtime_model.go
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ func newTranscriptionOnlyModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfig
 		return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if !cfgVAD.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := cfgVAD.Validate(); !valid {
 		return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 	}
 
@@ -128,7 +128,7 @@ func newTranscriptionOnlyModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfig
 		return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if !cfgSST.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := cfgSST.Validate(); !valid {
 		return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 	}
 
@@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ func newModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, ml *model
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if !cfgVAD.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := cfgVAD.Validate(); !valid {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 	}
 
@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@ func newModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, ml *model
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if !cfgSST.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := cfgSST.Validate(); !valid {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 	}
 
@@ -191,7 +191,7 @@ func newModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, ml *model
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 		}
 
-		if !cfgAnyToAny.Validate() {
+		if valid, _ := cfgAnyToAny.Validate(); !valid {
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 		}
 
@@ -218,7 +218,7 @@ func newModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, ml *model
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if !cfgLLM.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := cfgLLM.Validate(); !valid {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 	}
 
@@ -228,7 +228,7 @@ func newModel(pipeline *config.Pipeline, cl *config.ModelConfigLoader, ml *model
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to load backend config: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if !cfgTTS.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := cfgTTS.Validate(); !valid {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to validate config: %w", err)
 	}
 
diff --git a/core/http/middleware/request.go b/core/http/middleware/request.go
index 362feadc1677..24720578ef2b 100644
--- a/core/http/middleware/request.go
+++ b/core/http/middleware/request.go
@@ -475,7 +475,7 @@ func mergeOpenAIRequestAndModelConfig(config *config.ModelConfig, input *schema.
 		}
 	}
 
-	if config.Validate() {
+	if valid, _ := config.Validate(); valid {
 		return nil
 	}
 	return fmt.Errorf("unable to validate configuration after merging")
diff --git a/core/http/static/chat.js b/core/http/static/chat.js
index 317a517d6c00..fea4b1efac95 100644
--- a/core/http/static/chat.js
+++ b/core/http/static/chat.js
@@ -1213,9 +1213,6 @@ async function promptGPT(systemPrompt, input) {
 document.getElementById("system_prompt").addEventListener("submit", submitSystemPrompt);
 document.getElementById("prompt").addEventListener("submit", submitPrompt);
 document.getElementById("input").focus();
-document.getElementById("input_image").addEventListener("change", readInputImage);
-document.getElementById("input_audio").addEventListener("change", readInputAudio);
-document.getElementById("input_file").addEventListener("change", readInputFile);
 
 storesystemPrompt = localStorage.getItem("system_prompt");
 if (storesystemPrompt) {
diff --git a/core/http/views/backends.html b/core/http/views/backends.html
index 72b92e72a674..0735e09cdd8f 100644
--- a/core/http/views/backends.html
+++ b/core/http/views/backends.html
@@ -629,11 +629,33 @@ <h3 class="text-xl font-semibold text-gray-900 dark:text-white" x-text="selected
                         this.fetchBackends();
                     }
                     
-                    if (jobData.error) {
+                    if (jobData.error || (jobData.message && jobData.message.startsWith('error:'))) {
                         backend.processing = false;
                         delete this.jobProgress[backend.jobID];
                         const action = backend.isDeletion ? 'deleting' : 'installing';
-                        this.addNotification(`Error ${action} backend "${backend.name}": ${jobData.error}`, 'error');
+                        // Extract error message - handle both string and object errors
+                        let errorMessage = 'Unknown error';
+                        if (typeof jobData.error === 'string') {
+                            errorMessage = jobData.error;
+                        } else if (jobData.error && typeof jobData.error === 'object') {
+                            // Check if error object has any properties
+                            const errorKeys = Object.keys(jobData.error);
+                            if (errorKeys.length > 0) {
+                                // Try common error object properties
+                                errorMessage = jobData.error.message || jobData.error.error || jobData.error.Error || JSON.stringify(jobData.error);
+                            } else {
+                                // Empty object {}, fall back to message field
+                                errorMessage = jobData.message || 'Unknown error';
+                            }
+                        } else if (jobData.message) {
+                            // Use message field if error is not present or is empty
+                            errorMessage = jobData.message;
+                        }
+                        // Remove "error: " prefix if present
+                        if (errorMessage.startsWith('error: ')) {
+                            errorMessage = errorMessage.substring(7);
+                        }
+                        this.addNotification(`Error ${action} backend "${backend.name}": ${errorMessage}`, 'error');
                     }
                 } catch (error) {
                     console.error('Error polling job:', error);
diff --git a/core/http/views/index.html b/core/http/views/index.html
index 794bd28c1755..460ff322fe90 100644
--- a/core/http/views/index.html
+++ b/core/http/views/index.html
@@ -127,6 +127,7 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
                 imageFiles: [], 
                 audioFiles: [], 
                 textFiles: [],
+                attachedFiles: [],
                 currentPlaceholder: 'Send a message...',
                 placeholderIndex: 0,
                 charIndex: 0,
@@ -241,6 +242,30 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
                     } else {
                         this.resumeTyping();
                     }
+                },
+                handleFileSelection(files, fileType) {
+                    Array.from(files).forEach(file => {
+                        // Check if file already exists
+                        const exists = this.attachedFiles.some(f => f.name === file.name && f.type === fileType);
+                        if (!exists) {
+                            this.attachedFiles.push({ name: file.name, type: fileType });
+                        }
+                    });
+                },
+                removeAttachedFile(fileType, fileName) {
+                    // Remove from attachedFiles array
+                    const index = this.attachedFiles.findIndex(f => f.name === fileName && f.type === fileType);
+                    if (index !== -1) {
+                        this.attachedFiles.splice(index, 1);
+                    }
+                    // Remove from corresponding file array
+                    if (fileType === 'image') {
+                        this.imageFiles = this.imageFiles.filter(f => f.name !== fileName);
+                    } else if (fileType === 'audio') {
+                        this.audioFiles = this.audioFiles.filter(f => f.name !== fileName);
+                    } else if (fileType === 'file') {
+                        this.textFiles = this.textFiles.filter(f => f.name !== fileName);
+                    }
                 }
             }">
                 <!-- Model Selector -->
@@ -265,6 +290,24 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
 
                 <!-- Input Bar -->
                 <form @submit.prevent="startChat($event)" class="relative w-full">
+                    <!-- Attachment Tags - Show above input when files are attached -->
+                    <div x-show="attachedFiles.length > 0" class="mb-3 flex flex-wrap gap-2 items-center">
+                        <template x-for="(file, index) in attachedFiles" :key="index">
+                            <div class="inline-flex items-center gap-2 px-3 py-1.5 rounded-lg text-sm bg-[#38BDF8]/20 border border-[#38BDF8]/40 text-[#E5E7EB]">
+                                <i :class="file.type === 'image' ? 'fa-solid fa-image' : file.type === 'audio' ? 'fa-solid fa-microphone' : 'fa-solid fa-file'" class="text-[#38BDF8]"></i>
+                                <span x-text="file.name" class="max-w-[200px] truncate"></span>
+                                <button 
+                                    type="button"
+                                    @click="attachedFiles.splice(index, 1); removeAttachedFile(file.type, file.name)"
+                                    class="ml-1 text-[#94A3B8] hover:text-[#E5E7EB] transition-colors"
+                                    title="Remove attachment"
+                                >
+                                    <i class="fa-solid fa-times text-xs"></i>
+                                </button>
+                            </div>
+                        </template>
+                    </div>
+
                     <div class="relative w-full bg-[#1E293B] border border-[#38BDF8]/20 rounded-xl focus-within:ring-2 focus-within:ring-[#38BDF8]/50 focus-within:border-[#38BDF8] transition-all duration-200">
                         <textarea
                             x-model="inputValue"
@@ -279,7 +322,6 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
                             @input="handleInput()"
                             rows="2"
                         ></textarea>
-                        <span x-show="fileName" x-text="fileName" class="absolute right-16 top-3 text-[#94A3B8] text-xs mr-2"></span>
                         
                         <!-- Attachment Buttons -->
                         <button
@@ -321,7 +363,7 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
                     multiple
                     accept="image/*"
                     style="display: none;"
-                    @change="imageFiles = Array.from($event.target.files); fileName = imageFiles.length > 0 ? imageFiles.length + ' image(s) selected' : ''"
+                    @change="imageFiles = Array.from($event.target.files); handleFileSelection($event.target.files, 'image')"
                 />
                 <input
                     id="index_input_audio"
@@ -329,7 +371,7 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
                     multiple
                     accept="audio/*"
                     style="display: none;"
-                    @change="audioFiles = Array.from($event.target.files); fileName = audioFiles.length > 0 ? audioFiles.length + ' audio file(s) selected' : ''"
+                    @change="audioFiles = Array.from($event.target.files); handleFileSelection($event.target.files, 'audio')"
                 />
                 <input
                     id="index_input_file"
@@ -337,7 +379,7 @@ <h3 class="text-lg font-bold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-4 flex items-center">
                     multiple
                     accept=".txt,.md,.pdf"
                     style="display: none;"
-                    @change="textFiles = Array.from($event.target.files); fileName = textFiles.length > 0 ? textFiles.length + ' file(s) selected' : ''"
+                    @change="textFiles = Array.from($event.target.files); handleFileSelection($event.target.files, 'file')"
                 />
             </div>
 
diff --git a/core/http/views/model-editor.html b/core/http/views/model-editor.html
index d976e5fd1f49..734a327db205 100644
--- a/core/http/views/model-editor.html
+++ b/core/http/views/model-editor.html
@@ -77,18 +77,197 @@ <h2 class="text-2xl font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] flex items-center gap-3 mb-6">
 
                 <!-- URI Input -->
                 <div>
-                    <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-[#94A3B8] mb-2">
-                        <i class="fas fa-link mr-2"></i>Model URI
-                    </label>
+                    <div class="flex items-center justify-between mb-2">
+                        <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-[#94A3B8]">
+                            <i class="fas fa-link mr-2"></i>Model URI
+                        </label>
+                        <div class="flex gap-2">
+                            <a href="https://huggingface.co/models?search=gguf&sort=trending" 
+                               target="_blank"
+                               class="text-xs px-3 py-1.5 rounded-lg bg-purple-600/20 hover:bg-purple-600/30 text-purple-300 border border-purple-500/30 transition-all flex items-center gap-1.5">
+                                <i class="fab fa-huggingface"></i>
+                                <span>Search GGUF Models on Hugging Face</span>
+                                <i class="fas fa-external-link-alt text-xs"></i>
+                            </a>
+                            <a href="https://huggingface.co/models?sort=trending" 
+                               target="_blank"
+                               class="text-xs px-3 py-1.5 rounded-lg bg-purple-600/20 hover:bg-purple-600/30 text-purple-300 border border-purple-500/30 transition-all flex items-center gap-1.5">
+                                <i class="fab fa-huggingface"></i>
+                                <span>Browse All Models on Hugging Face</span>
+                                <i class="fas fa-external-link-alt text-xs"></i>
+                            </a>
+                        </div>
+                    </div>
                     <input 
                         x-model="importUri"
                         type="text" 
-                        placeholder="https://example.com/model.gguf or file:///path/to/model.gguf"
+                        placeholder="huggingface://TheBloke/Llama-2-7B-Chat-GGUF or https://example.com/model.gguf"
                         class="w-full px-4 py-3 bg-[#101827] border border-[#1E293B] rounded-lg text-[#E5E7EB] focus:border-green-500 focus:ring-2 focus:ring-green-500/50 focus:outline-none transition-colors"
                         :disabled="isSubmitting">
                     <p class="mt-2 text-xs text-[#94A3B8]">
                         Enter the URI or path to the model file you want to import
                     </p>
+                    
+                    <!-- URI Format Guide -->
+                    <div class="mt-4" x-data="{ showGuide: false }">
+                        <button @click="showGuide = !showGuide" 
+                                class="flex items-center gap-2 text-sm text-[#94A3B8] hover:text-[#E5E7EB] transition-colors">
+                            <i class="fas" :class="showGuide ? 'fa-chevron-down' : 'fa-chevron-right'"></i>
+                            <i class="fas fa-info-circle"></i>
+                            <span>Supported URI Formats</span>
+                        </button>
+                        
+                        <div x-show="showGuide" 
+                             x-transition:enter="transition ease-out duration-200"
+                             x-transition:enter-start="opacity-0 transform -translate-y-2"
+                             x-transition:enter-end="opacity-100 transform translate-y-0"
+                             class="mt-3 p-4 bg-[#101827] border border-[#1E293B] rounded-lg space-y-4">
+                            
+                            <!-- HuggingFace -->
+                            <div>
+                                <h4 class="text-sm font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-2 flex items-center gap-2">
+                                    <i class="fab fa-huggingface text-purple-400"></i>
+                                    HuggingFace
+                                </h4>
+                                <div class="space-y-1.5 text-xs text-[#94A3B8] font-mono pl-6">
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">huggingface://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">TheBloke/Llama-2-7B-Chat-GGUF</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Standard HuggingFace format</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">hf://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">TheBloke/Llama-2-7B-Chat-GGUF</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Short HuggingFace format</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">https://huggingface.co/</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">TheBloke/Llama-2-7B-Chat-GGUF</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Full HuggingFace URL</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                </div>
+                            </div>
+                            
+                            <!-- HTTP/HTTPS -->
+                            <div>
+                                <h4 class="text-sm font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-2 flex items-center gap-2">
+                                    <i class="fas fa-globe text-blue-400"></i>
+                                    HTTP/HTTPS URLs
+                                </h4>
+                                <div class="space-y-1.5 text-xs text-[#94A3B8] font-mono pl-6">
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">https://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">example.com/model.gguf</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Direct download from any HTTPS URL</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                </div>
+                            </div>
+                            
+                            <!-- Local Files -->
+                            <div>
+                                <h4 class="text-sm font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-2 flex items-center gap-2">
+                                    <i class="fas fa-file text-yellow-400"></i>
+                                    Local Files
+                                </h4>
+                                <div class="space-y-1.5 text-xs text-[#94A3B8] font-mono pl-6">
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">file://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">/path/to/model.gguf</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Local file path (absolute)</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#94A3B8]">/path/to/model.yaml</code>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Direct local YAML config file</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                </div>
+                            </div>
+                            
+                            <!-- OCI -->
+                            <div>
+                                <h4 class="text-sm font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-2 flex items-center gap-2">
+                                    <i class="fas fa-box text-cyan-400"></i>
+                                    OCI Registry
+                                </h4>
+                                <div class="space-y-1.5 text-xs text-[#94A3B8] font-mono pl-6">
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">oci://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">registry.example.com/model:tag</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">OCI container registry</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">ocifile://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">/path/to/image.tar</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Local OCI tarball file</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                </div>
+                            </div>
+                            
+                            <!-- Ollama -->
+                            <div>
+                                <h4 class="text-sm font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-2 flex items-center gap-2">
+                                    <i class="fas fa-cube text-indigo-400"></i>
+                                    Ollama
+                                </h4>
+                                <div class="space-y-1.5 text-xs text-[#94A3B8] font-mono pl-6">
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#10B981]">ollama://</code><span class="text-[#94A3B8]">llama2:7b</span>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Ollama model format</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                </div>
+                            </div>
+                            
+                            <!-- YAML Config Files -->
+                            <div>
+                                <h4 class="text-sm font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] mb-2 flex items-center gap-2">
+                                    <i class="fas fa-code text-pink-400"></i>
+                                    YAML Configuration Files
+                                </h4>
+                                <div class="space-y-1.5 text-xs text-[#94A3B8] font-mono pl-6">
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#94A3B8]">https://example.com/model.yaml</code>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Remote YAML config file</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                    <div class="flex items-start gap-2">
+                                        <span class="text-green-400">•</span>
+                                        <div>
+                                            <code class="text-[#94A3B8]">file:///path/to/config.yaml</code>
+                                            <p class="text-[#6B7280] mt-0.5">Local YAML config file</p>
+                                        </div>
+                                    </div>
+                                </div>
+                            </div>
+                            
+                            <div class="pt-2 mt-3 border-t border-[#1E293B]">
+                                <p class="text-xs text-[#6B7280] italic">
+                                    <i class="fas fa-lightbulb mr-1.5 text-yellow-400"></i>
+                                    Tip: For HuggingFace models, you can use any of the three formats. The system will automatically detect and download the appropriate model files.
+                                </p>
+                            </div>
+                        </div>
+                    </div>
                 </div>
 
                 <!-- Preferences Section -->
@@ -629,11 +808,33 @@ <h2 class="text-xl font-semibold text-[#E5E7EB] flex items-center gap-3">
                         setTimeout(() => {
                             window.location.reload();
                         }, 2000);
-                    } else if (jobData.error) {
+                    } else if (jobData.error || (jobData.message && jobData.message.startsWith('error:'))) {
                         clearInterval(this.jobPollInterval);
                         this.isSubmitting = false;
                         this.currentJobId = null;
-                        this.showAlert('error', 'Import failed: ' + jobData.error);
+                        // Extract error message - handle both string and object errors
+                        let errorMessage = 'Unknown error';
+                        if (typeof jobData.error === 'string') {
+                            errorMessage = jobData.error;
+                        } else if (jobData.error && typeof jobData.error === 'object') {
+                            // Check if error object has any properties
+                            const errorKeys = Object.keys(jobData.error);
+                            if (errorKeys.length > 0) {
+                                // Try common error object properties
+                                errorMessage = jobData.error.message || jobData.error.error || jobData.error.Error || JSON.stringify(jobData.error);
+                            } else {
+                                // Empty object {}, fall back to message field
+                                errorMessage = jobData.message || 'Unknown error';
+                            }
+                        } else if (jobData.message) {
+                            // Use message field if error is not present or is empty
+                            errorMessage = jobData.message;
+                        }
+                        // Remove "error: " prefix if present
+                        if (errorMessage.startsWith('error: ')) {
+                            errorMessage = errorMessage.substring(7);
+                        }
+                        this.showAlert('error', 'Import failed: ' + errorMessage);
                     }
                 } catch (error) {
                     console.error('Error polling job status:', error);
diff --git a/core/http/views/models.html b/core/http/views/models.html
index 4e3dd10204ec..96d6a1ebd598 100644
--- a/core/http/views/models.html
+++ b/core/http/views/models.html
@@ -714,11 +714,33 @@ <h3 class="text-xl font-semibold text-gray-900 dark:text-white" x-text="selected
                         this.fetchModels();
                     }
 
-                    if (jobData.error) {
+                    if (jobData.error || (jobData.message && jobData.message.startsWith('error:'))) {
                         model.processing = false;
                         delete this.jobProgress[model.jobID];
                         const action = model.isDeletion ? 'deleting' : 'installing';
-                        this.addNotification(`Error ${action} model "${model.name}": ${jobData.error}`, 'error');
+                        // Extract error message - handle both string and object errors
+                        let errorMessage = 'Unknown error';
+                        if (typeof jobData.error === 'string') {
+                            errorMessage = jobData.error;
+                        } else if (jobData.error && typeof jobData.error === 'object') {
+                            // Check if error object has any properties
+                            const errorKeys = Object.keys(jobData.error);
+                            if (errorKeys.length > 0) {
+                                // Try common error object properties
+                                errorMessage = jobData.error.message || jobData.error.error || jobData.error.Error || JSON.stringify(jobData.error);
+                            } else {
+                                // Empty object {}, fall back to message field
+                                errorMessage = jobData.message || 'Unknown error';
+                            }
+                        } else if (jobData.message) {
+                            // Use message field if error is not present or is empty
+                            errorMessage = jobData.message;
+                        }
+                        // Remove "error: " prefix if present
+                        if (errorMessage.startsWith('error: ')) {
+                            errorMessage = errorMessage.substring(7);
+                        }
+                        this.addNotification(`Error ${action} model "${model.name}": ${errorMessage}`, 'error');
                     }
                 } catch (error) {
                     console.error('Error polling job:', error);
diff --git a/core/services/models.go b/core/services/models.go
index 40ebbc98ee63..5e76adc98c98 100644
--- a/core/services/models.go
+++ b/core/services/models.go
@@ -85,7 +85,7 @@ func (g *GalleryService) modelHandler(op *GalleryOp[gallery.GalleryModel, galler
 	}
 
 	// Reload models
-	err = cl.LoadModelConfigsFromPath(systemState.Model.ModelsPath)
+	err = cl.LoadModelConfigsFromPath(systemState.Model.ModelsPath, g.appConfig.ToConfigLoaderOptions()...)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
diff --git a/core/startup/model_preload.go b/core/startup/model_preload.go
index 9377830a4df1..69b67a5fddb1 100644
--- a/core/startup/model_preload.go
+++ b/core/startup/model_preload.go
@@ -5,10 +5,6 @@ import (
 	"encoding/json"
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
-	"os"
-	"path"
-	"path/filepath"
-	"strings"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/google/uuid"
@@ -16,12 +12,10 @@ import (
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/gallery"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/gallery/importers"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/services"
-	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/downloader"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/model"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/system"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
-	"gopkg.in/yaml.v2"
 )
 
 const (
@@ -34,178 +28,59 @@ const (
 func InstallModels(ctx context.Context, galleryService *services.GalleryService, galleries, backendGalleries []config.Gallery, systemState *system.SystemState, modelLoader *model.ModelLoader, enforceScan, autoloadBackendGalleries bool, downloadStatus func(string, string, string, float64), models ...string) error {
 	// create an error that groups all errors
 	var err error
-
-	installBackend := func(modelPath string) error {
-		// Then load the model file, and read the backend
-		modelYAML, e := os.ReadFile(modelPath)
-		if e != nil {
-			log.Error().Err(e).Str("filepath", modelPath).Msg("error reading model definition")
-			return e
-		}
-
-		var model config.ModelConfig
-		if e := yaml.Unmarshal(modelYAML, &model); e != nil {
-			log.Error().Err(e).Str("filepath", modelPath).Msg("error unmarshalling model definition")
-			return e
-		}
-
-		if model.Backend == "" {
-			log.Debug().Str("filepath", modelPath).Msg("no backend found in model definition")
-			return nil
-		}
-
-		if err := gallery.InstallBackendFromGallery(ctx, backendGalleries, systemState, modelLoader, model.Backend, downloadStatus, false); err != nil {
-			log.Error().Err(err).Str("backend", model.Backend).Msg("error installing backend")
-			return err
-		}
-
-		return nil
-	}
-
 	for _, url := range models {
-		// As a best effort, try to resolve the model from the remote library
-		// if it's not resolved we try with the other method below
-
-		uri := downloader.URI(url)
-
-		switch {
-		case uri.LooksLikeOCI():
-			log.Debug().Msgf("[startup] resolved OCI model to download: %s", url)
-
-			// convert OCI image name to a file name.
-			ociName := strings.TrimPrefix(url, downloader.OCIPrefix)
-			ociName = strings.TrimPrefix(ociName, downloader.OllamaPrefix)
-			ociName = strings.ReplaceAll(ociName, "/", "__")
-			ociName = strings.ReplaceAll(ociName, ":", "__")
-
-			// check if file exists
-			if _, e := os.Stat(filepath.Join(systemState.Model.ModelsPath, ociName)); errors.Is(e, os.ErrNotExist) {
-				modelDefinitionFilePath := filepath.Join(systemState.Model.ModelsPath, ociName)
-				e := uri.DownloadFile(modelDefinitionFilePath, "", 0, 0, func(fileName, current, total string, percent float64) {
-					utils.DisplayDownloadFunction(fileName, current, total, percent)
-				})
-				if e != nil {
-					log.Error().Err(e).Str("url", url).Str("filepath", modelDefinitionFilePath).Msg("error downloading model")
-					err = errors.Join(err, e)
-				}
+		// Check if it's a model gallery, or print a warning
+		e, found := installModel(ctx, galleries, backendGalleries, url, systemState, modelLoader, downloadStatus, enforceScan, autoloadBackendGalleries)
+		if e != nil && found {
+			log.Error().Err(err).Msgf("[startup] failed installing model '%s'", url)
+			err = errors.Join(err, e)
+		} else if !found {
+			log.Debug().Msgf("[startup] model not found in the gallery '%s'", url)
+
+			if galleryService == nil {
+				return fmt.Errorf("cannot start autoimporter, not sure how to handle this uri")
 			}
 
-			log.Info().Msgf("[startup] installed model from OCI repository: %s", ociName)
-		case uri.LooksLikeURL():
-			log.Debug().Msgf("[startup] downloading %s", url)
-
-			// Extract filename from URL
-			fileName, e := uri.FilenameFromUrl()
-			if e != nil {
-				log.Warn().Err(e).Str("url", url).Msg("error extracting filename from URL")
-				err = errors.Join(err, e)
+			// TODO: we should just use the discoverModelConfig here and default to this.
+			modelConfig, discoverErr := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(url, json.RawMessage{})
+			if discoverErr != nil {
+				log.Error().Err(discoverErr).Msgf("[startup] failed to discover model config '%s'", url)
+				err = errors.Join(discoverErr, fmt.Errorf("failed to discover model config: %w", err))
 				continue
 			}
 
-			modelPath := filepath.Join(systemState.Model.ModelsPath, fileName)
-
-			if e := utils.VerifyPath(fileName, modelPath); e != nil {
-				log.Error().Err(e).Str("filepath", modelPath).Msg("error verifying path")
-				err = errors.Join(err, e)
+			uuid, uuidErr := uuid.NewUUID()
+			if uuidErr != nil {
+				err = errors.Join(uuidErr, fmt.Errorf("failed to generate UUID: %w", uuidErr))
 				continue
 			}
 
-			// check if file exists
-			if _, e := os.Stat(modelPath); errors.Is(e, os.ErrNotExist) {
-				e := uri.DownloadFile(modelPath, "", 0, 0, func(fileName, current, total string, percent float64) {
-					utils.DisplayDownloadFunction(fileName, current, total, percent)
-				})
-				if e != nil {
-					log.Error().Err(e).Str("url", url).Str("filepath", modelPath).Msg("error downloading model")
-					err = errors.Join(err, e)
-				}
+			galleryService.ModelGalleryChannel <- services.GalleryOp[gallery.GalleryModel, gallery.ModelConfig]{
+				Req: gallery.GalleryModel{
+					Overrides: map[string]interface{}{},
+				},
+				ID:                 uuid.String(),
+				GalleryElementName: modelConfig.Name,
+				GalleryElement:     &modelConfig,
+				BackendGalleries:   backendGalleries,
 			}
 
-			// Check if we have the backend installed
-			if autoloadBackendGalleries && path.Ext(modelPath) == YAML_EXTENSION {
-				if err := installBackend(modelPath); err != nil {
-					log.Error().Err(err).Str("filepath", modelPath).Msg("error installing backend")
+			var status *services.GalleryOpStatus
+			// wait for op to finish
+			for {
+				status = galleryService.GetStatus(uuid.String())
+				if status != nil && status.Processed {
+					break
 				}
+				time.Sleep(1 * time.Second)
 			}
-		default:
-			if _, e := os.Stat(url); e == nil {
-				log.Debug().Msgf("[startup] resolved local model: %s", url)
-				// copy to modelPath
-				md5Name := utils.MD5(url)
-
-				modelYAML, e := os.ReadFile(url)
-				if e != nil {
-					log.Error().Err(e).Str("filepath", url).Msg("error reading model definition")
-					err = errors.Join(err, e)
-					continue
-				}
 
-				modelDefinitionFilePath := filepath.Join(systemState.Model.ModelsPath, md5Name) + YAML_EXTENSION
-				if e := os.WriteFile(modelDefinitionFilePath, modelYAML, 0600); e != nil {
-					log.Error().Err(err).Str("filepath", modelDefinitionFilePath).Msg("error loading model: %s")
-					err = errors.Join(err, e)
-				}
-
-				// Check if we have the backend installed
-				if autoloadBackendGalleries && path.Ext(modelDefinitionFilePath) == YAML_EXTENSION {
-					if err := installBackend(modelDefinitionFilePath); err != nil {
-						log.Error().Err(err).Str("filepath", modelDefinitionFilePath).Msg("error installing backend")
-					}
-				}
-			} else {
-				// Check if it's a model gallery, or print a warning
-				e, found := installModel(ctx, galleries, backendGalleries, url, systemState, modelLoader, downloadStatus, enforceScan, autoloadBackendGalleries)
-				if e != nil && found {
-					log.Error().Err(err).Msgf("[startup] failed installing model '%s'", url)
-					err = errors.Join(err, e)
-				} else if !found {
-					log.Warn().Msgf("[startup] failed resolving model '%s'", url)
-
-					if galleryService == nil {
-						err = errors.Join(err, fmt.Errorf("cannot start autoimporter, not sure how to handle this uri"))
-						continue
-					}
-
-					// TODO: we should just use the discoverModelConfig here and default to this.
-					modelConfig, discoverErr := importers.DiscoverModelConfig(url, json.RawMessage{})
-					if discoverErr != nil {
-						err = errors.Join(discoverErr, fmt.Errorf("failed to discover model config: %w", err))
-						continue
-					}
-
-					uuid, uuidErr := uuid.NewUUID()
-					if uuidErr != nil {
-						err = errors.Join(uuidErr, fmt.Errorf("failed to generate UUID: %w", uuidErr))
-						continue
-					}
-
-					galleryService.ModelGalleryChannel <- services.GalleryOp[gallery.GalleryModel, gallery.ModelConfig]{
-						Req: gallery.GalleryModel{
-							Overrides: map[string]interface{}{},
-						},
-						ID:                 uuid.String(),
-						GalleryElementName: modelConfig.Name,
-						GalleryElement:     &modelConfig,
-						BackendGalleries:   backendGalleries,
-					}
-
-					var status *services.GalleryOpStatus
-					// wait for op to finish
-					for {
-						status = galleryService.GetStatus(uuid.String())
-						if status != nil && status.Processed {
-							break
-						}
-						time.Sleep(1 * time.Second)
-					}
-
-					if status.Error != nil {
-						return status.Error
-					}
-
-					log.Info().Msgf("[startup] imported model '%s' from '%s'", modelConfig.Name, url)
-				}
+			if status.Error != nil {
+				log.Error().Err(status.Error).Msgf("[startup] failed to import model '%s' from '%s'", modelConfig.Name, url)
+				return status.Error
 			}
+
+			log.Info().Msgf("[startup] imported model '%s' from '%s'", modelConfig.Name, url)
 		}
 	}
 	return err
diff --git a/core/startup/model_preload_test.go b/core/startup/model_preload_test.go
index 54dc5507392f..3bf6d2687b0a 100644
--- a/core/startup/model_preload_test.go
+++ b/core/startup/model_preload_test.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"path/filepath"
 
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/config"
+	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/services"
 	. "github.com/mudler/LocalAI/core/startup"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/model"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/system"
@@ -19,8 +20,11 @@ var _ = Describe("Preload test", func() {
 	var tmpdir string
 	var systemState *system.SystemState
 	var ml *model.ModelLoader
+	var ctx context.Context
+	var cancel context.CancelFunc
 
 	BeforeEach(func() {
+		ctx, cancel = context.WithCancel(context.Background())
 		var err error
 		tmpdir, err = os.MkdirTemp("", "")
 		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
@@ -29,13 +33,24 @@ var _ = Describe("Preload test", func() {
 		ml = model.NewModelLoader(systemState, true)
 	})
 
+	AfterEach(func() {
+		cancel()
+	})
+
 	Context("Preloading from strings", func() {
 		It("loads from embedded full-urls", func() {
 			url := "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mudler/LocalAI-examples/main/configurations/phi-2.yaml"
 			fileName := fmt.Sprintf("%s.yaml", "phi-2")
 
-			InstallModels(context.TODO(), nil, []config.Gallery{}, []config.Gallery{}, systemState, ml, true, true, nil, url)
+			galleryService := services.NewGalleryService(&config.ApplicationConfig{
+				SystemState: systemState,
+			}, ml)
+			galleryService.Start(ctx, config.NewModelConfigLoader(tmpdir), systemState)
 
+			err := InstallModels(ctx, galleryService, []config.Gallery{}, []config.Gallery{}, systemState, ml, true, true, func(s1, s2, s3 string, f float64) {
+				fmt.Println(s1, s2, s3, f)
+			}, url)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 			resultFile := filepath.Join(tmpdir, fileName)
 
 			content, err := os.ReadFile(resultFile)
@@ -47,13 +62,22 @@ var _ = Describe("Preload test", func() {
 			url := "huggingface://TheBloke/TinyLlama-1.1B-Chat-v0.3-GGUF/tinyllama-1.1b-chat-v0.3.Q2_K.gguf"
 			fileName := fmt.Sprintf("%s.gguf", "tinyllama-1.1b-chat-v0.3.Q2_K")
 
-			err := InstallModels(context.TODO(), nil, []config.Gallery{}, []config.Gallery{}, systemState, ml, true, true, nil, url)
+			galleryService := services.NewGalleryService(&config.ApplicationConfig{
+				SystemState: systemState,
+			}, ml)
+			galleryService.Start(ctx, config.NewModelConfigLoader(tmpdir), systemState)
+
+			err := InstallModels(ctx, galleryService, []config.Gallery{}, []config.Gallery{}, systemState, ml, true, true, func(s1, s2, s3 string, f float64) {
+				fmt.Println(s1, s2, s3, f)
+			}, url)
 			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 
 			resultFile := filepath.Join(tmpdir, fileName)
+			dirs, err := os.ReadDir(tmpdir)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 
 			_, err = os.Stat(resultFile)
-			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred(), fmt.Sprintf("%+v", dirs))
 		})
 	})
 })
diff --git a/pkg/downloader/uri.go b/pkg/downloader/uri.go
index ea1631f4fffa..0129c5fdc12e 100644
--- a/pkg/downloader/uri.go
+++ b/pkg/downloader/uri.go
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/oci"
 	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/utils"
+	"github.com/mudler/LocalAI/pkg/xio"
 	"github.com/rs/zerolog/log"
 )
 
@@ -49,17 +50,16 @@ func loadConfig() string {
 	return HF_ENDPOINT
 }
 
-func (uri URI) DownloadWithCallback(basePath string, f func(url string, i []byte) error) error {
-	return uri.DownloadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(context.Background(), basePath, "", f)
+func (uri URI) ReadWithCallback(basePath string, f func(url string, i []byte) error) error {
+	return uri.ReadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(context.Background(), basePath, "", f)
 }
 
-func (uri URI) DownloadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(ctx context.Context, basePath string, authorization string, f func(url string, i []byte) error) error {
+func (uri URI) ReadWithAuthorizationAndCallback(ctx context.Context, basePath string, authorization string, f func(url string, i []byte) error) error {
 	url := uri.ResolveURL()
 
-	if strings.HasPrefix(url, LocalPrefix) {
-		rawURL := strings.TrimPrefix(url, LocalPrefix)
+	if strings.HasPrefix(string(uri), LocalPrefix) {
 		// checks if the file is symbolic, and resolve if so - otherwise, this function returns the path unmodified.
-		resolvedFile, err := filepath.EvalSymlinks(rawURL)
+		resolvedFile, err := filepath.EvalSymlinks(url)
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
@@ -175,6 +175,8 @@ func (s URI) LooksLikeOCIFile() bool {
 
 func (s URI) ResolveURL() string {
 	switch {
+	case strings.HasPrefix(string(s), LocalPrefix):
+		return strings.TrimPrefix(string(s), LocalPrefix)
 	case strings.HasPrefix(string(s), GithubURI2):
 		repository := strings.Replace(string(s), GithubURI2, "", 1)
 
@@ -311,11 +313,6 @@ func (uri URI) DownloadFileWithContext(ctx context.Context, filePath, sha string
 		return oci.ExtractOCIImage(ctx, img, url, filePath, downloadStatus)
 	}
 
-	// We need to check if url looks like an URL or bail out
-	if !URI(url).LooksLikeHTTPURL() {
-		return fmt.Errorf("url %q does not look like an HTTP URL", url)
-	}
-
 	// Check for cancellation before starting
 	select {
 	case <-ctx.Done():
@@ -326,6 +323,7 @@ func (uri URI) DownloadFileWithContext(ctx context.Context, filePath, sha string
 	// Check if the file already exists
 	_, err := os.Stat(filePath)
 	if err == nil {
+		log.Debug().Str("filePath", filePath).Msg("[downloader] File already exists")
 		// File exists, check SHA
 		if sha != "" {
 			// Verify SHA
@@ -350,12 +348,12 @@ func (uri URI) DownloadFileWithContext(ctx context.Context, filePath, sha string
 			log.Debug().Msgf("File %q already exists. Skipping download", filePath)
 			return nil
 		}
-	} else if !os.IsNotExist(err) {
+	} else if !os.IsNotExist(err) || !URI(url).LooksLikeHTTPURL() {
 		// Error occurred while checking file existence
-		return fmt.Errorf("failed to check file %q existence: %v", filePath, err)
+		return fmt.Errorf("file %s does not exist (%v) and %s does not look like an HTTP URL", filePath, err, url)
 	}
 
-	log.Info().Msgf("Downloading %q", url)
+	log.Info().Msgf("Downloading %s", url)
 
 	req, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(ctx, "GET", url, nil)
 	if err != nil {
@@ -365,7 +363,7 @@ func (uri URI) DownloadFileWithContext(ctx context.Context, filePath, sha string
 	// save partial download to dedicated file
 	tmpFilePath := filePath + ".partial"
 	tmpFileInfo, err := os.Stat(tmpFilePath)
-	if err == nil {
+	if err == nil && uri.LooksLikeHTTPURL() {
 		support, err := uri.checkSeverSupportsRangeHeader()
 		if err != nil {
 			return fmt.Errorf("failed to check if uri server supports range header: %v", err)
@@ -383,22 +381,40 @@ func (uri URI) DownloadFileWithContext(ctx context.Context, filePath, sha string
 		return fmt.Errorf("failed to check file %q existence: %v", filePath, err)
 	}
 
-	// Start the request
-	resp, err := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
-	if err != nil {
-		// Check if error is due to context cancellation
-		if errors.Is(err, context.Canceled) {
-			// Clean up partial file on cancellation
-			removePartialFile(tmpFilePath)
-			return err
+	var source io.ReadCloser
+	var contentLength int64
+	if _, e := os.Stat(uri.ResolveURL()); strings.HasPrefix(string(uri), LocalPrefix) || e == nil {
+		file, err := os.Open(uri.ResolveURL())
+		if err != nil {
+			return fmt.Errorf("failed to open file %q: %v", uri.ResolveURL(), err)
 		}
-		return fmt.Errorf("failed to download file %q: %v", filePath, err)
-	}
-	defer resp.Body.Close()
+		l, err := file.Stat()
+		if err != nil {
+			return fmt.Errorf("failed to get file size %q: %v", uri.ResolveURL(), err)
+		}
+		source = file
+		contentLength = l.Size()
+	} else {
+		// Start the request
+		resp, err := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
+		if err != nil {
+			// Check if error is due to context cancellation
+			if errors.Is(err, context.Canceled) {
+				// Clean up partial file on cancellation
+				removePartialFile(tmpFilePath)
+				return err
+			}
+			return fmt.Errorf("failed to download file %q: %v", filePath, err)
+		}
+		//defer resp.Body.Close()
 
-	if resp.StatusCode >= 400 {
-		return fmt.Errorf("failed to download url %q, invalid status code %d", url, resp.StatusCode)
+		if resp.StatusCode >= 400 {
+			return fmt.Errorf("failed to download url %q, invalid status code %d", url, resp.StatusCode)
+		}
+		source = resp.Body
+		contentLength = resp.ContentLength
 	}
+	defer source.Close()
 
 	// Create parent directory
 	err = os.MkdirAll(filepath.Dir(filePath), 0750)
@@ -418,14 +434,15 @@ func (uri URI) DownloadFileWithContext(ctx context.Context, filePath, sha string
 	}
 	progress := &progressWriter{
 		fileName:       tmpFilePath,
-		total:          resp.ContentLength,
+		total:          contentLength,
 		hash:           hash,
 		fileNo:         fileN,
 		totalFiles:     total,
 		downloadStatus: downloadStatus,
 		ctx:            ctx,
 	}
-	_, err = io.Copy(io.MultiWriter(outFile, progress), resp.Body)
+
+	_, err = xio.Copy(ctx, io.MultiWriter(outFile, progress), source)
 	if err != nil {
 		// Check if error is due to context cancellation
 		if errors.Is(err, context.Canceled) {
diff --git a/pkg/downloader/uri_test.go b/pkg/downloader/uri_test.go
index 17ade771661d..57186907777b 100644
--- a/pkg/downloader/uri_test.go
+++ b/pkg/downloader/uri_test.go
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ var _ = Describe("Gallery API tests", func() {
 		It("parses github with a branch", func() {
 			uri := URI("github:go-skynet/model-gallery/gpt4all-j.yaml")
 			Expect(
-				uri.DownloadWithCallback("", func(url string, i []byte) error {
+				uri.ReadWithCallback("", func(url string, i []byte) error {
 					Expect(url).To(Equal("https://raw.githubusercontent.com/go-skynet/model-gallery/main/gpt4all-j.yaml"))
 					return nil
 				}),
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ var _ = Describe("Gallery API tests", func() {
 			uri := URI("github:go-skynet/model-gallery/gpt4all-j.yaml@main")
 
 			Expect(
-				uri.DownloadWithCallback("", func(url string, i []byte) error {
+				uri.ReadWithCallback("", func(url string, i []byte) error {
 					Expect(url).To(Equal("https://raw.githubusercontent.com/go-skynet/model-gallery/main/gpt4all-j.yaml"))
 					return nil
 				}),
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ var _ = Describe("Gallery API tests", func() {
 		It("parses github with urls", func() {
 			uri := URI("https://raw.githubusercontent.com/go-skynet/model-gallery/main/gpt4all-j.yaml")
 			Expect(
-				uri.DownloadWithCallback("", func(url string, i []byte) error {
+				uri.ReadWithCallback("", func(url string, i []byte) error {
 					Expect(url).To(Equal("https://raw.githubusercontent.com/go-skynet/model-gallery/main/gpt4all-j.yaml"))
 					return nil
 				}),
diff --git a/pkg/huggingface-api/client.go b/pkg/huggingface-api/client.go
index 9b1959f1d857..74494ed0b866 100644
--- a/pkg/huggingface-api/client.go
+++ b/pkg/huggingface-api/client.go
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ func (c *Client) ListFiles(repoID string) ([]FileInfo, error) {
 func (c *Client) GetFileSHA(repoID, fileName string) (string, error) {
 	files, err := c.ListFiles(repoID)
 	if err != nil {
-		return "", fmt.Errorf("failed to list files: %w", err)
+		return "", fmt.Errorf("failed to list files while getting SHA: %w", err)
 	}
 
 	for _, file := range files {