text model · Nemotron 3.5 · Windows

Can I run Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B on 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only)?

Compatibility verdict VRAM threshold engine

Yes, but tight usable speed

Yes. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B runs on 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only) at Q4_K_M (~25.8 GB of ~28 GB usable).

Needs ~25.8 GB Device usable ~28 GB

Fits at Q4_K_M (~25.8 GB of ~28 GB usable) but with little headroom. Close background apps, and expect slow CPU generation at this size.

That figure is at a 4k context and moves about ±15% as context length changes. 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only) leaves ~2.2 GB of headroom.

Q4_K_M needed: ~25.8 GB
Usable on device: ~28 GB
Device memory: 32 GB
Best quant: Q4_K_M

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Which quant fits

Quant ladder vs ~28 GB usable

Q2_K

~14.7 GB

Q3_K_M

~16.8 GB

Q4_K_M

~25.8 GB

Q5_K_M

~23.5 GB

Q6_K

~26.7 GB

Q8_0

~36.7 GB

FP16

~67.9 GB

The line marks 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only)'s ~28 GB budget; rungs past it are too large.

Run it

Install commands Windows

Pick your tool. All 3 load the same Q4_K_M weights.

Ollama

$ ollama run nemotron-3.5-lightning:30b-a3b

llama.cpp

$ llama-cli -hf bartowski/NVIDIA-Nemotron-3.5-Lightning-30B-A3B-GGUF:Q4_K_M

LM Studio

$ lms get bartowski/NVIDIA-Nemotron-3.5-Lightning-30B-A3B-GGUF

Model Nemotron 3.5

Parameters: 30B (MoE, 3B active)
Q4_K_M size: 23.73 GB
Q8_0 size: 34.63 GB
Context: 1000k
Ollama tag: nemotron-3.5-lightning:30b-a3b

Full Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B requirements →

Device Windows

Memory: 32 GB ram
Usable for weights: ~28 GB
Power draw: ~28 W
Best runtime: Ollama (llama.cpp backend)

Best models for 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only) →

You could also run

Run Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B on other hardware

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 (32GB)Apple M4 Pro (48GB)Apple M5 Pro (48GB)Apple M4 Max (64GB)Apple M4 Max (128GB)AMD Ryzen AI Halo (128GB)

FAQ

Can 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only) run Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B?

Yes. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B runs on 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only) at Q4_K_M (~25.8 GB of ~28 GB usable).

How much memory does Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B need?

It is a tight fit on 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only). At Q4_K_M the weights are ~23.73 GB; with KV cache and runtime overhead, budget ~25.8 GB at a 4k context. It is a Mixture-of-Experts model (30B total / 3B active), so all experts must stay in memory; memory tracks total params, not active params.

What is the best tool to run Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B on Windows?

LM Studio for a simple setup; Ollama (CUDA) for the most speed. AMD GPUs run via Vulkan/ROCm at roughly half CUDA throughput. NVIDIA is the smooth path on Windows.

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Markdown

[![Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B on 32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only)](https://localmodel.run/badge/nemotron-3.5-lightning-30b-a3b/laptop-32gb.svg)](https://localmodel.run/can-i-run/nemotron-3.5-lightning-30b-a3b/laptop-32gb)

Sources

Weights are measured from GGUF files; KV cache and overhead are computed, so totals can vary ~15% with context and runtime. Any tok/s is a bandwidth estimate. See methodology.