In this article
Cline Desktop centralizes runtime and model management; its selected chat model does not automatically configure the IDE surface.
Choose Cline Desktop or the IDE surface by where you want to manage the task and local models. Desktop’s Local Models page centralizes runtime management; an IDE workflow keeps repository navigation and editing inside the existing editor.
The concrete application boundary
The current Desktop Local Models page is more than an endpoint text field. It shows the machine, the runtime choice, setup status, loaded models, recommendations, and downloaded files. A model can be present on disk yet absent from memory, and an inactive runtime can still own previously downloaded files. Desktop can guide local runtime setup and switch the chat to a selected model. An IDE extension instead participates in the editor’s current workspace and has its own selected provider state. Do not assume that a change in one surface proves an identical setting in the other. Compare where you prefer to make these decisions while keeping the coding task fixed (Cline local model overview) (Cline Desktop Local Models).
A practical route
In Desktop open Settings → Provider → Local. Inspect Run models with, Loaded in memory, and Downloaded models as separate states. Selecting a model configures the matching provider for the chat. For an IDE trial, inspect the extension’s own provider selection instead of assuming it inherited the Desktop chat. Use the same bounded source task in both.
A worked example
A user frequently switches between a model for explanations and another for editing. Desktop offers a visible runtime and model management surface. Another user already navigates files and reviews changes in an IDE and may prefer that existing environment. Compare the handoff cost of reading a function, proposing a change, and inspecting the diff rather than inventing a throughput score.
| Check | Record |
|---|---|
| Desktop inventory | The runtime card, downloaded model, and model actually loaded for the chat. |
| IDE inventory | The extension’s selected provider, model, and current repository context. |
| Common task | The same function explanation and reviewed small change in each application surface. |
Reading the failure correctly
A downloaded model is not necessarily loaded, and switching runtimes does not delete files downloaded through the other runtime. Conversely, a local model appearing in Desktop does not establish that the IDE points at the same process. Check ownership before downloading duplicate files to repair a selection problem (Cline Checkpoints).
What completes the check
Choose the surface whose model management and review behavior match daily work. Record the decision at the application level; model capacity and editing reliability require their own checks regardless of which window presents the task.
Related background: Reproducible inference stacks: preserving a GPU pilot’s result, Coding LLMs on 12GB VRAM: Budget Context and Headroom.