diff --git a/setup.ps1 b/setup.ps1
index 49e7ebba0d..fae0ce7529 100644
--- a/setup.ps1
+++ b/setup.ps1
@@ -820,18 +820,16 @@ Write-Host "[OK] Batch launchers created in $BatDir (works from cmd.exe when ven
 # Done
 # ============================================
 Write-Host ""
-Write-Host "+==============================================+" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "|           Setup Complete!                    |" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "|                                              |" -ForegroundColor Green
-if ($AliasAdded) {
-    Write-Host "|  PowerShell: run '. `$PROFILE'               |" -ForegroundColor Green
-    Write-Host "|  or open a new terminal, then:              |" -ForegroundColor Green
-} else {
-    Write-Host "|  Launch with:                                |" -ForegroundColor Green
-}
-Write-Host "|                                              |" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "|  unsloth-studio -H 0.0.0.0 -p 8000          |" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "|                                              |" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "|  cmd.exe: .venv\Scripts\activate.bat         |" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "|           unsloth-studio -H 0.0.0.0 -p 8000 |" -ForegroundColor Green
-Write-Host "+==============================================+" -ForegroundColor Green
\ No newline at end of file
+Write-Host "+===============================================+" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|           Setup Complete!                     |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|                                               |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|  IMPORTANT: Open a NEW terminal, then:        |" -ForegroundColor Yellow
+Write-Host "|                                               |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|  cmd.exe:                                     |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|    .venv\Scripts\activate.bat                 |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|    unsloth-studio -H 0.0.0.0 -p 8000         |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|                                               |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|  PowerShell:                                  |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|    .venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1                 |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "|    unsloth-studio -H 0.0.0.0 -p 8000         |" -ForegroundColor Green
+Write-Host "+===============================================+" -ForegroundColor Green
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/studio/backend/core/inference/llama_cpp.py b/studio/backend/core/inference/llama_cpp.py
index 7ae9bd142a..023edb959b 100644
--- a/studio/backend/core/inference/llama_cpp.py
+++ b/studio/backend/core/inference/llama_cpp.py
@@ -235,13 +235,31 @@ class LlamaCppBackend:
 
             logger.info(f"Starting llama-server: {' '.join(cmd)}")
 
-            # Set LD_LIBRARY_PATH so llama-server can find its shared libs
-            # (libmtmd.so, libllama.so, etc.) which live next to the binary
+            # Set library paths so llama-server can find its shared libs and CUDA DLLs
             import os
+            import sys
             env = os.environ.copy()
             binary_dir = str(Path(binary).parent)
-            existing_ld = env.get("LD_LIBRARY_PATH", "")
-            env["LD_LIBRARY_PATH"] = f"{binary_dir}:{existing_ld}" if existing_ld else binary_dir
+
+            if sys.platform == "win32":
+                # On Windows, CUDA DLLs (cublas64_12.dll, cudart64_12.dll, etc.)
+                # must be on PATH. Add CUDA_PATH\bin if available.
+                path_dirs = [binary_dir]
+                cuda_path = os.environ.get("CUDA_PATH", "")
+                if cuda_path:
+                    cuda_bin = os.path.join(cuda_path, "bin")
+                    if os.path.isdir(cuda_bin):
+                        path_dirs.append(cuda_bin)
+                    # Some CUDA installs put DLLs in bin\x64
+                    cuda_bin_x64 = os.path.join(cuda_path, "bin", "x64")
+                    if os.path.isdir(cuda_bin_x64):
+                        path_dirs.append(cuda_bin_x64)
+                existing_path = env.get("PATH", "")
+                env["PATH"] = ";".join(path_dirs) + ";" + existing_path
+            else:
+                # Linux: set LD_LIBRARY_PATH for shared libs next to the binary
+                existing_ld = env.get("LD_LIBRARY_PATH", "")
+                env["LD_LIBRARY_PATH"] = f"{binary_dir}:{existing_ld}" if existing_ld else binary_dir
 
             self._stdout_lines = []
             self._process = subprocess.Popen(