Build Cadmus in a non-colocated jj workspace

Why a sibling workspace does not build out of the box

A jj sibling workspace (jj workspace add) is a separate working copy of the same repository with no .git. Two consequences break the build:

• jj ignores git submodules, so every thirdparty/<lib> directory is empty (mupdf, libwebp, harfbuzz, sqlite, …).
• Cadmus builds through build-deps, which needs git:
  • ensure_submodules runs git submodule update for cold artifacts.
  • markers runs git ls-tree HEAD thirdparty/<lib> to resolve submodule revisions for cache markers.

With no .git, both fail (fatal: not a git repository). Even a warm target/ is re-validated via git ls-tree, so it does not help. The fix is to give the build a git directory to read — without building in the colocated checkout.

Detect

ROOT="$(jj workspace root)"
COLOCATED="$(cd "$(jj workspace root --name default)" && pwd)"
test ! -e "$ROOT/.git" && echo non-colocated

Run every build, test, and lint command from $ROOT. jj workspace root is the workspace owning the current working copy (the sibling directory), not the default checkout. $COLOCATED is the default workspace — the one carrying .git.

The fix: point git at the colocated repo

Pass GIT_DIR (and GIT_WORK_TREE so submodules materialize into $ROOT) to the cargo invocation:

cd "$ROOT"
devenv shell -- env -u RUSTC_WRAPPER \
  GIT_DIR="$COLOCATED/.git" \
  GIT_WORK_TREE="$ROOT" \
  cadmuscli setup --host

cadmuscli setup --host initializes the submodules into $ROOT and builds SQLite under $ROOT/target/cadmus-build-deps/<host-triple>/sqlite/. Reuse the same git env for later checks:

cd "$ROOT"
devenv shell -- env GIT_DIR="$COLOCATED/.git" GIT_WORK_TREE="$ROOT" \
  cadmuscli test --features emulator

Scope GIT_DIR/GIT_WORK_TREE to the build commands; do not export them for the whole shell, and keep them off jj invocations.

Caveats

• git ls-tree HEAD reads the colocated repo's HEAD, not $ROOT's @. Fine while both revisions record the same submodule gitlinks.
• If a submodule step writes the git index, use a separate GIT_INDEX_FILE (see jj-vcs).
• jj 0.45.x has no jj workspace add --colocate; the git-env approach is the supported path here.

Per-workspace target/

devenv sets CARGO_TARGET_DIR and PKG_CONFIG_PATH_* from config.devenv.root (the workspace you entered), so each workspace has its own target/. SQLite and the native deps (MuPDF, libwebp) build per workspace; the first build in a sibling workspace is a full native build.

sccache

devenv sets RUSTC_WRAPPER=sccache. If setup or a compile panics inside sccache, retry that command with env -u RUSTC_WRAPPER (shown above).

Checklist (in $ROOT)

1. devenv shell -- cadmuscli docs --mdbook-only if the EPUB is missing.
2. cadmuscli setup --host with GIT_DIR/GIT_WORK_TREE (above).
3. devenv shell -- env GIT_DIR=… GIT_WORK_TREE=… cadmuscli test --features emulator.

A device feature (emulator) is required; see build-cadmus-native for the EPUB, feature, and daily-command details.

Expected noise

• git-hooks.nix: skipping hook installation: not a git repository on devenv enter — expected.
• No jj-pre-hook / git pre-commit here; see jj-commit.

Common mistakes

Mistake	Result	Fix
Building in $ROOT without GIT_DIR	not a git repository, empty thirdparty/	Pass GIT_DIR/GIT_WORK_TREE from $COLOCATED
Reusing colocated SQLITE3_* only	Native deps still fail (empty thirdparty/)	Materialize submodules via the git env
Assuming a shared target/	Missing artifacts in the sibling	Each workspace builds its own target/
cargo test without a device feature	compile_error! in cadmus-core	--features emulator
Leaving GIT_DIR exported for jj	git-based tools read the wrong repo	Scope it to the build commands

Related skills

• build-cadmus-native — EPUB, xtask commands, device features
• jj-vcs — GIT_DIR / GIT_INDEX_FILE caveats for non-colocated workspaces
• jj-commit — skip git pre-commit when .git is absent