Manage sparse checkouts

I need a sparse checkout so the build server only checks out web/ and config/ out of this monorepo on branch release/2026-07. Configure the working copy on the build server to use sparse checkout, set the cone pattern to include web/ and config/, update the sparse‑checkout file, pull the branch so only those folders are present, and verify the build still runs without the other packages.

Before I change build nodes to sparse checkout, make the change reviewable and safe. Summarize which folders will be excluded, surface any scripts that assume the full tree (install, lint, deploy), and list the CI jobs and developers who will be affected. Recommend a fallback plan if the build fails when other packages are absent and flag any symlinks or submodules that will break under sparse checkouts.

I turned on sparse checkout to include only web/ and config/, and the linter now fails to find config/eslintrc.json located in tools/common. I didn’t realize that tooling expects files outside the sparse set. What is the simplest way to adjust sparse patterns or tool configs so the linter works without checking out the entire repo?

We tell developers to use sparse checkout to avoid huge clones but many keep disabling it and cloning the full repo. Where is the friction — developer ergonomics, scripts, or onboarding — and what three concrete changes will make sparse checkout the default, low‑pain option for the team so people stop cloning the entire history?