bazelbuild/bazel

--downloader_config should support %workspace% expansion

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#28725 opened on Feb 20, 2026

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 (3 comments) (1 reaction) (0 assignees)Java (25,384 stars) (4,465 forks)batch import
P3help wantedteam-ExternalDepstype: feature request

Description

Description of the feature request:

Should make it more clear for (workspace-)relative paths that they are picked up from workspace. Easier to see dependencies when transferring or reusing .bazelrc between workspaces

Which category does this issue belong to?

No response

What underlying problem are you trying to solve with this feature?

No response

Which operating system are you running Bazel on?

No response

What is the output of bazel info release?

No response

If bazel info release returns development version or (@non-git), tell us how you built Bazel.

No response

What's the output of git remote get-url origin; git rev-parse HEAD ?

Have you found anything relevant by searching the web?

No response

Any other information, logs, or outputs that you want to share?

No response

Contributor guide

Tech stack
java
Domain
build systemdevops
Issue type
feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
fresh
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
mostly clear
Prerequisites
Basic familiarity with Bazel's command line flagsUnderstanding of workspace relative paths in Bazel
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
30
Research direction
Investigate how Bazel currently handles %workspace% expansion in other flags (e.g., action env). Look at the code in src/main/java/com/google/devtools/build/lib/runtime/CommandLineOptions.java or similar files where downloader config is parsed. The expansion logic likely exists elsewhere; adapt it for this flag. The issue's comments may provide hints.