Empty CI= is treated as CI

[mwolson]

• Repo: https://github.com/mwolson/tmp-aube-issues
• Case: empty-ci-env-is-ci
• aube: 2.8.0 linux-x64 (2026-10-19) (also 2.7.2)

aube treats CI as set when it is present but empty, so CI= aube install switches to CI mode: the default becomes --frozen-lockfile and the global virtual store turns off. pnpm treats an empty CI as not CI and only switches for a value like CI=1.

With a lockfile that is missing one dependency from package.json:

pnpm 12.14.0 install with a stale lockfile: CI='' -> local, CI=1 -> ci
aube 2.8.0 linux-x64 (2026-10-19) install with a stale lockfile: CI unset -> local, CI='' -> ci

PNPM_BIN=/path/to/real/pnpm ./repro.sh

aube config explain ci says aube treats the environment as CI "when the CI environment variable is set", so this may be intended. I hit it in a benchmark script that cleared CI with CI=: every install quietly ran without the global virtual store, which skewed the timings. Matching pnpm here would avoid that surprise.

[jdx]

Thanks for the report. An empty CI is now treated as not CI, matching pnpm: #1786

CI=0 and CI=false still count as CI.

AI-assisted — Tool: Claude Code; model: anthropic/claude-sonnet-5-5; version: unavailable.

[mwolson]

Retested with aube 2.8.1 linux-x64 (2026-10-20):

• Repo: https://github.com/mwolson/tmp-aube-issues
• Case: empty-ci-env-is-ci

PNPM_BIN=/path/to/real/pnpm ./repro.sh

It now exits 0 with native pnpm 12.14.0 as the control. With a stale lockfile, CI= aube install updates the lockfile the same way as an unset CI.

Fix shipped in aube 2.8.1 via #1786. Marking your reply as the answer.