Editable install behavior differs between project and dynamic dependencies

[Imer45]

I noticed that when I have my local dependencies under [project] with develop = true under [tool.poetry.dependencies], Poetry does not install indirect dependencies as editable.

However, if I have dependencies marked as dynamic, and all my dependencies defined under [tool.poetry.dependencies] with local ones marked as develop = true, then indirect dependencies are installed as editable.

Is this expected behavior?

[dosubot[bot]]

Yes, this is expected behavior in Poetry. When you specify dependencies in the [project] section (PEP 621), only direct dependencies marked as editable (via develop = true in [tool.poetry.dependencies]) are installed as editable. Indirect dependencies (dependencies of dependencies) are not installed as editable, even if they are marked with develop = true in their own [tool.poetry.dependencies] section. This is because [project.dependencies] is used for build metadata, and [tool.poetry.dependencies] only enriches it for locking, not for installation mode propagation to transitive dependencies.

If you want indirect dependencies to be installed as editable, you need to declare [project.dependencies] as dynamic and define all dependencies in [tool.poetry.dependencies] with develop = true. In this setup, Poetry treats all dependencies (direct and indirect) according to the develop flag, so both are installed as editable. This behavior is documented and considered by maintainers to be by design. For more details, see the dependency specification docs and maintainer comments on expected behavior.

Written by @dosu, approved by abn

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