[ComputerGuru]

depth is broken; it cannot be used for submodules/recursive submodules dependably because most hosts will refuse to serve unadvertised refs. We learned this the hard way. Or maybe it is submodules that are broken. Or git itself.

[chrismorgan]

Depth, submodules and multiple work trees are all half-baked features that work fine up to a point, then start falling over frantically—most notably if you try to use them together.