diff --git a/src/bootstrap/src/core/config/config.rs b/src/bootstrap/src/core/config/config.rs
index 64a510240f837..172b8d787640d 100644
--- a/src/bootstrap/src/core/config/config.rs
+++ b/src/bootstrap/src/core/config/config.rs
@@ -2767,7 +2767,7 @@ impl Config {
         ),
     )]
     pub(crate) fn update_submodule(&self, relative_path: &str) {
-        if !self.submodules() {
+        if self.rust_info.is_from_tarball() || !self.submodules() {
             return;
         }
 
diff --git a/src/bootstrap/src/lib.rs b/src/bootstrap/src/lib.rs
index dfaf0418d9a2b..a0934a8d55663 100644
--- a/src/bootstrap/src/lib.rs
+++ b/src/bootstrap/src/lib.rs
@@ -481,6 +481,10 @@ impl Build {
         ),
     )]
     pub fn require_submodule(&self, submodule: &str, err_hint: Option<&str>) {
+        if self.rust_info().is_from_tarball() {
+            return;
+        }
+
         // When testing bootstrap itself, it is much faster to ignore
         // submodules. Almost all Steps work fine without their submodules.
         if cfg!(test) && !self.config.submodules() {