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Add a page about composer patches #116

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eiriksm merged 1 commit into from
Jul 2, 2026
Merged

Add a page about composer patches #116

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10 changes: 6 additions & 4 deletions docs/introduction/composer-patches.mdx
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Expand Up @@ -34,13 +34,15 @@ When this happens, the update will fail and violinist will not be able to create

### What to do

When you notice that an update is failing because of a patch that no longer applies, you have a few options:
When you notice that an update is failing because of a patch that no longer applies, fixing it requires two steps, both of which you have to do yourself — violinist cannot do either one automatically:

1. **Check if the patch is still needed.** The new version of the package may already include the fix your patch was providing. If so, remove the patch from your `composer.json` and the update should succeed on the next run.
1. **Edit the patches section.** In your `composer.json`, either remove the patch entry if the new version of the package already includes the fix it was providing, or update the patch reference to a version of the patch that applies cleanly to the new version.

2. **Update the patch.** If the patch is still needed, you will need to create a new version of the patch that applies cleanly to the new version of the package. Update the patch reference in your `composer.json` and the update should succeed on the next run.
2. **Update the package manually.** Editing `composer.json` alone isn't enough — you also need to run `composer update vendor/package` yourself (locally or in CI) so the package is actually updated and the patch is applied. Commit the resulting `composer.json` and `composer.lock` together.

3. **Add the package to the blocklist.** If you are not ready to deal with the patch yet, you can [block the package](/configuration/blocklist) from being updated by violinist until you are ready.
Once both changes are committed, violinist will be able to pick up updates for that package again.

If you are not ready to deal with the patch yet, you can instead [block the package](/configuration/blocklist) from being updated by violinist until you are.

## Patches from a local file

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