diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml b/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml
index ba2f800f..f15037d4 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml
@@ -15,6 +15,19 @@ jobs:
         with:
           fetch-depth: 1
           clean: true
+        continue-on-error: true
+
+      - name: Sync from local repo (fallback when checkout fails)
+        run: |
+          # Always pull latest in local repo so fallback is current
+          cd /home/archipelago/archy && git pull origin main 2>/dev/null || true
+          # If checkout failed (no .git), copy from local repo
+          if [ ! -d ".git" ] || [ ! -f "core/archipelago/Cargo.toml" ]; then
+            echo "Checkout failed — syncing from local repo"
+            rsync -a --delete --exclude='.git' --exclude='target/' --exclude='node_modules/' \
+              /home/archipelago/archy/ ./ 2>/dev/null || cp -a /home/archipelago/archy/* . 2>/dev/null
+          fi
+          echo "Source version: $(grep '^version' core/archipelago/Cargo.toml 2>/dev/null)"
 
       - name: Build backend
         run: |