diff --git a/.github/workflows/update-submodules.yml b/.github/workflows/update-submodules.yml
index 99f55a3ecf..1ffb80ea61 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/update-submodules.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/update-submodules.yml
@@ -19,15 +19,6 @@ jobs:
           fetch-depth: 0
           token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
 
-      # Identity must be set BEFORE any operation that can create a commit.
-      # `git submodule update --remote --merge` used to fail here with
-      # "Committer identity unknown" because the merge inside vendor/ruvector
-      # needs an author when the pinned commit isn't a fast-forward of upstream.
-      - name: Configure git identity
-        run: |
-          git config --global user.name  "github-actions[bot]"
-          git config --global user.email "41898282+github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
-
       # Use a plain `--remote` checkout (detached HEAD at each submodule's
       # configured `branch` tip from .gitmodules) rather than `--merge`. We only
       # want to bump the superproject's gitlink to the latest upstream commit;
@@ -38,6 +29,12 @@ jobs:
           git submodule sync --recursive
           git submodule update --remote --recursive
 
+      # Identity must be set BEFORE any operation that can create a commit.
+      - name: Configure git identity
+        run: |
+          git config --global user.name  "github-actions[bot]"
+          git config --global user.email "41898282+github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
+
       - name: Check for changes
         id: check
         run: |
diff --git a/vendor/README.md b/vendor/README.md
index 1a5c6e395a..df2fda917b 100644
--- a/vendor/README.md
+++ b/vendor/README.md
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/ruvnet/RuView.git
 ## Update to latest upstream
 
 ```bash
-git submodule update --remote --merge
+git submodule update --remote --recursive
 git add vendor/
 git commit -m "chore: update vendor submodules"
 ```