diff --git a/share/mk/auto.obj.mk b/share/mk/auto.obj.mk
--- a/share/mk/auto.obj.mk
+++ b/share/mk/auto.obj.mk
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 # SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-2-Clause
 #
-# $Id: auto.obj.mk,v 1.17 2024/02/17 17:26:57 sjg Exp $
+# $Id: auto.obj.mk,v 1.20 2025/05/17 15:29:55 sjg Exp $
 #
-#	@(#) Copyright (c) 2004, Simon J. Gerraty
+#	@(#) Copyright (c) 2004-2025, Simon J. Gerraty
 #
 #	This file is provided in the hope that it will
 #	be of use.  There is absolutely NO WARRANTY.
@@ -50,7 +50,12 @@
 __objdir?= ${MAKEOBJDIRPREFIX}${.CURDIR}
 .endif
 __objdir?= ${MAKEOBJDIR:Uobj}
-__objdir:= ${__objdir}
+# relative dirs can cause trouble below
+# keep it simple and convert to absolute path now if needed
+.if ${__objdir:M/*} == ""
+# avoid ugly ${.CURDIR}/./obj etc.
+__objdir:= ${.CURDIR}/${__objdir:S,^./,,}
+.endif
 .if ${.OBJDIR:tA} != ${__objdir:tA}
 # We need to chdir, make the directory if needed
 .if !exists(${__objdir}/) && \
@@ -65,11 +70,9 @@
 .if ${.OBJDIR:tA} != ${__objdir:tA}
 # we did not get what we want - do we care?
 .if ${__objdir_made:Uno:M${__objdir}/*} != ""
-# watch out for __objdir being relative path
-.if !(${__objdir:M/*} == "" && ${.OBJDIR:tA} == ${${.CURDIR}/${__objdir}:L:tA})
+# we attempted to make ${__objdir} and failed
 .error could not use ${__objdir}: .OBJDIR=${.OBJDIR}
 .endif
-.endif
 # apparently we can live with it
 # make sure we know what we have
 .OBJDIR: ${.CURDIR}
diff --git a/share/mk/jobs.mk b/share/mk/jobs.mk
--- a/share/mk/jobs.mk
+++ b/share/mk/jobs.mk
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
-# $Id: jobs.mk,v 1.14 2023/09/11 16:52:44 sjg Exp $
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-2-Clause
 #
-#	@(#) Copyright (c) 2012-2023, Simon J. Gerraty
+# $Id: jobs.mk,v 1.19 2025/02/03 21:18:44 sjg Exp $
+#
+#	@(#) Copyright (c) 2012-2025, Simon J. Gerraty
 #
 #	This file is provided in the hope that it will
 #	be of use.  There is absolutely NO WARRANTY.
@@ -66,7 +68,7 @@
 .endif
 .endif
 .if !empty(NEWLOG_SH) && exists(${NEWLOG_SH})
-NEWLOG := sh ${NEWLOG_SH}
+NEWLOG := ${.SHELL:Ush} ${NEWLOG_SH}
 JOB_NEWLOG_ARGS ?= -S -n ${JOB_LOG_GENS}
 .else
 NEWLOG = :
@@ -78,7 +80,8 @@
 # This should be derrived from number of cpu's
 .if ${.MAKE.JOBS.C:Uno} == "yes"
 # 1.2 - 1.5 times nCPU works well on most machines that support -jC
-JOB_MAX_C ?= 1.33C
+# if the factor is floating point, the C suffix isn't needed
+JOB_MAX_C ?= 1.33
 JOB_MAX ?= ${JOB_MAX_C}
 .endif
 JOB_MAX ?= 8
diff --git a/share/mk/src.sys.obj.mk b/share/mk/src.sys.obj.mk
--- a/share/mk/src.sys.obj.mk
+++ b/share/mk/src.sys.obj.mk
@@ -73,6 +73,12 @@
 .endif
 # Must export since OBJDIR will dynamically be based on it
 .export OBJROOT SRCTOP
+# if we didn't get SB_OBJROOT from env,
+# it is handy to set it now, so we can remember it
+.if empty(SB_OBJROOT)
+SB_OBJROOT:= ${OBJROOT}
+.export SB_OBJROOT
+.endif
 .endif
 
 .if ${MK_DIRDEPS_BUILD} == "no"
diff --git a/share/mk/stage-install.sh b/share/mk/stage-install.sh
--- a/share/mk/stage-install.sh
+++ b/share/mk/stage-install.sh
@@ -28,22 +28,28 @@
 #	"file".dirdep placed in "dest" or "dest".dirdep if it happed
 #	to be a file rather than a directory.
 #
+#	Before we run install(1), we check if "dest" needs to be a
+#	directory (more than one file in "args") and create it
+#	if necessary.
+#
 # SEE ALSO:
 #	meta.stage.mk
-#	
+#
 
 # RCSid:
-#	$Id: stage-install.sh,v 1.5 2013/04/19 16:32:24 sjg Exp $
+#	$Id: stage-install.sh,v 1.11 2024/02/17 17:26:57 sjg Exp $
 #
-#	@(#) Copyright (c) 2013, Simon J. Gerraty
+#	SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-2-Clause
+#
+#	@(#) Copyright (c) 2013-2020, Simon J. Gerraty
 #
 #	This file is provided in the hope that it will
 #	be of use.  There is absolutely NO WARRANTY.
 #	Permission to copy, redistribute or otherwise
-#	use this file is hereby granted provided that 
+#	use this file is hereby granted provided that
 #	the above copyright notice and this notice are
-#	left intact. 
-#      
+#	left intact.
+#
 #	Please send copies of changes and bug-fixes to:
 #	sjg@crufty.net
 #
@@ -59,6 +65,45 @@
     esac
 done
 
+# get last entry from "$@" without side effects
+last_entry() {
+    while [ $# -gt 8 ]
+    do
+        shift 8
+    done
+    eval last=\$$#
+    echo $last
+}
+
+# mkdir $dest if needed (more than one file)
+mkdir_if_needed() {
+    (
+        lf=
+        while [ $# -gt 8 ]
+        do
+            shift 4
+        done
+        for f in "$@"
+        do
+            [ -f $f ] || continue
+            [ $f = $dest ] && continue
+            if [ -n "$lf" ]; then
+                # dest must be a directory
+                mkdir -p $dest
+                break
+            fi
+            lf=$f
+        done
+    )
+}
+
+args="$@"
+dest=`last_entry "$@"`
+case " $args " in
+*" -d "*) ;;
+*) [ -e $dest ] || mkdir_if_needed "$@";;
+esac
+
 # if .dirdep doesn't exist, just run install and be done
 _DIRDEP=${_DIRDEP:-$OBJDIR/.dirdep}
 [ -s $_DIRDEP ] && EXEC= || EXEC=exec
@@ -74,18 +119,16 @@
   t=$1
   if [ -s $t.dirdep ]; then
       cmp -s $_DIRDEP $t.dirdep && return
-      echo "ERROR: $t installed by `cat $t.dirdep` not `cat $_DIRDEP`" >&2
-      exit 1
+      case "${STAGE_CONFLICT:-error}" in
+      [Ee]*) STAGE_CONFLICT=ERROR action=exit;;
+      *) STAGE_CONFLICT=WARNING action=: ;;
+      esac
+      echo "$STAGE_CONFLICT: $t installed by `cat $t.dirdep` not `cat $_DIRDEP`" >&2
+      $action 1
   fi
   LnCp $_DIRDEP $t.dirdep || exit 1
 }
 
-args="$@"
-while [ $# -gt 8 ]
-do
-    shift 8
-done
-eval dest=\$$#
 if [ -f $dest ]; then
     # a file, there can be only one .dirdep needed
     StageDirdep $dest