diff --git a/.github/workflows/tests.yml b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
index 63e6bde6..51d5202b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
@@ -21,11 +21,11 @@ permissions:
   contents: read
 
 # To minimize supply-chain exposure this workflow uses only GitHub's own
-# first-party actions; every toolchain and tool is installed from rustup,
-# crates.io, or the checked-in sources.
+# first-party actions; every toolchain and tool is installed from rustup, the
+# tool's official distribution, or the checked-in sources.
 #
-# Every job runs a command the README's Development section lists, so a
-# contributor can reproduce any job from the README.
+# Every job runs one of the repository's checks, and this file is where that
+# list lives, so a contributor can reproduce any job from here.
 jobs:
   fmt:
     name: Rustfmt (nightly-2026-11-05)
@@ -61,19 +61,18 @@ jobs:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
       - name: Install the pinned toolchain
         run: rustup toolchain install
-      # nextest comes from crates.io at a pinned version, into its own root so the
-      # cache holds nothing but nextest and its dependencies.
-      - name: Cache cargo-nextest
-        uses: actions/cache@v4
-        with:
-          path: ~/.local/cargo-nextest
-          key: ${{ runner.os }}-cargo-nextest-0.9.151
-      - name: Install cargo-nextest from crates.io
+      # The official nextest distribution, at a pinned version: a prebuilt binary,
+      # so the job needs no compiler for it. The host intermittently answers 504,
+      # so a failed download builds the same pinned version from crates.io instead
+      # of failing the job.
+      - name: Install cargo-nextest from the official distribution
         run: |
-          if [ ! -x "$HOME/.local/cargo-nextest/bin/cargo-nextest" ]; then
-            cargo install --locked cargo-nextest --version 0.9.151 --root "$HOME/.local/cargo-nextest"
+          set -o pipefail
+          if ! curl -LsSf --retry 3 --retry-delay 2 --retry-all-errors \
+            https://get.nexte.st/0.9.151/linux | tar zxf - -C "${CARGO_HOME:-$HOME/.cargo}/bin"; then
+            echo "the official distribution did not answer; building 0.9.151 from crates.io" >&2
+            cargo install --locked cargo-nextest --version 0.9.151
           fi
-          echo "$HOME/.local/cargo-nextest/bin" >> "$GITHUB_PATH"
       # The suite covers `cgp-tests` for behavior and expansion snapshots and
       # `cgp-macro-tests` for the macro internals. Post-codegen compile failures
       # are UI fixtures in `cargo-cgp`, not tests here.
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index 50392c0b..ed70cbbe 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ update this block to match.
 - Treat [CHANGELOG.md](CHANGELOG.md) as the record of which macro forms are current and which are
   removed.
 - Add a `///` to every public item that lacks one, and keep inline docs brief.
-- Run the repository's checks before committing; the commands are in [README.md](README.md).
+- Run the repository's checks before committing; [`.github/workflows/tests.yml`](.github/workflows/tests.yml) lists them, and CI runs the same commands.
 - Put a post-codegen compile failure in a `cargo-cgp` UI fixture, not in this repository, and update the
   matching fixture when a construct change alters a diagnostic.
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 95d6e005..b06bd517 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -242,31 +242,6 @@ Contributions, questions, and bug reports are welcome. Open an
 [contribute page](https://contextgeneric.dev/docs/contribute) to get oriented first. Unless stated
 otherwise, contributions are made under the terms of the Apache-2.0 license below.
 
-### Development
-
-Run the checks from the repository root. The toolchain is pinned in `rust-toolchain.toml`, and most
-crates are `#![no_std]`, so keep new code `no_std`-compatible.
-
-```sh
-cargo +nightly-2026-11-05 fmt --all
-cargo clippy --all-features --all-targets -- -D warnings
-cargo clippy --no-default-features --all-targets -- -D warnings
-cargo nextest run --all-features --no-fail-fast --workspace
-RUSTDOCFLAGS="-D warnings" cargo doc --no-deps --workspace --all-features
-cargo +1.89 check --workspace --all-features
-rustup target add x86_64-unknown-none
-cargo check -p cgp-no-std-tests --target x86_64-unknown-none
-cargo check -p cgp-no-std-tests --target x86_64-unknown-none --features alloc
-```
-
-The first command needs the `nightly-2026-11-05` toolchain, because `.rustfmt.toml` sets unstable
-options; CI installs that exact channel. The last five check the docs, the declared minimum Rust
-version, and both `no_std` paths, and CI runs each of them.
-
-The suite covers `cgp-tests` for behavior and expansion snapshots and `cgp-macro-tests` for the macro
-internals. Post-codegen compile failures are UI fixtures in
-[`cargo-cgp`](https://github.com/contextgeneric/cargo-cgp).
-
 ## License
 
 Licensed under the [Apache License, Version 2.0](LICENSE).