diff --git a/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.spec.ts b/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.spec.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..2ced1b9b6269
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.spec.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,123 @@
+import { expect } from 'chai';
+import { ComponentID } from '@teambit/component-id';
+import type { Component } from '@teambit/component';
+import type { CompIdGraph } from '@teambit/graph';
+import { WorkspaceCompiler } from './workspace-compiler';
+
+/**
+ * the only members of the aspects the tested methods touch. the rest of the constructor arguments
+ * are there because the constructor registers listeners on them.
+ */
+function createCompiler({
+  workspace = {},
+  envs = {},
+}: {
+  workspace?: Record<string, any>;
+  envs?: Record<string, any>;
+}) {
+  const workspaceStub = {
+    registerOnComponentChange: () => {},
+    registerOnComponentAdd: () => {},
+    inInstallContext: false,
+    inInstallAfterPmContext: false,
+    hasId: () => true,
+    ...workspace,
+  };
+  return new WorkspaceCompiler(
+    workspaceStub as any,
+    envs as any,
+    {} as any, // pubsub
+    undefined as any, // aspectLoader. when absent, the constructor skips its listener registration
+    { registerPreStart: () => {} } as any, // ui
+    { debug: () => {} } as any, // logger
+    {} as any, // dependencyResolver
+    { registerOnPreWatch: () => {} } as any // watcher
+  );
+}
+
+describe('WorkspaceCompiler.onAspectLoadFail', () => {
+  const aspect = { id: ComponentID.fromString('my-org.my-scope/my-aspect') } as Component;
+
+  /**
+   * the compilation itself is replaced by a recorder - it needs a workspace on the filesystem, and
+   * what is under test is only whether it is triggered at all.
+   */
+  function createCompilerRecordingCompilation(isWorkspaceComponent: boolean) {
+    const compiler = createCompiler({ workspace: { hasId: () => isWorkspaceComponent } });
+    const compiled: string[][] = [];
+    compiler.getEnvDepsGraph = async () => ({ graph: undefined as unknown as CompIdGraph, successors: [] });
+    compiler.compileComponents = async (ids) => {
+      compiled.push(ids as string[]);
+      return [];
+    };
+    return { compiler, compiled };
+  }
+
+  it('should compile a workspace component that failed to load', async () => {
+    const { compiler, compiled } = createCompilerRecordingCompilation(true);
+    const err = Object.assign(new Error('Cannot find module'), { code: 'MODULE_NOT_FOUND' });
+    expect(await compiler.onAspectLoadFail(err, aspect)).to.be.true;
+    expect(compiled).to.deep.equal([['my-org.my-scope/my-aspect']]);
+  });
+
+  it('should compile when node refuses to strip the types of a ts file under node_modules', async () => {
+    const { compiler, compiled } = createCompilerRecordingCompilation(true);
+    const err = Object.assign(new Error('Stripping types is currently unsupported for files under node_modules'), {
+      code: 'ERR_UNSUPPORTED_NODE_MODULES_TYPE_STRIPPING',
+    });
+    expect(await compiler.onAspectLoadFail(err, aspect)).to.be.true;
+    expect(compiled).to.have.lengthOf(1);
+  });
+
+  it('should not compile an aspect that is not a workspace component', async () => {
+    const { compiler, compiled } = createCompilerRecordingCompilation(false);
+    const err = Object.assign(new Error('Cannot find module'), { code: 'MODULE_NOT_FOUND' });
+    expect(await compiler.onAspectLoadFail(err, aspect)).to.be.false;
+    expect(compiled).to.be.empty;
+  });
+
+  it('should not compile on an error that compiling cannot fix', async () => {
+    const { compiler, compiled } = createCompilerRecordingCompilation(true);
+    const err = Object.assign(new Error('socket hang up'), { code: 'ECONNRESET' });
+    expect(await compiler.onAspectLoadFail(err, aspect)).to.be.false;
+    expect(compiled).to.be.empty;
+  });
+});
+
+describe('WorkspaceCompiler.buildGroupsToCompile', () => {
+  const compId = 'my-org.my-scope/my-comp';
+  const envId = 'my-org.my-scope/my-env';
+  // the env of the env. installed as a package, hence not a node on the workspace graph
+  const envOfEnvId = 'my-org.installed/my-env-of-env';
+  const envIdOf = { [compId]: envId, [envId]: envOfEnvId };
+
+  const component = (idStr: string) => ({ id: ComponentID.fromString(idStr) }) as Component;
+
+  const envs = {
+    calculateEnvId: async (comp: Component) => ComponentID.fromString(envIdOf[comp.id.toString()]),
+    isEnv: (comp: Component) => comp.id.toString() === envId,
+    isCoreEnv: () => false,
+  };
+
+  /** mimics cleargraph, which throws when asked for the successors of a node it does not have */
+  const graph = {
+    hasNode: (id: string) => id === compId || id === envId,
+    successorsSubgraph: (ids: string[]) => {
+      const missing = ids.find((id) => !graph.hasNode(id));
+      if (missing) throw new Error(`Node ${missing} does not exist on graph`);
+      return { nodes: [] };
+    },
+  } as unknown as CompIdGraph;
+
+  type Group = Awaited<ReturnType<WorkspaceCompiler['buildGroupsToCompile']>>[number];
+
+  it('should skip env ids that are not on the given graph', async () => {
+    const compiler = createCompiler({ envs });
+    const groups = await compiler.buildGroupsToCompile([component(compId), component(envId)], graph);
+    const idsOfGroup = (key: keyof Omit<Group, 'components'>) =>
+      groups.find((group) => group[key])!.components.map((comp) => comp.id.toString());
+    expect(idsOfGroup('envs')).to.deep.equal([envId]);
+    expect(idsOfGroup('other')).to.deep.equal([compId]);
+    expect(idsOfGroup('depsOfEnvsOfEnvs')).to.be.empty;
+  });
+});
diff --git a/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.ts b/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.ts
index dafbd70930c7..1318ac839683 100644
--- a/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.ts
+++ b/scopes/compilation/compiler/workspace-compiler.ts
@@ -381,7 +381,13 @@ export class WorkspaceCompiler {
   async onAspectLoadFail(err: Error & { code?: string }, component: Component): Promise<boolean> {
     if (
       ((err.code &&
-        (err.code === 'MODULE_NOT_FOUND' || err.code === 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND' || err.code === 'ERR_REQUIRE_ESM')) ||
+        (err.code === 'MODULE_NOT_FOUND' ||
+          err.code === 'ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND' ||
+          err.code === 'ERR_REQUIRE_ESM' ||
+          // node refuses to load .ts files from node_modules. happens when the loaded instance
+          // has only the component sources (e.g. re-created by the package manager mid-install)
+          // and compiling the component fixes it, same as a missing-module failure
+          err.code === 'ERR_UNSUPPORTED_NODE_MODULES_TYPE_STRIPPING')) ||
         err.message.includes('import.meta') ||
         err.message.includes('exports is not defined')) &&
       this.workspace
@@ -394,6 +400,20 @@ export class WorkspaceCompiler {
         const id = component.id;
         const idStr = id.toString();
 
+        // compiling can only fix a workspace component whose dists are missing or stale. when the
+        // failed aspect is not in the workspace (e.g. an env that used to be a core aspect,
+        // resolved to its pinned version but not installed yet), the cascade below imports the
+        // env's full dependency closure from the remote and recompiles a large part of the
+        // workspace into every injected node_modules copy - minutes of work that cannot
+        // materialize the missing package. skip it and let the regular missing-aspect handling
+        // report it (a NonLoadedEnv issue with a "bit install" remediation).
+        if (!this.workspace.hasId(id, { ignoreVersion: true })) {
+          this.logger.debug(
+            `onAspectLoadFail: skipping compilation of ${idStr} - not a workspace component, compiling cannot fix its missing module`
+          );
+          return false;
+        }
+
         // Prevent infinite loop when there's a circular dependency between an env and a component.
         // If we're already processing this component, don't re-enter.
         if (this.componentsBeingProcessedInOnAspectLoadFail.has(idStr)) {
@@ -702,7 +722,9 @@ export class WorkspaceCompiler {
     const envsOfEnvsWithoutCoreCompIds = envsOfEnvsCompIds.filter((id) => !this.envs.isCoreEnv(id));
     let depsOfEnvsOfEnvsCompIds: string[] = [];
     if (graph) {
-      const subGraph = graph.successorsSubgraph(envsOfEnvsWithoutCoreCompIds, {
+      // envs installed as packages (e.g. legacy core envs) are not part of the workspace graph
+      const envsOfEnvsOnGraph = envsOfEnvsWithoutCoreCompIds.filter((id) => graph.hasNode(id));
+      const subGraph = graph.successorsSubgraph(envsOfEnvsOnGraph, {
         nodeFilter: (node) => this.workspace.hasId(node.attr),
       });
       depsOfEnvsOfEnvsCompIds = subGraph.nodes.map((n) => n.id);
@@ -722,7 +744,7 @@ export class WorkspaceCompiler {
     if (graph) {
       const otherEnvsIds = (groupedByEnvsOfEnvs.otherEnvs || []).map((c) => c.id.toString());
       if (otherEnvsIds.length) {
-        const otherEnvsWithoutCoreIds = otherEnvsIds.filter((id) => !this.envs.isCoreEnv(id));
+        const otherEnvsWithoutCoreIds = otherEnvsIds.filter((id) => !this.envs.isCoreEnv(id) && graph.hasNode(id));
         const subGraph = graph.successorsSubgraph(otherEnvsWithoutCoreIds, {
           nodeFilter: (node) => this.workspace.hasId(node.attr),
         });