--- a/client.mk
+++ b/client.mk
@@ -170,23 +170,22 @@ CONFIGURES += $(TOPSRCDIR)/mozilla/js/sr
 
 #######################################################################
 # Rules
 
 # The default rule is build
 build::
 
 # These targets are candidates for auto-running client.py
-ifdef  ALWAYS_RUN_CLIENT_PY
-ifeq (0,${MAKELEVEL})
-build::                      run_client_py
-profiledbuild::              run_client_py
-configure::                  run_client_py
-endif
-endif
+
+ifeq (01,$(MAKELEVEL)$(if $(ALWAYS_RUN_CLIENT_PY),1,))
+
+build profiledbuild configure:: run_client_py
+	$(MAKE) -f $(TOPSRCDIR)/client.mk $@
+else
 
 
 # Print out any options loaded from mozconfig.
 all build clean depend distclean export libs install realclean::
 	@if test -f .mozconfig.out; then \
 	  cat .mozconfig.out; \
 	  rm -f .mozconfig.out; \
 	else true; \
@@ -380,16 +379,17 @@ build alldep postflight::
 ifdef MOZ_POSTFLIGHT
 	set -e; \
 	for mkfile in $(MOZ_POSTFLIGHT); do \
 	  $(MAKE) -f $(TOPSRCDIR)/$$mkfile postflight TOPSRCDIR=$(TOPSRCDIR) OBJDIR=$(OBJDIR) MOZ_OBJDIR=$(MOZ_OBJDIR); \
 	done
 endif
 
 endif # MOZ_CURRENT_PROJECT
+endif # RAN_CLIENT_PY
 
 ####################################
 # Postflight, after building all projects
 
 build alldep postflight_all::
 ifeq (,$(MOZ_CURRENT_PROJECT)$(if $(MOZ_POSTFLIGHT_ALL),,1))
 # Don't run postflight_all for individual projects in multi-project builds
 # (when MOZ_CURRENT_PROJECT is set.)