pip error on Ubuntu: externally-managed-environment × This environment is externally managed

Question

I upgraded to Ubuntu 23.04. Now, when I run a pip command (installed using sudo apt install python3-pip), I get this error:

$ pip install --user <foobar>
error: externally-managed-environment

× This environment is externally managed
╰─> To install Python packages system-wide, try apt install
    python3-xyz, where xyz is the package you are trying to
    install.
    
    If you wish to install a non-Debian-packaged Python package,
    create a virtual environment using python3 -m venv path/to/venv.
    Then use path/to/venv/bin/python and path/to/venv/bin/pip. Make
    sure you have python3-full installed.
    
    If you wish to install a non-Debian packaged Python application,
    it may be easiest to use pipx install xyz, which will manage a
    virtual environment for you. Make sure you have pipx installed.
    
    See /usr/share/doc/python3.11/README.venv for more information.

note: If you believe this is a mistake, please contact your Python installation or OS distribution provider. You can override this, at the risk of breaking your Python installation or OS, by passing --break-system-packages.
hint: See PEP 668 for the detailed specification.

What does this mean? How can I avoid this error?

What if I want to install a package user-wide (--user), not system-wide? How do I do that?

Answer 1

There's a good article on OMGUbuntu about this: 3 Ways to Solve Pip Install Error on Ubuntu 23.04

Here's the summary. There are three ways to approach this problem:

1. Use a repo version

For instance, if you want to install the requests Python library, you can install it using APT instead, like this:

sudo apt install python3-requests

This will install this library system-wide.

Not all packages available on PyPI have been packaged and included in the Debian/Ubuntu repositories, so this method won't work for some packages.

Or: 2. Create a virtual environment using venv or virtualenv

Make sure venv is installed by running:

sudo apt install python3-venv

To create a new virtual environment in a directory named env, run:

python3 -m venv env

To activate this virtual environment (which modifies the PATH environment variable), run this:

source env/bin/activate

Now you can install a library like requests in this virtual environment:

pip install requests

The files will get installed under the env/ directory.

If you want to leave the virtual environment, you can run:

deactivate

If you don't want to run source env/bin/activate and deactivate, then you can run the executable by prefixing its path, like this:

 $ env/bin/pip install requests
 $ env/bin/python3
 >>> import request
 >>> help(requests)

Or: 3. Use pipx

pipx lets you install and run Python applications in isolated environments. This is the recommend way to install PyPI packages that represent command-line applications.

To install pipx, run:

 sudo apt install pipx

pipx needs ~/.local/bin/ to be in your PATH. You can automatically modify your shell configuration (such as ~/.bashrc) to modify PATH appropriately by running:

 pipx ensurepath

Now you can install a package from PyPI, like this:

 pipx install pycowsay

And you can run the command that you just installed, like this:

$ pycowsay Mooo!

  -----
< Mooo! >
  -----
   \   ^__^
    \  (oo)\_______
       (__)\       )\/\
           ||----w |
           ||     ||

As you can see, pipx installed a symlink in ~/.local/bin/ to the executable in a virtual environment:

$ ls -l ~/.local/bin/pycowsay
lrwxrwxrwx 1 flimm flimm 50 May 24 11:19 /home/flimm/.local/bin/pycowsay -> /home/flimm/.local/pipx/venvs/pycowsay/bin/pycowsay*

Or: 4. Pass --break-system-packages flag:

If you want to ignore the warning, you can pass the --break-system-packages flag:

pip install --break-system-packages --user <foobar>

Answer 2

Had the same error on my Ubuntu 23.04. I tried pip install {package_name} --break-system-packages It worked for me. Hope it helps. Thank you.