Pip isn't installing packages in virtual environment

Question

On windows, with python 3.9.5.

I create a virtual environment using python -m venv env. I activate it, no problems. I verify that when using pip and python I use those of my virtual environment, no problems here.

I type python -m pip install wheel. Because I'm still using venv, pip should try to install in .\env\Lib\site-packages, yet pip is trying to install it in C:\Program Files\Python39\Lib\site-packages.
I have the same results when using pip install wheel

Can somebody explain what is wrong and what should I do to solve this?

Commands and outputs:
python -m venv env --> folder created

.\env\Scripts\activate --> virtual environment activated

where python --> C:\Users\user\Documents\env\Scripts\python.exe and C:\Program Files\Python39\python.exe

pip -V --> pip 21.1.1 from c:\users\user\documents\env\lib\site-packages\pip (python 3.9)

python -m pip install wheel -->

Collecting wheel
Using cached wheel-0.37.0-py2.py3-none-any.whl (35 kB)
Installing collected packages: wheel
Successfully installed wheel-0.37.0

WARNING: Target directory C:\Program Files\Python39\Lib\site-packages\wheel already exists. Specify --upgrade to force replacement.
WARNING: Target directory C:\Program Files\Python39\Lib\site-packages\wheel-0.37.0.dist-info already exists. Specify --upgrade to force replacement.
WARNING: Target directory C:\Program Files\Python39\Lib\site-packages\bin already exists. Specify --upgrade to force replacement.

Please provide the exact commands you are running and their exact outputs. — Colonel Thirty Two, Aug 19 '21 at 12:42
have you tried any of the solutions in https://stackoverflow.com/questions/20952797/pip-installing-in-global-site-packages-instead-of-virtualenv ? — python_user, Aug 19 '21 at 12:44
@ReshamWadhwa (venv) did appear and pip -V show me the path of the venv pyhton folder — Leoriem, Aug 19 '21 at 13:02
Since you say `pip -V` shows correct location, why don't you do `pip install` instead of `python -m pip install`? I have no idea why would `python -m pip` go to the wrong place but since just `pip` is *in* correct place use just `pip`. — h4z3, Aug 19 '21 at 13:07
@h4z3 because it gives the same result. I should make it clear — Leoriem, Aug 19 '21 at 13:11
Try to delete the virtual environment and created a new one, the problem may be solve — ThisIsMatin, Aug 19 '21 at 13:14
Is it possible you've set some environment variables like `PYTHONPATH`? — Iguananaut, Aug 19 '21 at 13:31
can you try venv/bin/python3 -m pip install wheel ? instead of using the default python — Resham Wadhwa, Aug 19 '21 at 14:07
@ReshamWadhwa it's not the default python that is used, it's the one in venv folder — Leoriem, Aug 19 '21 at 14:39

score 1 · Accepted Answer · answered Aug 19 '21 at 15:55

1

We can force pip to install the packages where we want using the -t parameter

Example:

go to env\Lib\site-packages
use pip install -t . package or python -m pip install -t . package

It should work correctly after that

answered Aug 19 '21 at 15:55

Leoriem

11
4

True but this could cause problems if not using the right pip for the right Python environment. It would be better to resolve the underlying issue which, like many questions like this, is probably hard to determine without some interactive debugging, as it's probably some combination of environment configuration issues. – Iguananaut Aug 19 '21 at 17:09

Pip isn't installing packages in virtual environment

1 Answers1