Conda fails to download packages from Anaconda

Conda fails to download packages with PackagesNotFoundError when you try to install packages from Anaconda.

Written by mathan.pillai

Last published at: May 16th, 2022

Problem

You are attempting to download packages from the Anaconda repository and get a PackagesNotFoundError error message.

This error can occur when using %conda, or %sh conda in notebooks, and when using Conda in an init script.

Cause

Anaconda Inc. updated the terms of service for repo.anaconda.com and anaconda.org/anaconda. Based on the Anaconda terms of service you may require a commercial license if you rely on Anaconda’s packaging and distribution. You should review the Anaconda Commercial Edition FAQ for more information.

Delete

Info

Your use of any Anaconda channels is governed by the Anaconda terms of service.

As a result, the default channel configuration for the Conda package manager was removed in Databricks Runtime 7.3 LTS for Machine Learning and above.

Solution

You should review the Anaconda terms of service and determine if you require a commercial license.

Once you have verified that you have a valid license, you must specify a channel to install or update packages with Conda. You can specify a Conda channel with -c <name-of-channel>.

For example, %conda install matplotlib returns an error, while %conda install -c defaults matplotlib installs matplotlib.