Clone a Python environment offline by forcing installation from local environment files

Summary

Users are sometimes unable to clone Python environments because of cloning restrictions, antivirus software, or IT protocols blocking requests made to the Anaconda website when downloading and installing the packages. This article describes the workflow to clone a Python environment offline using the environment files transferred or downloaded from other sources, for example, other machines.

Procedure

1. In the Windows search box, type python, right-click Python Command Prompt, and click Run as administrator.
2. Copy and paste the following command before pressing Enter.
   1. Create a new environment and specify the location of the downloaded packages using the --offline and --channel flags.
   2. Replace new_env_name with the desired name for the new environment, and path_to_dwd_packages with the path to the directory containing the downloaded packages. In this example, 'offlinetest' is used as the name for the new environment.

conda create --clone arcgispro-py3 --name new_env_name --offline --channel file://"path_to_dwd_packages"

The image below shows the newly cloned Python environment named 'offlinetest' available in ArcGIS Pro.