After updating to Ubuntu 20.04, whenever I run:
pip install <some package>or
pip --versionit says:
adam@daryy:~$ pip3
Traceback (most recent call last): File "/usr/local/bin/pip3", line 5, in <module> from pip._internal.cli.main import main File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/main.py", line 10, in <module> from pip._internal.cli.autocompletion import autocomplete File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/autocompletion.py", line 9, in <module> from pip._internal.cli.main_parser import create_main_parser File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/main_parser.py", line 7, in <module> from pip._internal.cli import cmdoptions File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/cmdoptions.py", line 19, in <module> from distutils.util import strtobool
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'distutils.util'
Error in sys.excepthook:
Traceback (most recent call last): File "/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/apport_python_hook.py", line 63, in apport_excepthook from apport.fileutils import likely_packaged, get_recent_crashes File "/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/apport/__init__.py", line 5, in <module> from apport.report import Report File "/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/apport/report.py", line 30, in <module> import apport.fileutils File "/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/apport/fileutils.py", line 23, in <module> from apport.packaging_impl import impl as packaging File "/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/apport/packaging_impl.py", line 23, in <module> import apt File "/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/apt/__init__.py", line 23, in <module> import apt_pkg
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'apt_pkg'
Original exception was:
Traceback (most recent call last): File "/usr/local/bin/pip3", line 5, in <module> from pip._internal.cli.main import main File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/main.py", line 10, in <module> from pip._internal.cli.autocompletion import autocomplete File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/autocompletion.py", line 9, in <module> from pip._internal.cli.main_parser import create_main_parser File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/main_parser.py", line 7, in <module> from pip._internal.cli import cmdoptions File "/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/pip/_internal/cli/cmdoptions.py", line 19, in <module> from distutils.util import strtobool
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'distutils.util'even when I normally type pip3 or pip.
10 Answers
The module not found likely means the packages aren't installed.
sudo apt-get install python3-distutils
sudo apt-get install python3-aptIf they're already installed you can try to fix anything that may have been messed up in the upgrade with...
sudo apt-get install --reinstall package-nameI got this problem after upgrading to Ubuntu 20.04. I had a virtual environment depending on Python 3.7, and, to avoid re-installing the whole virtual environment for Python 3.8, I fixed distutils on Python 3.7:
I added the deadsnake PPA:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:deadsnakes/ppa
sudo apt-get updateAnd then installed the distutils package for Python 3.7:
sudo apt install python3.7-distutilsNote: for some reason I had an error installing the latter, that I solved this way:
sudo dpkg -i --force-overwrite /var/cache/apt/archives/python3.7-distutils_3.7.9-1+focal1_all.deb
sudo apt-get -f install Debian has decided that distutils is not a core python package, so it is not included in the last versions of debian and debian-based OSes. You should be able to do sudo apt install python3-distutils and it should work.
However, it did not work for me. I use Parrot OS, which is, as Ubuntu, Debian based. I upgraded my system and pip stopped working for python3.7, and I also got the error ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'distutils.util'
I tried a lot of stuff to fix it and to reinstall distutils, and I found out by pure luck, that pip3, for python3.8 did work. I then tried python3.7 -m pip3 -V, got /usr/bin/python3.7: No module named pip3 so I decided to have a look in the /usr/lib files.
I looked at /usr/lib/python3/dist-packages and everything looked fine. Then I looked at /usr/lib/python3.7 and saw the folder distutil.
I opened it, and saw the __pycache__, the __init__.py file and a version.py file. I had no idea how many files should be in there, or what the code should be, but I knew that those two files were either wrong or missing another file.
Then I had a look at what was inside /usr/lib/python3.8/distutil and it was totally different. I found the following files:
command Folder
__pycache__ Folder
archive_util.py Python script
bcppcompiler.py Python script
cmd.py Python script
config.py Python script
core.py Python script
cygwinccompiler.py Python script
debug.py Python script
dep_util.py Python script
errors.py Python script
extension.py Python script
fancy_getopt.py Python script
filelist.py Python script
file_util.py Python script
__init__.py Python script
log.py Python script
msvc9compiler.py Python script
_msvccompiler.py Python script
msvccompiler.py Python script
README Plain text file
spawn.py Python script
sysconfig.py Python script
text_file.py Python script
unixccompiler.py Python script
util.py Python script
version.py Python script
versionpredicate.py Python scriptThis was a lot more promising, and since pip3 did work, I assumed that this distutils worked too, and I tried to copy it to the python3.7 folder by running this command:
sudo cp -r /usr/lib/python3.8/distutils /usr/lib/python3.7/distutils
Alternatively:
sudo mv /usr/lib/python3.7/distutils/ /usr/lib/python3.7/distutils_back
sudo ln -s /usr/lib/python3.8/distutils /usr/lib/python3.7/Then I tried again python3.7 -m pip -V and got
pip 20.0.2 from /usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/pip (python 3.7)
Then I tried installing some modules and everything works fine. I hope this is helpful.
3I came here for an answer and didn't find, but I fixed it myself.
Some time ago I played with python version by using update-alternatives, also I believe I manually edited some scripts and now, after updating from 16.04 to 20.04, I had the same problem as you. I am not sure if my fix is "proper", yet it works for me:
~$ which pip3
/home/patryk/.local/bin/pip3
~$ vim /home/patryk/.local/bin/pip3I changed the first line from:
#!/usr/bin/python3.7to:
#!/usr/bin/python3Helped in my case.
0Ensure install appropriate version based on python version, e.g. to get all available versions (assume using apt package manager):
$ apt-cache search distutils
python-setuptools - Python Distutils Enhancements
python-setuptools-doc - Python Distutils Enhancements (documentation)
python3-d2to1 - Python3 support for distutils2-like setup.cfg files as package metadata
python3-setuptools - Python3 Distutils Enhancements
pypy-setuptools - PyPy Distutils Enhancements
python-d2to1 - Python support for distutils2-like setup.cfg files as package metadata
python-distlib - low-level components of python distutils2/packaging
python-distutils-extra - enhancements to the Python build system
python-stsci.distutils - Python packaging utilities for STScI's packages
python3-distlib - low-level components of python distutils2/packaging
python3-distutils-extra - enhancements to the Python3 build system
python3-stdeb - Python to Debian source package conversion plugins for distutils
python3-stsci.distutils - Python3 packaging utilities for STScI's packages
python3.7-distutils - distutils package for Python (version 3.7)
python3.8-distutils - distutils package for Python (version 3.8)
python3.9-distutils - distutils package for Python (version 3.9)You can see python3.7-distutils, python3.8-distutils, and python3.9-distutils listed in above output, then can install it by specify the version tied to your desired python version, e.g. I have python3.8 and I want to do:
$ sudo apt-get install python3.8-distutilsThen I would run pip with that python version (Ensure you run echo $PYTHONPATH first to confirm python3.8(my python version) in the path otherwise pip will install it in wrong path), e.g.:
$ python3.8 -m pip install requestsAfter install Python3.10 in Ubuntu using ppa:deadsnakes/ppa, I've solved this error executing sudo apt install python3.10-distutils.
Make sure to replace 3.10 which is version of python with appropriate version.
Installing Python3.10
Update system $ sudo apt-get update -y && sudo apt-get full-upgrade -y
Helps to add ppa repositories $ sudo apt install software-properties-common -y
Adding deadsnake repository $ sudo apt-add-repository ppa:deadsnakes/ppa
Installing python $ sudo apt-get install python3.10Installing distutils.util
$ sudo apt-get install python3.10-distutilsStill using python3.10 -m pip some_command might result in error to fix it use
$ curl -sS | python3.10I installed alternate versions of python from the deadsnakes PPA. I had to install the versioned distutils for all alternate versions of the form python3.x-distutils. So for python 3.9, I did sudo apt install python3.9-distutils.
Don't know if this will help but for me I was trying to install a package using:
$ pip3 install <package>And that gave the same error, however when I used sudo:
$ sudo pip3 install <package>it succeeded. I can only imagine that dist-utils are installed for the root user only.
5I had the same problems as the rest after upgrading to latest version of all packages.
In my case it worked to replace old python default binary with a newer one:
sudo unlink /usr/bin/python
sudo ln -s /usr/bin/python3.8 /usr/bin/pythonNo need for anything else than those two rows. Uncertain how ubuntu feels about it but its nothing more than switching back now when i can install the package i wanted.
