I have created an environment called B3 inside anaconda-navigator. It works fine if launched from within navigator.
However, when I want to activate it at the shell, I get 'could not find environmnet B3.'
If I use conda env list, the environment is visible but its name is blank. If I try using the file path instead, I get 'Not a conda environment.'
Why is the name missing, and how can I activate it from the shell?
Best Answer
Name-based reference of Conda environments only works for environments located in one of the directories listed in the
envs_dirs
configuration option (seeconda config --describe envs_dirs
). By default this corresponds to theenvs/
subdirectory in the Conda installation. If you create an env outside of one of these directories, then you cannot use a name to reference it. Instead, one must activate it by its path:Option 0: Activate by Path (Fix OP’s Typo)
Note that OP originally had a typo (
anaconda2
should have beenanaconda3
). After pointing this out (see comments to question), the questioner instead requested an answer to:“How to convert a nameless environment to named one?”
Converting to Named Environment
The following are possible ways to enabling name-based activation.
Option 1: Clone Into Directory
One option to use
conda activate B3
, is to recreate your B3 env in the default directory. You can use the--clone
flag to accomplish this.Option 2: Add Parent Directory
Alternatively, you can add the parent directory of the environment in question to the
envs_dirs
configuration option.Option 3: Symbolic Link
Another possibility is to create a symbolic link in one to the
envs_dirs
folders to the environment folder. It seems to work, but it is not a common practice, so it may have downsides that are unreported.