pypa/pip · error · BadCommand

No permission to execute {cls.name!r} - install it locally,

Error message

No permission to execute {cls.name!r} - install it locally, globally (ask admin), or check your PATH. See possible solutions at https://pip.pypa.io/en/latest/reference/pip_freeze/#fixing-permission-denied.

What it means

Raised by `VCS.run_command` when executing the VCS binary raises `PermissionError` (EACCES) — the file exists but the current user lacks execute permission on it. Common when a tool is installed for a different user or the binary's mode bits forbid execution. pip wraps it as `BadCommand` and links the pip docs on fixing permission-denied.

Source

Thrown at src/pip/_internal/vcs/versioncontrol.py:664

                spinner=spinner,
                log_failed_cmd=log_failed_cmd,
                stdout_only=stdout_only,
            )
        except NotADirectoryError:
            raise BadCommand(f"Cannot find command {cls.name!r} - invalid PATH")
        except FileNotFoundError:
            # errno.ENOENT = no such file or directory
            # In other words, the VCS executable isn't available
            raise BadCommand(
                f"Cannot find command {cls.name!r} - do you have "
                f"{cls.name!r} installed and in your PATH?"
            )
        except PermissionError:
            # errno.EACCES = Permission denied
            # This error occurs, for instance, when the command is installed
            # only for another user. So, the current user don't have
            # permission to call the other user command.
            raise BadCommand(
                f"No permission to execute {cls.name!r} - install it "
                f"locally, globally (ask admin), or check your PATH. "
                f"See possible solutions at "
                f"https://pip.pypa.io/en/latest/reference/pip_freeze/"
                f"#fixing-permission-denied."
            )

    @classmethod
    def is_repository_directory(cls, path: str) -> bool:
        """
        Return whether a directory path is a repository directory.
        """
        logger.debug("Checking in %s for %s (%s)...", path, cls.dirname, cls.name)
        return os.path.exists(os.path.join(path, cls.dirname))

    @classmethod
    def get_repository_root(cls, location: str) -> str | None:
        """

View on GitHub (pinned to d7d0d0a394)

Solutions

1. Run `chmod +x $(which git)` (or `svn`/`hg`/`bzr`) to restore the execute bit.
2. Reinstall the VCS tool for the current user, or system-wide via the package manager so permissions are correct.
3. If you lack admin rights, install a local user copy (e.g. via conda/homebrew user install) and prepend its bin to PATH.
4. Check parent directory permissions do not block traversal to the binary.

Example fix

# before
$ pip install git+https://github.com/org/repo.git
-> BadCommand: No permission to execute 'git'

# after
$ sudo chmod +x $(which git)
$ pip install git+https://github.com/org/repo.git

import os, shutil, stat

def ensure_vcs_executable(name: str) -> None:
    path = shutil.which(name)
    if path is None:
        raise EnvironmentError(f"{name!r} not on PATH")
    if not os.access(path, os.X_OK):
        raise PermissionError(f"{path} is not executable by current user")

null

from pip._internal.exceptions import BadCommand
try:
    pip_api_call(...)
except BadCommand as e:
    if "No permission to execute" in str(e):
        # chmod/reinstall path
        ...

When it happens

Trigger: `call_subprocess` raises `PermissionError` while spawning `git`/`svn`/`hg`/`bzr`. The executable is present on PATH but its filesystem permissions (or a parent directory's) deny the current user the x-bit.

Common situations: A shared server where git was installed by another user with mode 0700; a broken `chmod` that stripped execute bits; running pip as a different uid than the one that owns the binary; containers where binaries were copied without preserving exec permissions.

Related errors

• venv-creation-error
• An error occurred while writing to the configuration file {f
• Error reading {path}: {e}
• Cannot find command {cls.name!r} - invalid PATH
• Cannot find command {cls.name!r} - do you have {cls.name!r}

AI-assisted analysis of pypa/pip@d7d0d0a394 (2026-08-04). Data as JSON: /data/errors/e47f6263aebbbf40.json. Report an issue: GitHub.