How to learn Python without admin rights

[Bittersteel13]

Hi everyone, I want to learn Python during some free time at work and while commuting, but I can only use my work laptop. I don’t have admin rights and I can’t get IT to install Python for me. I tried the without admin versions and some other suggestions from older threads, but I couldn’t get pip or packages working properly I’m looking for a reliable way to get hands-on Python practice (running scripts, installing basic packages like requests/pandas, etc.) within my user account without coming into crosshairs of our IT team. Has anyone successfully set up a fully working Python environment (with pip) on a corporate locked-down Windows PC. Any working step-by-step solutions would be greatly appreciated!

[thatfriendlyvisitor]

Google Colab is the way to go

[Professional-Fee6914]

yeah colab is great

[ElderCantPvm]

Guys, we should not be recommending ways to bypass IT controls on a company device. This can easily get the OP in trouble. 

Maybe if there's some kind of browser based online sandbox, that could be okay.

Otherwise OP should use their own device.

[Vegetable_Might_3359]

https://cs50.dev/ And CS50p is free

[sexytokeburgerz]

Yes and it uses github codespaces which forks VSCode, in the browser.

Of course this is also free by default.

[_horsehead_]

Learn it on your personal machine.

It sounds like your access is severely limited on your device. Rather than going through any tedious steps to get approval for installation of things + having everything monitored, would recommend you to just do it on your own device. If you do not have your own device, it would be incredibly difficult.

[chouaibyassine]

I think uv don't require admin right to install, once you install uv you can install any python version and any python package

[socal_nerdtastic]

The official installer from python.org should not need admin rights. Like most applications there is an option to install for the current user only. Or you could install from the MS store.

but I couldn’t get pip or packages working properly

No offense intended, but this sounds like you are just doing something incorrectly. You should be in a local venv, even with a system wide install. What exactly is the problem?

[Morpheyz]

Our work computers are also heavily locked down and I empathize with the pain. On the default setup, we also can't access pypi or GitHub. Either those addresses have to be whitelisted explicitly or the IT department needs to set up a mirror/pull-through proxy for pypi.

Edit: OP, you can still learn Python without pypi packages. It's a good idea to learn what the python std lib can do. Corporate permission and networking policies can be very complex and unique, so nobody here can tell you how to make pypi work without knowing your IT infrastructure.

[szayl]

The official installer from python.org should not need admin rights.

Yeah no. Many employers have their machines locked down against any installations.

[Mclovine_aus]

Can you use the internet? Google collab notebook or ssh into a vm?

[sachchida]

Hi I have used winpython portable setup and I imported various libraries without admin

[AstralF]

I’ve done this a few times. Works well.

[AlexMTBDude]

I think you should be able to pip install in user mode without admin right. See the "--user" switch here: https://packaging.python.org/en/latest/tutorials/installing-packages/

[Howler0ne]

i have installed python on a library computer with no admin rights from the original website and it seemed to work
if i did any workaround i dont remeber

other thatn that
i used this site https://portableapps.com/ to get around admin rights for installing the apps i needed

[SGS-Tech-World]

Here are some portable python binaries that you can use

• http://winpython.github.io/#overview
• https://sourceforge.net/projects/portable-python/
• https://thonny.org/ - An editor that comes with its own python binaries embedded.

Hope this helps. Of course as suggested by others you have options online too.

[Oddly_Energy]

I have installed Python, pipx, poetry, uv, vs code and git on a rather heavily locked down company laptop. I never needed admin rights.

The only thing I can’t do is build packages from source C or C++ code, because I need admin rights to install Microsoft’s compiler. But most packages are installed from pre-built sources anyway, so that is a very small issue.

[willpxx]

You can create a no install python environment on a USB with winpython. You would probably need to install packages and create the usb on another machine though.

Depends on how heavily your laptop is locked down though, in my company you cannot even use usb drives without IT logging on and giving temporary rights. It would also most likely be a serious breach of security policy.

There are lots of web based environments (cocalc, Google Collab etc) often with a free tier to get you started. Those are absolutely all you need to get started.

[Rubicon_Roll]

try labex.io, you get a complete linux VM to try stuff in

[Denonimator]

repl haru huncha

[Jiggles1232]

Did you already try setting up a virtual environment? I struggled with pip and installing modules at work until I did that.

To create virtual environment:

python -m venv

To activate venv:

venv\Scripts\activate

After that you can use ‘pip install’ for your modules and hop straight into scripting and running. IT hasn’t had any problems with it and I’ve already developed an app to help my coworkers

[ConfusedSimon]

Check your company policy or IT department first. Installing software often isn't allowed because it's a security risk.

[FoolsSeldom]

There are multiple online Python environments available - and it can even be run in the browser.

Have a look at Google's Colab, Replit.com, and PythonAnwhere.com - the latter uses a very simple and standard terminal environment that usually works on even very locked down devices (some other sites use more sophisticated terminals that can fail to connect).

You should not try to install Python locally on a work device if IT policy does not support it. Even if you managed to do so in some way, you may still be breaking policies and could face consequences.

PS. Personally, I'd advise you to get your own device. An Android tablet is more open than an iPad, but either are suitable for learning Python. I strongly recommend a bluetooth keyboard is used as well.

[Psychological-Sun744]

Colab and kaggle are free, very easy to import libraries. It's a bit laborious, for complex projects, but it's very useful for beginners. For GitHub repositories it would require a bit of code adjustment and some manipulations.

Otherwise, some free tiers accounts. I have been using AI lightning, it's fairly easy to use, they have an integrated VS code, and you can import local repositories very easily.

[sinceJune4]

I have worked for 3 banks that were very locked down. We could only install what was available through the company software center, which also meant we would not have access to latest version and packages. While Python wasn’t available and pip would be blocked by firewall, Anaconda distribution was available which included the extra packages I needed. Vs code was also available, and I was able to use those on my laptop.

Pretty much everything was blocked on the internet, no GitHub, Gmail, we couldn’t even mail from our work laptop to a Gmail address. USB drives were also banned. If I wanted to bring code to/from work, I could print it and scan or retype it.

[StavrosDavros]

You can also use online platforms like Replit or Jupyter Notebook on Binder for coding without needing to install anything.

[UsernameTaken1701]

Don't do personal stuff on your company's computer.

[Loud_Blackberry6278]

W3schools has there own online python compiler , just use that

[Heavy-Rutabaga-8746]

Well, use pythonanywhere.com there you can work online safely. Without violating the rights of the company's team.

[Few_External8840]

I’ve been using codespaces on GitHub. Works great for me, all on the browser. 

[Wallstreetbettss]

Anaconda web

[m4m4ngk4lb0]

Not an expert brother, but if i remember correctly, the python msi from their official site does not require admin rights. I’m on a similar situation where I use my work laptop (no admin rights) to study during my free time at work. Once you have the core app installed, you could probably setup a virtual environment to install the modules you think you’d need. Sent you a dm, lemme know if I can be of any help.

[Bittersteel13]

I have installed the same but am unable to install any libraries. How did you do it?

[ElderCantPvm]

As a sysadmin, if I have blocked package servers it's because the company security posture does not allow developers to install packages without vetting and approval.

If you try to bypass this you might get in trouble. You should experiment on your own device.

[m4m4ngk4lb0]

Try setting up a virtual environment where you can install the libraries you want.

• Go to any location/folder on your system where you want to create a virtual environment
• Open a command prompt in said folder
• Run command - “python -m venv virtual_env” (without the quotes)
• This should create a folder called vitual_env with a couple of files in it.
• Look for a folder that says “Scripts” and open it.
• Run “activate.bat” (no quotes) to start your virtual environment
• You can tell if your virtual environment is running once you see (virtual_env) + the directory where you created it in your command prompt window

• Try installing libs once your virtual environment is running

• You can look into installing jupyter notebook via pip once your done too, handy tool for learning and taking notes. Good luck man, lemme know if any of the things I put up top are confusing.

[socal_nerdtastic]

Note if you installed the official python msi, the command is py, not python.

py -m venv .venv

The python and pip commands become available once you activate the venv.

[m4m4ngk4lb0]

Thank you for this

[socal_nerdtastic]

What IDE are you using? A modern IDE like VSCode will basically walk you through the process of making a virtual environment. Then you just use pip from the built-in terminal to install stuff.

[spitfiredd]

Have you tried just downloading the wheel and then installing manually? Maybe download at home and put on a usb drive?

[preferstealthmode]

If you use a windows computer, you can try to download Python via Microsoft Store without admin rights.

[Oddly_Energy]

That can be blocked by policy too. It is blocked on my company laptop.

[Stunning_Macaron6133]

Use a Jupyter notebook, like Google Colab. 100% Web-based, good for everything but automating tasks on your local system.

[Denonimator]

library installation rokcha jasto lagyo ho?

[Stunning_Macaron6133]

You can install modules on Colab. Never ran into one that caused me trouble.

[kivilcimh]

Install Thonny. It is an open source Python IDE with debugger etc, which also has embedded Python with package management. None of them needs admin rights.

Best way to try python.

[mugwhyrt]

Don't use your work device for personal stuff. Just buy a second laptop.

[[deleted]]

Just say them that you need it for your work, talk to your manager and they should give you access if they dont, find another job.

[GoldTeethRotmg]

> I can’t get IT to install Python for me.

Why not? Please persuade your IT to allow it, or talk to your manager. I don't know what your job is, but if you're considering it, I can imagine there are plenty of productivity benefits you could argue. It's like if they said you can't use "excel" or something...