Configuring a shared package cache

Conda maintains a package cache, a local directory where downloaded packages are stored before being installed into environments. By default, each conda installation uses its own isolated package cache, meaning the same package versions are downloaded and stored separately for each user or installation. Configuring multiple conda installations to share a common package cache can significantly reduce download times and conserve disk space, as packages only need to be downloaded once and can then be reused across all installations that reference the shared cache.

Package cache locations

Normal installation sets a package cache relative to the install directory, which can be found (under package cache) with the following command:

conda info

The typical path to the package cache is:

• Windows: C:\Users\username\Anaconda3\pkgs
• macOS: ~/anaconda3
• Linux: /home/username/anaconda3/pkgs

Shared package cache setup

Create a directory on your system where the shared users have read and write access.

Then, for each user who will have access, edit the .condarc file found in their home directory.

• Windows: C:\Users\username\.condarc

• macOS and Linux: /home/username/.condarc

Edit the .condarc with the following entry, specifying the full path to the shared directory:

pkgs_dirs:
    - /path/to/shared_directory

Verify the package cache by running conda info again.