Python: Cleanup all Conda environments

Conda is a popular open-source package manager and environment management system used for Python programming language. It is widely used by data scientists and machine learning engineers for managing packages and dependencies. In some cases, you may need to remove all environments in Conda. This can be helpful when you want to start with a clean slate or when you want to switch to a different version of Conda. In this blog post, we will discuss how to remove all environments in Conda.

Before we begin, it is important to note that removing all environments in Conda will delete all your existing environments and their associated packages. This process is irreversible, so it is recommended that you create a backup of your environment and package information before proceeding with the removal process. You can follow the steps below to achieve your goal.

Step 1: Open the Anaconda prompt or terminal The first step to removing all environments in Conda is to open the Anaconda prompt or terminal. You can do this by searching for “Anaconda prompt” or “Anaconda terminal” in your operating system’s search bar.

Step 2: Deactivate all active environments Before you can remove all environments, you must first deactivate all active environments. You can do this by running the following command in the Anaconda prompt or terminal:

conda deactivate

This will deactivate all active environments, and you will see that your prompt or terminal no longer displays the name of the active environment.

Step 3: Remove all environments To remove all environments in Conda, you can use the conda env list command to list all existing environments, and then use a loop to remove each environment one by one. Run the following commands in the Anaconda prompt or terminal:

conda env list

This command will list all the environments that you have created in Conda. Make sure that you have deactivated all active environments before running the following command:

for env in $(conda env list | awk '{print $1}' | grep -v '#' | grep -v 'base' | grep -v 'Name'); do
    conda remove --name $env --all -y
done

This loop will remove all environments except for the base environment, which is the default environment created by Conda.

Step 4: Confirm removal After running the loop to remove all environments, you can confirm that all environments have been removed by running the conda env list command again. This command should now display only the base environment.

In conclusion, removing all environments in Conda is a simple process that involves deactivating all active environments and then using a loop to remove each environment one by one. It is important to note that this process is irreversible, so it is recommended that you create a backup of your environment and package information before proceeding with the removal process.