[SageMath Build issue] never-ending loop that asks to install packages that are already installed

[Seohyeon “Alex” Lee]

I have a Mac M1 and I'm working on building Sage from source. I followed the instructions from the README page and the linked documentation, but noticed I keep getting recommendations like the following at the end of ./configure.
```
config.status: creating convenience symlink venv -> local/var/lib/sage/venv-python3.12.5
real_configure:

    notice: the following SPKGs did not find equivalent system packages:

        cypari fpylll mathjax pplpy primecountpy python3   4ti2 _develop _recommended coxeter3 free_fonts fricas gp2c igraph msolve onetbb perl_cpan_polymake_prereq perl_mongodb perl_term_readline_gnu polymake texlive texlive_luatex xindy
       
checking for the package system in use... conda
real_configure:

    hint: installing the following system packages, if not
    already present, is recommended and may avoid having to
    build them (though some may have to be built anyway):

      $ conda install mathjax

real_configure:

    hint: installing the following system packages, if not
    already present, may provide additional optional features:

      $ conda install 4ti2 openssh pycodestyle esbonio open-fonts igraph tbb

real_configure:

    hint: After installation, re-run configure using:

      $ make reconfigure
```
If I try installing the packages mentioned here, I get
```
Transaction

  Prefix: /Users/{myusername}/miniforge3/envs/sage-dev

  All requested packages already installed
```
If I ignore this and run make, I end up in the same loop. What can I do to break out of this cycle?

[Dima Pasechnik]

Do want to use Conda for your Sage installation?
If not, you should isolate your Conda install from Sage (deactivate
the environment, make sure that it's not in the PATH, etc)
If yes, you seem to be following a wrong procedure.

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[Seohyeon “Alex” Lee]

I used miniforge. The recommendations say 'conda install' but what I actually did was 'mamba install -c conda-forge [packages that showed up in recommendations...]

[Dima Pasechnik]

If you use Conda then you should not run ./configure.

<https://doc.sagemath.org/html/en/installation/source.html#using-conda>

[Seohyeon “Alex” Lee]

Is it pip install --no-build-isolation --editable . and straight to step 7 in the README (make configure) then? 

[Dima Pasechnik]

no, neither configure nor make are to be run
in this case.

after "pip install" it should just work.

[Seohyeon “Alex” Lee]

I built sage! Thank you so much for helping out!

On Thursday, March 19, 2026 at 10:02:08 AM UTC+9 dim...@gmail.com wrote: