Mamba Installation

Mamba Installation#

Docker images#

In addition to the Miniforge standalone distribution (see above), there are also the condaforge/miniforge3 docker images:

docker run -it --rm condaforge/miniforge3:latest mamba info

Conda libmamba solver#

For a totally conda-compatible experience with the fast Mamba solver, conda-libmamba-solver now ships by default with Conda. Just use an up to date version of Conda to enjoy the speed improvememts.

Uninstalling Mamba#

Since mamba is typically installed as part of the Miniforge distribution, uninstalling mamba involves removing the entire Miniforge installation.

Note

Before uninstalling, you can check your specific installation paths by running:

mamba info

This will show you important information such as:

  • envs directories: where your environments are stored

  • package cache: where downloaded packages are cached

  • user config files: location of your .mambarc file

  • populated config files: location of your .condarc file

  • base environment: the base Miniforge installation directory (parent of the base env)

Use these paths to adapt the commands below to your specific installation.

1. Remove shell initialization#

If you initialized your shell with mamba shell init, you need to remove the initialization code from your shell configuration files. Run the following command for each shell you initialized:

mamba shell deinit -s bash    # for bash
mamba shell deinit -s zsh     # for zsh
mamba shell deinit -s fish    # for fish
mamba shell deinit -s xonsh   # for xonsh
mamba shell deinit -s csh     # for csh/tcsh
mamba shell deinit -s nu      # for nushell

On Windows PowerShell:

mamba shell deinit -s powershell

This will remove the mamba initialization block from your shell configuration files (.bashrc, .zshrc, config.fish, etc.).

2. Remove the Miniforge installation directory and package cache#

The Miniforge installation directory contains mamba, conda, and all installed packages and environments. Check mamba info to find the exact location:

  • The base environment path shows the Miniforge installation directory (it’s the parent of the base env)

  • The package cache location is shown under package cache

Default locations depend on your operating system:

  • Linux/macOS: Usually ~/miniforge3 or ~/mambaforge

  • Windows: Usually C:\Users\<username>\miniforge3 or C:\Users\<username>\mambaforge

# Linux/macOS - remove the installation directory
# Use the base environment path from 'mamba info' to find the exact location
rm -rf ~/miniforge3
# or
rm -rf ~/mambaforge

# Also remove the package cache if it's in a separate location
# (check the 'package cache' path from 'mamba info')
rm -rf ~/.cache/conda/pkgs  # or your specific cache location

On Windows PowerShell:

# Use the base environment path from 'mamba info' to find the exact location
Remove-Item -Recurse -Force $env:USERPROFILE\miniforge3
# or
Remove-Item -Recurse -Force $env:USERPROFILE\mambaforge
# Also remove package cache if separate (check 'mamba info' for exact path)

Warning

This will delete the entire Miniforge installation, including all environments, installed packages, and cached data. Make sure you have backed up any important environments or data before removing this directory.

3. Remove configuration files (optional)#

Check mamba info for the exact paths to your configuration files:

  • user config files shows the location of .mambarc

  • populated config files shows the location of .condarc

If you want to remove these configuration files:

# Use the paths from 'mamba info', or default locations:
rm ~/.mambarc        # if it exists
rm ~/.condarc        # if it exists and was only used for mamba/miniforge

On Windows:

# Use the paths from 'mamba info', or default locations:
Remove-Item $env:USERPROFILE\.mambarc -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Remove-Item $env:USERPROFILE\.condarc -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Note

If you also use conda from another distribution (like Anaconda), be careful not to delete shared configuration files that are still needed.

4. Remove from PATH (if manually added)#

If you manually added Miniforge to your PATH, remove those entries from your shell configuration files (.bashrc, .zshrc, .profile, etc.).

After completing these steps, mamba and the Miniforge distribution will be completely removed from your system.

Contents