3.5 Win install fails with "TARGETDIR"

[felipeochoa]

BPO	25144
Nosy	@pfmoore, @tjguk, @peterjc, @zware, @zooba
Files	Python 3.5.0 (32-bit)_20150916132422.log python install failure.zip: The log of Python installer Python 3.6.3 (32-bit)_20171120135800.log: TARGETDIR not set error

^{Note: these values reflect the state of the issue at the time it was migrated and might not reflect the current state.}

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GitHub fields:

assignee = 'https://github.com/zooba'
closed_at = <Date 2016-09-09.23:40:57.652>
created_at = <Date 2015-09-16.17:35:32.120>
labels = ['expert-installation']
title = '3.5 Win install fails with "TARGETDIR"'
updated_at = <Date 2017-11-21.04:14:42.799>
user = 'https://github.com/felipeochoa'

bugs.python.org fields:

activity = <Date 2017-11-21.04:14:42.799>
actor = 'fov'
assignee = 'steve.dower'
closed = True
closed_date = <Date 2016-09-09.23:40:57.652>
closer = 'steve.dower'
components = ['Installation']
creation = <Date 2015-09-16.17:35:32.120>
creator = 'fov'
dependencies = []
files = ['40492', '47084', '47278']
hgrepos = []
issue_num = 25144
keywords = []
message_count = 19.0
messages = ['250857', '251375', '253734', '253738', '253747', '253751', '255817', '256226', '256227', '261144', '270418', '273115', '275496', '275497', '300290', '300299', '300328', '306538', '306626']
nosy_count = 15.0
nosy_names = ['paul.moore', 'tim.golden', 'maubp', 'python-dev', 'zach.ware', 'steve.dower', 'ivan.radic', 'lac', 'WadeH', 'cbj4074', 'Claude', 'OBSOLETE', 'basuj81', 'Yu Zhigang', 'Per Fryking']
pr_nums = []
priority = 'normal'
resolution = 'fixed'
stage = 'resolved'
status = 'closed'
superseder = None
type = None
url = 'https://bugs.python.org/issue25144'
versions = ['Python 3.5', 'Python 3.6']

[felipeochoa]

The 3.5 Windows installer fails with "The TARGETDIR variable must be provided when invoking this installer"

Here are the steps I followed:

1. Initial screen:

   • uncheck the add path and all users options
   • select "Customize installation"

2. Optional features:

   • Check all boxes except "all users"

3. Advanced options

   • Uncheck all
   • Pick a different path to install to (clean folder)

4. A message box pops up saying "The TARGETDIR variable must be provided when invoking this installer" -- I hit OK.

5. Final screen showing 0x8007063 - Fatal error during installation

I've saved the log file and can upload if helpful, but will have to remove personal info first

[zooba]

Well, I made this happen once, but not a second time. That's better than most setup issues I get to deal with :)

Still working on it - will post when I figure it out.

[peterjc]

We just hit this bug with "The TARGETDIR variable must be provided when invoking this installer" and an OK button (only) on a colleagues' machine.

We first tried https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.5.0/python-3.5.0-webinstall.exe (default options) and then https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.5.0/python-3.5.0.exe (default options plus checked add to PATH) with the same problem.

My colleague recalls having previously installed and then removed Python 3.5 on this machine (possibly a pre-release or beta version). Could anything in the registry or on left disk trigger this?

[zooba]

That's a good idea.

Can you grab the log files from %UserProfile%\AppData\Local\Temp (sort by date - they'll all be grouped together) and upload to this issue?

Like Felipe, you may want to censor some usernames/paths. If you do, please let me know if they contain anything other than letters or digits (spaces and punctuation may be very important here).

[lac]

webmaster just got mail from another person hit with this on Windows 10.

[WadeH]

I had the same problem when trying to install 3.5 with Windows 10. I got the same results as Felipe has listed in the post from 9/16.

[cbj4074]

Still a problem with python-2.7.10.amd64.msi. A bit surprising that this has not been addressed since 2015.05.23...

[ivanradic]

I got this with 3.5.1 installer on Windows 7. I solved it by running installer with elevated privileges. Installer for 2.7.11 was not affected.

[zooba]

Good to hear there's a workaround.

I seem to recall an issue in the past with some security policies that disallow passing parameters to installers. This may be the cause here. When I get a chance to sit at a computer I'll see if I can track that down.

[Claude]

To solve the problem with the variable TARGETDIR not being initialized, I called the installation program from the command shell and added the target dir option.

c:\Users\xxxx\Downloads>python-3.5.1-amd64.exe TargetDir=c:\Python35

I also us the custom installation option (using the Install Now might not work). You should see that the target dir is properly setup to what you have specified.

Now it installed without a problem.

[OBSOLETE]

For me the custom installer worked by combining the two solutions above:

1. open an elevated command prompt
2. run the installer by specifying the TargetDir