Use pip and pipenv with self signed SSL certificates

If you work in a cooperate environment, you may be working behind proxies and SSL traffic may be signed by self-signed certificates. This may cause problems while working with pip and especially with pipenv. With current versions of pip, it is possible to ignore SSL errors using the following example command 1.

$ pip install --trusted-host pypi.org --trusted-host files.pythonhosted.org <package_name>

⚠️ This approach is suitable if you know that you are behind a proxy or a similar equipment that signs the traffic with self-signed certificates. Since --trusted-host flag disables SSL checking, this will cause a potential security risk if you are not in such network, like working at home.

I found that --trusted-host flag doesn’t work as expected while working with pipenv. There are some records about this issue 2, 3. Even with the flag, pip throws errors when invoked by pipenv in my setup.

Solution

For me, setting REQUESTS_CA_BUNDLE environment variable prior to calling pipenv solves the problem. (I found the solution on the Stack Overflow but I can’t remember the link). Of course, the certificate file pointed by the varible should include the self signed certificate.

Ubuntu

I tested on Ubuntu 16.04 but this may work on all Debian and Ubuntu derived distros.

$ export REQUESTS_CA_BUNDLE=/etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt

CentOS

I tested on CentOS 7.8 but this may work on all RedHat derived distros.

$ export REQUESTS_CA_BUNDLE=/etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/openssl/ca-bundle.trust.crt

  1. https://stackoverflow.com/a/29751768 ↩

  2. https://github.com/pypa/pipenv/issues/3841 ↩

  3. https://github.com/pypa/pipenv/issues/2979 ↩

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