Resolving Python Interpreter Issues in Positron

Abstract

How to resolve Python interpreter connection timeout issues in Positron A brief description of what’s being troubleshot.

Description

When attempting to connect to a Python interpreter in Positron, the connection may fail to establish and the green indicator symbol does not appear next to the Python interpreter selection.

This issue can occur when the system takes longer than the default 30-second timeout to parse through interpreters and establish a connection to the Python console. This is more likely to happen on slower systems or when multiple Python runtimes are configured.

Solution

To resolve this issue:

1. If you are using Positron version 2025.01.0 or higher, increase the connection timeout setting:

   • Locate and modify the setting positronKernelSupervisor.connectionTimeout in your Positron configuration. To do this:

     • From your Positron IDE, go to File → Preferences → Settings

     • Search for “Kernel Supervisor: Connection Timeout” in the search box.

     • Set the value to a higher number (e.g., 120 seconds) to allow more time for the connection to establish.

     • Restart or start a new Positron session for the changes to take effect.

2. If increasing the timeout resolves the issue but connections are still slow, you can optimize performance by:

   • Excluding unnecessary Python runtimes from being scanned.

   • Setting explicit paths to your preferred Python interpreters.

   • Reviewing the Python interpreter paths in your positron-user-settings.json file.

If you’re still having issues, you can reach out to Support by opening a ticket.