Setting PYTHONPATH on Windows under Anaconda without elevated privileges

Question

I have a Windows 7 machine with a 32-bit install of anaconda, installed for the local user. The install works as expected: it allows me to run python and pip from the command line, switch environments, etc.

I also have a library of code that I wrote sitting in My Documents. I would like to add an entry like C:\Users\username\Documents\MyLib to my PYTHONPATH. This would normally not be an issue, but I do not have the elevated privileges that this (work-issued) computer requires to modify environment variables through the Windows UI.

I am looking for a way to set PYTHONPATH. I only need it to work within the anaconda environment (i.e., I just want to be able to import my library using that particular interpreter). Solutions using sys.path.append within my scripts are not acceptable. I am, however, OK with doing sys.path.append in some script that will be executed automatically whenever I run python myscript.py.

I suspect that there is a way to get around the privilege restrictions imposed through the Windows UI though, because running conda info -a shows that the Anaconda installer was able to insert items into the PATH, specifically, C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Continuum\Anaconda3\Library\bin;....

Answer 1

Since you said, you mostly use Spyder, the following might be useful:

Spyder offers the option to manage PYTHONPATH through an integrated manager.