Auto Claude does not detect Homebrew Python (3.14) on macOS and fails with EACCES when custom path is provided

[dskarasev]

Checklist

• I searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported

Area

Backend

Operating System

macOS

Version

2.7.1

What happened?

After creating a task, I encountered the following error:

Error: Auto Claude requires Python 3.10 or higher.
You are running Python 3.9.6
Please upgrade Python: https://www.python.org/downloads/

This is the system Python version bundled with macOS.

I have Homebrew installed and Python 3.14.2 installed via Homebrew, but Auto Claude does not detect or use this version, even when I explicitly configure the Python path.

Steps to reproduce

1. Install Python via Homebrew
2. Verify Homebrew Python version
3. Launch Auto Claude
4. Create a new task
5. Observe the error
6. Open Auto Claude settings and set Python path to one of the following:
   /opt/homebrew/bin/python3
   /opt/homebrew/bin
7. Restart Auto Claude and retry — the same error persists
8. Attempt to set a direct path to the Homebrew Python binary directory /opt/homebrew/Cellar/python@3.14/3.14.2/bin
9. Run the task again
10. Observe the new error

Expected behavior

Auto Claude should detect and use the Homebrew-installed Python version (≥ 3.10).
Explicitly configured Python paths should be respected.
No EACCES error should occur when pointing to a valid executable Python binary.

Logs / Screenshots

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🔗 Similar Issues

Possible Duplicates

• Error: Auto Claude requires Python 3.10 or higher. You are running Python 3.9.6 #178

Related Issues

• No module named 'dotenv' #167
• Auto-Claude bundled Python is 3.9, but requirements need claude-agent-sdk>=0.1.16 (Python 3.10+), so PythonEnvManager never becomes ready on macOS #180
• Python venv creation fails with Python 3.9 - claude-agent-sdk requires Python 3.10+ #232
• application incorrectly complains missing python #258

🔗 Related PRs

#208 - fix: Add Python 3.10+ version validation and GitHub Actions Python setup (#180 #167) [merged]
#241 - fix: resolve Python detection and backend packaging issues [merged]

👤 Suggested Assignees

• hafizSiddiq7675
• kings1990
• aguilarguisado
• tob-as
• kevinxh

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[tyler-b4innova]

PR submitted: #399

This implements the fix-path approach as proposed. Minimal changes - just adds the dependency and calls fixPath() at app startup.

[joelfuller2016]

@openhands-agent Please fix this Homebrew Python detection issue on macOS.

Issue Summary: Auto Claude does not detect Homebrew-installed Python 3.14 on macOS. It defaults to system Python 3.9.6, and when user explicitly sets the Python path to Homebrew location, it fails with EACCES permission error.

Platform: macOS, Auto Claude v2.7.1

Problem Details:

1. App uses system Python (3.9.6) instead of Homebrew Python (3.14.2)
2. Setting path to /opt/homebrew/bin/python3 doesn't work
3. Setting path to /opt/homebrew/Cellar/python@3.14/3.14.2/bin causes EACCES error

Investigation Areas:

1. apps/backend/core/ - Python path detection and validation logic
2. apps/frontend/src/ - Settings UI for Python path configuration
3. apps/backend/ - Backend startup that validates Python version
4. Check how the app discovers and validates Python installations

Required Fix:

1. Add Homebrew Python paths to the search order on macOS:
   • /opt/homebrew/bin/python3 (Apple Silicon)
   • /usr/local/bin/python3 (Intel Macs)
   • /opt/homebrew/Cellar/python@3.*/*/bin/python3
2. Fix path validation to handle symlinks correctly (Homebrew uses symlinks)
3. Fix EACCES error - ensure the configured path points to the executable, not directory
4. When user sets custom path, validate it's an executable file with correct version
5. Add better error messaging when Python validation fails

macOS-Specific Considerations:

• Homebrew installs to /opt/homebrew on Apple Silicon, /usr/local on Intel
• Python is usually symlinked from /opt/homebrew/bin/python3 to Cellar location
• User should set path to the symlink, not the Cellar directory

Target Branch: develop

[aashir-khan]

@joelfuller2016 I have apple silicon (m4 max) and homebrew is installed to /usr/local

[AndyMik90]

✅ This issue has been fixed

This issue was resolved by commit 8d58dd6f - fix: prefer versioned Homebrew Python over system python3 (#494)

What was fixed:

• Added homebrew-python.ts utility with findHomebrewPython() function
• Now explicitly checks for Python 3.14 (and 3.13, 3.12, 3.11, 3.10) in Homebrew paths
• Supports both Apple Silicon (/opt/homebrew/bin) and Intel Mac (/usr/local/bin)
• No more EACCES errors when trying to access system Python
• Comprehensive logging shows which Python path is being used

How to get the fix:

Please update to Auto-Claude v2.7.2 or later to get this fix.

Related issues:

• No task is running #567 (No task is running - dotenv) - Same root cause ✅ Fixed
• macOS Apple Silicon: Python path not working despite correct configuration #458 (macOS Apple Silicon: Python path not working) - Same root cause ✅ Fixed

If you're still experiencing this issue after updating to v2.7.2+, please let us know and we'll reopen this issue.

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🤖 Automated issue triage

[AndyMik90]

Closing as fixed in v2.7.2. Please reopen if you still experience this issue after updating.