Add upper bound to protobuf in setup.py.

See also: #53234
See also: protocolbuffers/protobuf#9954
See also: #56077

PiperOrigin-RevId: 450054200

tensorflow/tools/pip_package/setup.py

@@ -87,7 +87,14 @@ def standard_or_nightly(standard, nightly):
     'numpy >= 1.20',
     'opt_einsum >= 2.3.2',
     'packaging',
-    'protobuf >= 3.9.2',
+    # TODO(b/182876485): Protobuf 3.20 results in linker errors on Windows
+    # Protobuf 4.0 is binary incompatible with what C++ TF uses.
+    # We need ~1 quarter to update properly.
+    # See also: https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/issues/53234
+    # See also: https://github.com/protocolbuffers/protobuf/issues/9954
+    # See also: https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/issues/56077
+    # This is a temporary patch for now, to patch previous TF releases.
+    'protobuf >= 3.9.2, < 3.20',
     'setuptools',
     'six >= 1.12.0',
     'termcolor >= 1.1.0',