ContextualVersionConflict error message when using "from google.cloud import vision" on google colab

Question

When I try to run !pip install google-cloud-vision and from google.cloud import visionon google colab

I get the following error:

ContextualVersionConflict (protobuf 3.17.3 (/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages), Requirement.parse('protobuf!=3.20.0,!=3.20.1,!=4.21.0,!=4.21.1,!=4.21.2,!=4.21.3,!=4.21.4,!=4.21.5,<5.0.0dev,>=3.19.5'), {'google-cloud-vision'})

I try several ways, it is not working

1. use !ls to check the protobuf in the colab path, it shows "protobuf-4.21.9.dist-info"
2. try to !pip install protobuf ==4.21.1
3. !gitclone the whole package of protobuf from github under the colab path of /content

I wonder if i am putting into a wrong route, or is there any thing else i can try to solve this problem.

Answer 1

Hmmm.... I'm not familiar with Google Collab but it appears the default protobuf version is out of date:

!pip freeze | grep protobuf

Yields:

protobuf==3.17.3

And:

!pip install protobuf==4.21.9
!pip install google-cloud-vision
!pip freeze | grep protobuf

Yields:

protobuf==4.21.9

Then:

from google.cloud import vision

vision

Seems to be ok:

<module 'google.cloud.vision' from '/usr/local/lib/python3.7/dist-packages/google/cloud/vision/__init__.py'>