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Error "protoc-gen-go: program not found or is not executable"
Asked Answered
Solved goprotocol-buffersgrpcprotoprotoc
L

19

96

I am trying to build a sample application with Go gRPC, but I am unable to generate the code using "protoc"

I have installed the required libraries and Go packages using:

  1. go get -u google.golang.org/grpc
  2. go get -u github.com/golang/protobuf/protoc-gen-go

I have tried setting the path as well, but no luck.

Sample "proto" file:

syntax = "proto3";

package greet;
option go_package="greetpb";

service GreetService{}

Error message:

"protoc-gen-go: program not found or is not executable
--go_out: protoc-gen-go: Plugin failed with status code 1."

Lalalalage answered 28/8, 2019 at 22:39 Comment(5)
Can you add the exact command you are executing? – Bibliogony
"protoc greet/greetpb/greet.proto --go_out=plugins=grpc:." Folder structure: greet->greetpb-> greet.proto file – Lalalalage
Read the documentation grpc.io/docs/languages/go/quickstart/#prerequisites – Unavailing
For Mac Users: simply use brew install protoc-gen-go or another plugin like brew install protoc-gen-go-grpc, thereafter probably got install in /usr/local/Cellar/protoc-gen-go/version/bin, add it permanently either on .zshrc (recommend) or .bash_history or .bash_profile. check by protoc-gen-go --version simple! – Floorwalker
@Floorwalker This solved my issue well. Thanks. – Praxis
L
58

I resolved it by following these steps:

Install the Go library using:

go get -u github.com/golang/protobuf/{proto,protoc-gen-go}
  1. Run vim ~/.bash_profile
  2. Add: 
    export GO_PATH=~/go
export PATH=$PATH:/$GO_PATH/bin
  3. Run source ~/.bash_profile

Reference: Unable to build protobuf to go endpoint

Lalalalage answered 30/8, 2019 at 16:29 Comment(7)
This wouldn't work as the protoc compiler can't resolve ~ – Dirham
As an aside, you really should be using .bashrc instead of .bash_profile – Dirham
@SoumasishGoswami can you explain why use .bashrc instead of .bash_profile? – Donielle
@TannishaHill .bash_profile or better yet .profile is preferable for env vars which you export because it is usually only executed once, by login shells. .bashrc is executed by all interactive shells, so you end up just blithely reexporting the env vars everytime you manually launch a child shell. – Benefice
go: module github.com/golang/protobuf is deprecated: Use the "google.golang.org/protobuf" module instead. go get: installing executables with 'go get' in module mode is deprecated. – Endocrine
'go get' is no longer supported outside a module. To build and install a command, use 'go install' with a version. Here is a sample command to use: go install github.com/golang/protobuf/proto@latest github.com/golang/protobuf/protoc-gen-go@latest – Blabbermouth
if you are using zsh shell you have to change .zshrc file – Simplex
C
61

Go 1.17+

From https://go.dev/doc/go-get-install-deprecation

Starting in Go 1.17, installing executables with go get is deprecated. go install may be used instead.

~/.bashrc

export GOPATH=$HOME/go
export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin

Install

go install google.golang.org/protobuf/cmd/protoc-gen-go@latest

go: downloading google.golang.org/protobuf v1.27.1

go install google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/protoc-gen-go-grpc@latest

go: downloading google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/protoc-gen-go-grpc v1.2.0

go: downloading google.golang.org/grpc v1.44.0

file.go

protoc --go-grpc_out=. *.proto

Environment

Courier answered 9/3, 2022 at 10:24 Comment(5)
In my case, it worked when I added this part export GOPATH=$HOME/go export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin to ~/.bash_profile – Herbert
This probably isn't what most people want. Since most people are now using go mod, the appropriate option isn't to set GOPATH, but rather to use GOFLAGS=-mod=readonly go install {package} and then it will use GOPATH that's set in your go env. – Banas
always remember to re-run source ~/.bashrc in your terminal before spending hours cursing as to why the top voted answer doesn't work... – Shaped
this guy is a hero – Rostellum
Setting the path to the one in the answer worked for me. The grpc docs say to set it to export PATH="$PATH:$(go env GOPATH)/bin", but that does NOT work for me. – Quartered
L
58

I resolved it by following these steps:

Install the Go library using:

go get -u github.com/golang/protobuf/{proto,protoc-gen-go}
  1. Run vim ~/.bash_profile
  2. Add: 
    export GO_PATH=~/go
export PATH=$PATH:/$GO_PATH/bin
  3. Run source ~/.bash_profile

Reference: Unable to build protobuf to go endpoint

Lalalalage answered 30/8, 2019 at 16:29 Comment(7)
This wouldn't work as the protoc compiler can't resolve ~ – Dirham
As an aside, you really should be using .bashrc instead of .bash_profile – Dirham
@SoumasishGoswami can you explain why use .bashrc instead of .bash_profile? – Donielle
@TannishaHill .bash_profile or better yet .profile is preferable for env vars which you export because it is usually only executed once, by login shells. .bashrc is executed by all interactive shells, so you end up just blithely reexporting the env vars everytime you manually launch a child shell. – Benefice
go: module github.com/golang/protobuf is deprecated: Use the "google.golang.org/protobuf" module instead. go get: installing executables with 'go get' in module mode is deprecated. – Endocrine
'go get' is no longer supported outside a module. To build and install a command, use 'go install' with a version. Here is a sample command to use: go install github.com/golang/protobuf/proto@latest github.com/golang/protobuf/protoc-gen-go@latest – Blabbermouth
if you are using zsh shell you have to change .zshrc file – Simplex
A
55

Tannisha Hill indicated that the following package had to be added:

sudo apt install protobuf-compiler

In my case, I also had to add this one:

sudo apt install golang-goprotobuf-dev
Albaugh answered 27/6, 2020 at 16:53 Comment(2)
module github.com/golang/protobuf is deprecated: Use the "google.golang.org/protobuf" module instead – Enterogastrone
On what system and distribution (incl. versions)? Was it Ubuntu 20.04 (Focal Fossa)? Or something else? – Cureall
D
35

There are two ways to install the protobuf compiler. If you're on Ubuntu you can use this:

sudo apt install protobuf-compiler

Then of course there's the standard way:

go get -u github.com/golang/protobuf/{proto,protoc-gen-go}

Here forward it's just adding the path. Assuming when you installed Go you did this,

echo 'export GOPATH=$HOME/Go' >> $HOME/.bashrc
source $HOME/.bashrc

Now you can just extend this:

echo 'export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin' >> $HOME/.bashrc
source $HOME/.bashrc

Strangely protoc can't expand ~.

Dirham answered 30/8, 2019 at 17:46 Comment(1)
'go get' is no longer supported outside a module. To build and install a command, use 'go install' with a version Here is a sample command to use: go install github.com/golang/protobuf/proto@latest github.com/golang/protobuf/protoc-gen-go@latest – Blabbermouth
C
19

From the GitHub repository, this solution has worked for me.

The Go version is go version go1.14.1 Linux/amd64

Add this to .bashrc and source it.

export GOROOT=/usr/local/go
export GOPATH=$HOME/go
export GOBIN=$GOPATH/bin
export PATH=$PATH:$GOROOT:$GOPATH:$GOBIN

Ref.: protoc-gen-go: program not found or is not executable #795

Canaliculus answered 7/4, 2020 at 14:20 Comment(0)
Z
10

Make sure your GOBIN is set in the PATH variable. Otherwise, you may encounter this problem. Check GOBIN path by running go env and confirm GOBIN is not empty.

If it is empty then try like below

export GOPATH=$HOME/go
export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin
protoc --go_out=plugins=grpc:. *.proto
Zantos answered 23/6, 2020 at 11:37 Comment(1)
Exactly, as the docs state: "Set the $GOBIN environment variable to change the installation location. It must be in your $PATH for the protocol buffer compiler to find it." – Woods
W
10

Also try the official solution from grpc.io documentation.

Go plugins for the protocol compiler:

Install the protocol compiler plugins for Go using the following commands:

export GO111MODULE=on  # Enable module mode

go get google.golang.org/protobuf/cmd/protoc-gen-go \
         google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/protoc-gen-go-grpc

Update your PATH so that the protoc compiler can find the plugins:

export PATH="$PATH:$(go env GOPATH)/bin"

This worked for me.

Wilcox answered 16/1, 2021 at 3:25 Comment(0)
N
7

Use go get to download the following packages:

go get google.golang.org/protobuf/cmd/protoc-gen-go
go get google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/protoc-gen-go-grpc

For setting GOPATH and GOROOT, follow the below procedure:

But, first, run go env.

If you see that the Go is not installed, you can install it via Homebrew. If you see the output, then your Go is installed. It shows you all the environments that are set and are not.

If you see empty for GOPATH:

Create any directory anywhere on your computer for Go projects in my case: ~/GO_PROJECTS then export GOPATH=~/GO_PROJECTS.

If you see empty for GOROOT:

Run which go (on my computer: /usr/local/bin/go) then edit your ~/.zshrc file to add the following line export like this export GOROOT=/usr/local/go.

You can also edit your ~/.zshrc file to add the following line to set up the GOPATH and GOROOT:

If you have installed Go from the original pkg, download from https://golang.org/doc/install.

export GOPATH=$HOME/dev/go-workspace
export GOROOT=/usr/local/go
export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin
export PATH=$PATH:$GOROOT/bin

If you have installed Go using Homebrew.

export GOPATH=$HOME/dev/go-workspace
export GOROOT=/usr/local/opt/go/libexec
export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin
export PATH=$PATH:$GOROOT/bin

Save and exit your editor. Then, source your ~/.zshrc.

source ~/.zshrc
Newhouse answered 6/5, 2021 at 13:20 Comment(1)
But only on Mac (since Homebrew is mentioned)? What version of macOS was it tried on? – Cureall
M
4

I tried multiple solutions, but at the end I found out that Go environment variables are the actual culprits for this.

If you are on Linux, add these variables in your .bashrc or .bash_profile file.

export GOROOT=/usr/local/go
export GOPATH=$HOME/go
export GOBIN=$GOPATH/bin
export PATH=$PATH:$GOROOT:$GOPATH:$GOBIN

And don't forget to source it after editing (e.g., $source ~/.bashrc).

Macnair answered 16/7, 2021 at 22:7 Comment(1)
Worked for me once I had added /home/username/go and /home/username/go/bin to PATH (Go 1.16). It did not seem to make a difference whether env variables $GOPATH and $GOBIN are set or not (someone correct me if I'm wrong). – Woods
G
2

Step 1:

sudo apt install protobuf-compiler

Step 2:

go install google.golang.org/protobuf/cmd/[email protected]

Step 3:

go install google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/[email protected]

Update your PATH so that the protoc compiler can find the plugins:

export PATH="$PATH:$(go env GOPATH)/bin"
Greenhouse answered 19/12, 2021 at 10:15 Comment(0)
P
2

For this was what worked

export PATH="$PATH:$(go env GOPATH)/bin"

Preceding answered 1/6, 2023 at 11:38 Comment(0)
S
1

Many of the other responses address path issues, but if it's not installed, you can install it using the following command:

go install google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/protoc-gen-go-grpc
Slaty answered 10/12, 2020 at 20:59 Comment(0)
T
1

When you run go get -u github.com/golang/protobuf/protoc-gen-go in Visual Studio Code terminal, and if Visual Studio Code doesn't find $GOPATH and $GOBIN, it will install the package at the default user's home directory /home/$username/go{/bin}

The solution is to move all files in the bin and pkg folders to your current go path (/usr/local/go{/bin}). The go path is the one which contains the go file in the bin folder. And add this line to the end of the .bashrc file:

export GOPATH=/usr/local/go:$PATH
export GOBIN=/usr/local/go/bin:$PATH

Then reboot the computer.

Trencherman answered 5/3, 2021 at 5:35 Comment(0)
J
1

After installing Go, use go get to download the following packages:

$ go get google.golang.org/protobuf/cmd/protoc-gen-go

$ go get google.golang.org/grpc/cmd/protoc-gen-go-grpc

Jessiajessica answered 10/6, 2022 at 18:39 Comment(0)
T
1

The reason you are seeing this message is because Go cannot reach the executable. Go looks for ~/go/bin to find the executables when it is called. Let's check to see if your PATH variable has the executable. But first, let's look at the error.

protoc-gen-go: program not found or is not executable

To solve this, we should first inspect to see if ~/go/bin is in our path.

echo $PATH

Inspect the result to see if ~/go/bin is in your path.

If not, let's add it to our path:

export PATH=$PATH:/$GO_PATH/bin

Everything should work now if protoc-gen-go is installed.

If not, install protoc-gen-go.

go install google.golang.org/protobuf/cmd/protoc-gen-go@latest
Teenyweeny answered 16/8, 2022 at 1:50 Comment(0)
B
1

It's worked for me:

check protoc-gen-go install on your system if it's not installed then install it on your system. For mac *

brew install protoc-gen-go
Bourbon answered 3/10, 2022 at 10:19 Comment(0)
C
0

In case someone is facing the same issue nowadays.

Install the Go library using

go get -u github.com/golang/protobuf/{proto,protoc-gen-go}

Make sure the GOPATH variable is set. In my case I created a folder called gocode, but if your code is located in another folder you have to change it.

export GOPATH=$HOME/gocode
export Path=$Path:$GOPATH/bin

After following these steps, I found another error protoc-gen-go failed :: The import path must contain at least one forward slash ('/') character. To solve this, change the path in the option

syntax = "proto3";

package greet;

option go_package="./greet/greetpb";

service GreetService{}
Carmina answered 18/5, 2021 at 17:4 Comment(0)
P
0

NB: Switch to root privileges on your terminal and follow these steps. This got me out of the ditch

  1. git clone https://github.com/micro/protoc-gen-micro.git /usr/local/go/bin/src/github.com/micro/protoc-gen-micro
  2. cd src/github.com/micro/protoc-gen-micro
  3. go build
  4. cp protoc-gen-micro /bin

Happy coding!

Pankhurst answered 21/1, 2022 at 21:57 Comment(0)
S
0

None of above works for me. It turns out you have to go to this page and download the suitable file for your platform at unzip it into your GOPATH. For example this protoc-21.5-osx-x86_64.zip for Intel macOS or this one for linux 64 bit protoc-21.5-linux-x86_64.zip

Sedative answered 27/8, 2022 at 13:1 Comment(0)

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