diff --git a/common/configure_fresh_system b/common/configure_fresh_system
index 2bc25234..4885a51f 100755
--- a/common/configure_fresh_system
+++ b/common/configure_fresh_system
@@ -174,7 +174,9 @@ echo "Installing fancy differ"
 $SUDO npm install -g diff-so-fancy
 
 if [[ -z $NOPYTHON3 ]]; then
+    set +e
     pip3_path=`which pip3`
+    set -e
     echo "pip3 path is $pip3_path"
     if [[ -x "$pip3_path" ]]; then
         echo "Choosing pip3 for pip"