diff --git a/src/dfx-core/src/config/cache.rs b/src/dfx-core/src/config/cache.rs
index dcd2d87c57..86ba006a53 100644
--- a/src/dfx-core/src/config/cache.rs
+++ b/src/dfx-core/src/config/cache.rs
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ pub fn get_cache_root(ensure_dir_exists: bool) -> Result<PathBuf, CacheError> {
 pub fn get_bin_cache_root(ensure_dir_exists: bool) -> Result<PathBuf, CacheError> {
     let p = get_cache_root(ensure_dir_exists)?.join("versions");
 
-    if !p.exists() {
+    if !p.exists() && ensure_dir_exists {
         crate::fs::create_dir_all(&p).map_err(CacheError::CreateCacheDirectoryFailed)?;
     } else if !p.is_dir() {
         return Err(CacheError::FindCacheDirectoryFailed(p));