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| npm command-line interface |
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| <section id="content"> |
| <header class="title"> |
| <h1 id="folders">folders</h1> |
| <span class="description">Folder Structures Used by npm</span> |
| </header> |
|
|
| <section id="table_of_contents"> |
| <h2 id="table-of-contents">Table of contents</h2> |
| <div id="_table_of_contents"><ul><li><a href="#description">Description</a></li><ul><li><a href="#tldr">tl;dr</a></li><li><a href="#prefix-configuration">prefix Configuration</a></li><li><a href="#node-modules">Node Modules</a></li><li><a href="#executables">Executables</a></li><li><a href="#man-pages">Man Pages</a></li><li><a href="#cache">Cache</a></li><li><a href="#temp-files">Temp Files</a></li></ul><li><a href="#more-information">More Information</a></li><ul><li><a href="#global-installation">Global Installation</a></li><li><a href="#cycles-conflicts-and-folder-parsimony">Cycles, Conflicts, and Folder Parsimony</a></li><li><a href="#example">Example</a></li><li><a href="#publishing">Publishing</a></li></ul><li><a href="#see-also">See also</a></li></ul></div> |
| </section> |
|
|
| <div id="_content"><h3 id="description">Description</h3> |
| <p>npm puts various things on your computer. That's its job.</p> |
| <p>This document will tell you what it puts where.</p> |
| <h4 id="tldr">tl;dr</h4> |
| <ul> |
| <li>Local install (default): puts stuff in <code>./node_modules</code> of the current |
| package root.</li> |
| <li>Global install (with <code>-g</code>): puts stuff in /usr/local or wherever node |
| is installed.</li> |
| <li>Install it <strong>locally</strong> if you're going to <code>require()</code> it.</li> |
| <li>Install it <strong>globally</strong> if you're going to run it on the command line.</li> |
| <li>If you need both, then install it in both places, or use <code>npm link</code>.</li> |
| </ul> |
| <h4 id="prefix-configuration">prefix Configuration</h4> |
| <p>The <a href="../using-npm/config#prefix.html"><code>prefix</code> config</a> defaults to the location where |
| node is installed. On most systems, this is <code>/usr/local</code>. On Windows, it's |
| <code>%AppData%\npm</code>. On Unix systems, it's one level up, since node is typically |
| installed at <code>{prefix}/bin/node</code> rather than <code>{prefix}/node.exe</code>.</p> |
| <p>When the <code>global</code> flag is set, npm installs things into this prefix. |
| When it is not set, it uses the root of the current package, or the |
| current working directory if not in a package already.</p> |
| <h4 id="node-modules">Node Modules</h4> |
| <p>Packages are dropped into the <code>node_modules</code> folder under the <code>prefix</code>. |
| When installing locally, this means that you can |
| <code>require("packagename")</code> to load its main module, or |
| <code>require("packagename/lib/path/to/sub/module")</code> to load other modules.</p> |
| <p>Global installs on Unix systems go to <code>{prefix}/lib/node_modules</code>. |
| Global installs on Windows go to <code>{prefix}/node_modules</code> (that is, no |
| <code>lib</code> folder.)</p> |
| <p>Scoped packages are installed the same way, except they are grouped together |
| in a sub-folder of the relevant <code>node_modules</code> folder with the name of that |
| scope prefix by the @ symbol, e.g. <code>npm install @myorg/package</code> would place |
| the package in <code>{prefix}/node_modules/@myorg/package</code>. See |
| <a href="../using-npm/scope.html"><code>scope</code></a> for more details.</p> |
| <p>If you wish to <code>require()</code> a package, then install it locally.</p> |
| <h4 id="executables">Executables</h4> |
| <p>When in global mode, executables are linked into <code>{prefix}/bin</code> on Unix, |
| or directly into <code>{prefix}</code> on Windows. Ensure that path is in your |
| terminal's <code>PATH</code> environment to run them.</p> |
| <p>When in local mode, executables are linked into |
| <code>./node_modules/.bin</code> so that they can be made available to scripts run |
| through npm. (For example, so that a test runner will be in the path |
| when you run <code>npm test</code>.)</p> |
| <h4 id="man-pages">Man Pages</h4> |
| <p>When in global mode, man pages are linked into <code>{prefix}/share/man</code>.</p> |
| <p>When in local mode, man pages are not installed.</p> |
| <p>Man pages are not installed on Windows systems.</p> |
| <h4 id="cache">Cache</h4> |
| <p>See <a href="../commands/npm-cache.html"><code>npm cache</code></a>. Cache files are stored in <code>~/.npm</code> on Posix, or |
| <code>%LocalAppData%/npm-cache</code> on Windows.</p> |
| <p>This is controlled by the <a href="../using-npm/config#cache.html"><code>cache</code> config</a> param.</p> |
| <h4 id="temp-files">Temp Files</h4> |
| <p>Temporary files are stored by default in the folder specified by the |
| <a href="../using-npm/config#tmp.html"><code>tmp</code> config</a>, which defaults to the TMPDIR, TMP, or |
| TEMP environment variables, or <code>/tmp</code> on Unix and <code>c:\windows\temp</code> on Windows.</p> |
| <p>Temp files are given a unique folder under this root for each run of the |
| program, and are deleted upon successful exit.</p> |
| <h3 id="more-information">More Information</h3> |
| <p>When installing locally, npm first tries to find an appropriate |
| <code>prefix</code> folder. This is so that <code>npm install foo@1.2.3</code> will install |
| to the sensible root of your package, even if you happen to have <code>cd</code>ed |
| into some other folder.</p> |
| <p>Starting at the $PWD, npm will walk up the folder tree checking for a |
| folder that contains either a <code>package.json</code> file, or a <code>node_modules</code> |
| folder. If such a thing is found, then that is treated as the effective |
| "current directory" for the purpose of running npm commands. (This |
| behavior is inspired by and similar to git's .git-folder seeking |
| logic when running git commands in a working dir.)</p> |
| <p>If no package root is found, then the current folder is used.</p> |
| <p>When you run <code>npm install foo@1.2.3</code>, then the package is loaded into |
| the cache, and then unpacked into <code>./node_modules/foo</code>. Then, any of |
| foo's dependencies are similarly unpacked into |
| <code>./node_modules/foo/node_modules/...</code>.</p> |
| <p>Any bin files are symlinked to <code>./node_modules/.bin/</code>, so that they may |
| be found by npm scripts when necessary.</p> |
| <h4 id="global-installation">Global Installation</h4> |
| <p>If the <a href="../using-npm/config#global.html"><code>global</code> config</a> is set to true, then npm will |
| install packages "globally".</p> |
| <p>For global installation, packages are installed roughly the same way, |
| but using the folders described above.</p> |
| <h4 id="cycles-conflicts-and-folder-parsimony">Cycles, Conflicts, and Folder Parsimony</h4> |
| <p>Cycles are handled using the property of node's module system that it |
| walks up the directories looking for <code>node_modules</code> folders. So, at every |
| stage, if a package is already installed in an ancestor <code>node_modules</code> |
| folder, then it is not installed at the current location.</p> |
| <p>Consider the case above, where <code>foo -> bar -> baz</code>. Imagine if, in |
| addition to that, baz depended on bar, so you'd have: |
| <code>foo -> bar -> baz -> bar -> baz ...</code>. However, since the folder |
| structure is: <code>foo/node_modules/bar/node_modules/baz</code>, there's no need to |
| put another copy of bar into <code>.../baz/node_modules</code>, since when baz calls |
| <code>require("bar")</code>, it will get the copy that is installed in |
| <code>foo/node_modules/bar</code>.</p> |
| <p>This shortcut is only used if the exact same |
| version would be installed in multiple nested <code>node_modules</code> folders. It |
| is still possible to have <code>a/node_modules/b/node_modules/a</code> if the two |
| "a" packages are different versions. However, without repeating the |
| exact same package multiple times, an infinite regress will always be |
| prevented.</p> |
| <p>Another optimization can be made by installing dependencies at the |
| highest level possible, below the localized "target" folder (hoisting). |
| Since version 3, npm hoists dependencies by default.</p> |
| <h4 id="example">Example</h4> |
| <p>Consider this dependency graph:</p> |
| <pre><code class="language-bash">foo |
| +-- blerg@1.2.5 |
| +-- bar@1.2.3 |
| | +-- blerg@1.x (latest=1.3.7) |
| | +-- baz@2.x |
| | | `-- quux@3.x |
| | | `-- bar@1.2.3 (cycle) |
| | `-- asdf@* |
| `-- baz@1.2.3 |
| `-- quux@3.x |
| `-- bar |
| </code></pre> |
| <p>In this case, we might expect a folder structure like this |
| (with all dependencies hoisted to the highest level possible):</p> |
| <pre><code class="language-bash">foo |
| +-- node_modules |
| +-- blerg (1.2.5) <---[A] |
| +-- bar (1.2.3) <---[B] |
| | +-- node_modules |
| | +-- baz (2.0.2) <---[C] |
| +-- asdf (2.3.4) |
| +-- baz (1.2.3) <---[D] |
| +-- quux (3.2.0) <---[E] |
| </code></pre> |
| <p>Since foo depends directly on <code>bar@1.2.3</code> and <code>baz@1.2.3</code>, those are |
| installed in foo's <code>node_modules</code> folder.</p> |
| <p>Even though the latest copy of blerg is 1.3.7, foo has a specific |
| dependency on version 1.2.5. So, that gets installed at [A]. Since the |
| parent installation of blerg satisfies bar's dependency on <code>blerg@1.x</code>, |
| it does not install another copy under [B].</p> |
| <p>Bar [B] also has dependencies on baz and asdf. Because it depends on <code>baz@2.x</code>, it cannot |
| re-use the <code>baz@1.2.3</code> installed in the parent <code>node_modules</code> folder [D], |
| and must install its own copy [C]. In order to minimize duplication, npm hoists |
| dependencies to the top level by default, so asdf is installed under [A].</p> |
| <p>Underneath bar, the <code>baz -> quux -> bar</code> dependency creates a cycle. |
| However, because bar is already in quux's ancestry [B], it does not |
| unpack another copy of bar into that folder. Likewise, quux's [E] |
| folder tree is empty, because its dependency on bar is satisfied |
| by the parent folder copy installed at [B].</p> |
| <p>For a graphical breakdown of what is installed where, use <code>npm ls</code>.</p> |
| <h4 id="publishing">Publishing</h4> |
| <p>Upon publishing, npm will look in the <code>node_modules</code> folder. If any of |
| the items there are not in the <code>bundleDependencies</code> array, then they will |
| not be included in the package tarball.</p> |
| <p>This allows a package maintainer to install all of their dependencies |
| (and dev dependencies) locally, but only re-publish those items that |
| cannot be found elsewhere. See <a href="../configuring-npm/package-json.html"><code>package.json</code></a> for more information.</p> |
| <h3 id="see-also">See also</h3> |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="../configuring-npm/package-json.html">package.json</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../commands/npm-install.html">npm install</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../commands/npm-pack.html">npm pack</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../commands/npm-cache.html">npm cache</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../commands/npm-config.html">npm config</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../configuring-npm/npmrc.html">npmrc</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../using-npm/config.html">config</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../commands/npm-publish.html">npm publish</a></li> |
| </ul></div> |
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