npm <command> [args]
@VERSION@
npm is the package manager for the Node JavaScript platform. It puts modules in place so that node can find them, and manages dependency conflicts intelligently.
It is extremely configurable to support a wide variety of use cases. Most commonly, it is used to publish, discover, install, and develop node programs.
Run npm help
to get a list of available commands.
npm is configured to use npm, Inc.'s public registry at https://registry.npmjs.org by default. Use of the npm public registry is subject to terms of use available at https://www.npmjs.com/policies/terms.
You can configure npm to use any compatible registry you like, and even run your own registry. Use of someone else's registry may be governed by their terms of use.
You probably got npm because you want to install stuff.
Use npm install blerg
to install the latest version of "blerg". Check out
npm-install
for more info. It can do a lot of stuff.
Use the npm search
command to show everything that's available.
Use npm ls
to show everything you've installed.
If a package references to another package with a git URL, npm depends on a preinstalled git.
If one of the packages npm tries to install is a native node module and requires compiling of C++ Code, npm will use node-gyp for that task. For a Unix system, node-gyp needs Python, make and a buildchain like GCC. On Windows, Python and Microsoft Visual Studio C++ are needed. Python 3 is not supported by node-gyp. For more information visit the node-gyp repository and the node-gyp Wiki.
See npm-folders
to learn about where npm puts stuff.
In particular, npm has two modes of operation:
prefix/lib/node_modules
and bins are installed in prefix/bin
../node_modules
, and bins are installed to ./node_modules/.bin
.Local mode is the default. Use -g
or --global
on any command to
operate in global mode instead.
If you're using npm to develop and publish your code, check out the following help topics:
package.json
.npm link
to do this.npm install
npm publish
command to upload your code to the registry.npm is extremely configurable. It reads its configuration options from 5 places.
--key val
. All keys take a value, even if they
are booleans (the config parser doesn't know what the options are at
the time of parsing). If no value is provided, then the option is set
to boolean true
.npm_config_
. For example, export npm_config_key=val
.userconfig
option is set in the cli
or env, then that will be used instead.globalconfig
option is set in the cli, env, or user config,
then that file is parsed instead.See npm-config
for much much more information.
Patches welcome!
If you would like to contribute, but don't know what to work on, read the contributing guidelines and check the issues list.
When you find issues, please report them:
Be sure to follow the template and bug reporting guidelines. You can also ask for help in the support forum if you're unsure if it's actually a bug or are having trouble coming up with a detailed reproduction to report.
Isaac Z. Schlueter :: isaacs :: @izs :: i@izs.me
Last modified February 13, 2023 Found a typo? Send a pull request!