nodejs-install

Installs pre-compiled NodeJS binaries while avoiding sudo or chown.

This IS for you if

You are not satisifed with heavy sudo based NodeJS installers.
You are not satisifed with installations that force you into sudo chown -R $USER /usr/local without explaining the problems it can cause.
You stick with the latest version of NodeJS 99% of the time so you don't need a complex version manager.
You would prefer the ability to install any available NodeJS version at any time vs. only being able to install the latest version (i.e. homebrew).

This is NOT for you if

You are content with having to install programs via sudo.
You are content with having to repeatedly sudo chown -R $USER /usr/local.
You are not a full-time developer, need to install NodeJS, but likely won't be installing many, if any packages or programs.

Rationale

nodejs-install attempts to stick to the classic UNIX notion that tools should do one thing well.

While there are smart alternative tools that attempt to solve this problem, none of the tools I've found were simple enough for me.

Features

simple no need to compile NodeJS from source and no need to update nodejs-install when a new NodeJS version is released.
bash and zsh actively supported; though care has been taken such that other shells may work as well (but only bash and zsh are supported).
tiny: less than ~200 LOC.

Non-Features

Does not include a version switcher
- because you might not need one
- but if you do need version switching, you can use a less complex and portable tool like direnv

Usage Examples

Install a specific NodeJS version

nodejs-install <version> $NODE_VERSIONS

List all available NodeJS versions

nodejs-install --list

List installed NodeJS version(s)

ls $NODE_VERSIONS

Show currently active NodeJS version

node --version

Install

homebrew (recommended for OSX users)

brew install https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wilmoore/nodejs-install/master/share/homebrew/nodejs-install.rb

source (for non-OSX users or those that prefer not to use homebrew):

git clone https://github.com/wilmoore/nodejs-install.git
cd nodejs-install
make install # you can also set `PREFIX=` to install into a prefix of your choice instead of the default `/usr/local`

Setup

Add one of the following to $HOME/.bashrc, $HOME/.zshrc, or your shell's equivalent configuration file:

export NODE_HOME="~/.local/share/node"
export NODE_VERSIONS="$NODE_HOME/versions"

Integration with direnv

More info on the direnv wiki.

Deactivate / Uninstall

Remove setup configuration.

Enter one of the following commands listed below to remove associated files.

 # Homebrew (recommended)
 brew remove --force nodejs-install

 # non-Homebrew
 rm -rf $PREFIX/nodejs-install

Having Issues?

Paste the following script into your terminal. This will copy the debug output to your clipboard (pbcopy works on Mac OSX; switch to your OS equivalent if necessary)
Paste the contents of your clipboard into a gist.
File an issue and include the link to the gist.

pbcopy <<-EOF
## System

  $(uname -a)

## Script

  TYPE:    $(command -v node 2>/dev/null || echo 'NOT FOUND')
  VERSION: $(node --version  2>/dev/null || echo 'NOT FOUND')

## Environment

  SHELL:        $(echo $SHELL)
  PATH:         $(echo $PATH)

## Homebrew

  VERSION: $(test -n `command -v brew` && brew --version)
  PATH:    $(command -v brew)

EOF

wilmoore/nodejs-install