HomeBlogWeb DevelopmentHow to Install Specific Version of NPM Package?
Since 2009, Node.js has taken over the market and has become popular among developers for creating reliable systems and web-based applications. It has proved to be a boon for the JavaScript developers looking to create complex applications. Node.js has several features, but the core feature is the NPM (node package manager) that has helped JavaScript developers quickly and efficiently share and use packages, such as lodash, moment, and others.
There is no limit on the number of packages available and how many have been downloaded. It lets the developers share and install the code from the package managers. The Node.js syllabus is vast and requires dedication to hone this skill. So, to better understand the working of Node.js and NPM, you must know the installation process. Then you can start creating unique applications.
This article will discuss different methods to NPM install specific version of Node.js packages in detail.
The NPM (node package manager) is a default package manager for JavaScript runtime Node.js. The NPM has the following main parts-
Step 1: Before starting your project, you must ensure that you install the latest version of NPM to leverage all the new functionalities within your project. We first need to run the following command to check if we have NPM installed on my system.
Step 2: Now, I can use the node to install a specific version of other packages required within your project. First, we will install the “moment” package as shown below. The Moment.js is a lightweight JavaScript development tool that lets you manipulate date and time.
Step 3: Now, to check what version of the “moment” package has been installed, we have to run the “NPM list” command.
If you do not mention any version in the command, the NPM will fetch the latest version available. As you can see from the above image that the installed version is 2.29.3. But, there might be some cases where installing the latest packages with new changes can hamper your application, so you might require another version to perform perfectly.
So, what command will work to run the NPM install command with a specific package version? You can use the below command to install specific NPM package version. You can mention the required version number after the package name is separated by the ‘@’ sign.
Step 4: Now install the “2.25.3” version of the moment package. You can run the following command.
npm install moment@2.25.3 //npm install specific version
The above command will install the package locally. But if you want a global moment package, you can use the “-g” flag with the install command. For example-
npm install -g moment@2.25.3
Step 5: When installing the global package, you need admin access. As you can see, we have used sudo access to run the command. To list the global packages, you need to use the “-g” flag with the list command, as shown below.
npm -g list
Another example is to install an angular cli specific version. Installing angular-cli will take time.
npm install -g @angular/cli@7
Like the NPM install command, you can use the yarn command to add the package to your system. By default, it will install the package from the NPM registry. Else you have to specify another one in your package.json.
npm install yarn
yarn add package-name yarn add react // yarn add specific version
yarn add package-name@1.2.3 //yarn install specific version
yarn add package-name@tag
To list all the installed NPM packages, you can use the list command or ls for the short version.
It lists all the packages in a tree-like structure along with their dependencies. It is an easier option to check the version simultaneously as it is complex to check versions of packages individually. But, if you want detailed information on the installed NPM packages, you can just access the content of the package-lock.json file.
So run the following command to get the details about packages.
cat package-lock.json
To get the list of the top-level packages without displaying their dependencies, you can add the -depth=0 flag. It will limit the search to the package name only.
For example-
npm ls -depth=0
To check the globally installed packages, you can use the “-g” flag and the NPM list command. For example-
npm list -g
If you want to check the specific version for the installed package, you can hit the following command.
npm list moment
The above command has displayed the installed version only for the specific package mentioned.
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NPM uses the Semantic Versioning Specification, which is the convention rule to stipulate the versioning of the packages. You see three numbers separated by a dot whenever you install a package. As in the case of the installed moment package, it is 2.25.3 representing the major, minor, and patch versions, respectively. The semantic versioning specifies which version of the package to install. If you use a caret (^) character, it will install the minor version. You can use the (~) character to install the latest patch version of the specific package.
This is useful if you do not know the minor or patch version of a specific package that you want to install. You can simply prefix the version number with a caret character.
Also, if you are not sure about the latest minor version of the package with the latest security patches, you just need to prefix the version number with a tilde. For example-:
The NPM uses the Semantic Versioning. It is a popular way of versioning the unique stages of the project. It is beneficial as it improves the code’s clarity and readability. If a new developer takes over, he can quickly go through different versions to understand the changes made earlier. It is a simple way to keep track of the changes that have been made.
SemVer represents the version in the format- x.y.z. where-
For example, we consider the 2.25.3 version (the latest) of the moment package. It specifies that “2” is the major version, “25” is the minor version, and “3” is the patch version.
Semantic versioning is crucial in helping the developers to keep track of the code and what has changed over time. Also, developers understand the changes and when and where the software has been updated. Not only this, developers can know which version is not backward compatible.
To install the Node with the help of the Homebrew, you need to follow the below steps.
Step 1: First, install the Homebrew on your macOS.
Homebrew is a package manager for macOS that you need to install explicitly. Run the following command from the macOS terminal.
$curl -fsSL -o install.sh https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh
Step 2: Check the installed Homebrew version.
To quickly check the installed version of the Homebrew, run the following command from the terminal.
$ brew -v
Step 3: Installing node with Homebrew
For installing Node on your macOS using Homebrew, run the following command.
$ brew install node
Step 4: Check the installed version of Node and NPM
You can check the installed version of Node and NPM using the below command.
$node -v
Also, use the following command to check the version of the NPM .
$npm -v
Step 5: Install a specific version of the node
If you specifically want to install a specific version of Node, you can use the following syntax.
$ brew install node@<version_number>
Install from GitHub Repository: To install a package from a GitHub repository, enter the repository URL followed by the appropriate version or commit hash.
Example:
npm install github:user/repo#v1.2.3
In this example, replace ‘user’ with your own Github username, ‘repo’ with the name of the repository, and v1.2.3 with the tag, branch, or commit hash you wish to install.
Using Git URLs: For extra control, you can enter the Git URL directly into the npm install command, which is very handy for private repositories.
npm install git+https://github.com/user/repo.git#v1.2.3
This method is similar, but it uses the whole Git URL for the repository.
When dealing with Node Package Manager (NPM), it is critical to understand the available package versions to ensure compatibility and access to required features or fixes. Here's a simple tutorial for tackling this:
Now that we understand what NPM is, the question is how can you use it within your code. As it consists of CLI (command-line interface), we have to run CLI commands to interact with NPM. Below are some basic commands that will help you work with your project.
Below are some points to consider working with Node and NPM.
Install node //install specific node version
Install npm@<version> //install specific version of npm
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Node.js has done wonders for JavaScript developers and reduces their challenges by going through several languages. It provides them with a sustainable development environment to use a single language and framework to do all the work.
Node.js lets the developers build web-based applications with two-way connections, including both the server-side and client-side. Node.js has changed the way of pushing the applications in real-time over WebSocket. To central your skills in Node.js, you can refer KnowledgeHut Node.js syllabus.
So, if you are still confused about whether to go for Node.js or not, then there should be no doubt about it. It will make your life easy by streamlining your coding experience.
You can run the following command.
npm run <version_number>
or
npm exec <version_number> node
nvm use system
You can run the following commands to get a list of installed versions of Node.js.
npm –v
[PS /Users/praashibansal> npm –v
8.5.5
PS /Users/praashibansal>
As I have only one version installed of npm. But for switching between different versions of installed Node.js, you can run the following command.
nvm use <version_number>
Follow the below steps to specify a node version within the package.json file.
1. First, choose the project name where you want to proceed. Your working project must have a package.json file. If not, you need to create one within the same directory as your project.
2. Now that you have a package.json file, you need to use the engines field to specify the Node version required by your project to function correctly. You can specify the version number of your choice and add the following code line within your package.json file.
Syntax:
“engines”: {
“node”: “> or < =version_number”,
“npm”: “> or < =version_number”
},
3. To specify the error whenever there is a mismatch in the node version, we will create a .npmrc file in the same folder as the package.json file. The .npmrc is a config file for the npm storing all required information on how the npm should run.
To create a .npmrc file, add the below-mentioned code engine-strict=true. It will force display errors.
You can run the npm update specific package command with a specific package name to update a specific package.
npm update moment
Also, in some cases, to update a package to a specific version, you must use the npm install command with a version number followed by the package name.
npm install react@15
Also, to download the latest stable version, you can use the @latestflag., as shown below.
npm install react@latest
NPM is one of the largest open-source repositories of source code, packages, tools, and others. It lets the developers use all the code to create applications without working from scratch.
The NPM has the following main parts-
A CLI (command-line interface) allows the developers to publish and download the packages within your project. It lets the developers interact with npm.
It also acts as an online repository well-known for hosting JavaScript packages.
The online website allows you to check for the required packages, create different user profiles, and improve the overall npm experience for developers across the globe.
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