Node.js Bundler for Google Apps Script

A powerful tool that bundles Node.js modules (including NPM packages) into a single JavaScript file compatible with Google Apps Script (GAS). This enables you to use thousands of NPM libraries directly in your Google Apps Script projects.

The tool can be used in command-line, or programatically as a library with Rollup.

📦 Installation

Global Installation (Recommended)

npm install -g nodejs-gas-bundler

Local Installation

npm install nodejs-gas-bundler --save-dev

Using npx (No Installation Required)

npx nodejs-gas-bundler --help

🎯 Quick Start

1. Create Your Entry Point

Create an index.js file that exports what you want to use in Google Apps Script:

// Export your own functions
export function add(x, y) {
  return x + y;
}

export function subtract(x, y) {
  return x - y;
}

// Export from NPM packages
export { marked } from 'marked';

2. Install Dependencies

npm init -y
npm install marked

3. Bundle for Google Apps Script

To generate the Google Apps Script bundle into bundle.js, run:

bundle-for-gas -i index.js -o bundle.js -n MyLib

With the -n MyLib option, all the definitions will be added to a top-level object MyLib. If you prefer the definitions to be added to the global object, you can use the -g option instead:

bundle-for-gas -i index.js -o bundle.js -g

This is especially useful if you intend to use the generated bundled as a library within Google Apps Script projects.

4. Import and use in Google Apps Script

Copy the generated bundle.js content into your Google Apps Script project and use it:

// If you used -n MyLib
const result = MyLib.add(5, 3);
const html = MyLib.marked('# Hello World');

// If you used -g flag
const result = add(5, 3);
const html = marked('# Hello World');

You can also upload your bundled code to Google Apps Script using the clasp command-line tool. For improved organization and easy reuse, consider publishing your bundle as a Google Apps Script library. This approach makes it simple to share your code and use it across multiple Apps Script projects.

📖 Usage

Command-line interface

Basic Syntax

bundle-for-gas -i <input> -o <output> [options]

Options

| Option | Alias | Description | Default | |--------|-------|-------------|---------| | --input | -i | Path to source JavaScript file | Required | | --output | -o | Path to output bundle file | Required | | --global-name | -n | Name of the global variable | '' | | --merge-into-global | -g | Merge exports into global object | false | | --help | -h | Show help information | - |

Examples

Basic Bundle with Namespace

bundle-for-gas -i src/index.js -o dist/bundle.js -n MyLibrary

Global Variable Exposure

bundle-for-gas -i src/index.js -o dist/bundle.js -g

Combined Options

bundle-for-gas -i src/index.js -o dist/bundle.js -n MyLib -g

Library

You can also use this package as a library in your build scripts:

import { createRollupConfig } from 'nodejs-gas-bundler';
import { rollup } from 'rollup';

async function myBundle() {
  const config = createRollupConfig({
    inputFile: 'src/index.js',
    outputFile: 'dist/bundle.js',
    globalName: 'MyLibrary',
    mergeIntoGlobal: false
  });
  
  const bundle = await rollup(config);
  await bundle.write(config.output);
}

myBundle().catch(console.error);

The above process is encapsulated in the bundle function:

import { bundle } from 'nodejs-gas-bundler';

bundle({
  inputFile: 'src/index.js',
  outputFile: 'dist/bundle.js',
  globalName: 'MyLibrary',
  mergeIntoGlobal: false
}).catch(console.error);

Full example

A full example is available in the examples directory. This example bundles two popular NPM libraries:

• csv-parse (a CSV parser),
• marked (a Markdown parser)

and uploads them in an existing Google Apps Script using clasp. You can see the resulting project here.

⚠️ Limitations & Considerations

Google Apps Script Environment

• No Node.js APIs: Node.js-specific modules won't work (fs, path, etc.)
• Memory Limits: Large bundles may hit GAS memory limits
• Execution Time: Complex operations may timeout

Polyfills

The bundler includes basic polyfills for common Node.js globals, but some packages may require additional configuration.

🙏 Credits

This project uses the following open source tools:

• Rollup – for JavaScript bundling
• Babel – for JavaScript transpilation

📝 TODOs

• Polyfill for fetch using UrlFetchApp