nodeselektor

Usage

# Install nodeselektor
npm i -g nodeselektor

# nodeselektor is not global
# but rather set on a per-directory
# (including subdirectories) basis

cd /nodeproject

# Configure the path to the node version
# you would like to use in this project

ns-use /path/to/node/4.3.3

# Install modules using
# /path/to/node/4.3.3/bin/node and
# /path/to/node/4.3.3/bin/npm
# will delete the `node_modules` if the
# previous version was not compatible
ns-npm install

# Switch to a different version of node
# install production dependencies
# `force` will perform an npm install whether or not
# the node modules version has changed
ns-use /path/to/node/5.1.1

# Install modules using
# /path/to/node/5.1.1/bin/node and
# /path/to/node/5.1.1/bin/npm
# Will delete the `node_modules` since
# it's incompatible
ns-npm install

# Use the configured node
ns index.js
# -> /path/to/node/4.3.3/bin/node index.js

# Print out the current environment
ns-env 

# Note that `ns` works on the script's directory,
# not the current working directory, so calling
# a script from another directory will work
# correctly

cd /
ns /nodeproject/index.js
# -> /path/to/node/4.3.3/bin/node /nodeproject/index.js

Why not use nvm?

nvm is great for a development environment, but it's less suited to server environments. It's implemented as a set of bash functions, which makes it difficult to use from cron scripts, init scripts and upstart. nodeselektor is primarily designed to run in a server environment, although it can be used in a development environment too.

• nodeselektor does not use subshells
• nodeselektor does not rely on .bash_profile or any other recipes
• nodeselektor will exec the resolved node process, so you don't get unnecessary shell processes hanging around

How does it work

nodeselektor writes a file alongside the module's package.json, called .node-selektor. This typically looks something like:

; node-selektor configuration file
; do not check this into source control
; add it to .gitignore
node_path=/Users/andrewn/.nvm/v0.10.36
node_modules_version=11

node_path is the path to the nodejs installation that this project should use to run. node_modules_version refers to the moduel version (process.versions.modules) which was used during the last ns-npm-reinit run. This lets nodeselektor figure out whether to rebuild the node_modules directory for native modules.