NPM\-LINK
Section: (1)
Updated: December 2016
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NAME
npm-link - Symlink a package folder
SYNOPSIS
-
npm link (in package dir)
npm link [<@scope>/]<pkg>[@<version>]
alias: npm ln
DESCRIPTION
Package linking is a two-step process.
First,
npm link in a package folder will create a symlink in the global folder
{prefix}/lib/node_modules/<package> that links to the package where the
npm
link command was executed. (see npm help 7
npm-config for the value of
prefix). It
will also link any bins in the package to
{prefix}/bin/{name}.
Next, in some other location,
npm link package-name will create a
symbolic link from globally-installed
package-name to
node_modules/
of the current folder.
Note that
package-name is taken from
package.json,
not from directory name.
The package name can be optionally prefixed with a scope. See npm help 7
npm-scope.
The scope must be preceded by an @-symbol and followed by a slash.
When creating tarballs for
npm publish, the linked packages are
"snapshotted" to their current state by resolving the symbolic links.
This is handy for installing your own stuff, so that you can work on it and
test it iteratively without having to continually rebuild.
For example:
-
cd ~/projects/node-redis # go into the package directory
npm link # creates global link
cd ~/projects/node-bloggy # go into some other package directory.
npm link redis # link-install the package
Now, any changes to ~/projects/node-redis will be reflected in
~/projects/node-bloggy/node_modules/node-redis/. Note that the link should
be to the package name, not the directory name for that package.
You may also shortcut the two steps in one. For example, to do the
above use-case in a shorter way:
-
cd ~/projects/node-bloggy # go into the dir of your main project
npm link ../node-redis # link the dir of your dependency
The second line is the equivalent of doing:
-
(cd ../node-redis; npm link)
npm link node-redis
That is, it first creates a global link, and then links the global
installation target into your project's
node_modules folder.
If your linked package is scoped (see npm help 7
npm-scope) your link command must
include that scope, e.g.
-
npm link @myorg/privatepackage
SEE ALSO
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- *
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npm help 7 developers
- *
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npm help 5 package.json
- *
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npm help install
- *
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npm help 5 folders
- *
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npm help config
- *
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npm help 7 config
- *
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npm help 5 npmrc
Index
- NAME
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- SYNOPSIS
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- DESCRIPTION
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- SEE ALSO
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