webinstall.dev/node Star on GitHub

To update or switch versions, run webi node@<tag>.
(you can use @lts for long-term support, @beta for pre-releases, or @x.y.z for a specific version)

Files

These are the files / directories that are created and/or modified with this install:

~/.config/envman/PATH.env
~/.local/opt/node/
~/.npmrc

Cheat Sheet

Node is great for simple, snappy HTTP(S) servers, and for stitching APIs together with minimal fuss or muss.

Installing node via webi will:

• pick a compatible version from the Node Releases API
• download and unpack to $HOME/.local/opt/node/
• update your PATH in $HOME/.config/envman/PATH.env
• absolutely leave system file permissions alone
  • (no dreaded sudo npm permission errors)

Hello World

node -e 'console.log("Hello, World!")'
> Hello, World!

A Simple Web Server

server.js:

var http = require('http');
var app = function (req, res) {
  res.end('Hello, World!');
};
http.createServer(app).listen(8080, function () {
  console.info('Listening on', this.address());
});

node server.js

Generate a Secure Random Key

This generates a hex-encoded 128-bit random key.

node -p 'crypto.randomBytes(16).toString("hex")'

This generates a url-safe base64 256-bit random key.

node -p 'crypto.randomBytes(32).toString("base64")
            .replace(/\+/g, "-").replace(/\//g, "_").replace(/=/g, "")'

An Express App

mkdir my-server
pushd my-server/
npm init
npm install --save express

app.js:

'use strict';

var express = require('express');
var app = express();

app.use('/', function (req, res, next) {
  res.end('Hello, World!');
});

module.exports = app;

server.js:

'use strict';

var http = require('http');
var app = require('./app.js');

http.createServer(app).listen(8080, function () {
  console.info('Listening on', this.address());
});

npm start