Using npm to install file to /usr/local/bin

Question

I tried to install a file using the following command:

npm install -g price-feeder

It's supposed to be installed in the /usr/local/bin folder since it's using the global parameter to be accessible from a cron job. For some reason it's being installed in the following location though:

/.nvm/versions/node/v8.9.4/bin/

Any idea if there is a setting or something that would need to be set for the global parameter to install in the correct place?

Solution

To see npm current prefix value in effect, run:

npm get prefix

As described in install-and-configure-nodejs-and-npm-properly-on-ubuntu

You can set npm prefix e.g.:

$  npm config set prefix /usr/local

Note: Official NPM docs specify that:

When in global mode, executables are linked into {prefix}/bin on Unix

Hence, your npm prefix shouldn't include the /bin suffix

In order to install in a system folder (e.g. /usr/local/bin) you should execute npm as root using sudo, e.g.:

sudo npm install -g price-feeder

Comments

[Admin]

And then read up on the issues associated with running tools like this as root: stackoverflow.com/q/4938592/1531971

[user1048676]

@Yaron I created a user and disabled root login etc, is there a way to run it as a root user from my created user?

[user1048676]

@Yaron Also, when I did this I got an error: checkPermissions Missing write access to /usr/local/lib. When I did the npm get prefix it showed me the /usr/local path without the big as you pointed out but now looking at the lib folder instead of bin by the looks of it

[Yaron]

@user1048676 - in Ubuntu you don't need to use the user root, you can prefix sudo to your commands (assuming that your user holds the relevant permissions - which I assume is the case in your case) - did you try the running command in my answer sudo npm install -g price-feeder ?

[user1048676]

@Yaron I got the message: sudo: npm: command not found. So I did sudo apt-get install npm but still getting the same error: checkPermissions Missing write access to /usr/local/lib

[user1048676]

I got it figured out. Accepting your answer. Thanks