nodejsnode-gyp - Node.js native addon build tool
node-gyp is a cross-platform command-line tool written in Node.js for
compiling native addon modules for Node.js. It contains a vendored copy of the
gyp-next project that was previously used
by the Chromium team and extended to support the development of Node.js native
addons.
Note that node-gyp is not used to build Node.js itself.
All current and LTS target versions of Node.js are supported. Depending on what version of Node.js is actually installed on your system
node-gyp downloads the necessary development files or headers for the target version. List of stable Node.js versions can be found on Node.js website.
Features
- The same build commands work on any of the supported platforms
- Supports the targeting of different versions of Node.js
Installation
[!Important] Python >= v3.12 requires
node-gyp>= v10
You can install node-gyp using npm:
npm install -g node-gypDepending on your operating system, you will need to install:
On Unix
- A supported version of Python
make- A proper C/C++ compiler toolchain, like GCC
On macOS
- A supported version of Python
Xcode Command Line Toolswhich will installclang,clang++, andmake.- Install the
Xcode Command Line Toolsstandalone by runningxcode-select --install. -- OR -- - Alternatively, if you already have the full Xcode installed, you can install the Command Line Tools under the menu
Xcode -> Open Developer Tool -> More Developer Tools....
- Install the
On Windows
Install tools with Chocolatey:
choco install python visualstudio2022-workload-vctools -yOr install and configure Python and Visual Studio tools manually:
Install the current version of Python from the Microsoft Store.
- Install Visual C++ Build Environment: For Visual Studio 2019 or later, use the
Desktop development with C++workload from Visual Studio Community. For a version older than Visual Studio 2019, install Visual Studio Build Tools with theVisual C++ build toolsoption.
If the above steps didn't work for you, please visit Microsoft's Node.js Guidelines for Windows for additional tips.
To target native ARM64 Node.js on Windows on ARM, add the components "Visual C++ compilers and libraries for ARM64" and "Visual C++ ATL for ARM64".
To use the native ARM64 C++ compiler on Windows on ARM, ensure that you have Visual Studio 2022 17.4 or later installed.
- Install Visual C++ Build Environment: For Visual Studio 2019 or later, use the
It's advised to install following Powershell module: VSSetup using Install-Module VSSetup -Scope CurrentUser.
This will make Visual Studio detection logic to use more flexible and accessible method, avoiding Powershell's ConstrainedLanguage mode.
Configuring Python Dependency
node-gyp requires that you have installed a supported version of Python.
If you have multiple versions of Python installed, you can identify which version
node-gyp should use in one of the following ways:
- by setting the
--pythoncommand-line option, e.g.:
node-gyp <command> --python /path/to/executable/pythonIf
node-gypis called by way ofnpm, and you have multiple versions of Python installed, then you can set thenpm_config_pythonenvironment variable to the appropriate path:export npm_config_python=/path/to/executable/pythonOr on Windows:
py --list-paths # To see the installed Python versions set npm_config_python=C:\path\to\python.exe # CMD $Env:npm_config_python="C:\path\to\python.exe" # PowerShellIf the
PYTHONenvironment variable is set to the path of a Python executable, then that version will be used if it is a supported version.If the
NODE_GYP_FORCE_PYTHONenvironment variable is set to the path of a Python executable, it will be used instead of any of the other configured or built-in Python search paths. If it's not a compatible version, no further searching will be done.
Build for Third Party Node.js Runtimes
When building modules for third-party Node.js runtimes like Electron, which have
different build configurations from the official Node.js distribution, you
should use --dist-url or --nodedir flags to specify the headers of the
runtime to build for.
Also when --dist-url or --nodedir flags are passed, node-gyp will use the
config.gypi shipped in the headers distribution to generate build
configurations, which is different from the default mode that would use the
process.config object of the running Node.js instance.
Some old versions of Electron shipped malformed config.gypi in their headers
distributions, and you might need to pass --force-process-config to node-gyp
to work around configuration errors.
How to Use
To compile your native addon first go to its root directory:
cd my_node_addonThe next step is to generate the appropriate project build files for the current
platform. Use configure for that:
node-gyp configureAuto-detection fails for Visual C++ Build Tools 2015, so --msvs_version=2015
needs to be added (not needed when run by npm as configured above):
node-gyp configure --msvs_version=2015Note: The configure step looks for a binding.gyp file in the current
directory to process. See below for instructions on creating a binding.gyp file.
Now you will have either a Makefile (on Unix platforms) or a vcxproj file
(on Windows) in the build/ directory. Next, invoke the build command:
node-gyp buildNow you have your compiled .node bindings file! The compiled bindings end up
in build/Debug/ or build/Release/, depending on the build mode. At this point,
you can require the .node file with Node.js and run your tests!
Note: To create a Debug build of the bindings file, pass the --debug (or
-d) switch when running either the configure, build or rebuild commands.
The binding.gyp file
A binding.gyp file describes the configuration to build your module, in a
JSON-like format. This file gets placed in the root of your package, alongside
package.json.
A barebones gyp file appropriate for building a Node.js addon could look like:
{
"targets": [
{
"target_name": "binding",
"sources": [ "src/binding.cc" ]
}
]
}Further reading
The docs directory contains additional documentation on specific node-gyp topics that may be useful if you are experiencing problems installing or building addons using node-gyp.
Some additional resources for Node.js native addons and writing gyp configuration files:
- "Going Native" a nodeschool.io tutorial
- "Hello World" node addon example
- gyp user documentation
- gyp input format reference
- "binding.gyp" files out in the wild wiki page
Commands
node-gyp responds to the following commands:
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
help |
Shows the help dialog |
build |
Invokes make/msbuild.exe and builds the native addon |
clean |
Removes the build directory if it exists |
configure |
Generates project build files for the current platform |
rebuild |
Runs clean, configure and build all in a row |
install |
Installs Node.js header files for the given version |
list |
Lists the currently installed Node.js header versions |
remove |
Removes the Node.js header files for the given version |
Command Options
node-gyp accepts the following command options:
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
-j n, --jobs n |
Run make in parallel. The value max will use all available CPU cores |
--target=v6.2.1 |
Node.js version to build for (default is process.version) |
--silly, --loglevel=silly |
Log all progress to console |
--verbose, --loglevel=verbose |
Log most progress to console |
--silent, --loglevel=silent |
Don't log anything to console |
debug, --debug |
Make Debug build (default is Release) |
--release, --no-debug |
Make Release build |
-C $dir, --directory=$dir |
Run command in different directory |
--make=$make |
Override make command (e.g. gmake) |
--thin=yes |
Enable thin static libraries |
--arch=$arch |
Set target architecture (e.g. ia32) |
--tarball=$path |
Get headers from a local tarball |
--devdir=$path |
SDK download directory (default is OS cache directory) |
--ensure |
Don't reinstall headers if already present |
--dist-url=$url |
Download header tarball from custom URL |
--proxy=$url |
Set HTTP(S) proxy for downloading header tarball |
--noproxy=$urls |
Set urls to ignore proxies when downloading header tarball |
--cafile=$cafile |
Override default CA chain (to download tarball) |
--nodedir=$path |
Set the path to the node source code |
--python=$path |
Set path to the Python binary |
--msvs_version=$version |
Set Visual Studio version (Windows only) |
--solution=$solution |
Set Visual Studio Solution version (Windows only) |
--force-process-config |
Force using runtime's process.config object to generate config.gypi file |
Configuration
Environment variables
Use the form npm_config_OPTION_NAME for any of the command options listed
above (dashes in option names should be replaced by underscores).
For example, to set devdir equal to /tmp/.gyp, you would:
Run this on Unix:
export npm_config_devdir=/tmp/.gypOr this on Windows:
set npm_config_devdir=c:\temp\.gypnpm configuration for npm versions before v9
Use the form OPTION_NAME for any of the command options listed above.
For example, to set devdir equal to /tmp/.gyp, you would run:
npm config set [--global] devdir /tmp/.gypNote: Configuration set via npm will only be used when node-gyp
is run via npm, not when node-gyp is run directly.
License
node-gyp is available under the MIT license. See the LICENSE
file for details.