usage.md

Usage

This plugin enables you to run any Node.js script as part of your build. It does not require Node.js (or NPM) being installed on your system but it is able to use them.

By default, it will use the globally installed tools (Node.js, npm and Yarn). If it is specified in the configuration, it is able to download and manage Node.js distributions, unpack them into your local .gradle directory and use them from there. It also automatically installs npm when installing Node.js.

Is is also able to install Yarn by downloading it from a npm registry.

The version of each tool to use can be specified in the configuration.

To start using the plugin, add this into your build.gradle file (see Installing for details):

plugins {
  id "com.github.node-gradle.node" version "2.2.4"
}

Running a Node.js Script

To use this plugin you have to define some tasks in your build.gradle file. If you have a Node.js script in src/scripts/my.js, then you can execute this by defining the following Gradle task:

task myScript(type: NodeTask) {
  script = file('src/scripts/my.js')
}

You can also add arguments, like this:

task myScript(type: NodeTask) {
  script = file('src/scripts/my.js')
  args = ['arg1', 'arg2']
}

You can add Node.js options like this:

task myScript(type: NodeTask) {
  script = file('src/scripts/my.js')
  options = ['--node-option', '--another-node-option']
}

When executing this task for the first time, it will run a nodeSetup task that downloads Node.js (for your platform) and NPM (Node Package Manager) if on Windows (other platforms include it into the distribution).

Executing npm Tasks

When adding the node plugin, you will have a npmInstall task already added. This task will execute npm install and installs all dependencies in package.json. It will only run when changes are made to package.json, npm-shrinkwrap.json, package-lock.json or node_modules. Execute it like this:

$ gradle npmInstall

Keep in mind that this task is not equivalent to npm_install. The only task that will respect settings like npmInstallCommand is npmInstall.

All npm command can also be invoked using underscore notation based on a gradle rule:

$ gradle npm_update
$ gradle npm_list
$ gradle npm_cache_clean
...

These however are not shown when running gradle tasks, as they generated dynamically. However they can be used for dependency declarations, such as:

npm_audit.dependsOn(npm_cache_clean)

More arguments can be passed via the build.gradle file:

npm_update {
  args = ['--production', '--loglevel', 'warn']
}

If you want to extend the tasks more or create custom variants, you can extend the class NpmTask:

task installExpress(type: NpmTask) {
  // install the express package only
  args = ['install', 'express', '--save-dev']
}

Executing npm Commands via npx

As of 5.2, npm is bundled with a new command called npx which is aimed at running CLI commands from NPM packages.

It enables to execute npm commands without needing to declare them as a script in the package.json file and run thanks to the npm run command.

It does not require the command to be locally or globally installed. If the command is not already installed, the corresponding package is installed then the command is run. In this case, it is necessary to indicate the package name instead of the command name.

The NpxTask is able to execute some npx commands. It depends on the npmSetup to ensure npx is available.

To generate a new Angular project with the ng command coming from @angular/cli which is not installed (note that we can specify the version):

task generateAngularApp(type: NpxTask) {
  command = '@angular/cli@8.3.2'
  args = ['new', 'myApp']
}

To build an Angular application with @angular/cli locally installed:

task buildAngularApp(type: NpxTask) {
  dependsOn npmInstall
  command = 'ng'
  args = ['build', '--prod']
  inputs.files('package.json', 'package-lock.json', 'angular.json', 'tsconfig.json', 'tsconfig.app.json')
  inputs.dir('src')
  inputs.dir(fileTree("node_modules").exclude(".cache"))
  outputs.dir('dist')
}

Executing Yarn Tasks

When adding the node plugin, you will have a yarn task already added. This task will execute yarn and installs all dependencies in package.json. It will only run when changes are made to package.json, yarn.lock, or node_modules. Execute it like this:

$ gradle yarn

All yarn command can also be invoked using underscore notation based on a gradle rule:

$ gradle yarn_install
$ gradle yarn_upgrade
$ gradle yarn_ls
$ gradle yarn_cache_clean
...

These however are not shown when running gradle tasks, as they generated dynamically. However they can be used for dependency declarations, such as:

yarn_install.dependsOn(yarn_cache_clean)

More arguments can be passed via the build.gradle file:

yarn_cache_clean {
  args = ['--no-emoji', '--json']
}

If you want to extend the tasks more or create custom variants, you can extend the class YarnTask:

task addExpress(type: YarnTask) {
  // add the express package only
  args = ['add', 'express', '--dev']
}

Configuring the Plugin

You can configure the plugin through the node extension.

Here is the list of all available configuration properties using the Groovy DSL. See here to see a Kotlin DSL example.

The values shown here are the default ones. We recommend to define only the ones for which the default value is not satisfying.

node {
    // Whether to download and install a specific Node.js version or not
    // If false, it will use the globally installed Node.js
    // If true, it will download node using above parameters
    // Note that npm is bundled with Node.js
    download = false
    
    // Version of node to download and install (only used if download is true)
    // It will be unpacked in the workDir
    version = "12.18.3"
    
    // Version of npm to use
    // If specified, installs it in the npmWorkDir
    // If empty, the plugin will use the npm command bundled with Node.js
    npmVersion = ""
    
    // Version of Yarn to use
    // Any Yarn task first installs Yarn in the yarnWorkDir
    // It uses the specified version if defined and the latest version otherwise (by default)
    yarnVersion = ""
    
    // Base URL for fetching node distributions
    // Only used if download is true
    // Change it if you want to use a mirror
    // Or set to null if you want to add the repository on your own.
    distBaseUrl = "https://nodejs.org/dist"
    
    // The npm command executed by the npmInstall task
    // By default it is install but it can be changed to ci
    npmInstallCommand = "install"
    
    // The directory where Node.js is unpacked (when download is true) 
    workDir = file("${project.projectDir}/.gradle/nodejs")
    
    // The directory where npm is installed (when a specific version is defined)
    npmWorkDir = file("${project.projectDir}/.gradle/npm")
    
    // The directory where yarn is installed (when a Yarn task is used)
    yarnWorkDir = file("${project.projectDir}/.gradle/yarn")
    
    // The Node.js project directory location
    // This is where the package.json file and node_modules directory are located
    // By default it is at the root of the current project
    nodeProjectDir = file("${project.projectDir}")
    
    // Whether the plugin automatically should add the proxy configuration to npm and yarn commands
    // according the proxy configuration defined for Gradle
    // Disable this option if you want to configure the proxy for npm or yarn on your own
    // (in the .npmrc file for instance)
    useGradleProxySettings = true
}

Using a Custom (project-local) Version of npm

If npmVersion is specified, the plugin installs that version of npm into npmWorkDir by the npmSetup task and use it.

If npmVersion is not specified and a locally-installed npm exists, the plugin will use it.

Otherwise, the plugin will use the npm bundled with the version of node installation.

Using a Custom (project-local) Version of yarn

The plugin never uses a locally-installed yarn because it may be deleted during yarn execution. Instead, it installs yarn into yarnWorkDir (.gradle/yarn/ by default) by the yarnSetup task and use it.

If you would like the plugin to install use a custom version of yarn, you can set yarnVersion in the node extension block.

Using a Proxy

By default and unless if useGradleProxySettings is false, the plugin will configure npm and yarn to get them use the proxy configuration defined in the Gradle project configuration. This is done by automatically setting the HTTP_PROXY, HTTPS_PROXY and NO_PROXY environment variables when invoking npm and yarn.

Note that npm and yarn support host exclusion (NO_PROXY) variable but they do not support host name and port exclusion. In the case some host names and ports are defined in the proxy exclusion, the port will be removed. The exclusion will apply to both HTTP and HTTPS protocols.