Node.js
Node.js is a lightweight runtime environment for executing JavaScript on the server side. CLion integrates with Node.js providing assistance in configuring, editing, running, debugging, testing, profiling, and maintaining your applications.
If you need Node.js only for managing npm packages or running JavaScript linters, build tools, test frameworks, etc., just install Node.js. If you follow the standard installation procedure, in most cases CLion detects Node.js itself.
To use Node.js as a runtime for your application, you need to configure it as a local or remote interpreter. To do this, install and enable the NodeJS plugin. The NodeJS plugin is not bundled with CLion, but it can be installed from the JetBrains plugin repository as described in Installing, Updating and Uninstalling Repository Plugins and Enabling and Disabling Plugins.
Configuring a local Node.js interpreter
- In the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S), choose Node.js and NPM under Languages and Frameworks. On the Node.js and NPM page, that opens, click the
next to the Node Interpreter drop-down list. - In the Node.js Interpreters dialog that opens with a list of all the currently configured interpreters, click
on the toolbar. In the dialog box that opens, choose Add Local on the context menu and choose the local installation of Node.js, then click OK. You return to the Node.js Interpreters dialog where the Node interpreter read-only field shows the path to the chosen interpreter. - In the Package manager field, choose the package manager (npm or Yarn) to use in the current project, see Configuring a package manager for a project for details.
The field is available only if the selected interpreter is of the type local.
When you click OK, you return to the Node.js and NPM page where the Node interpreter field shows the new interpreter.
Using a system Node.js version
With CLion, you can set the default system node alias as your project’s Node.js version. This means that if you install a new node version and make it the default in your system, all the tools and run configurations in CLion where this system alias is specified in the Node.js interpreter field will use this newer version.
- In the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S), click Node.js and NPM under Languages and Frameworks. The Node.js and NPM page opens.
- From the Node interpreter drop-down list, choose
node.
- Specify this new Node.js interpreter where applicable, e.g. in you run/debug configurations or settings of specific tools.
Quick start with a Node.js application
To create an application
- Choose File | New Project on the main menu or click Create New Project on the Welcome screen. The New Project dialog box opens.
- In the left-hand pane, choose Node.js Express App.
- In the right-hand pane, specify the project folder, the Node.js interpreter, and the version of express-generator to use. In the Options area, choose the template language and the Style Sheet language to use.
To download the project dependencies, do one of the following:
- Open the embedded Terminal () and type
npm installat the command prompt. - Choose Run 'npm install' on the context menu of the
package.jsonfile in your project root.
To configure Node.js in a project
- In the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S), click Node.js and NPM under Languages and Frameworks. The Node.js and NPM page opens.
- In the Node Interpreter field, specify the default Node.js interpreter for the current project. CLion will automatically use it every time you select the
Projectalias from Node Interpreter lists when creating run/debug configurations or configuring Node.js-dependent tools, for example, Prettier or Yeoman.Choose the interpreter from the drop-down list or from the dialog that opens when you click
. If you choose node, the system Node.js version is used.