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How to Install Node.js on Windows

How to Install Node.js on Windows
Hostman Team
Technical writer
Node.js Windows
23.05.2024
Reading time: 6 min

JavaScript runs most of the interactive elements on websites and mobile applications. JavaScript works perfectly with HTML/CSS and is integrated with most popular browsers. Pure JavaScript is used on the web, and for general JavaScript applications, developers use various runtime environments, such as Node.js.

Node.js is a JavaScript code execution environment. It allows you to use JavaScript as a general-purpose programming language, creating server parts and writing full-fledged desktop applications.

The basis of Node.js is the V8 engine. This engine was developed by Google and is used in the Google Chrome browser. It compiles JavaScript code into machine code that the processor can understand. However, to make JavaScript a general-purpose language, one engine is not enough. So, for example, to create a server part, the language needs to be able to work with files, the network, etc. To solve this problem, developers have added additional capabilities to V8 using their code and third-party libraries. They ended up with a tool that turns JavaScript into a general-purpose language.

Node.js has become popular among developers due to its ability to create server and client parts in the same language, speed, and NPM. In this article, we will tell you how to properly install Node.js on Windows 10/11.

Removing old versions

Before installation, you must uninstall older versions of the execution environment if you have them, as it may cause conflicts.

Let's check the system for Node.js versions. To do this, launch cmd (press Win+R, type cmd and press Enter) and run the nvm list command:

C:\Users\Hostman>nvm list
    18.9.0
    18.8.0
    16.17.0

As you can see, we have several versions installed. To delete them:

  1. Run the npm cache clean --force command.

  2. Go to Add or Remove Programs and remove Node.js.

  3. Reboot the computer.

  4. Remove the following directories if they exist:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Nodejs
C:\Program Files\Nodejs
C:\Users\{User}\AppData\Roaming\npm
C:\Users\{User}\AppData\Roaming\npm-cache
C:\Users\{User}\.npmrc
C:\Users\{User}\AppData\Local\Temp\npm-*
  1. Return to the command line and execute nvm uninstall for each version from the nvm list output:

C:\Users\Hostman>nvm uninstall 18.9.0
Uninstalling node v18.9.0... done

C:\Users\Hostman>nvm uninstall 18.8.0
Uninstalling node v18.9.0... done

C:\Users\Hostman>nvm uninstall 16.17.0
Uninstalling node v18.9.0... done
  1. Check that the versions have been deleted:

C:\Users\Hostman>nvm list
'nvm' is not recognized as an internal or external command

C:\Users\Hostman>where node
No files matching the pattern were found

C:\Users\Hostman>where npm
No files matching the pattern were found
Managed solution for Backend development

Install Node.js on Windows

Using nvm-windows

Node Version Manager or NVM for short is a Node.js version manager. You may need to use different versions of Node and switch between them as you work.

NVM is the most common version manager, but it is not available on Windows and a custom version of nvm-windows is used instead.

  1. Visit the nvm-windows repository on Github.

  2. Download the nvm-setup.exe installer for the latest version of the manager.

  3. After downloading, install it.

  4. Once the installation is finished, open PowerShell as an administrator and run nvm list available to see the list of versions available for download:

Image1

If your project does not require a specific version, we recommend selecting the latest LTS release to minimize possible issues. If you want to test the new features and improved features, you can download the latest version. However, there is a greater risk of errors when using the newest version.

Let's install the latest LTS. Check the version number in the nvm list available output and install it using nvm install:

PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> nvm install 20.13.1

Downloading node.js version 20.13.1 (64-bit)...
Extracting node and npm...
Complete
npm v10.5.2 installed successfully.
Installation complete. If you want to use this version, type
nvm use 20.13.1

In some cases, when installing nvm-windows, a problem may occur: nvm will not load the NPM package manager. In this case, we recommend using the installation method below.

Using the official installer

  1. Go to the Downloads on the official Node.js website.

  2. Select and download the version you need.

  3. Once the download is complete, open the file and the installation will begin.

  4. Follow the installer's instructions.

Installing Node.js in WSL2

If you want to use Node.js with Docker, plan to work with the Bash command line, or just love Linux, you might consider installing Node.js in WSL2.

WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) is a software layer for running applications created for Linux systems on Windows OS. 

This section will contain instructions for installing WSL2.

The WSL2 installation algorithm in Windows 10 depends on the operating system version. To find it out, press Win+R and enter winver. After this, the following window will open:

Image2

If it’s Windows 11, you’re good to go with Method 1. If it’s Windows 10, check the version and build and select the appropriate method.

Method 1: For Windows 10 version 2004 and higher or Windows 11

To use this installation method, you must be running Windows 10 version 2004 and higher (build 19041 and higher) or Windows 11.

In PowerShell, run the following commands as an administrator:

wsl --install
wsl --set-version Ubuntu 2

To check the result, use the command wsl.exe -l -v:

PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> wsl.exe -l -v
  NAME STATE VERSION
* Ubuntu Stopped 2

Method 2: For  Windows 10 versions earlier than 2004

To use this method, you must have at least Version 1903 or later, with Build 18362.1049 or later.

Run PowerShell as administrator and activate the Windows Subsystem for Linux.

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart

Then activate the virtual machine function:

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename: VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart

After completing these steps, you need to restart your computer.

When the computer starts, download and install the Linux kernel update package. You can download it here.

In PowerShell, select version 2 of WSL as the main one.

wsl --set-default-version 2

Now let's download some operating system on Linux. You can do this directly from the Microsoft Store app store.

Once the installation is complete, you can log into the console of the installed system through the search menu.

Conclusion

Node.js is a popular development environment used by many large companies: PayPal, Yahoo, Ebay, General Electric, Microsoft, and Uber. 

In this guide, we looked at different ways to install Node.js on Windows 10 and 11.

You can check out our app platform to find various Node.js frameworks, including Express, Fastify, Hapi and Nest.

Node.js Windows
23.05.2024
Reading time: 6 min

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You can also replace School-Quiz with any other project name. After cloning the repository, without closing the terminal, enter: cd School-Quiz Replace School-Quiz with the actual name of the folder where your project was cloned from GitHub. To initialize the project, run the following command: npm init You will be prompted to enter the package name, version, description, default entry file, test command, Git repository, keywords, author, and license. You can press "Enter" to accept the default values. Now, let’s install the library that will be used to write the bot’s code. Enter the following command in the terminal (ensuring that you are in the project folder): npm install node-telegram-bot-api Writing Code for the Quiz After the installation is complete, you can start writing the code. Open the package.json file and find the scripts section. Inside it, above the test command, add the following line: "start": "node index.js", This allows you to start the project by simply entering npm start in the terminal instead of typing node followed by the file name. Now, create a file called index.js and add the following code: const TelegramBot = require('node-telegram-bot-api'); const fs = require('fs'); const bot = new TelegramBot('TOKEN', { polling: true }); // Replace 'TOKEN' with the actual token provided by BotFather const ADMIN_ID = '1402655980'; let awaitingSupportMessage = {}; // Stores information about users waiting for support // Stores selected topics for users let userTopics = {}; // Topics and their respective question files const topics = { math: { name: 'Math', file: 'questions/math.json' }, spanish: { name: 'Spanish', file: 'questions/spanish.json' }, history: { name: 'History', file: 'questions/history.json' } }; // Function to retrieve questions based on selected topics function getQuestionsByTopics(userId) { const selectedTopics = userTopics[userId] || Object.keys(topics); let allQuestions = []; selectedTopics.forEach(topic => { const questions = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(topics[topic].file, 'utf8')); allQuestions = allQuestions.concat(questions); }); return allQuestions; } function getRandomQuestion(userId) { const questions = getQuestionsByTopics(userId); const randomIndex = Math.floor(Math.random() * questions.length); return questions[randomIndex]; } bot.onText(/\/quiz/, (msg) => { const chatId = msg.chat.id; const userId = msg.from.id; // Retrieve a random question const questionData = getRandomQuestion(userId); // Send the poll as a quiz bot.sendPoll( chatId, questionData.question, // The question text questionData.options, // Answer options { type: 'quiz', // Quiz type correct_option_id: questionData.correct_option_id, // Correct answer is_anonymous: false // The quiz won't be anonymous } ).then(pollMessage => { // Handle poll results bot.on('poll_answer', (answer) => { if (answer.poll_id === pollMessage.poll.id) { const selectedOption = answer.option_ids[0]; // Check if the answer is correct if (selectedOption !== questionData.correct_option_id) { bot.sendMessage(chatId, questionData.explanation); } } }); }); }); bot.onText(/\/settopic/, (msg) => { const chatId = msg.chat.id; const userId = msg.from.id; const keyboard = Object.keys(topics).map(topicKey => ({ text: `${(userTopics[userId] || []).includes(topicKey) ? '✅ ' : ''}${topics[topicKey].name}`, callback_data: topicKey })); bot.sendMessage(chatId, 'Select the topics for questions:', { reply_markup: { inline_keyboard: [keyboard] } }); }); // Topic selection handler bot.on('callback_query', (callbackQuery) => { const message = callbackQuery.message; const userId = callbackQuery.from.id; const topicKey = callbackQuery.data; // Initialize selected topics for the user if they don't exist if (!userTopics[userId]) { userTopics[userId] = Object.keys(topics); } // Add or remove the selected topic if (userTopics[userId].includes(topicKey)) { userTopics[userId] = userTopics[userId].filter(t => t !== topicKey); } else { userTopics[userId].push(topicKey); } // Update the message with buttons const keyboard = Object.keys(topics).map(topicKey => ({ text: `${userTopics[userId].includes(topicKey) ? '✅ ' : ''}${topics[topicKey].name}`, callback_data: topicKey })); bot.editMessageReplyMarkup({ inline_keyboard: [keyboard] }, { chat_id: message.chat.id, message_id: message.message_id }); }); bot.onText(/\/start/, (msg) => { const chatId = msg.chat.id; bot.sendMessage(chatId, "Hello! Type /quiz to start a quiz. Use /settopic to choose topics."); }); console.log('Bot is running.'); Quiz Questions Files Now, create a folder named questions inside your project. Within this folder, create three JSON files: spanish.json [ { "question": "How do you say 'I' in Spanish?", "options": ["Yo", "Tú", "Nosotros"], "correct_option_id": 0, "explanation": "The correct answer is: Yo." }, { "question": "What does the verb 'correr' mean?", "options": ["to run", "to walk", "to stand"], "correct_option_id": 0, "explanation": "The correct answer is: to run." }, { "question": "How do you say 'she' in Spanish?", "options": ["Tú", "Ella", "Vosotros"], "correct_option_id": 1, "explanation": "The correct answer is: Ella." } ] history.json [ { "question": "In which year did World War II begin?", "options": ["1939", "1941", "1914"], "correct_option_id": 0, "explanation": "The correct answer is: 1939." }, { "question": "Who was the first president of the United States?", "options": ["Abraham Lincoln", "George Washington", "Franklin Roosevelt"], "correct_option_id": 1, "explanation": "The correct answer is: George Washington." }, { "question": "Which country was the first to send a human into space?", "options": ["USA", "USSR", "China"], "correct_option_id": 1, "explanation": "The correct answer is: USSR." } ] math.json [ { "question": "What is 2 + 2?", "options": ["3", "4", "5"], "correct_option_id": 1, "explanation": "The correct answer is: 4." }, { "question": "What is 5 * 5?", "options": ["10", "20", "25"], "correct_option_id": 2, "explanation": "The correct answer is: 25." }, { "question": "What is 10 / 2?", "options": ["4", "5", "6"], "correct_option_id": 1, "explanation": "The correct answer is: 5." } ] Each JSON file contains the question, answer options, the index of the correct answer, and an explanation that will be sent if the user selects the wrong answer. Telegram Stars Recently, Telegram introduced an internal currency called Telegram Stars, along with an API update allowing bots to support donations in Stars. Let’s add a /donate command to the index.js file. When users send this command, the bot will generate a payment invoice. Add the following code inside index.js: bot.onText(/\/donate/, (msg) => { const chatId = msg.chat.id; bot.sendInvoice(chatId, 'Donation', 'Support the project with a donation', 'unique_payload', '', // Empty provider_token for Stars Payments 'XTR', // Currency "XTR" [{ label: 'Donation', amount: 1 }] // Amount: 1 Star ); }); Support Command Let’s add another command called /support. This command allows a large number of users to contact you without creating multiple unnecessary chats. Users will be able to send text, photos, and videos, and the bot will forward these messages directly to the admin (in this case, you). Place the following code inside index.js. At the beginning of the file, add: const ADMIN_ID = 'ID'; let awaitingSupportMessage = {}; // Stores information about users waiting for support The ADMIN_ID tells the bot where to forward the user’s message. To find your ID, you can use the Get My ID bot by simply sending the /start command to it. At the end of the file, add the following code: bot.onText(/\/support/, (msg) => { const chatId = msg.chat.id; const userId = msg.from.id; // Inform the user that we are waiting for their message bot.sendMessage(chatId, "Please send your message in a single message, including text, photos, or videos!"); // Mark the user as currently composing a support message awaitingSupportMessage[userId] = true; }); Handling All Messages This section processes all incoming messages and checks if they are part of a support request. Add the following code to handle different types of user content: bot.on('message', (msg) => { const userId = msg.from.id; // Check if the user is sending a message after the /support command if (awaitingSupportMessage[userId]) { const chatId = msg.chat.id; const caption = msg.caption || ''; // Include caption if present // Check the type of message and forward the corresponding content to the admin if (msg.text) { // If the message contains text bot.sendMessage(ADMIN_ID, `New support request from @${msg.from.username || msg.from.first_name} (ID: ${userId}):\n\n${msg.text}`); } else if (msg.photo) { // If the message contains a photo const photo = msg.photo[msg.photo.length - 1].file_id; // Select the highest resolution photo bot.sendPhoto(ADMIN_ID, photo, { caption: `New support request from @${msg.from.username || msg.from.first_name} (ID: ${userId})\n\n${caption}` }); } else if (msg.video) { // If the message contains a video const video = msg.video.file_id; bot.sendVideo(ADMIN_ID, video, { caption: `New support request from @${msg.from.username || msg.from.first_name} (ID: ${userId})\n\n${caption}` }); } else { // If the message type is unsupported bot.sendMessage(msg.chat.id, "Sorry, this type of message is not supported."); } // Confirm to the user that their message has been sent bot.sendMessage(chatId, "Your message has been sent. The administrator will contact you soon."); // Remove the user from the list of those composing a support message delete awaitingSupportMessage[userId]; } }); Deployment on a Server For our bot to operate continuously, we must upload and run it on a server. For deployment, we will use Hostman cloud servers. Uploading to GitHub Before launching the bot on the server, you first need to upload the project files to GitHub. Run the following commands in the console in sequence: Add all changes in the current directory to the next commit: git add . Create a commit with the message "first commit", recording all changes added with git add: git commit -m "first commit" Push the changes to GitHub: git push Server Setup Go to your Hostman control panel and: Create a New Project (optional): Specify an icon, a name, a description, and add users if necessary. Create a Cloud Server: Either from your project or from the Cloud servers page start creating a new cloud server. Select the Region: Choose the region that is closest to you or where the lowest ping is available. Go to the Marketplace tab in the second step and select Node.js. Set the Ubuntu version to the latest one. This ensures that Node.js will already be installed on the server when it starts, so you won’t need to install it manually. Choose Configuration: Select the configuration according to your needs. For running the project, the minimum configuration is sufficient. If the project requires more resources in the future, you can upgrade the server without disrupting its operation. Network Settings: Ensure that you assign a public IP for the server. Configure any additional services as needed. Authorization and Cloud-init: In the Authorization step, you can add your SSH key to the server. However, it’s optional, and you can leave these settings as they are. Server Information: Provide the server’s name and description, and select the project to which you want to add the server. Once everything is set up, click the Order button. After a short while, the server will be up and running, and you can proceed with the next steps. Launching the Bot After creating the server, go to the Dashboard tab, copy the Root password, and open the Console tab. Enter the username root and press Enter. Next, paste the password you copied and press Enter again. When typing or pasting the password, it will not be visible! If everything is correct, you will see a welcome message. Now, run the following command to get the latest updates: sudo apt-get update Create a new folder where you will place the bot. Enter these commands in sequence: cd /sudo mkdir Botcd Bot You can replace the folder name "Bot" with any other name you choose. To ensure Git is installed on the server (it is usually pre-installed by default), check the version using: git --version Next, set up global Git settings to link it to your GitHub profile: git config --global user.name "your GitHub username"git config --global user.email "email used during registration" After this, clone the repository by entering the following command with your repository URL: git clone https://github.com/username/School-Quiz During cloning, you will be prompted to enter your username and then your password. If you have two-factor authentication (2FA) enabled on your GitHub account, entering your regular password will result in an error saying the password is incorrect. To clone a repository with 2FA enabled, you need to create a personal access token. Click your profile picture in the top-right corner and select “Settings”. In the left-hand menu, click “Developer settings”. Under the “Personal access tokens” section, select “Tokens (classic)” and click “Generate new token”. Set token parameters: In the “Note” field, provide a description for the token. Set the expiration date for the token in the “Expiration” field. Under “Select scopes”, choose the necessary permissions for the token. For example, to work with repositories, select repo. Click “Generate token”. Copy the generated token and store it in a secure place. Note that you won’t be able to view the token again after closing the page. Once you have the personal access token, use it instead of your password when prompted during the repository cloning process. Navigate to your project folder using the following command: cd School-Quiz Replace School-Quiz with the actual name of your project. To install the project dependencies, run: npm install Once the packages are installed, you can start the project by running: npm start In the console, you should see the message “Bot is running”. However, there is one issue—if you restart the server or close the console, the bot will stop working! To ensure the bot runs continuously and automatically starts after a server reboot, you need to install a process manager like pm2. Install pm2 globally using the following command: sudo npm install pm2 -g Next, start the Node.js server using pm2: sudo pm2 start index.js --name "bot-quiz" --watch In this example, the process is named bot-quiz, but you can use any name you prefer. Set up automatic startup on server reboot: sudo pm2 startup Save all the changes made: sudo pm2 save Conclusion In this guide, we covered the entire process of creating a Telegram bot using Node.js, from registering the bot via BotFather to deploying the finished solution on a server.
31 January 2025 · 15 min to read

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