node.js - How can I make multiple projects share node_modules directory?

Question

Whenever I make projects, I have to download all dependencies of node modules. Without copying the node_modules, Is there anyway to share the central node_modules in multiple projects?

like the followings, I have to run many commands every time..

npm install gulp-usemin                                                                        
npm install gulp-wrap
npm install gulp-connect
npm install gulp-watch
npm install gulp-minify-css
npm install gulp-uglify
npm install gulp-concat
npm install gulp-less
npm install gulp-rename
npm install gulp-minify-html

Answer 1

You absolutely can share a node_modules directory amongst projects.

From node's documentation:

If the module identifier passed to require() is not a native module, and does not begin with '/', '../', or './', then node starts at the parent directory of the current module, and adds /node_modules, and attempts to load the module from that location.

If it is not found there, then it moves to the parent directory, and so on, until the root of the file system is reached.

For example, if the file at '/home/ry/projects/foo.js' called require('bar.js'), then node would look in the following locations, in this order:

/home/ry/projects/node_modules/bar.js /home/ry/node_modules/bar.js /home/node_modules/bar.js /node_modules/bar.js

So just put a node_modules folder inside your projects directory and put in whatever modules you want. Just require them like normal. When node doesn't find a node_modules directory in your project folder, it will check the parent folder automatically. So make your directory structure like this:

-myProjects
--node_modules
--myproject1
---sub-project
--myproject2

So like this, even your sub-project's dependencies can draw on your main node_modules repository.

One drawback to doing it this way is you will have to build out your package.json file manually (unless someone knows a way to automate this with grunt or something). When you install your packages and add the --save arg to an npm install command it automatically appends it to the dependencies section or your package.json, which is convenient.