How to install dependencies with NPM

The main function of NPM is to install and manage the dependencies of our project. To do this, as we know, it registers the dependencies in the package.json file.

These dependencies are organized into two categories:

• Dependencies: Dependencies required for execution
• DevDependencies: Dependencies needed only during development

If we have our dependencies correctly configured in the package.json file, we can install them simply with the following command,

npm install

This command will read the package.json file and download all the dependencies specified in the dependencies section. These dependencies will be stored in a folder called node_modules in the project directory.

This is very common when we download an Open Source project. When publishing a project, it is saved in repositories (like Github) without the libraries. This is logical, it is to save space.

Examples

Installation of required dependencies

When npm install is executed without any additional options, NPM will install the dependencies found under the dependencies section in the package.json file. These are the dependencies necessary for the application to function properly in a production environment.

Suppose we have a package.json file like the following,

{
  "name": "my-project",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "dependencies": {
    "express": "^4.17.1",
    "lodash": "^4.17.21"
  }
}

In this case, npm install will download and install the latest versions of the express and lodash libraries.

Installation of development dependencies

If we want to install the dependencies needed for the development of the project (such as unit tests, build tools, or code style checks), we must use the --dev option or its short form -D. For example:

npm install --dev

This will install all the dependencies found in the devDependencies section of our package.json file.

Remember that these dependencies will not be included in the final package when we distribute our application.