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Install Node.js on MacOS

To develop a Node.js application on MacOS, the Node binaries must be installed. This guide walks through installing Homebrew, Node.js, and Node Version Manager (nvm).

1. Create a user with admin access.​

Chances are you are already a user with admin access. If you are aware that you are not a user with admin access, follow these steps (osxdaily.com) to create such a user. You will need a user with admin access to create this new user, so contact an admin if necessary.

2. Install Homebrew​

Homebrew is a package manager for MacOS. An OS package manager is used for downloading programs and libraries. Homebrew is used for installing and managing versions of CLI tools and other packages.

command line
$ ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)"
$ brew -v

3. Remove existing node versions​

In case there is already a Node installation on the Mac, remove it. We will be using nvm to manage Node versions, and a pre-existing installation will hijack any invocations of the node executable.

command line
$ brew uninstall --force node

4. Install NVM​

Node Version Manager allows the developer to install and manage different versions of Node both a global and project-by-project basis.

command line
$ brew update
$ brew install nvm

5. Follow the instructions output by the nvm installer​

command line output
You should create NVM's working directory if it doesn't exist:

  mkdir ~/.nvm

Add the following to ~/.zshrc or your desired shell
configuration file:

  export NVM_DIR="$HOME/.nvm"
  [ -s "/usr/local/opt/nvm/nvm.sh" ] && \. "/usr/local/opt/nvm/nvm.sh"  # This loads nvm
  [ -s "/usr/local/opt/nvm/etc/bash_completion.d/nvm" ] && \. "/usr/local/opt/nvm/etc/bash_completion.d/nvm"  # This loads nvm bash_completion

You can set $NVM_DIR to any location, but leaving it unchanged from
/usr/local/opt/nvm will destroy any nvm-installed Node installations
upon upgrade/reinstall.

Type `nvm help` for further information.

Practically, issue the following command:

command line
$ mkdir ~/.nvm

Copy the indicated output and paste it into .zshrc, and use the command source to load the new configuration into the active terminal.

command line
$ nano ~/.zshrc
$ source ~/.zshrc

6. Install the latest long-term support version of Node.js.​

command line
$ nvm install --lts
$ nvm current

nvm current displays the currently active node version. It should be the version that was installed with nvm install --lts.

7. Check the installations​

You should now have nvm and Node.js installed. Check the installation. Here are the commands with example output.

command line
$ nvm -v
0.39.1
$ node -v
v16.14.2

Now that Node is installed, we'll get to building out smartsite. Keep the following in mind: Node.js is useful for more than serving web requests. Node.js can be used to build desktop applications, command-line scripts, developer libraries (things that can be npm installed), and more. The Node.js ecosystem is ripe for software creation.

Resources​

Similar walkthrough: https://tecadmin.net/install-nvm-macos-with-homebrew/