Troubleshooting

node: command not found (or npm: command not found)

Conduit is published as Node.js packages and requires Node 24 or newer. If node --version doesn’t print a version ≥ 24, install or upgrade it.

The recommended approach on every platform is a Node version manager — they install Node into your home directory, don’t require sudo, and let you switch versions per project. If you don’t already have one, pick one of the options below.

macOS

Homebrew:

brew install node

fnm (fast, single binary, recommended if you don’t already use Homebrew):

curl -fsSL https://fnm.vercel.app/install | bash
exec $SHELL          # restart the shell so fnm is on PATH
fnm install 24
fnm use 24

Official installer: download the LTS .pkg from nodejs.org.

Linux

fnm (works on every distro, no root needed):

curl -fsSL https://fnm.vercel.app/install | bash
exec $SHELL
fnm install 24
fnm use 24

Distro package managers sometimes ship Node versions older than 24 — check node --version after install. If yours is too old, use NodeSource (Debian/Ubuntu/RHEL) or fall back to fnm.

# Debian / Ubuntu
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_24.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

# Fedora / RHEL
curl -fsSL https://rpm.nodesource.com/setup_24.x | sudo bash -
sudo dnf install -y nodejs

Arch:

sudo pacman -S nodejs npm

Windows

fnm via Winget:

winget install Schniz.fnm
fnm install 24
fnm use 24

Official installer: download the LTS .msi from nodejs.org and run it. Open a fresh terminal afterwards so node is on PATH.

WSL2: if you’re using Windows Subsystem for Linux, follow the Linux instructions inside your WSL distro instead — installing Node on the Windows side won’t make it available in WSL.

Verify

node --version    # should print v24.x.x or newer
npm --version

If node is installed but command not found persists, your shell hasn’t picked up the new PATH. Open a fresh terminal, or exec $SHELL.

npm error code EACCES when running npm install -g

Global installs into /usr/local or /usr/lib/node_modules need write permission you usually don’t have. Two clean ways out:

1. Use a Node version manager (fnm/nvm/volta — see above). Their npm installs into your home directory, so -g doesn’t hit a permissioned path.

2. Reconfigure npm’s global prefix to a directory you own:

   mkdir -p ~/.npm-global
   npm config set prefix ~/.npm-global
   echo 'export PATH=$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$PATH' >> ~/.zshrc   # or ~/.bashrc
   exec $SHELL

Avoid sudo npm install -g — it works but leaves files owned by root and creates more permission problems later.

Conduit installs but conduit: command not found

npm install -g placed the binary somewhere that isn’t on your PATH. Find where:

npm config get prefix

Add <that-prefix>/bin to your shell PATH and reopen the terminal.