tessl/npm-node-red

Low-code programming platform for event-driven applications with visual flow-based editor and runtime system

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Overview

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Command Line Interface

Name: tessl/npm-node-red
Author: tessl

Node-RED's command-line interface provides tools for running the server, managing node modules, and administrative tasks. The CLI supports both server execution and administrative operations.

Capabilities

Server Execution

Start Node-RED server with various configuration options.

# Basic server startup
node-red

# With specific options  
node-red [options]

Command Line Options:

# Server configuration
-p, --port PORT         # Port to listen on (default: 1880)
-s, --settings FILE     # Settings file to use (default: ~/.node-red/settings.js)
--title TITLE          # Process window title (default: node-red)
-u, --userDir DIR      # User directory (default: ~/.node-red)

# Operation modes
-v, --verbose          # Enable verbose output
--safe                 # Enable safe mode (starts without flows)

# Configuration overrides  
-D, --define X=Y       # Override settings values dynamically

# Information
--version              # Show version information
--help                 # Show help information

# Privacy
--no-telemetry         # Disable usage data sharing

Usage Examples:

# Start on custom port
node-red -p 1881

# Use custom settings file
node-red -s ./my-settings.js

# Custom user directory
node-red -u ./node-red-data

# Safe mode (no flows loaded)
node-red --safe

# Verbose logging
node-red -v

# Override settings
node-red -D uiHost=127.0.0.1 -D httpNodeRoot=/api

# Show version
node-red --version

Administrative Commands

Administrative operations using the admin command interface.

# Admin command syntax
node-red admin <command> [options]

Node Module Management

# Install node module
node-red admin install <module>[@version]

# Remove node module  
node-red admin remove <module>

# Enable node module
node-red admin enable <module>

# Disable node module
node-red admin disable <module>

# List installed modules
node-red admin list [filter]

# Search for modules
node-red admin search <term>

# Show module information
node-red admin info <module>

Usage Examples:

# Install specific node module
node-red admin install node-red-contrib-influxdb

# Install specific version
node-red admin install node-red-contrib-postgres@0.6.1

# Remove module
node-red admin remove node-red-contrib-influxdb

# List all installed modules
node-red admin list

# List core modules only
node-red admin list core

# Search for MQTT nodes
node-red admin search mqtt

# Get module information
node-red admin info node-red-contrib-influxdb

User Management

# Initialize user directory
node-red admin init

# Generate password hash  
node-red admin hash-pw [password]

Usage Examples:

# Initialize new user directory with prompts
node-red admin init

# Generate password hash for settings.js
node-red admin hash-pw
# Enter password when prompted

# Generate hash for specific password
echo "mypassword" | node-red admin hash-pw

Process Management

Node-RED can be managed as a system service or run in various modes.

# Run as daemon (background process)
nohup node-red > node-red.log 2>&1 &

# Run with process manager
pm2 start node-red
pm2 start node-red --name "my-node-red"

# Docker execution
docker run -p 1880:1880 nodered/node-red

# systemd service (example unit file)
[Unit]
Description=Node-RED
After=syslog.target network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/bin/node-red --userDir /opt/node-red/.node-red
Restart=on-failure
KillSignal=SIGINT
User=nodered
Group=nodered

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Environment Variables

Environment variables that affect Node-RED behavior.

# Node-RED specific variables
NODE_RED_HOME          # Override home directory detection
NODE_RED_OPTIONS       # Additional command line options

# Node.js variables  
NODE_ENV               # Environment mode (development, production)
NODE_OPTIONS           # Node.js runtime options
NODE_PATH              # Additional module search paths

# System variables
HOME                   # User home directory (affects default userDir)
PORT                   # Port override (for cloud deployments)

Usage Examples:

# Set environment mode
NODE_ENV=production node-red

# Increase Node.js memory limit
NODE_OPTIONS="--max-old-space-size=4096" node-red

# Custom home directory
NODE_RED_HOME=/opt/node-red node-red

# Cloud deployment with PORT override
PORT=8080 node-red

Configuration Files

Location and structure of Node-RED configuration files.

Settings File Location

# Default locations (in order of precedence)
./settings.js           # Current directory
~/.node-red/settings.js # User directory  
/usr/local/lib/node_modules/node-red/settings.js # Global installation

User Directory Structure

~/.node-red/           # Default user directory
├── settings.js        # Main configuration file
├── flows.json         # Flow definitions  
├── flows_cred.json    # Encrypted credentials
├── .sessions.json     # Editor sessions
├── .config.json       # Editor configuration
├── lib/              # Custom modules directory
├── node_modules/     # Installed node modules
└── projects/         # Git projects (if enabled)

Logging and Debugging

Command-line options and techniques for debugging Node-RED.

# Enable debug logging
DEBUG=red:* node-red

# Specific debug categories
DEBUG=red:runtime:* node-red
DEBUG=red:comms,red:api node-red

# Verbose output
node-red -v

# Safe mode for troubleshooting
node-red --safe

# Custom log level in settings
node-red -D logging.console.level=debug

Debug Categories:

red:* - All Node-RED debug output
red:runtime:* - Runtime system debugging
red:comms - WebSocket communication
red:api - HTTP API calls
red:registry - Node registry operations
red:storage - Storage operations

Integration Examples

Common patterns for integrating Node-RED CLI in deployment scenarios.

Docker Deployment

FROM nodered/node-red:latest

# Copy custom settings
COPY settings.js /data/settings.js

# Install additional nodes
RUN npm install node-red-contrib-influxdb

# Expose port
EXPOSE 1880

# Start Node-RED
CMD ["node-red", "--userDir", "/data"]

Kubernetes Deployment

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: node-red
spec:
  replicas: 1
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: node-red
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: node-red
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: node-red
        image: nodered/node-red:latest
        ports:
        - containerPort: 1880
        env:
        - name: NODE_ENV
          value: "production"
        command: ["node-red"]
        args: ["--userDir", "/data", "--verbose"]
        volumeMounts:
        - name: node-red-data
          mountPath: /data

Startup Scripts

#!/bin/bash
# node-red-startup.sh

export NODE_ENV=production
export NODE_OPTIONS="--max-old-space-size=2048"

# Start Node-RED with custom configuration
node-red \
  --userDir /opt/node-red/data \
  --settings /opt/node-red/config/settings.js \
  --port 1880 \
  --verbose \
  > /var/log/node-red.log 2>&1 &

echo $! > /var/run/node-red.pid
echo "Node-RED started with PID $(cat /var/run/node-red.pid)"

Exit Codes

Node-RED CLI exit codes and their meanings.

0    # Success
1    # General error
2    # Invalid arguments  
3    # Node.js version incompatible
130  # Interrupted (Ctrl+C)

Troubleshooting

Common CLI issues and solutions.

Permission Issues

# Fix npm permissions for global install
sudo chown -R $(whoami) ~/.npm
sudo chown -R $(whoami) /usr/local/lib/node_modules

# Or use n or nvm for Node.js management

Port Already in Use

# Find process using port 1880
lsof -i :1880
netstat -tulpn | grep :1880

# Use different port
node-red -p 1881

Module Installation Issues

# Clear npm cache
npm cache clean --force

# Rebuild native modules
npm rebuild

# Install with specific registry
node-red admin install --registry=https://registry.npmjs.org/ <module>