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tessl/npm-npm-check

Check for outdated, incorrect, and unused dependencies in npm projects.

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Overview
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Files

cli.mddocs/

Command Line Interface

The npm-check CLI provides an interactive and automated interface for analyzing and updating npm dependencies. It supports both local project analysis and global package management.

Capabilities

Basic Command

The primary command-line interface for npm-check.

npm-check [path] [options]

# Basic usage
npm-check                    # Analyze current directory
npm-check ./my-project       # Analyze specific directory
npm-check /path/to/project   # Analyze absolute path

Usage Examples:

# Check current directory for outdated and unused packages
npm-check

# Check a specific project directory
npm-check ./my-react-app

# Check with verbose output for debugging
npm-check --debug

Interactive Update Mode

Provides an interactive interface for selectively updating packages.

-u, --update                 # Interactive update mode

Usage Examples:

# Interactive update of local packages
npm-check -u

# Interactive update of global packages  
npm-check -g -u

# Interactive update with exact versions
npm-check -u -E

Features of interactive mode:

  • Navigate with arrow keys to select packages
  • Space bar to toggle package selection
  • Shows changelog links for informed decisions
  • Respects semver and package-lock.json constraints
  • Uses locally installed npm version for updates

Automated Update Mode

Updates all outdated packages without user interaction.

-y, --update-all             # Update all packages without prompting

Usage Examples:

# Update all local packages automatically
npm-check -y

# Update all global packages automatically  
npm-check -g -y

# Update all with exact versions
npm-check -y -E

Scope Options

Control which types of dependencies to analyze and update.

-g, --global                 # Check global modules
-p, --production             # Skip devDependencies  
-d, --dev-only               # Only check devDependencies
-s, --skip-unused            # Skip unused package detection

Usage Examples:

# Check only globally installed packages
npm-check -g

# Check only production dependencies (ignore devDependencies)
npm-check -p

# Check only development dependencies (ignore dependencies)  
npm-check -d

# Skip the unused package analysis (faster execution)
npm-check -s

# Combined: interactive update of global packages, skip unused check
npm-check -g -u -s

Filtering Options

Control which packages to include or exclude from analysis.

-i, --ignore <glob>          # Ignore dependencies matching glob pattern
--specials <list>            # Include specific depcheck specials

Usage Examples:

# Ignore all babel-related packages
npm-check -i "babel-*"

# Ignore multiple patterns (use quotes for complex patterns)
npm-check -i "@types/*,eslint-*"

# Include webpack config in unused package detection
npm-check --specials=webpack

# Include multiple specials
npm-check --specials=bin,webpack,babel

Installation Options

Control how packages are installed when updating.

-E, --save-exact             # Save exact versions instead of semver ranges

Usage Examples:

# Update with exact versions (no ^ or ~ prefixes)
npm-check -u -E

# Automated update with exact versions
npm-check -y -E

Output Options

Control the appearance and verbosity of output.

--no-color                   # Disable colored output
--no-emoji                   # Disable emoji in output
--no-spinner                 # Disable loading spinners
--debug                      # Enable debug output

Usage Examples:

# Plain text output without colors or emoji (good for CI)
npm-check --no-color --no-emoji

# Debug mode with detailed output
npm-check --debug

# Quiet mode without spinners (good for scripting)
npm-check --no-spinner

Environment Variables

Configure npm-check behavior through environment variables.

# Set preferred package manager
export NPM_CHECK_INSTALLER=pnpm
export NPM_CHECK_INSTALLER=yarn
export NPM_CHECK_INSTALLER=npm

# Override global node_modules path
export NODE_PATH=/custom/path/to/node_modules

Usage Examples:

# Use pnpm for updates
NPM_CHECK_INSTALLER=pnpm npm-check -u

# Use yarn for updates
NPM_CHECK_INSTALLER=yarn npm-check -u

# Dry run using echo (for testing)
NPM_CHECK_INSTALLER=echo npm-check -u

# Custom global modules path
NODE_PATH=/usr/local/lib/node_modules npm-check -g

Configuration File Support

npm-check supports configuration files for advanced depcheck options.

# Configuration files (in order of precedence):
.npmcheckrc
.npmcheckrc.json
.npmcheckrc.yml
.npmcheckrc.js

Configuration Example:

# .npmcheckrc
depcheck:
  ignoreMatches: 
    - "replace-in-file"
    - "snyk"
    - "sonarqube-scanner"
  ignoreDirs:
    - "build"
    - "dist"
  specials:
    - "webpack"
    - "babel"

Exit Codes

npm-check returns different exit codes based on analysis results.

# Exit codes:
0    # All packages are up to date and in use
1    # Outdated packages or unused packages found  
1    # Error occurred during analysis

Usage Examples:

# Use in CI/CD pipelines
npm-check
if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
  echo "Dependencies need attention"
  exit 1
fi

# Combined with other commands
npm-check && npm test && npm run build

Common Workflows

Typical usage patterns for different scenarios.

Development Workflow:

# Daily dependency check
npm-check

# Weekly interactive update
npm-check -u

# Pre-commit check (skip unused for speed)
npm-check -s

CI/CD Pipeline:

# Check for outdated dependencies (fail build if found)
npm-check --no-color --no-emoji

# Production-only check
npm-check -p --no-color

Global Package Management:

# Check global packages
npm-check -g

# Update global packages interactively
npm-check -g -u

# Update all global packages including npm itself
npm-check -g -y

Project Maintenance:

# Find unused dependencies
npm-check

# Clean update with exact versions
npm-check -u -E

# Debug dependency issues
npm-check --debug

Install with Tessl CLI

npx tessl i tessl/npm-npm-check

docs

cli.md

index.md

programmatic-api.md

tile.json