How to Fix node-gyp Error on Windows

  • javascript
  • node-gyp
  • nodejs
  • I hit this problem once or twice a year and always seem to forget how easy it is to fix the problem. This blog post will ensure that not only I remember, but the entire Internet will remember the solution I use.

    Here goes.

    The Problem

    The problem is simple: You pull down a repository that uses NPM for package management onto your Windows machine, you type npm install and you get something like this:

    npm ERR! Failed at the <package>@<version> install script 'node-gyp rebuild'
    

    or

    gyp ERR! stack Error: Can't find Python executable "python", you can set the PYTHON env variable.
    

    This is because the project you're trying to build requires the node-gyp package to build something natively on the platform. That package required Python 2.7 and a few other pieces too.

    The Solution

    Simple problems sometimes get simple solutions.

    Thanks to the node-gyp team, that is the case and they have documented it in the project README.

    Using a PowerShell CLI instance with administrative priviledges, and use the following code:

    npm install --global --production windows-build-tools
    

    And that's it.

    There is a manual option as well, but I haven't needed to use it as the first option always works for me.

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