I accidentally deleted my package-lock.json file. npm install is not generating a new one. How do I get npm to recreate this file.
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what node version are you using? – emil Aug 24 '17 at 16:16
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@emil I am using v6.10.2 – Dblock247 Aug 24 '17 at 16:21
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I think below 8.0, they use shrinkwrap.json instead of package-lock.json – emil Aug 24 '17 at 16:23
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1@emil it originally created a package-lock.json and I don't have a shrinkwrap.json either. Never seen it before. – Dblock247 Aug 24 '17 at 16:24
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2Also, `npm` only creates/updates the lock file when it modifies your `node_modules` folder, so in *theory* you could delete your `node_modules` folder, run `npm i` and it should regenerate the file for you – wjvander Aug 24 '17 at 16:25
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Yes. if you remove node_modules and reinstall with node version 8.0 above, you will see lock file. – emil Aug 24 '17 at 16:27
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1@emil I just upgraded to v8.4.0 and ran npm install and it created the package-lock.json – Dblock247 Aug 24 '17 at 18:17
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@emil, a proper answer would go a long way to resolving this question. – isherwood Jan 23 '18 at 17:35
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14For other people experiencing this problem: also ensure that .npmrc does not contain `package-lock=false`. This is another reason why `package-lock.json` might not exist. – Kevin May 23 '18 at 17:09
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**Check your `.gitignore`.** I accidentally had `package-lock.json` in the `.gitignore` somehow and because `package-lock.json` wasn't showing up in the `git status` it was throwing me off. – Joshua Pinter Mar 19 '19 at 15:29
5 Answers
There might be a file called .npmrc
which can contain
package-lock=false
which will cause the package lock file to not be generated.
In theory you could also have turned on npm config set package-lock false
globally (change to true
to turn on again), but that's less likely to happen unintentionally.
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What's the purpose of this? I'm working with a project that requires running `npm ci` which fails because there's no package-lock file - so why would the maintainers add this setting to npmrc? – Matt Feb 10 '21 at 21:01
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1@Matt Some people do not see the benefits of version lock files and thus hate the fact that it generates a new lock file each time that 'pollutes' their commits from their perspective. – David Mulder Feb 10 '21 at 23:36
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Can this also be specified in package.json (without additional files). I mean, it's about package.json. It's a required file to install node packages... – Dominik Apr 09 '21 at 13:15
The package-lock.json file was introduced in npm v5, so the steps you need to take to regenerate package-lock.json depend on which version of npm you're using.
FYI. Let's verify what version of node and npm.
npm -v
prints: x.x.x
node -v
prints: x.x.x
I believe for package-lock.json is auto-generated if the 2 conditions npm version > 5.x.x and node version > 7.x.x are met
Then, try the following steps depending on which version you have:
npm v5+:
Regenerate the package-lock.json by running npm install
. You may also regenerate the file without actually downloading dependencies by using npm install --package-lock-only
npm v4.x & earlier:
- Generate a npm-shrinkwrap.json by running
npm shrinkwrap
. This file has the same format as package-lock.json and achieves essentially the same purpose in earlier versions of npm (see https://docs.npmjs.com/files/package-lock.json and https://docs.npmjs.com/files/shrinkwrap.json for detailed information on this point) - Rename the npm-shrinkwrap.json to package-lock.json
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4Node 8.9.1 and npm 6.4.0. Not generating package-lock.json on `npm install` here. – angularsen Aug 21 '18 at 11:42
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3Ah, just learned from comments above that `.npmrc` could have `package-lock=false`, which our project happened to have. – angularsen Aug 21 '18 at 11:43
To resolve this issue I have tried below mentioned things and it worked for me :
Make sure your package-lock globally enabled, you can enable it using:
npm config set package-lock true
To make sure your .npmrc is not blocking the creation of package-lock file, set this to your .npmrc
echo 'package-lock=true' >> .npmrc
note: package-lock.json is automatically generated for any operations where npm modifies either the node_modules tree, or package.json for npm -v > 5.x.x.
check your npm version: npm -v
update your npm to latest version using:
npm install -g npm@latest
npm i -g npm-upgrade
@will
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I was also facing the same issue
I just removed the package-lock=false
from .npmrc and now it is creating the lock file
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If your npm version is <5 you will have a shrinkwrap.json
file created when running npm install.
Otherwise package-lock
will be created on npm versions 5 and above.
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It generates nothing after running `npm i` for me. Using node 6.12.2 npm 3.10.10 – Mike Milkman Jul 02 '18 at 22:05