How to rename nodejs project?

Question

Whenever I start my nodejs project, it refers to itself by the old name I gave it:

gpio-editor@0.0.0 start /home/pi/RPi-Computer-Power/RPi-Server

I do not want it to be called gpio-editor anymore, but I have not found a way to change it on the interwebs. I am pretty new to nodejs, and I didn't originally make this project.

If someone knows how to do this, please let me know. Thanks, Neil

Aah!! Yes, that is it. I didn't know that existed. Add as an answer for resolution credit. — ifconfig, May 25 '17 at 16:22

score 24 · Accepted Answer · edited Mar 12 '22 at 17:50

Check out package.json. There should be a few properties in there that you can change (you want to change the name). A simple file would look something like this:

{
    "name": "gpio-editor",
    "version": "0.0.0",
    "author": "Sudo Programmer <hi@sudoprogrammer.com>",
    "description": "i use this to edit stuff",
    "license": "pick one",
    "engines": {
        "node": ">=0.10"
    },
    "scripts": {
        "start": "node ./app.js"
    },
    "dependencies": {
        // something or other, don't include comments though
    }
}

After that you should run npm install, which will update the file package-lock.json accordingly.

Edit (5/31/2018)

Since Node 5 (I believe), the package-lock.json file has been generated and used as an, "I last built this codebase using these dependency versions" tool. The package.json file is supposed to do this, but it doesn't protect you from packages that don't follow semantic versioning. For this reason, I would recommend checking the package-lock.json file in and updating the name there as well. There's some good info on the lock file here.

What if there is a `package-lock.json` ? Should the name be manually changed there also? — Marinos An, May 31 '18 at 12:49
I would. The `package-lock.json` is essentially a, "I built this project with these versions of my dependencies." That is what `package.json` is for, but the lock file will protect you from packages that don't abide by semantic versioning. You should also be checking your lock file into your repo (this will help other users run the code as you have). — Matt, Jun 01 '18 at 01:23

score 5 · Answer 2 · answered May 25 '17 at 16:24

5

Edit the name attribute in your package.json, that's what determines the name of your package.

answered May 25 '17 at 16:24

Balázs Édes

13,452
6
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tomyhomie · Answer 3 · 2021-10-06T03:09:45.420

2

if you're copying files from an existing project and still having issues after updating the name attribute in package.json, try removing node_modules dir and package-lock.json file (backup if needed) and run npm i or yarn.

edited Oct 06 '21 at 03:09

answered Jan 26 '21 at 06:32

tomyhomie

344
2
6

score 0 · Answer 4 · answered Aug 24 '23 at 07:40

0

If for some reason you want to change it via CLI, you can use the following command:

npm pkg set name="gpio-editor-new"

Reference - https://docs.npmjs.com/cli/v9/commands/npm-pkg

answered Aug 24 '23 at 07:40

Shyam Mittal

188
2
9

How to rename nodejs project?

4 Answers4