This guide explains how to deploy Node.js with a Cloud Server to always have the environment needed to compile or build modern frontends (React, Vue, etc.).

Preamble

• Node.js is a free software platform in JavaScript designed for network applications that need to scale, a simple and effective solution for integrating frontend tools into any server stack.
  • Node.js = official name of the language/environment.
  • NodeJS = "technical" or simplified name in certain contexts (often for practical reasons, no real technical difference).

Install Node.js

Prerequisites

• Install NVM on your Cloud Server.
• Warning: Node.js version 18 is not compatible with older Cloud Servers; perform a migration beforehand!

Install the stable version of Node.js

nvm install stable

Install the latest version available

nvm install node

Install an older version (not recommended)

nvm install 17

List the available versions

nvm ls-remote

Install a specific version

nvm install <version>

Switch Node.js version and set version 6.3.1 (or another version) as default

nvm alias default 6.3.1

Use a specific version of Node.js in the current shell

nvm use <version>

Check the currently used version of Node.js

node -v

Source

To set up NVM, go to the WebSSH console of your Cloud Server.

Source the .profile file

source ~/.profile

Run the following command to check the installation of NVM

nvm

Configure Node as a service

To configure Node as a service, it is recommended to use a "service systemd-user.

Redirect traffic to a specific port

Familiarize yourself with this other guide regarding traffic redirections to a specific port and dedicated IPs.