Node.js AutoLoader

Automagically run Node programs on any system!

Originally developed long ago back in 2012 when I was just a kid, AutoLoader is a simple, yet continually evolving program I use to install Node.js on the target system and load all required resources before launching a program.

You see, the main issue with npm is that it has to be installed already to use it! This is a bit of an issue for non-tech savvy users or those who've never used Node before trying to run your program... "Command not found? What?"

This loader preforms the following:

• Checks that Node.js is installed and the current version is new enough.
• Changes the CWD (Current Working Directory) to the script path for installation.
• Removes any outdated install, then automagically fetches and installs the latest version.
• If native packages are required, node-gyp is installed, along with Python and other dependencies.
• Windows only: If VS is not installed, the user is given a guided install for Visual Studio Build Tools. (This has been automated as much as possible, but they may need to hit a confirm button or two. The correct optional packages have already been checked.)
• Launches the Nodejs-side of the loader.
• Installs all required packages.
• Fetches HTTP/HTTPS dependencies and drops them wherever you like.
• Changes the CWD back, so that your code will see it as normal.
• Reads info about the system configuration.
• And last but not least... Launches your super awesome code!

Adding to your project

To add AutoLoader to your project, cd to it and run git submodule add https://github.com/Pecacheu/AutoLoader. To update AutoLoader, run git submodule update --remote

Then, on Linux run ln -s AutoLoader/run.sh run.sh; ln -s AutoLoader/run.ps1 run.ps1; ln -s AutoLoader/run.exe run.exe
Or on Windows (as Admin) run mklink run.sh AutoLoader\run.sh & mklink run.ps1 AutoLoader\run.ps1 & mklink run.exe AutoLoader\run.exe

Be sure to create a load.js file in your root directory, to configure AutoLoader! You may add your npm dependencies to package.json as usual, that will take priority, or you can forgo a package.json altogether and specify your packages in load.js, in which case your package.json is autogenerated. All packages will be installed locally, except for node-gyp, which is installed globally.

Usage

The configuration is stored in ../load.js. Included is an example config with descriptions of the available options. When all dependencies are loaded, main() is called with one parameter, info. It contains the following:

• ips An Array of all external IPs on this system.
• dir Absolute path to your project's root directory.
• os OS, ex. Windows, Linux, or MacOS
• arch CPU Arch, ex. x86 32-bit, ARM 64-bit, etc.
• cpu CPU name, ex. Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8750H CPU @ 2.20GHz
• cpus CPU thread count.

Command line arguments are passed to your script with process.argv as normal. However, if the script is called with the argument .reload, all dependencies will be deleted and reloaded! The slightly odd name was chosen to avoid conflicts.

Examples

Here are some real projects that implement AutoLoader:

• ChuMinify
• Math Solver

OS Support

Windows and Linux (Ubuntu, Raspbian, Debian, Arch, Android Termux, etc.) supported!

MacOS support coming eventually, when I get around to it. (Tho honestly as a former user, screw the modern post-Steve(s) Apple and their anti-Open Source, Consumer Data-selling walled garden. Yeesh, at least 2020s Microsoft pretends to care about GNU.)