[BUG] Server not found at .\server.js

[offeca]

OmniRoute Version

3.8.0

Installation Method

npm (global)

Operating System

Windows

OS Version

Windoes 10 22H2 19045.5487

Node.js Version

22.22.2

Provider(s) Involved

No response

Model(s) Involved

No response

Client Tool

No response

Description

omniroute installed but encountered error when starting omniroute

Steps to Reproduce

PS---> npm install -g omniroute
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PS---> omniroute

Expected Behavior

Dashboard opens at http://localhost:20128

Actual Behavior

✖ Server not found at: AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\omniroute\app\server.js
This usually means the package was not built correctly.

Test Impact

Unsure

Error Logs / Output

✖ Server not found at: C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\omniroute\app\server.js
  This usually means the package was not built correctly.
  Try reinstalling: npm install -g omniroute

Screenshots

Additional Context

No response

Validation Plan

No response

[kilo-code-bot]

This issue appears to be a duplicate of #1389.

[BUG] windows 启动错误 (#1389)

Similarity score: 93%

This comment was generated by Kilo Auto-Triage.

[diegosouzapw]

@offeca thanks for reporting. The error Server not found at … \omniroute\app\server.js after a clean npm install -g omniroute on Windows is usually caused by the global package not finishing its build step. Common causes on Win10/11 + npm:

1. Antivirus / Windows Defender quarantining files mid-install — the most common culprit. Defender often flags Next.js standalone server bundles. Try temporarily disabling real-time protection during the install and add %AppData%\npm\node_modules\omniroute to the exclusion list.
2. Stale npm cache — clear with npm cache clean --force, then reinstall.
3. Run terminal as Administrator for the install — without it, npm sometimes fails to copy nested files silently.

Suggested order:

npm uninstall -g omniroute
npm cache clean --force
# (open PowerShell as Administrator)
# (add omniroute folder to Defender exclusions if needed)
npm install -g omniroute

After install, verify that %AppData%\npm\node_modules\omniroute\app\server.js exists. If it doesn't, the install was incomplete — the npm install console output should show the failure if you scroll up.

If the file IS there but the CLI still errors, please paste the output of:

dir "%AppData%\npm\node_modules\omniroute\app"
node --version

Related: #1389 covers the same symptom on Windows with the same workarounds. Let us know which step resolves it.

[offeca]

@diegosouzapw Thanks for the suggestion. I tried your workaround but still doesn't work. After install, I don't see the \app folder under \omniroute, it's not just the server.js file missing...

[diegosouzapw]

@offeca thanks for following up with the screenshot — that confirms the \app folder is completely missing, not just server.js. That's almost always a Windows path-length issue.

Windows has a default 260-character path limit. The OmniRoute app/ folder contains the Next.js standalone bundle with very deep paths like:

…\omniroute\app\node_modules\@swc\core-darwin-arm64\lib\binding.node

which can hit ~280+ characters when extracted under C:\Users\<long-username>\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\omniroute\…. npm silently skips files that exceed the limit, so the install "succeeds" but app/ is partially or fully missing.

Fix (one of these):

1. Enable Windows long paths — open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

   New-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem" `
     -Name "LongPathsEnabled" -Value 1 -PropertyType DWORD -Force

   Then reboot, and npm install -g omniroute again. (Some users also need git config --global core.longpaths true.)

2. Install to a shorter path — set npm's prefix to e.g. C:\npm:

   npm config set prefix C:\npm
   $env:PATH = "C:\npm;" + $env:PATH
   npm install -g omniroute

3. Use Docker instead (docker run -p 20128:20128 -v $HOME/.omniroute:/app/data diegosouzapw/omniroute:latest) — sidesteps Windows path quirks entirely.

To confirm the diagnosis before applying a fix, look at the npm install -g omniroute output for any line containing "ENAMETOOLONG", "path too long", or "could not extract".

Related context: this isn't a packaging defect on our side — app/ is declared in package.json's files field and ships in the npm tarball. It's specifically the Windows extraction step that drops the directory under default settings. The Docker image works because Linux doesn't have the path limit.

Let us know which fix lands it.

[diegosouzapw]

Thanks for reporting @offeca! This issue was fixed in v3.8.0 with the CLI package build overhaul. The server.js path was corrected in the package manifest.

Please upgrade to the latest version:

npm install -g omniroute@latest
omniroute

If you still see the error after upgrading, please reopen this issue with the new version number.

[diegosouzapw]

Closing — fixed in v3.8.0 (CLI package build overhaul). Please upgrade to latest version.