A common scenario for using Node.js with the SDK for JavaScript is to set up and run a Node.js web application on an Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) instance. In this tutorial, you will create a Linux instance, connect to it using SSH, and then install Node.js to run on that instance.
This tutorial assumes that you have already launched a Linux instance with a public DNS name that is reachable from the Internet and to which you are able to connect using SSH. For more information, see Step 1: Launch an Instance in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux Instances.
You must also have configured your security group to allow SSH
(port 22), HTTP
(port 80), and HTTPS
(port 443) connections. For more information about these prerequisites, see Setting Up with Amazon EC2 in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux Instances.
The following procedure helps you install Node.js on an Amazon Linux instance. You can use this server to host a Node.js web application.
To set up Node.js on your Linux instance
-
Connect to your Linux instance as
ec2-user
using SSH. -
Install the current version of node version manager (nvm) by typing the following at the command line to install version 33.6.
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/creationix/nvm/v0.33.8/install.sh | bash
We will use nvm to install Node.js because nvm can install multiple versions of Node.js and allow you to switch between them. See the nvm repo on GitHub for the current version to install.
-
Activate nvm by typing the following at the command line.
. ~/.nvm/nvm.sh
-
Use nvm to install the version of Node.js you intend to use by typing the following at the command line.
nvm install 6.11.5
Installing Node.js also installs the Node Package Manager (npm) so you can install additional modules as needed.
You can also install the latest LTS (long-term-support) release of NODE via:
nvm install --lts
-
Test that Node.js is installed and running correctly by typing the following at the command line.
node -e "console.log('Running Node.js ' + process.version)"
This should display the following message that confirms the installed version of Node.js running.
Running Node.js v6.11.5
After you install Node.js on an Amazon EC2 instance, you can create an Amazon Machine Image (AMI) from that instance. Creating an AMI makes it easy to provision multiple Amazon EC2 instances with the same Node.js installation. For more information about creating an AMI from an existing instance, see Creating an Amazon EBS-Backed Linux AMI in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux Instances.
For instructions on how to install Node.js on any Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® / RHEL, CentOS and Fedora distribution, see the following Node.js documentation at https://nodejs.org/en/download/package-manager/#enterprise-linux-and-fedora.
For more information about the commands and software used in this topic, see the following web pages:
-
node version manager (nvm): see nvm repo on GitHub.
-
node package manager (npm): see npm website.