NPM error when installing globally even when directories are writable

Question

i have this error when try to install coffee-script using this command:

npm install -g --verbose coffee-script opal

these are the error message:

npm ERR! Error: EACCES, symlink '../lib/node_modules/coffee-script/bin/coffee'
npm ERR!  { [Error: EACCES, symlink '../lib/node_modules/coffee-script/bin/coffee']
npm ERR!   errno: 3,
npm ERR!   code: 'EACCES',
npm ERR!   path: '../lib/node_modules/coffee-script/bin/coffee' }
npm ERR! 
npm ERR! Please try running this command again as root/Administrator.

npm info postuninstall [email protected]
npm ERR! Error: EACCES, symlink '../lib/node_modules/opal/bin/opal-node'
npm ERR!  { [Error: EACCES, symlink '../lib/node_modules/opal/bin/opal-node']
npm ERR!   errno: 3,
npm ERR!   code: 'EACCES',
npm ERR!   path: '../lib/node_modules/opal/bin/opal-node' }
npm ERR! 
npm ERR! Please try running this command again as root/Administrator.

the folder /usr/local/bin and /usr/local/lib/node_modules are owned and writable by current user, and i do not want to run that npm command using root, how to know which folder that the npm tried to make a symlink to?

i'm using npm 1.2.9-1chl1~quantal1 and nodejs 0.8.19-1chl1~quantal1

Answer 1

your node installation uses system directories. Use sudo when using -g

sudo npm install -g --verbose coffee-script opal

Answer 2

You can chown NPM's bin to your user name with this one liner to solve this problem:

$ chown -R `whoami` `npm -g bin`

Answer 3

ah, using this command:

npm -g bin

it would output something like this:

/usr/bin # this is the folder nodejs wanted to write..

then you may chmod or chown it so it can be written for installation.