update the version in package.json without clean git working directory (without a task runner like Gulp)

Question

When running a: npm version prepatch I get the error: "Git working directory not clean." And then a list of files that aren't committed yet.

However, I'd like to do this prerelease to test some stuff locally using a private npm registry. Meaning that I don't have to commit the files just yet using Git.

Is it possible to update the version in package.json without clean git working directory?

Answer 1

From the npm version documentation at https://docs.npmjs.com/cli/version:

If run in a git repo, it will also create a version commit and tag. This behavior is controlled by git-tag-version (see below), and can be disabled on the command line by running npm --no-git-tag-version version. It will fail if the working directory is not clean, unless the -f or --force flag is set.

I'm not 100% certain whether you just need --no-git-tag-version, or if you'll also need the --force flag.

Answer 2

You can use git stash.

E.g.

git stash 
npm version patch 
git stash pop

This will reset your working directory temporarily (remove uncommitted changes). Then you can run npm version {major|minor|patch}. Afterwards, using git stash pop will re-apply your uncommitted changes to your working directory.

Tutorial: https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/saving-changes/git-stash#stashing-your-work