Vue-cli: Vue create fails for not having permission to write to global files

[pickfire]

Version

3.1.3

Node and OS info

Node 11.1.0 / yarn 1.12.3 / Arch Linux

Steps to reproduce

> vue create test
 ERROR  Error: EACCES: permission denied, open '/usr/local/share/.config/yarn/global/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions'
Error: EACCES: permission denied, open '/usr/local/share/.config/yarn/global/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions'

What is expected?

vue should not write to global files

What is actually happening?

vue tries to write to global file '/usr/local/share/.config/yarn/global/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions' and fails if it does not have permission to do so

---

This can be fixed by just running sudo vue create test but why it root required to create a new package?

[sodatea]

Sorry for the inconvenience 🙁
This file is used to cache the latest version map. Didn't expect a permission issue when adding this feature… We'll refine the version check mechanism in the next release.

[pickfire]

We could put it in some temporary files for vue but then that does not persists across reboot. If we would like it to persists, maybe can make use of XDG_DATA_HOME or XDG_CACHE_HOME for linux to avoid permission issues and keep the map across reboot. https://specifications.freedesktop.org/basedir-spec/basedir-spec-latest.html

[igorvolnyi]

Creating test project as root only partially soves the problem. Here is the output when running vue create as a regular user:

Vue CLI v3.1.3
? Please pick a preset: (Use arrow keys)
❯ default (babel, eslint)
Manually select features (node:6690) UnhandledPromiseRejectionWarning: Error: EACCES: permission denied, open '/usr/lib/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions'
(node:6690) UnhandledPromiseRejectionWarning: Unhandled promise rejection. This error originated either by throwing inside of an async function without a catch block, or by rejecting a promise which was not handled with .catch(). (rejection id: 1)
(node:6690) [DEP0018] DeprecationWarning: Unhandled promise rejections are deprecated. In the future, promise rejections that are not handled will terminate the Node.js process with a non-zero exit code.

@vue/cli is installed via npm install -g. The same error if installed using yarn global add.

[pickfire]

That's true. But I solve that with sudo -i and then npm install -g.

[igorvolnyi]

Nevertheless the program being launched by an ordinary user tries to write into the file in the global directory, which in the world of Linux is utterly forbidden.

[deivan]

I have same trouble but i remember about
vue ui
..and i got new project without root privelegies :)

[RosApr]

same problem !
do what to fix this absolutely
Thx

[igorvolnyi]

The workaround is something like this:
Edit your ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc, add the following

export NPM_PACKAGES=$HOME/.npm
export MANPATH=$NPM_PACKAGES/share/man:$(manpath)
export NODE_PATH="$NPM_PACKAGES/lib/node_modules:$NODE_PATH"
export PATH=$NPM_PACKAGES/bin:$HOME/bin:$PATH

Then
$ source .bashrc
or
$ source .zshrc

After this npm will install globally into your home folder and the permission problem disappears... Sort of.
But another problem arises. Some programs installed into ~/.npm fail to find their dependencies that are previosly installed genuinely globally by root (or sudo) and require you to install them under your ~/.npm directory. For example if you install webpack-cli as root under /usr and webpack as unprivileged user under ~/.npm, webpack command will complain that it can't find webpack-cli.
Another workaround can be to add extended permissions using chacl for the unprivileged user that you develop under on the file /usr/lib/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions.

[clrgit]

I've tested the last few versions on linux (Centos): Version 3.1.1 seems to be the last that works out of the box. It may be easier just to use that

[bkuri]

@clrgit downgrading to 3.1.1 worked on Arch as well. Thanks for the tip.

[krodelabestiole]

I have same trouble but i remember about
vue ui
..and i got new project without root privelegies :)

not by me :

vue ui
🚀  Starting GUI...
(node:14216) UnhandledPromiseRejectionWarning: Error: EACCES: permission denied, open '/usr/local/share/.config/yarn/global/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions'
(node:14216) UnhandledPromiseRejectionWarning: Unhandled promise rejection. This error originated either by throwing inside of an async function without a catch block, or by rejecting a promise which was not handled with .catch(). (rejection id: 1)
(node:14216) [DEP0018] DeprecationWarning: Unhandled promise rejections are deprecated. In the future, promise rejections that are not handled will terminate the Node.js process with a non-zero exit code.
🌠  Ready on http://localhost:8000
{ [Error: EACCES: permission denied, open /usr/local/share/.config/yarn/global/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions']
  errno: -13,
  code: 'EACCES',
  syscall: 'open',
  path:
   '/usr/local/share/.config/yarn/global/node_modules/@vue/cli/lib/util/.versions' }