Node Modules Manager (nm)

A fast and interactive CLI tool for managing node_modules directories across your development projects. Find, analyze, and safely remove node_modules with an intuitive interface.

Features

• Fast scanning - Recursively finds all node_modules directories
• Interactive selection - Checkbox interface for safe removal
• Size calculation - Shows disk usage similar to du -sh
• Progress indicators - Loading spinners and progress bars
• Safety confirmations - Multi-step confirmation process
• Error handling - Graceful handling of permission issues

Dependencies

Here is a list of dependencies used for the project:

Runtime Requirements

• Node.js >= 18.x
• npm >= 8.x

Project Dependencies

• Commander.js - CLI argument parsing
• Inquirer.js - Interactive prompts
• Ora - Loading spinners
• TypeScript - Type safety

Installation

Install the package globally using npm:

npm install -g @bluenex/nm

Or use npx to run without installing:

npx @bluenex/nm ls .

For development, clone and install dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/bluenex/nm.git
cd nm
npm install
npm run build
npm link

Usage

The CLI provides two main commands for managing node_modules directories.

List Command

Find and display all node_modules directories with their sizes:

# List in current directory
npx @bluenex/nm ls .

# List in specific path
npx @bluenex/nm ls ~/Dev

# List with full path
npx @bluenex/nm ls /Users/username/projects

Example output:

228M    /path/to/project1/node_modules
156M    /path/to/project2/node_modules
89M     /path/to/project3/node_modules

473M    TOTAL

Remove Command

Interactively select and remove node_modules directories:

# Interactive removal in current directory
npx @bluenex/nm rm .

# Interactive removal in specific path
npx @bluenex/nm rm ~/Dev

The removal process includes:

1. Scanning - Finds all node_modules directories
2. Selection - Interactive checkbox interface
3. Summary - Shows total space to be freed
4. Confirmation - Multiple safety confirmations
5. Progress - Real-time removal progress

Example workflow:

? Select directories to remove: (Press <space> to select)
❯◯ 228M  /path/to/project1/node_modules
 ◉ 156M  /path/to/project2/node_modules
 ◯ 89M   /path/to/project3/node_modules

Selected: 156M (1 of 3)

? What would you like to do?
❯ Continue with removal
  Cancel

? Are you sure you want to delete these directories?
  Selected for removal:
  • 156M   /path/to/project2/node_modules

  Total space to be freed: 156M
❯ Yes, delete selected directories
  Cancel

⠋ Removing directories... (1/1)
✓ Successfully removed 1 directory, freed 156M

Publishing

Prerequisites

# Create npm account (if you don't have one)
npm adduser

# Login to npm
npm login

Publishing Steps

# 1. Build the project
npm run build

# 2. Test the package locally (optional but recommended)
npm pack
# This creates a .tgz file you can inspect

# 3. Publish to npm (--access public required for scoped packages)
npm publish --access public

# 4. Verify the publication works
npx @bluenex/nm --help

Version Management

# For bug fixes (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1)
npm version patch
npm publish --access public

# For new features (1.0.0 -> 1.1.0)
npm version minor
npm publish --access public

# For breaking changes (1.0.0 -> 2.0.0)
npm version major
npm publish --access public

For GitHub releases, push to the repository and create a new release tag.

Safety Features

• Multi-step confirmation prevents accidental deletions
• Read-only scanning - listing never modifies files
• Progress feedback during long operations
• Error handling for permission and access issues
• Validation prevents empty selections

Note: Always review the selected directories before confirming removal. The deletion process cannot be undone.