NVM

NVM stands for Node Version Manager. It is a shell-based tool designed to manage multiple installations of Node.js on a single machine. It allows developers to install, switch between, and isolate different Node.js versions without affecting the system-wide Node. The original project nvm is primarily for Unix-like systems; Windows users typically use a separate port called nvm-windows.

NVM works by keeping downloaded Node.js distributions in a dedicated directory (commonly ~/.nvm) and updating shell PATH and alias settings so that the active version is used when running node and npm. It supports per-project version control via a .nvmrc file, so a project can specify which Node version to use when entering the directory.

Common commands include: install to fetch a specific version, use to switch the active version, ls to list installed versions, alias to create shortcuts, and default to set the default version. Example: nvm install 18.16.0; nvm use 18.16.0; nvm ls; nvm alias default 18.16.0.

Installation is typically done by a shell script or package manager on Unix-like systems, for example curl or wget piping to bash. After installation, the user must reload their shell or source the profile file. On Windows, the nvm-windows project provides an installer; it functions similarly but uses a separate command set and paths.

Notes: NVM keeps Node versions in user space, avoiding system-wide changes. It can coexist with OS package managers, but care is needed to avoid conflicts. It does not manage Node versions outside the supported distributions.