The files that Express generates will create a web app that uses an architecture that can appear a little overwhelming at first. To learn more, see Difference between npx and npm? on StackOverflow.Įxamine the files and folders that Express included by opening the project in VS Code, with: code. That package's dependencies will be at depth 1, further dependencies at depth 2, and so on. Packages that you installed will be at depth 0. They'll be listed by depth (the number of nested directories deep). You can view a list of the packages that have been installed by npm using npm list. If you want to globally install Express to use over and over again, use: npm install -g express-generator. If you try to use the express command or check the version of Express installed using: express -version, you will receive a response that Express cannot be found. We are using the npx command here to execute the Express.js Node package without actually installing it (or by temporarily installing it depending on how you want to think of it). You should see the output: 'Hello World'. If you need to change the default terminal, select the dropdown menu and choose Select Default Shell. Open your terminal right inside VS Code by selecting View > Terminal (or select Ctrl+`, using the backtick character). Īdd a simple string variable ('Hello World'), then send the contents of the string to your console by entering this in your 'app.js' file: var msg = 'Hello World'

Open the directory and your app.js file in VS Code using the command: code. Open your command line and create a new directory: mkdir HelloNode, then enter the directory: cd HelloNodeĬreate a JavaScript file named 'app.js' with a variable named 'msg' inside: echo var msg > app.js If you have not yet installed Visual Studio Code, return to the prerequisite section above and follow the installation steps linked for Windows or WSL. For more information, see Should I install Node.js on Windows or Windows Subsystem for Linux Try NodeJS with Visual Studio Code If you are a beginner, trying Node.js for the first time, we recommend installing directly on Windows.

Installing on Node.js on Windows or on Windows Subsystem for Linux.

Create your first Node.js web app using Express.

Try using Node.js in Visual Studio Code.

If you're brand new to using Node.js, this guide will help you to get started with some basics.

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