npm install not creating a new package-lock.json

Question

I accidentally deleted my package-lock.json file. npm install is not generating a new one. How do I get npm to recreate this file.

Answer 1

The package-lock.json file was introduced in npm v5, so the steps you need to take to regenerate package-lock.json depend on which version of npm you're using.

FYI. Let's verify what version of node and npm.

npm -v

prints: x.x.x

node -v

prints: x.x.x

I believe for package-lock.json is auto-generated if the 2 conditions npm version > 5.x.x and node version > 7.x.x are met

Then, try the following steps depending on which version you have:

npm v5+:

Regenerate the package-lock.json by running npm install. You may also regenerate the file without actually downloading dependencies by using npm install --package-lock-only

npm v4.x & earlier:

1. Generate a npm-shrinkwrap.json by running npm shrinkwrap. This file has the same format as package-lock.json and achieves essentially the same purpose in earlier versions of npm (see https://docs.npmjs.com/files/package-lock.json and https://docs.npmjs.com/files/shrinkwrap.json for detailed information on this point)
2. Rename the npm-shrinkwrap.json to package-lock.json