TypeError: firebase.storage is not a function

Question

Following this example, I keep getting the error:

 TypeError: firebase.storage is not a function

From this line in my code:

Answer 1

Deprecated: please see the accepted answer.

Some details to note:

1. Firebase Storage is no longer used with Node.js, so all documentation there is useless for Node.js. Instead, use google-cloud. The references and guides for Firebase and Google Cloud do not reflect this as of today.
2. Unlike Firebase, google-cloud costs money, even for small projects.
3. In my case, I'm using the firebase-admin SDK so I don't have to mess with user authentication at the moment.

---

Purpose

To create a single Node.js project which uses Firebase and Google Cloud. Why? Firebase has a useful database, among other features, and Google Cloud allows cloud file storage and retrieval.

Directions

Step 1: Project Creation

Create Firebase and Google Cloud (Storage) projects.

Step 2: Install Packages

Using npm, install firebase-admin and google-cloud in Node.js project.

Note 1: I used the admin SDK, so after creating the Firebase project, you'll need to go to:

• Settings(the gear) > Project Settings > Service Accounts > Firebase Admin SDK
• Then you: Select Node.js > [Copy/paste the generated code into your project] > [click "Generate New Private Key"] > [download the generated json to preferred location] > [replace "path/to...AccountKey.json" with the path to the key you just generated]

Note 2: the generated key can be reused in firebase or google-cloud credentials.

Step 3: Firebase Setup

Once your project is created, import the firebase-admin sdk:

The code should look like this, but filled with your info:

var admin = require("firebase-admin");
admin.initializeApp({
  credential: admin.credential.cert("/path/to/generated/json/here.json"),
  databaseURL: "database-url-from-firebase"
});

To find the databaseURL, go to 'Storage' in Firebase, and note the URL starting with gs: and copy/paste it the the value field of databaseURL.

Next, get a reference to the database you can use:

var db = admin.database();
var ref = db.ref("/");
console.log('DB ref: ' + ref); //just to debug, if undefined, there's a problem.

To learn more about reading/writing to the database, follow Firebase's own documentation.

Step 4: Google-Cloud Billing Setup

After creating a project on Google Cloud, add billing information; buckets cannot be used without billing info.

Step 5: Google-Cloud Storage Setup

1. Scrolling through the menu (the horizontal 3-bars), click "Storage", then "Enable Billing". Yes, you added billing info, now you need to enable it for that project's buckets.
2. You should see that a bucket should already exists from your Firebase project.
3. Click on menu again(3-bar icon), then > IAM & Admin > Settings
4. At settings, you'll see "Project ID" which should look like "projectName-00000" or "projectName-Some#", copy that project ID

Step 6: Google Cloud in Node.js

In your index.js:

var gcloud = require('google-cloud');
var gcs = gcloud.storage({
  projectId: 'paste-that-project-id-here',
  keyFilename: 'paste-that-path-to-the-previously-downloaded-json-from-firebase-here'
});

Now you can send a file to your storage by:

var bucket = gcs.bucket('bucket_name');
var remoteFile = bucket.file('somefile-inThisCaseASong.mp3');
var localFilename = '/Users/you/Music/somefile-inThisCaseASong.mp3';
bucket.upload(localFilename, function(err, file) {
  if (!err) {
    console.log('somefile-inThisCaseASong.mp3 is now in your bucket.');
  } else {
    console.log('Error uploading file: ' + err);
  }
});

Step 7: Verify

If the file is visible in Firebase Storage and Google Cloud Storage, you're done!

Answer 2

Does it change if you try to do it like the following?

// Initialize the default app:
const app = firebase.initializeApp(appConfig)

// Initialize storage from the *app* object:
const storage = app.storage()

From the docs, it seems that this is an alternate method. I prefer this one, as this links the storage to the app, making the code more readable, and more functional

Answer 3

I encountered a similar problem when I was integrating firebase's storage on the browser (webapp)

  <script src="https://www.gstatic.com/firebasejs/7.15.0/firebase-storage.js"></script>

Just add that line, and the bug is gone!

Answer 4

DEPRECATED, see below:

According to this answer, instead of firebase storage, in Node.js, google-cloud package storage should be used, and it seems that this answer should confirm it. Code example:

npm i --save google-cloud

Then:

const gcloud = require('google-cloud')

const storage = gcloud.storage({
    projectId: '<projectID>',
    keyFilename: 'service-account-credentials.json',
});

const bucket = storage.bucket('<projectID>.appspot.com')

As of 2018, this is the correct answer:

Or using only the storage part of the package:

npm install --save @google-cloud/storage

And then:

var storage = require('@google-cloud/storage')

Also check the docs for more.

Answer 5

It looks like they have fixed it in a new version of the library. Just run npm update on the relevant package(s) and it should work.

Answer 6

I had the same problem, I had my code as following:

import * as firebase from "firebase/app";
import 'firebase/storage';

firebase.initializeApp({
  ...
});
const storageRef = firebase.storage().ref();

So, I found that way is only if you use Typescript.

If you use only ES6, then you must have:

import firebase from 'firebase/app';
import 'firebase/storage';

firebase.initializeApp({
  ...
});
const storageRef = firebase.storage().ref(); 

If you use ES5, then you must have:

var firebase = require("firebase/app");
require("firebase/storage");

firebase.initializeApp({
  ...
});
const storageRef = firebase.storage().ref();

Moreover, you can also use the following way but it is not recommended because you load all services (database,auth,storage,etc):

import firebase from "firebase";

firebase.initializeApp({
  ...
});
const storageRef = firebase.storage().ref();

Tested with Firebase 7.15.2