Node.js Troubleshooting Errors (Windows OS)

in March 11th, 2025
Note: This is a highly technical article meant to help our fellow NetSuite developers. If you are not a developer and need assistance with a similar issue as you work in NetSuite, SuiteCommerce, or BigCommerce, contact our team for support!

When installing Node.js for initial use, sometimes unexpected errors occur in the installation process due often to outdated/different operating systems.

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Common Node.js Errors on a Windows System

The following are common errors on a Windows system and some solution steps when running various gulp and node commands on your machine.

  • Exit status 5: Access is denied. : run the terminal as administrator and try running the command again
  • exit status 145: The directory is not empty. : navigate to C:\Program Files\nodejs and rename nodejs to nodejsx before running the command again. This should create a new nodejs folder; if you need to switch back, delete this folder and rename nodejsx back to nodejs
  • A list of all Node.js exit codes and their implications can be found here.

In other cases, the node gulp commands like create, local, or deploy can fail with ambiguous error results. For any Gulp or Node Error, the most common fix is the node version. Using the Node Version Manager, or NVM, run the following command and test if the error persists.

nvm use 14.19.0

or

nvm use <insert latest node version>

, get the latest version by just running

npm install

Once switched, rerun your gulp commands:

gulp <extension/theme> <local/deploy/create>

More information can be found here regarding these tools

Author: Benjamin Gagliardi


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