Running node from a bash script

Question

Quite simply, I'm attempting to automate running a nodejs script using cron, however the script itself doesn't seem to be able to run the file. My script is simple:

#!/usr/bin/env node
node /var/node/assets/js/update.js

However, in running this, it returns that the beginning of the pathing is incorrect:

/home/dev/update.sh:2
node /var/node/assets/js/update.js
      ^^^
SyntaxError: Unexpected token var
    at Module._compile (module.js:439:25)
    at Object.Module._extensions..js (module.js:474:10)
    at Module.load (module.js:356:32)
    at Function.Module._load (module.js:312:12)
    at Function.Module.runMain (module.js:497:10)
    at startup (node.js:119:16)
    at node.js:901:3

Is there something actually wrong with the bash, or does node have a specific way of doing this? I used /bin/env so that I could have the proper form of "node" regardless of version.

Answer 1

It looks like you are trying to run node from within node. The error message came from node and it looks like node was trying to run the command /var/node/assets/js/update.js .

I would make the shebang line specify bash rather than node.

The top line

#!/usr/bin/env node

means that what follows should be JavaScript code, not bash.

Answer 2

You are already running node on the first line in an unmodified environment.

then on the second line you supply the command node /var/node/assets/js/update.js to that node process.

How about this:

#!/usr/bin/bash
node /var/node/assets/js/update.js

Answer 3

How about this?

#!/bin/bash

node /var/node/assets/js/update.js