Unable to build and run C++ addon in Windows 8.1 x64

[metabench]

I'm trying to use iojs 1.3.0 (Windows 8.1 x64), with a module written using nan, with nan 1.6.2 installed. It worked fine in node 0.12.0.

First I had problems with node-gyp looking for node.lib rather than iojs.lib. I got round that using pangyp.

When I tried running the JavaScript that references the addon, I got
Error: Module did not self-register.

I've found a reference to a similar seeming issue with node-sass here: sass/node-sass#708

[bnoordhuis]

Can you try using the npm / node-gyp that comes with io.js? The 'module did not self-register' error suggests that the module was built for the wrong version (probably node.js rather than io.js.)

[metabench]

I will try that soon. Currently I have both iojs and node uninstalled. I'll go get a sandwich, and then install iojs again. I'll try to use the versions of the tools that come with iojs and I'll report back how I get on.

[metabench]

No sandwich yet... but I've installed iojs, I think I am using the right tools, and ran into the same problem as before.

This time I went to the C:\Program Files\iojs directory and ran
npm install node-gyp -g. Maybe that is my problem as I may then be using the old (or current release) version of node-gyp to do the build. However, I don't know how to choose a specific node-gyp to use from the command line.

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis When I run "node-gyp -v" from either the iojs or my project's C++ path I get v1.0.2.

As far as I know I'm not using the old version of node-gyp, but I don't know how to be sure about that. I don't know where to find the node-gyp that came with iojs.

[bnoordhuis]

@metabench v1.0.2 is the node-gyp version that ships with io.js. Can you tell what URL it downloads the source tarball from?

BTW, the node-gyp script itself is pretty well hidden, it's in npm's node_modules/node-gyp/bin directory.

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis I'd like to tell you that, but I don't know when it downloads a source tarball, or when I see the URL.

[bnoordhuis]

It should be in npm-debug.log somewhere. You may have to remove the cache first. It's in $HOME/.node-gyp on Unices. I believe it's %USERPROFILE%\\.node-gyp on Windows.

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis I could not see any .log files within my user profile's .node-gyp directory (I searched for *.log). I just see: {'directories': ['deps', 'ia32', 'Release', 'src', 'tools', x64], 'files': ['comon.gypi', 'installVersion']}

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis 'You may have to remove the cache first' - I don't know what cache you mean.

[bnoordhuis]

node-gyp downloads the source tarball from (if all is well) iojs.org but it caches it locally so it doesn't have to redownload it every time you build an add-on.

The npm-debug.log file is normally written to the directory you ran npm install whatever in. If you run node-gyp directly, there will be no such file, everything will be logged to the console.

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis Would that be the source tarball that node-gyp downloads when it installs?

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis I did not see it download a tarball after I installed iojs from the Windows installer. I do remember node-gyp had downloaded tarballs of node in the past though.

[metabench]

@bnoordhuis and all, I have solved the problem I was having.

There may have been a few things wrong with my setup here, I'm not sure which step got it to run. That said, I'll describe what I did.

Uninstall node
Uninstall iojs
Install iojs, with all options selected
Delete all files that had been built in my project
(verify that I can actually install and run C++ addons, using npm install binaryjs and npm install mmmagic, then loading them through the node terminal with require)
Go to my project's directory in the command prompt
run npm install

I had been having problems because rather than doing npm install, I had been doing node-gyp configure, node-gyp build.

I think there still is an issue with iojs not easily running as a drop-in replacement for node while keeping exactly the same work-flow.

Do people agree there is still an issue here? I think the issue software-wise is far less severe than I had thought at first, but there is still a problem because something no longer works like it used to.