How to fix ‘NODE_ENV’ is not recognized as an internal or external command

If you are seeing the error message ‘NODE_ENV’ is not recognized as an internal or external command when running a Node.js application, it means that the NODE_ENV environment variable is not properly set up on your system. This variable is used by Node.js applications to determine the environment they are running in, such as development, staging, or production. Here are a few steps to fix this issue:

1. Check if Node.js is installed on your system

Make sure that Node.js is installed and added to your system’s PATH. You can check this by running the command node -v in your terminal. If Node.js is not installed, you can download and install it from the Node.js website.

2. Set the NODE_ENV variable

If Node.js is installed, you need to set the NODE_ENV variable manually. You can do this by running the command SET NODE_ENV=development in your terminal for development environment. Similarly, you can set it to ‘staging’ or ‘production’ based on your requirement.

3. Restart your terminal or IDE

After setting the NODE_ENV variable, you need to restart your terminal or IDE to apply the changes. This will ensure that the Node.js application picks up the new environment variable.

4. Check if the issue is resolved

Once you have set the NODE_ENV variable and restarted your terminal or IDE, try running your Node.js application again. If the issue is resolved, you should no longer see the error message ‘NODE_ENV’ is not recognized as an internal or external command.

By following these steps, you can fix the ‘NODE_ENV’ is not recognized as an internal or external command error and ensure that your Node.js applications run smoothly in the desired environment.