Using the Node.js Selector for Command-Line Scripts

If you need to run Node.js from the command line - for example, to install packages with npm, run build tools, or execute scripts - you might have already looked at our guide on using NVM to install Node.js. That method works well, but on servers with older operating systems, newer versions of Node.js may not function due to system library limitations.

In these cases, there’s an alternative: you can use the Node.js Selector in cPanel, which is typically used to run web apps, to create a containerised Node.js environment that also works perfectly for command-line tasks.

Although the Node.js Selector is designed to launch web-facing applications (as explained in our guide to creating web apps with Node.js Selector), it can also be used to run non-web scripts - you simply create a dummy application and use a special command to enter its environment.

This guide walks you through exactly how to do that.

Navigation

• Step 1: Create a folder for your scripts
• Step 2: Create a dummy subdomain
• Step 3: Create the Node.js app in cPanel
• Step 4: Enter the virtual environment
• Limitations and Considerations

Step 1: Create a folder for your scripts

Start by creating a directory in your home folder called node-scripts. Ideally, place this above public_html to ensure your scripts are not accessible via the web. This keeps your command-line scripts private and clearly separated from any website content.

This folder will be where you store all of your Node.js scripts, configuration files, and anything else related to your CLI-based Node.js work.

You can create the folder using:

• File Manager in cPanel
• FTP or SFTP
• SSH with the command:

mkdir ~/node-scripts

Step 2: Create a dummy subdomain

The Node.js Selector in cPanel is designed primarily to run web applications. For this reason, it requires each app to be associated with a domain or subdomain. This helps it set up the environment and configure the web server routing — even if you’re not actually using it to serve a website.

Since we’re only using this app for command-line tasks, we’ll create a throwaway subdomain like cli.yourdomain.com. This is a workaround to meet the system's requirement for a domain link, even though we won’t be serving anything to the web.

When you create the subdomain in cPanel, it will automatically create a document root folder (e.g. /home/youruser/cli.domain.com). This folder is normally where web files would go, but in our case, we won’t be using it. You can leave that folder completely empty.

Instead, during app setup, you’ll be able to manually specify the location of your actual scripts folder, such as /home/youruser/node-scripts. This ensures your CLI scripts remain private and are not exposed to the web, while still allowing you to take full advantage of the containerised Node.js environment provided by the Selector.

Step 3: Create the Node.js app in cPanel

In cPanel, open the Setup Node.js App tool and click Create Application. Configure it as follows:

• Select your desired Node.js version (e.g. 20.x)
• Application root: enter it to node-scripts (e.g. this will map it to /home/youruser/node-scripts)
• Leave the startup file blank — cPanel will generate a placeholder script you can ignore
• Click Create. The app will start, even though you won’t be serving anything via the web.

Step 4: Enter the virtual environment

Once created, the app page will display a command similar to the following:

source /home/youruser/nodevenv/node-scripts/20/bin/activate && cd /home/youruser/node-scripts

This does two things:

• Loads the Node.js virtual environment with the version you selected (in this case, 20)
• Changes directory into your node-scripts folder so you're ready to work

You will need to connect to SSH and run this command to enter the Node.js virtualised environment.

Once enabled, connect using an SSH client like this:

ssh youruser@yourdomain.com -p [port]

Replace [port] with the port number we give you.

Once connected, enter the Node.js virtual environment using the command from the Web UI, e.g.:

source /home/youruser/nodevenv/node-scripts/20/bin/activate && cd /home/youruser/node-scripts

And you should then find that you can see Node.js at the required version:

 node -v
v20.18.3

Limitations and Considerations

Using a dummy Node.js app is an effective workaround that allows you to run modern Node.js versions from the command line, even on servers running older operating systems where tools like NVM may not support newer versions due to system library limitations.

This method is ideal for CLI-based tasks such as:

• Running build tools
• Executing short-lived scripts
• Managing dependencies with npm
• Scheduling scripts via cron

You can also create multiple dummy apps if you want to use different Node.js versions for different projects.

Note:

• Custom ports are not available: You cannot run applications that bind to ports such as 3000 or 8080, as these are blocked for security reasons. For any web-facing applications, use the Node.js Selector in cPanel, which integrates your app with the web server over standard ports.
• Long-running or background processes are not allowed: Persistent scripts or daemons will be terminated automatically by the system. If you need recurring tasks, use cron jobs to run your scripts on a scheduled basis.
• Resource limits apply: All processes run within your account’s CloudLinux resource limits, including CPU, memory, and disk I/O. If your scripts exceed these thresholds, they may be throttled or stopped.