JavaScript

Node.js introduces node: protocol imports

Node.js recently introduced a node: protocol for built-in modules. Built-in node modules can now be imported by prefixing the node: protocol prefix.

So, what previously used to be

import * as fs from 'fs/promises';

JavaScript

can now be imported as

import * as fs from 'node:fs/promises';

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Benefits

More explicit protocol makes it more readable and also makes it clear that a built-in module is being imported. Since there are a lot of built-in ones, this extra information is useful for beginners or for someone who might not know about one of them.
It reduces the risk of a module present in node_modules overriding the newer imports.

It is currently supported:

In Node.js starting:
- v16.0.0, v14.18.0 (ESM import and CommonJS require())
- v14.13.1, v12.20.0 (only ESM import)
In TypeScript by the latest versions of @types/node.

Saransh Kataria

Born in Delhi, India, Saransh Kataria is the brain behind Wisdom Geek. Currently, Saransh is a software developer at a reputed firm in Austin, and he likes playing with new technologies to explore different possibilities. He holds an engineering degree in Computer Science. He also shares his passion for sharing knowledge as the community lead at Facebook Developer Circle Delhi, NCR which is a developer community in Delhi, India.