Node.js and npm available for compiling assets

From today, every hosting service can have Node.js and npm for compiling assets and running commands during deployments.

It's important to make clear from the start that this is designed to assist the deployment process, not to run Node.js applications as a server. In other words, you can use Node.js to compile CSS and JavaScript with modern tools, but not to run an Express server or similar.

The main use case

More and more modern web projects, whatever language they are built in (PHP, Python, etc.), need a build step for their frontend assets. Laravel with Vite, WordPress with build scripts, modern CSS frameworks... they all need npm run build or similar commands before the code goes to production.

Until now, this meant compiling assets locally, uploading them by hand, or looking for complex ways to run these commands on the server. With this new tool, you can do it straight from your hosting service.

Node.js through NVM

We have set up Node.js using NVM (Node Version Manager), which means you can choose the specific version your project needs and easily switch when required.

The available versions are Node.js 16, 18, 20 and 22 (recommended). Each version includes the matching version of npm and npx.

One-click installation

Installation is really simple. In the client area, open the hosting service you want and among its options you'll see Package manager:

Once installed, the system shows the installed versions and lets you switch between Node.js versions as your project requires.

It's not for Node.js applications

We want to be clear on this point: this tool is not designed to run Node.js applications as a server. You can't run Express, Next.js in server mode, WebSocket applications, etc.

The goal is to provide the tools you need to compile assets, run build commands and assist the deployment process. For everything else, the server is still LiteSpeed running PHP, the language we specialise in.

Usage examples

Some typical use cases where this tool is a perfect fit:

• Laravel with Vite: run npm install && npm run build to compile assets
• WordPress with modern themes: compile Tailwind CSS or custom scripts
• CSS frameworks: run PostCSS, Sass, Less, etc.
• Image optimisation: use npm tools to process images
• Frontend testing: run JavaScript tests during deployment

For more technical details and configuration examples, see our Node.js installation and usage guide.