Change lib files without compiling the entire project again

[exx8]

• Node.js Version:
  12.11
• OS:
  ubuntu 18.04
• Scope (install, code, runtime, meta, other?):
  debugging

I'm trying to contribute to the project via coding.
The build process takes a lot of time. I would be happy to know:

1. if there is a way to change lib files without rebuilding the entire project?
2. Is there are a debugger for the lib files themselves?

Thanks

[addaleax]

if there is a way to change lib files without rebuilding the entire project?

Running make should only re-compile the parts of the project that have been changed and files that depend on those, so it shouldn’t re-build the entire project. (“should” because our build system has been broken for a while now, and some parts are always re-compiled and it’s not bothering anybody enough to do something about it).

Another way to keep compile times down is to install ccache, which makes sure that re-compiling will use a cache even when changing branches a lot.

As for being able to modify lib/ files without re-compiling Node.js, that’s currently not possible, no. (I tried to change that ~ 2 years ago but got a lot of pushback, see nodejs/node#9652.)

Is there are a debugger for the lib files themselves?

Chromium DevTools should work for them like it does for regular userland source files, I think?

[exx8]

it takes me over an hour to build the binaries. I will try to use ccache.

I cannot debug lib via node inspect if that what you meant, as they try to import some variable that isn't resolvable.

Thanks

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