Install GroupDocs.Total for Node.js via Java

Prerequisites

  • Node.js: 20 LTS or later
  • Java: JRE/JDK 8+ (recommended 17 LTS)
  • Build tools if needed by your environment (node-gyp toolchain)

See full details on the System Requirements page.

Install from npm

All Java-bridged packages are hosted on npm. Install the library into your project using your preferred package manager:

# npm
npm install @groupdocs/groupdocs.total

# yarn
yarn add @groupdocs/groupdocs.total

# pnpm
pnpm add @groupdocs/groupdocs.total

The install step also downloads the Total library used by the Node.js bridge.

Set up Java (JAVA_HOME)

Ensure your Java installation is available on PATH and JAVA_HOME is set.

Windows (PowerShell):

$env:JAVA_HOME="C:\Program Files\Java\jdk-17"
$env:Path="$env:JAVA_HOME\bin;$env:Path"

Linux/macOS (Bash):

export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17
export PATH="$JAVA_HOME/bin:$PATH"

See the System Requirements page for more details.

Verify installation

Create a small script (e.g., check.js) and run it with Node.js:

import { Viewer } from '@groupdocs/groupdocs.total';

try {
  console.log('GroupDocs.Total loaded:', typeof Viewer === 'function');
  console.log('Java bridge initialized successfully.');
  process.exit(0);
} catch (e) {
  console.error('Failed to load GroupDocs.Total:', e);
  process.exit(1);
}

And then run the script to verify the installation:

node check.js

Download from GroupDocs.Releases (offline)

You can download a package archive from GroupDocs.Releases and add it to your app. After downloading the .tar file, install it locally:

npm install ./groupdocs-groupdocs.total-<version>.tar

Alternatively, configure npm to use your corporate registry or proxy, then install using the standard command.

Minimal JavaScript app example

Once you have installed the GroupDocs.Total package, here’s a minimal example of how you can use it in a Node.js application.

  1. Create a JavaScript file (e.g., app.js) in your project’s root directory.

  2. Import the GroupDocs.Total module and implement a simple file viewing functionality:

    import { Viewer } from '@groupdocs/groupdocs.total';
    import java from 'java';
    
    const HtmlViewOptions = java.import('com.groupdocs.viewer.options.HtmlViewOptions');
    
    // Path to the file you want to render
    const filePath = 'contract.docx';
    
    // Initialize viewer
    const viewer = new Viewer(filePath);
    
    // Render the file to HTML
    viewer.view(HtmlViewOptions.forEmbeddedResources());
    viewer.close();
    
    process.exit(0);
    

    contract.docx is the sample file used in this example. Click here to download it.

  3. Run the app by executing the following command in your terminal:

    node app.js
    

This minimal example converts a document to HTML format. The output will contain rendered pages in HTML format.

Note
Always import @groupdocs/groupdocs.total before calling java.import(...). Main entry points such as Viewer and Converter are exported from the package; options and helper classes live in the suite JAR and are loaded with java.import('fully.qualified.ClassName').

Troubleshooting installation

  • node-gyp toolchain not found: install the required build tools for your OS (see System Requirements).
  • Java not detected: set JAVA_HOME and add <JAVA_HOME>/bin to PATH.
  • Corporate proxy: configure npm proxy settings before running install. Allow HTTPS access to GroupDocs release storage if the library download fails during install.
  • Permission errors: ensure you have write access to the project directory and cache folders.
  • java.import(...) returns null / ClassNotFound: import @groupdocs/groupdocs.total first; use the full Java class name.