npm (Node Package Manager) is the world's largest software registry, hosting over 2.1 million JavaScript packages downloaded more than 200 billion times per month. As the default package manager for Node.js, npm is essential to virtually every JavaScript project — from React and Angular applications to Express servers and command-line tools. The npm registry and CLI client together form the package distribution backbone that the entire JavaScript ecosystem depends on for dependency management.
npm registry outages typically involve CDN distribution failures, database replication lag causing stale package versions, or authentication service disruptions affecting publish operations. The most impactful issues occur when package resolution fails — causing builds across millions of CI/CD pipelines to break simultaneously. Registry search and website features may degrade independently from core package installation functionality.
When npm is down, JavaScript development grinds to a halt worldwide. CI/CD pipelines fail during the npm install step, blocking all deployments. Developers cannot install new dependencies or update existing ones. Docker builds that pull npm packages fail. The cascading effect is enormous because virtually every JavaScript project — frontend and backend — depends on npm for dependency resolution during build and development workflows.
Use this page to check npm registry availability. If you're seeing 'npm ERR! network' or 'ETIMEDOUT' errors, it may be an npm outage. Check status.npmjs.org for the official npm status page. Note that npm can have regional issues — the registry may work in some locations but not others.
npm install failures can result from registry outages, network connectivity issues, corrupted package-lock.json, or dependency resolution conflicts. If 'npm ping' returns an error, the registry is likely down. Try 'npm cache clean --force' and retry. If multiple developers are experiencing the same issue, it's probably a registry outage.
npm outages are devastating for CI/CD because almost every JavaScript build starts with 'npm install'. When the registry is unreachable, all builds fail at the dependency installation step. This blocks deployments across organizations using GitHub Actions, CircleCI, Jenkins, or any CI system that builds JavaScript projects.
Use a lockfile (package-lock.json) for reproducible installs — some CI systems cache node_modules. Consider using a registry mirror or caching proxy like Verdaccio for critical builds. For immediate relief, check if the issue is specific to a region or package. Set up monitoring to get alerted when npm recovers.
Cache your node_modules in CI using GitHub Actions cache or similar. Consider using a private npm proxy that caches packages locally. Use package-lock.json to ensure consistent installs. Monitor npm registry status with PinusX to get instant alerts and plan around scheduled maintenance windows.
Monitor npm uptime with PinusX. Get instant alerts when services go down.