npm安装报错求助：SyntaxError: Unexpected token ILLEGAL问题解决

Hey, let's work through this issue together—here's exactly what's going wrong and how to fix it:

问题根源 #

You mentioned installing Node.js 9.4.0, but when you ran node -v, it returned v0.12.7. That's the core problem: your system is still using this extremely outdated Node version (v0.12.7 is from 2014!).

Newer versions of npm rely on ES6 features like template literals (the `-wrapped strings in your error message), which v0.12.7 doesn't support at all. That's why you're getting the SyntaxError: Unexpected token ILLEGAL error when trying to run npm commands.

解决步骤 #

Follow these steps to get the correct Node version working and fix the npm issue:

1. Uninstall the old Node.js and clean up residues
   If you originally installed the old Node via Homebrew, run:

   brew uninstall node
   

   Then manually remove any leftover files to avoid conflicts:

   rm -rf /usr/local/lib/node_modules
   rm /usr/local/bin/node
   rm /usr/local/bin/npm
   

2. Reinstall Node.js 9.4.0
   Use Homebrew to install the specific version you need:

   brew install node@9.4.0
   

   Next, add this version to your system PATH so your terminal uses it by default:

   # For Zsh users
   echo 'export PATH="/usr/local/opt/node@9/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc
   # For Bash users, use ~/.bash_profile or ~/.bashrc instead
   echo 'export PATH="/usr/local/opt/node@9/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bash_profile
   

   Refresh your shell configuration to apply the change:

   # Zsh
   source ~/.zshrc
   # Bash
   source ~/.bash_profile
   

3. Verify the installation
   Run these commands to confirm you're now using the correct Node and npm versions:

   node -v # Should output v9.4.0
   npm -v # Should show an npm version compatible with Node 9.4.0
   

4. Install grunt-cli again
   Now that your environment is fixed, run the install command again—it should work without errors:

   npm install -g grunt-cli
   

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者Han Zhengzu