When running a: npm version prepatch I get the error: "Git working directory not clean." And then a list of files that aren't committed yet.
However, I'd like to do this prerelease to test some stuff locally using a private npm registry. Meaning that I don't have to commit the files just yet using Git.
Is it possible to update the version in package.json without clean git working directory?
From the npm version documentation at https://docs.npmjs.com/cli/version:
If run in a git repo, it will also create a version commit and tag. This behavior is controlled by git-tag-version (see below), and can be disabled on the command line by running npm --no-git-tag-version version. It will fail if the working directory is not clean, unless the -f or --force flag is set.
I'm not 100% certain whether you just need --no-git-tag-version, or if you'll also need the --force flag.
You can use git stash.
E.g.
git stash
npm version patch
git stash pop
This will reset your working directory temporarily (remove uncommitted changes). Then you can run npm version {major|minor|patch}. Afterwards, using git stash pop will re-apply your uncommitted changes to your working directory.
Tutorial: https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/saving-changes/git-stash#stashing-your-work
Try to commit first
git add . && git commit -am "new version"
and then
npm version patch