fs.readFileSync says 'no such file or directory' although require() returns the file correctly

Question

I need to read a JSON file dynamically. This is why require() won't cut it. It doesn't simply update the file until NodeJS server restarts. This is why I have to use fs.readFile or fs.readFileSync.

When I use, const data = require("../data.json"); it just reads it properly. No issues at all, but like I said, it doesn't update dynamically.

When I use const data = () => fs.readFileSync("../data.json", { encoding: "utf8" }); it simply returns Error: ENOENT: no such file or directory, open '../data.json'

I also tried fs.readFile. Doesn't work.

Most weirdly, when I try to read another json file with fs.readFileSync, I'm seeing values that I changed days ago. It reads an old version. I don't understand. That old version doesn't exist anymore. I manually checked.

I tried npm install, npm cache clean --force. I can't think of anything else.

Dorward_19068 · Answer

require takes a path relative to the directory the module file is in.

readFileSync takes a path relative to the current working directory.

These must be different for you.

Consider using path.resolve with your relative path and __dirname

user_14048160 · Answer

You're probably looking for require.resolve if you're working with CommonJS modules in Node. This will use the internals of require to provide the absolute path string to the file you want to read in.

Source: https://nodejs.org/api/modules.html#requireresolverequest-options

fs.readFileSync says 'no such file or directory' although require() returns the file correctly

2 Answers