### Author:  [@cymplecy](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/cymplecy)
#### Post date: [17 May 2019 19:46 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/1 "2019-05-17T19:46:58Z")
I came across [https://sourceforge.net/projects/nodejsportable/](https://sourceforge.net/projects/nodejsportable/) and it made me think - if node.js can be made to run off a USB drive - could Node-RED be run from the same USB drive?
When I mean "possible" I mean by a suitable 2nd degree wizard - not Nick or Dave 🙂
---
### Author:  [@dustinw](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dustinw)
#### Post date: [17 May 2019 20:58 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/2 "2019-05-17T20:58:19Z")
It's definitely possible ... If you want a dashboard, you could start with the Node-Red-Electron app:
> **[natcl/electron-node-red](https://github.com/natcl/electron-node-red)**
>
> Electron Node-RED template. Contribute to natcl/electron-node-red development by creating an account on GitHub.
And then from there it looks like there are some config examples to make Electron portable:
>
If you don't care about having a UI there are a ton of examples of packaging and running a Node.js script as a portable app, or just run the portable version of Node.js configured to run node-red.
---
### Author:  [@paulohlp](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/paulohlp)
#### Post date: [19 July 2019 22:32 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/3 "2019-07-19T22:32:22Z")
UP.
Where you able to get it working? I´m very interested.
---
### Author:  [@cymplecy](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/cymplecy)
#### Post date: [20 July 2019 08:37 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/4 "2019-07-20T08:37:32Z")
It looked beyond my abilities to do
---
### Author:  [@cymplecy](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/cymplecy)
#### Post date: [20 July 2019 09:00 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/5 "2019-07-20T09:00:35Z")
however - I just had an idea and it seemed to work
I had previously installed Node-RED Desktop
> **[Node-RED Desktop](https://sakazuki.github.io/node-red-desktop/)**
>
> Desktop applicaiton of Node-RED. You can get a quick and easy powerful tool.
(a packaged up version of Node-RED) on my win10 machine.
I found the folder it was installed to
```auto
C:\Users\Simon\AppData\Local\Programs
```
and copied the node-red-desktop folder to another folder, then ran the unistaller inside the old location
Simply launching the .exe from the new location launched it fine
I need to test it out on a completely clean machine but I think it should work
Here is a zipped copy of the folder - if you have a win machine - try it out and see what happens
> **[node-red-desktop.zip](https://www.dropbox.com/s/z2rl0ck6tmmq7do/node-red-desktop.zip?dl=0)**
>
> Shared with Dropbox
---
### Author:  [@TotallyInformation](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/TotallyInformation)
#### Post date: [20 July 2019 10:12 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/6 "2019-07-20T10:12:16Z")
You could also try the alternative installer that I just released. It will let you install Node-RED anywhere. Though you still need Node.js installed so it isn't a complete solution. But a little tweaking and a manual unpack of Node.js to the memory stick would work.
---
### Author:  [@paulohlp](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/paulohlp)
#### Post date: [20 July 2019 17:30 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/7 "2019-07-20T17:30:51Z")
@TotallyInformation
Can you show me how to do it or point me to where I can get more info?
---
### Author:  [@TotallyInformation](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/TotallyInformation)
#### Post date: [20 July 2019 19:37 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/8 "2019-07-20T19:37:29Z")
> **[GitHub - TotallyInformation/alternate-node-red-installer: An alternative...](https://github.com/TotallyInformation/alternate-node-red-installer)**
>
> An alternative installer for Node-RED. Avoids global installs, no admin rights required. - GitHub - TotallyInformation/alternate-node-red-installer: An alternative installer for Node-RED. Avoids gl...
Hopefully the README should explain everything. If not, please add to the announcement thread and I will try to make it clearer:
> [@New Utility: alternate-node-red-installer](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/new-utility-alternate-node-red-installer/13490):
>
> Hi all, as I'm needing to install some clean installations of Node-RED for testing, I thought that I would finally get round to writing a proper tool for installing multiple independent instances of Node-RED. I've just finished that off and published to GitHub and npm so you should be able to use it straight away if you have a need for such a thing. It gives you a command-line installer that takes a single parameter controlling the root folder for installation. It should work on all platforms. …
---
### Author:  [@paulohlp](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/paulohlp)
#### Post date: [21 July 2019 11:50 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/9 "2019-07-21T11:50:40Z")
Worked here. I also have node installed.
---
### Author:  [@cymplecy](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/cymplecy)
#### Post date: [21 July 2019 18:29 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/10 "2019-07-21T18:29:52Z")
Ta for info 🙂
I'm going to try it out in the school I help out with on machines that don't have it and see what happens - I think it will work though
---
### Author:  [@kuema](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/kuema)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 05:53 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/11 "2019-07-22T05:53:50Z")
There is also this packaging tool:
> **[pkg](https://www.npmjs.com/package/pkg)**
>
> Package your Node.js project into an executable
It creates a single executable of your code and all its dependencies for all major platforms, NodeJS is included. We successfully use it for deployments of our software at work.
I gave it a quick shot with Node-RED, but was unsuccessful. I imagine it needs some manual tweaks, like including the web resources at the proper location. However, I haven't had the time to try again, yet.
---
### Author:  [@TotallyInformation](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/TotallyInformation)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 06:06 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/12 "2019-07-22T06:06:10Z")
Hmm, interesting. However, looking at the details, it seems to me as though many Nodes would fail to be properly packaged due to the way that it moves assets around. Might be a lot of work to get going.
Worth a try though.
---
### Author:  [@kuema](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/kuema)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 06:18 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/13 "2019-07-22T06:18:29Z")
Yes, that's where I hit a dead end with Node-RED. You can include additional assets into the package's internal filesystem manually. I haven't invested much time into this, as there were other more important issues at work.
However, getting a single executable for Node-RED without any further dependencies would be a great plus for deployments.
---
### Author:  [@TotallyInformation](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/TotallyInformation)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 16:06 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/14 "2019-07-22T16:06:01Z")
> [@kuema](#):
>
> However, getting a single executable for Node-RED without any further dependencies would be a great plus for deployments.
While true, it might be easier to dump node.js executables into the same parent project folder (if using my style installation). I must have a look at that to see if it is feasible.
---
### Author:  [@dceejay](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dceejay)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 17:33 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/15 "2019-07-22T17:33:32Z")
My electron project can be built into a single exe if required [https://github.com/dceejay/electron-node-red](https://github.com/dceejay/electron-node-red)
The project is made for Mac so builds on that platform, but should be adaptable for others (and I would happily take contributions to improve it)
---
### Author:  [@paulohlp](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/paulohlp)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 18:07 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/16 "2019-07-22T18:07:56Z")
It´s working nicely. Just tried at another computer.
I´ll play a little to see if it everything works.
---
### Author:  [@cymplecy](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/cymplecy)
#### Post date: [22 July 2019 18:17 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/17 "2019-07-22T18:17:41Z")
What is "it" as we now have 3 options in the thread 🙂
---
### Author:  [@paulohlp](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/paulohlp)
#### Post date: [24 July 2019 00:16 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/18 "2019-07-24T00:16:40Z")
Sorry. Was talking about this
> [@dceejay](#):
>
> My electron project can be built into a single exe if required [https://github.com/dceejay/electron-node-red](https://github.com/dceejay/electron-node-red)
> The project is made for Mac so builds on that platform, but should be adaptable for others (and I would happily take contributions to improve it)
---
### Author:  [@CMAraujo87](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/CMAraujo87)
#### Post date: [20 September 2021 15:48 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/is-it-possible-to-make-node-red-into-a-windows-portable-app/11259/19 "2021-09-20T15:48:45Z")
I just made a portable version of the node-red by:
- Downloading a portable version of Node.js
- Running `npm install -g nodered`
I also needed to edit the `$env:Path` in the node-red.ps1 file.
example:
```auto
if (!($env:Path -contains $basedir)) {
Write-Host Adding basedir to Path Env variable.
$env:Path += ";" + $basedir
}
```
`$basedir` variable was already in the ps1 script.
Then I created a shortcut pointing to:
`C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe "\Path\To\Nodejs\node-red.ps1 -u 'Path\To\UserDir'"`
Hope it helps.