Why node_modules Is Build Input

Sloppy can consume installed pure-JavaScript packages, but it does not run as Node and does not treat node_modules as a runtime dependency directory.

During build, sloppyc may resolve packages from node_modules, transform the supported JavaScript/TypeScript/CommonJS/JSON modules, and emit a sealed Sloppy artifact graph. At run time, the generated artifact runs without returning to the original source checkout or package directory for bundled modules.

The Reasoning

Sloppy's runtime contract starts from the Plan and generated artifacts. That contract is strongest when the compiler knows what will run before the runtime starts:

• module IDs are deterministic and repo-relative;
• package entries and export conditions are recorded;
• Node compatibility shims are explicit;
• unsupported native addons and Node builtins fail before packaging;
• packaged apps can run from copied artifacts.

This is different from Node's runtime package model. Node can discover files, conditional branches, and package internals while the process is already running. Sloppy intentionally avoids that for packaged artifacts.

What Works

Use your normal package manager to install dependencies:

npm install some-package

Then import compatible package code from Sloppy source. The supported subset includes practical package.json exports, imports, main, type, extension resolution, ESM, CommonJS, JSON modules, string-literal dynamic imports, and computed dynamic imports over moduleInclude graphs.

Inspect the result with:

sloppy deps .sloppy

What Still Does Not Work

Sloppy does not provide:

• registry install or semver solving;
• full Node module resolution parity;
• native Node addons or N-API;
• full Node globals such as process-wide process and Buffer;
• full Node builtin compatibility;
• runtime discovery outside the sealed artifact graph.

Packages that depend on those surfaces fail with specific diagnostics or shim errors instead of pretending to work.

What To Do Instead

Need	Sloppy option
A compatible pure-JavaScript utility	Install it with your package manager and let Sloppy bundle it.
A small dependency-free helper	Vendor the code into your source tree.
A Node native addon	Run that logic in a separate service or wait for a first-party Sloppy feature.
Node fs, path, crypto, or similar APIs	Prefer sloppy/* APIs, or use the explicit node:* compatibility shim when supported.
Runtime plugin discovery	Use moduleInclude to seal known modules into the artifact graph.

The long-term direction is selective compatibility, not drop-in Node parity. See Node compatibility roadmap.