typescript-node-esm-compiler-runtime

TypeScript Node ESM Compiler Runtime

Purpose

Use this skill to reason about TypeScript plus Node.js ESM correctness as one joined toolchain problem.

This skill owns the seam where all of the following must agree:

• what Node will load and how it classifies modules
• what TypeScript resolves, preserves, rewrites, or emits
• what files and import strings actually exist on disk

It is not a general TypeScript style guide, not a generic ESM migration guide, and not a substitute for broader runtime/devops design.

Specialist Stance

The goal is not to re-teach mainstream ESM advice.

The goal is to reason more narrowly and more exactly about this seam than generic ESM guidance would.

This skill should add value by:

• forcing the first plausible ESM fix to prove itself against runtime truth, compiler truth, and artifact truth
• surfacing mismatches and hidden constraints instead of flattening them into "ESM is tricky"
• preferring the smallest honest toolchain contract over option piles, loaders, and migration folklore
• separating what was inspected from what was merely inferred
• explaining why the tempting workaround still leaves drift or future breakage
• ending with the smallest check that could falsify the recommendation

If removing this skill would leave the answer basically unchanged, the skill is not doing enough work.

Expert Goal

Do not spend time restating most mainstream Node, TypeScript, and ESM basics.

This skill succeeds only when it materially improves the reasoning process:

• narrow the problem to the exact compiler/runtime seam instead of answering with broad migration commentary
• turn vague module-system advice into explicit runtime contracts and failure semantics
• identify the strongest hidden mismatch, the strongest tempting shortcut, and the first place the recommendation can still fail
• reduce the configuration and tooling surface instead of decorating a drifted setup with more options

Do not restate known best practices. The skill succeeds only when the final answer is more discriminating, more minimal, and more falsifiable than generic ESM guidance.

Expert Thinking Contract

Use this skill to improve answer quality along four axes:

1. Truth-source discipline Distinguish Node runtime truth, TypeScript compiler truth, and artifact truth on disk.
2. Minimality Recommend the fewest settings and runtime conventions that preserve correctness. Every option must close a named mismatch.
3. Failure concreteness Name the likely runtime failure mode, the first discriminating check, and the layer where the problem actually begins.
4. Honest uncertainty Lower confidence when the real start command, package.json, effective tsconfig, or emitted output has not been inspected.

The skill succeeds only if it makes the answer more exact, more discriminating, and more operationally honest than generic ESM guidance.

Relationship To Shared Research

Start with the local references in this skill.

Load references/toolchain-invariants.md by default.

Load references/package-and-specifier-contracts.md when the question turns on:

• package.json "type", "exports", or "imports"
• .mjs/.cjs versus .js
• .js versus .ts relative specifiers
• whether an alias belongs in tsconfig.paths or the Node runtime contract
• CJS interop shape from an ESM entrypoint

Load references/mode-specific-hard-anchors.md when the answer needs compact concrete anchors rather than only abstract reasoning, especially for:

• canonical tsc -> dist -> node posture
• native .ts execution caveats and its real limits
• .mts/.cts versus .mjs/.cjs mixed-format cases
• source-map pairing between compiler output and Node runtime flags
• runner or loader choices that might drift from the production contract

Load references/minimal-config-surfaces.md when the question turns on the smallest correct config shape for:

• tsc -> dist -> node
• Node native .ts execution with type stripping
• runner-mediated dev/test flows that must stay honest about production parity

Load references/runtime-failure-modes.md when the task is triage, debugging, or a "why does Node fail after compile?" question.

Load references/unfamiliar-codebase-checklist.md when auditing an existing repository or when the true runtime contract is still unclear.

Load ../_shared-hyperresearch/deep-researches/typescript-node-esm-compiler-runtime.md only when:

• the codebase is unfamiliar and the local references are not enough
• the answer depends on version-sensitive Node or TypeScript caveats
• the recommendation depends on nuanced trade-offs around type stripping, nodenext versus frozen Node modes, source maps, or loader behavior
• you need the wider investigation map rather than the compact local lens

Version anchor: TypeScript 5.9 and Node.js 24 LTS+ ESM. If the real toolchain differs, say so explicitly and reduce confidence.

Relationship To Neighbor Skills

• Use typescript-language-core when the real issue is TS type semantics or strict-mode language behavior rather than compiler/runtime alignment.
• Use node-runtime-devops-spec when the main question is boot flow, env loading, shutdown, or deployment/runtime shape beyond module and emit correctness.
• Use a broader architecture skill when the real problem is package/module decomposition after the compiler/runtime contract is already settled.

If the task crosses seams, keep this skill focused on compiler/runtime truth and hand off the rest explicitly.

Use This Skill For

• deciding whether the runtime is compiled JS, native .ts, or runner-driven
• choosing .js versus .ts relative specifier strategy
• choosing module, moduleResolution, verbatimModuleSyntax, rewriteRelativeImportExtensions, or related settings when they change runtime correctness
• checking package.json "type"/"exports"/"imports" against emitted files and start commands
• auditing dist/ artifact correctness and source-map posture
• debugging ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND, ERR_UNSUPPORTED_DIR_IMPORT, format mismatches, alias drift, or "works in tsx but not in node dist"
• deciding whether Node native type stripping is actually compatible with the code shape

Toolchain Truth Model

Treat every task in this seam as a three-system alignment problem:

1. Runtime truth What Node actually executes: entry command, package "type", file extensions, ESM resolver rules, and loader behavior.
2. Compiler truth What TypeScript accepts, how it resolves specifiers, and what it preserves or emits.
3. Artifact truth The real emitted files and the exact import strings that exist on disk.

The answer is incomplete if it cannot say which of these three is currently authoritative for the failure or design choice.

Import strings are runtime ABI, not a stylistic detail.

Preferred Defaults

• Default production posture: tsc -> dist -> node unless the task explicitly commits to native .ts execution.
• When Node executes emitted JS, prefer Node-oriented compiler modes instead of bundler-style assumptions.
• For tsc -> dist -> node, prefer .js relative specifiers in source so the emitted JS is already runtime-correct.
• Use .ts relative specifiers only when the runtime truly executes .ts files and the code shape stays inside that mode's constraints.
• Prefer package.json#imports over tsconfig.paths when Node itself must understand an internal alias.
• Treat loaders, runner magic, and extensionless-resolution tricks as workarounds to justify, not defaults to assume.

Reasoning Obligations

Do not stop at the first answer that sounds plausible. A strong answer in this seam must make the following explicit when relevant:

• which runtime mode is actually in play
• which package boundary or extension rule decides module format
• which compiler settings materially affect runtime behavior or emit
• whether the emitted or executed files were inspected or merely assumed
• whether the advice is a stable platform invariant, a compiler choice, a tool-specific workaround, an explicit assumption, or a handoff
• what the strongest tempting shortcut is and why it still loses
• what the first likely failure is if one assumption turns out false

If the answer does not classify the recommendation at that level, it is still too vague.

Input Sufficiency And Confidence

Before answering, identify the minimum missing facts:

• what exact command runs the code in development, tests, CI, and production
• whether Node executes .js from dist/, .ts directly, or a runner/loader path
• what the nearest package.json says about "type", "exports", and "imports"
• what the effective tsconfig says about module and emit behavior
• what relative import strings look like in source and, if applicable, in emitted output

If the repo is available, inspect the real files instead of assuming them. Prefer tsc --showConfig when layered tsconfig files may hide the effective truth.

Confidence guidance:

• high when runtime mode, package truth, effective compiler settings, and at least one executed or emitted artifact were inspected
• medium when most of the contract is visible but one important layer is still inferred
• low when the answer is built mainly from prompt description or partial config

If confidence is not high, say what to inspect next before anyone should rely on the recommendation.

Diagnostic Workflow

1. Confirm the execution mode. Decide whether the runtime is:
   • compiled JS via node dist/...
   • native .ts execution through Node type stripping
   • runner-mediated execution such as tsx, ts-node, or loader-driven flows
2. Read the runtime truth. Inspect the actual start command, entrypoint path, nearest package.json, and any extension or "type" rules that decide whether .js means ESM or CJS.
3. Read the comp

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