Fix · Node, npm and build

Dev server does not reload or says too many open files (EMFILE)

What you may see

I save a file and the browser does not change
The terminal says EMFILE or ENOSPC watchers

Most likely cause

The system limits how many files can be watched, or the project sits in a synced folder (cloud drive) that confuses the watcher.

Check first (about two minutes)

Is the project inside a cloud-synced folder (iCloud, OneDrive, Dropbox)?

The fix prompt

What you type here never leaves your browser. The search runs on this page, and nothing is sent to a server or to an AI.

The exact error or what you see

What you did before it happened

Kept only in this browser, on this device. Keys and passwords are removed before anything is saved.

Prompt language

You are a patient senior engineer who knows Node.js, npm and build tools and explains them to people who are not developers. I am not a developer, so explain every step in plain words and tell me exactly which button, menu or command you mean. If you are not sure about something, say so; do not guess.

THE PROBLEM
Dev server does not reload or says too many open files (EMFILE)

THE EXACT ERROR OR WHAT I SEE
[paste the exact error here]

WHAT I DID BEFORE IT HAPPENED
[write in a few words what you did before it happened]

MOST LIKELY CAUSE
The system limits how many files can be watched, or the project sits in a synced folder (cloud drive) that confuses the watcher.

DO THESE STEPS, IN THIS ORDER
1. Show the folder path of the project and tell me if it is inside a synced folder.
2. Suggest moving the project to a normal local folder (I will do it), and check that node_modules is not inside a synced folder.
3. For the open-files limit, explain the safe system setting for my operating system and ask before changing anything.
Stop and tell me if what you see does not match a step. Do not skip ahead.

CHECK THAT IT WORKED
- Saving a file updates the browser within a second or two.
Tell me exactly what I should see on the screen when it works.

DO NOT CHANGE
- Do not move or delete the project without a copy.
- Anything I did not ask about: the design, the text, other pages, other settings or the data.
- Do not delete files, data or branches, do not reset or force-push, and do not rewrite history, unless you first show me exactly what would be lost and I say yes.
- Do not paste, print or ask me to paste a password or secret key into this chat. If one is needed, tell me which settings page of the right service to store it in.

WHEN YOU FINISH
Explain in simple words what you changed (file by file or setting by setting), why you changed it, and how I can undo it.

Paste it into Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini or Cursor, then follow what it says.

After you tried it, did it work?

Steps

Show the folder path of the project and tell me if it is inside a synced folder.
Suggest moving the project to a normal local folder (I will do it), and check that node_modules is not inside a synced folder.
For the open-files limit, explain the safe system setting for my operating system and ask before changing anything.

Do not do this

Do not edit system files you do not understand.
Do not move or delete the project without a copy.

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