release: v1.5.3 - fail clearly on Node without require(esm)

[cldmv-bot]

vitest-runner v1.5.3 Changelog

Release Date: October 2026
Release Type: Patch
Branch: release/1.5.3

---

Overview

This release changes how dist/index.cjs loads the ES module build. The CommonJS entry no longer goes through createRequire, which kept bundlers from seeing the dependency, and it now fails with a clear, actionable error on a Node.js version that cannot require() an ES module. New node:test checks run the built CommonJS entry point on every test and coverage run.

The ES module build, the CLI and the run() API are unchanged, and on Node.js versions with require(esm) (20.19+ and 22.12+), require("@cldmv/vitest-runner") returns the same named exports as before.

It also raises engines.node to >=22.12.0 (#73). The old >=20.19.0 floor was never true: the runtime dependency chalk 6 needs Node.js 22, the current vitest 5 peer needs ^22.12.0, and CI only ever tested 22.12 and later.

---

💥 Breaking Changes

Node.js 20 is no longer supported (#73, fixes #72)

engines.node moves from >=20.19.0 to >=22.12.0, despite this being a patch release. In practice Node.js 20 already stopped working cleanly in v1.5.2: chalk 6.0.1 declares Node.js 22 or later, so Node.js 20 installs printed an EBADENGINE warning and failed outright under engine-strict, and vitest 5 does not install on Node.js 20 at all. The floor now says what the package actually needs.

🐛 Bug Fixes

The CommonJS entry uses a plain require() (#69)

src/cjs-shim.cjs, which the build copies verbatim to dist/index.cjs, loaded ./index.mjs through createRequire(__filename). A .cjs file already has require, so createRequire added nothing, and it hid the dependency from bundlers such as esbuild and webpack, which detect dependencies from static require("…") calls. The shim now calls require("./index.mjs") directly and exports its result.

require() fails clearly on Node.js without require(esm) (#69)

On a Node.js version without synchronous require(esm) (before 20.19 on the 20.x line, or before 22.12), the shim's require() threw a generic ERR_REQUIRE_ESM that pointed at the package's internals. The shim now checks process.features.require_module first and, when it is missing, throws an error with the same ERR_REQUIRE_ESM code and a message naming the package, the required versions and the running version:

@cldmv/vitest-runner: require() needs Node.js ^20.19.0 or >=22.12.0 (this is v20.18.0). On older Node.js, load the package with import() instead.

Code that catches ERR_REQUIRE_ESM by code keeps working.

🧪 Tests

• New tests/cjs/entry.test.cjs, run with node --test by a new test:cjs script after a fresh npm run build. It checks that require() of the built package returns the same named exports as import, and that the version check throws the new error when require(esm) is unavailable.
• npm test, npm run test:coverage and npm run ci:coverage now run test:cjs after Vitest, so CI exercises the published CommonJS entry point.

📄 License

• The package is relicensed from MIT to Apache-2.0: LICENSE now carries the Apache License 2.0 text and package.json declares "license": "Apache-2.0".

📚 Documentation

• NEW: docs/changelog/v1/v1.5.3.md: this changelog.
• NEW: changelog files for every earlier release that shipped without one: v1.0.0, v1.0.1, v1.0.2, v1.0.3, v1.1.0, v1.2.0, v1.3.0, v1.3.1, v1.3.2, v1.3.3 and v1.5.2.
• README restructured to the CLDMV layout (badges, What's New, Key Features, Installation with Node.js requirements, Quick Start, then the existing CLI, API and coverage reference). The install commands now use the scoped package name @cldmv/vitest-runner, and the Node.js requirement matches engines.node.

🔧 Dependencies

No dependency updates.

---

Upgrade notes

• Node.js 22.12 or later is required. On Node.js 20, stay on v1.5.1 (the last release before chalk 6), or upgrade Node.js. Everyone already on Node.js 22.12+ gets a drop-in update from v1.5.2.
• On a Node.js version without require(esm), require() now fails with a clearer message and the same ERR_REQUIRE_ESM code.

👥 Contributors

• @Shinrai

---

Metric	Coverage
Statements	99.4%
Branches	99.6%
Functions	100.0%
Lines	99.3%

Avg: 99.5% · 79b31f7 · Node lts/*

Co-authored-by: Shinrai Shinrai@users.noreply.github.com

[cldmv-bot]

🔒 Dependency Review

• ✅ 0 vulnerable package(s)
• ✅ 0 package(s) with incompatible licenses
• ✅ 0 package(s) with invalid SPDX license definitions
• ✅ 0 package(s) with unknown licenses
• ✅ 0 denied package(s)
• ✅ 0 package(s) with OpenSSF Scorecard score < 3

Full job summary

[cldmv-bot]

⚠️ Bundle size increased

File	Raw	Δ Raw	Gzipped	Δ Gzipped
bin/vitest-runner.mjs	31.6 kB	—	11.0 kB	—
dist/index.cjs	1.9 kB	+614 B (+44.9%) ⚠️	1.1 kB	+314 B
dist/index.mjs	25.7 kB	—	9.1 kB	—
Total	59.2 kB	+614 B	21.1 kB	+314 B

_{📊 Generated by bundle-size. Brotli sizes also measured but omitted from the table for brevity.}