I'm aware this issue has appeared a few times and it's be declined, however I really feel this is just one less hurdle to using Elixir & everything Node.

Please add node_module into your global ignore setting. The Laravel project doesn't contain package.json so why add "node_modules" to .gitignore.

Nope, L5 contains a package.json to ease people into Elixir: https://github.com/laravel/laravel/blob/develop/package.json

Still, node_modules belongs in your global gitignore. It's not specific to Laravel.

Stuff like node_modules, .DS_Store and the likes don't belong in .gitignore files but the global ignore file.

.gitignore is for project specific files.

Laravel 5 use NodeJS (https://github.com/laravel/laravel/blob/develop/package.json) so node_modules should go in .gitignore file.

Yes, it should be in your global .gitignore, but put yourself in the shoes of someone who hasn't used Node and wants to try this cool new "Elixir" feature in Laravel.

They'd follow the docs, npm install and now they've got this node_modules dir sitting on the git stage.

Then imagine they share their project with someone else on their team. Now everyone else has to learn this best-practice from Node's eco-system.

I'm all for encouraging a best-practice, but I think it's just common sense to make this a default. (Yes, Homestead may come with this built-in, but not everyone will use it).

Can't see why /node_modules shouldn't be in gitignore, when /vendor is? I think it makes sense, and it would definitely help many more people than it would hurt :)

I also think /node_modules should just be in there.

The problem with adding node_modules here is encouraging bad practices, what about adding .DS_Store? A lot of people use OSX to develop so it should be added as well right? Maybe add .swp files since a lot of people use Vim or *.project files for all the people that use Sublime Text?

Adding node_modules will open the door to cater for all these files when it shouldn't because they have nothing to do with this project, they should be added in a global ignore file. There's no need to make the .gitignore file unnecessary long. The vendor folder is added because composer is a hard dependency, Laravel needs this to work so it's considered part of the project, whereas gulp is optional.

I think it'd be better to add a reference to this in the documentation to encourage people to set up a global ignore file instead.

Imho node_modules is different the IDE/OS specific files. It's a file that's always generated when using npm install with the default package.json file.
It might not always be used, but the package.json and gulpfile are also in the project repo. Elixir comes default with every L5 install, so don't see why you wouldn't update the gitignore file.

Also, I'm not sure if the node _modules folder even belongs in a global gitignore. It might for php development but when you're creating node apps you might want to include the dependencies..

@jahvi I agree with you about IDE/OS files. But Laravel 5 use NodeJS so it's a project specific folder.

With your reflexion we can also pull out /vendor.

@RomainLanz Yes but L5 doesn't rely on NodeJS, you can take it out and it'll still work however if you take the vendor folder out it won't work.

I agree with @barryvdh in a way though, it could be added just because elixir comes by default to avoid confusion. I think global ignore is just for OS/Editor specific files, I may have added it because I never work on Node apps.

Yes, Laravel 5 doesn't rely on NodeJS but the default installation has Elixir that rely on NodeJS. When you do a fresh install of Laravel 5 and want to commit on your repository the node_modules folder will be committed too.

I agree that at this point with the addition of elixir that node_modules should be ignored by git. Node offers a shrink wrap similar to composer.lock to lock files so that's no longer an issue as before.

Node modules aren't the same as ide or is folders/files at all. Instead it is much more comparable to the vendor dir that composer creates.

In the past I was on the fence as this would possibly open the floodgates for people to ask for other dep folders from other dev tools, however the blessing of elixir and a package.json file in L5 lock me into saying that node modules should be included. The same argument could not be made for other folders for other package managers (ie bower)

Also with older versions of npm not supporting shrinkwrap, there are legacy projects that unfortunately do need committed node_modules directories.

I agree with @barryvdh - I was under the impression that your global ignore file is for things specific to you (i.e. folders created by your IDE or OS), whereas the local/version-controlled ignore file should include things specific to the project.

Actually, with Elixir becoming a default part of Laravel I do agree that it should be in the .gitignore file.

Still, if you use node on more than on project (also goes for composer), adding it globally is a good idea. I think for those just getting started with Laravel adding it to the local .gitignore would be a welcome change.

This should be in global .gitignore
Check here how u create one
http://competa.com/blog/2014/12/creating-a-global-gitignore/