TypeError: Cannot read property 'split' of undefined in node_modules/@elastic/elasticsearch/index.js:7

🐛 Bug Report

TypeError: Cannot read property ‘split’ of undefined in node_modules/@elastic/elasticsearch/index.js:7

To Reproduce

Steps to reproduce the behavior:

• npx create-react-app test-app
• cd test-app
• npm install @elastic/elasticsearch
• edit ./src/App.js to require the library

// ./src/App.js

import logo from './logo.svg';
import './App.css';

const { Client } = require('@elastic/elasticsearch')

function App() {
  return (
    <div className="App">
      <header className="App-header">
        <img src={logo} className="App-logo" alt="logo" />
        <p>
          Edit <code>src/App.js</code> and save to reload.
        </p>
        <a
          className="App-link"
          href="https://reactjs.org"
          target="_blank"
          rel="noopener noreferrer"
        >
          Learn React
        </a>
      </header>
    </div>
  );
}

export default App;

• npm start
• error reported int he browser:

TypeError: Cannot read property ‘split’ of undefined (anonymous function) node_modules/@elastic/elasticsearch/index.js:7

• code snippet in the error:

   4 | 
   5 | 'use strict'
   6 | 
>  7 | const nodeMajor = Number(process.versions.node.split('.')[0])
   8 | 
   9 | const { EventEmitter } = require('events')
  10 | const { URL } = require('url')

Expected behavior

the module should be required without error

Debugging

I did console.log(process.version.node); in node_modules/@elastic/elasticsearch/index.js. It looks to me that process.versions.node is undefined.

Your Environment

• node version: was v12.18.4 upgraded to v14.15.0 same issue
• @elastic/elasticsearch version: 7.9.1
• os: Mac
• any other relevant information:

[delvedor]

npm modules should work also with client libs such as React or Vue.

@vikiival I don’t agree, some libraries can work in both environments, others can’t. It’s not safe connecting directly to Elasticsearch from the browser, as it will expose you to security risks, hence we do not support it. You can write a small node.js proxy for sending queries and make the browser communicate with your proxy.

[halmos]

Just to a comment to vote in favor of re-opening this issue and supporting browser applications. It is certainly possible to have a secure ES instance without the need of a proxy. In our case we use AWS’s Elasticsearch service along with AWS’s Cognito and IAM authentication to grant the client restricted access only to verified users.

In any case, It seems to me that the SDK should not be opinionated about how to secure the server.

It should also be noted that the legacy sdk did support browser environments.