npm run build errors during SageMathCell server installation on Ubuntu

[TSSFL]

I'm experiencing build errors during the installation/build of SageMathCell on my Ubuntu VPS. After running ../sage/sage -sh -c make (and also ../sage/sage -sh -c make -B), the npm run build process fails with the following errors:

ERROR in ./js/interact_cell.js
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'base/js/events' in '/home/tssfl/sagecell/js'
@ ./js/session.js
@ ./js/cell.js
@ ./js/main.js

ERROR in ./js/session.js
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'base/js/events' in '/home/tssfl/sagecell/js'
@ ./js/cell.js
@ ./js/main.js

ERROR in ./js/session.js
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'base/js/namespace' in '/home/tssfl/sagecell/js'
@ ./js/cell.js
@ ./js/main.js

ERROR in ./js/session.js
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'services/kernels/kernel' in '/home/tssfl/sagecell/js'
@ ./js/cell.js
@ ./js/main.js

ERROR in ./js/utils.js
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'base/js/utils' in '/home/tssfl/sagecell/js'
@ ./js/cell.js
@ ./js/main.js

ERROR in ./js/widgets.js
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve 'mpl' in '/home/tssfl/sagecell/js'
@ ./js/session.js
@ ./js/cell.js
@ ./js/main.js

webpack 5.94.0 compiled with 6 errors in 42713 ms
make: *** [Makefile:42: static/embedded_sagecell.js] Error 1
These errors indicate that several required JavaScript modules are missing.

Steps to Reproduce:

Followed the SageMathCell build instructions for Ubuntu.
Executed ../sage/sage -sh -c make.
(Also tried ../sage/sage -sh -c make -B)
Observed the above build errors.

Expected Behavior:

Successful compilation of the SageMathCell server.

Actual Behavior:

Build process fails due to missing JavaScript modules.

Environment:

Ubuntu VPS 24.04
Node.js (version: 18.19.1)
npm (version: 9.2.0)
SageMath (version: 10.5)

Possible solutions attempted:

Deleted package-lock.json and executed npm install.

Additional context:

Previous ../sage/sage -sh -c make attempt resulted into the error:

cp static/jsmol/JSmol.min.nojq.js build/vendor/JSmol.js
cp: cannot stat 'static/jsmol/JSmol.min.nojq.js': No such file or directory
make: *** [Makefile:26: build] Error 1

Resolved it by creating /home/tssfl/sagecell/static/jsmol folder, downloding JSmol.min.nojq.js file - https://chemapps.stolaf.edu/jmol/jsmol/JSmol.min.nojq.js into static/jsmol and re-run ../sage/sage -sh -c make which resulted into the above errors.

[novoselt]

There are missing dependencies because of the notebook upgrade that I never got to. Try using Sage 10.2 for now or figure out where to download other components as well, similar to what you have done with with jsmol.

[TSSFL]

Hello SageCell Github Community,

I'm writing to provide an update on my progress with SageCell. I previously encountered some issues with SageMath 10.5 and JavaScript modules, but I was able to resolve them by switching to SageMath version 10.2 as suggested by @novoselt

I have successfully compiled SageMath and SageCell, but I am now encountering an issue when trying to launch the server. When I run ../sage/sage web_server.py -p 8888, the terminal hangs the message

"/home/user/sagecell/db_sqlalchemy.py:18: MovedIn20Warning: The declarative_base() function is now available as sqlalchemy.orm.declarative_base(). (deprecated since: 2.0) (Background on SQLAlchemy 2.0 at: https://sqlalche.me/e/b8d9)
Base = declarative_base()"

with a blinking black square below it. Nothing is accessible at http://localhost:8888.

I have checked the following:

I have copied the default_config.py to config.py and modified the provider_info dictionary to include my username.

I have created SSH key pairs and configured passwordless login from both my Desktop and inside the VPS.

I'm able to ssh: ssh localhost, ssh user@localhost without being asked for a password from anywhere in the user directory.

Apache webserver is not configured, as I believe SageCell should run on its own webserver.

I'm not sure what else to check at this point. I would appreciate any suggestions on how to proceed.

Additionally, I have a few questions:

What changes do I need to make to run SageCell locally before embedding it on websites?

Can all necessary configurations be accomplished using the IP address, or do I need a domain name?

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,
Eli

[novoselt]

I'll have too look into the database issue closer - in production SageMathCell uses requests to a remote database ran on a separate machine.

For running your own site you want to properly isolate your server and especially worker processes which have to be a different user. I would try to use https://github.com/sagemath/sagecell/tree/master/contrib/vm either inside of VM or on a physical machine which is not used for any other purpose. The code probably does not need a domain name, but browsers may be unhappy with your security certificate or lack of them. You are correct that Apache or a separate web server is not required, although in production we use nginx for static content.

[TSSFL]

Thanks @novoselt for the response and suggestion of using the contrib/vm setup. I appreciate the pointers regarding database isolation and user separation. However, my current setup is a simple Ubuntu VPS solely dedicated to SageMathCell, nothing else. I will consider the overhead and complexity of setting up a separate VM or physical machine (as suggested by contrib/vm) at a later stage. Currently, I would like to focus on resolving the issue and successfully running the SageMathCell server on this VPS. Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

[novoselt]

If you expose the "easy setup" to the outside world, your anonymous web users can take full control of the web server and anything else accessible to the Linux user that runs SageMathCell. That's the point of using a separate worker account that is severely restricted.

[TSSFL]

Thank you @novoselt for your suggestions. I'm determined to launch a production-ready SageMathCell this time.

Regarding the Advanced Installation instructions at https://github.com/sagemath/sagecell/tree/master/contrib/vm, which method is suitable for a VPS? Is this advanced method a continuation of the simple installation (https://github.com/sagemath/sagecell) or a completely separate setup?

My question is: how should I proceed with the advanced setup?

[novoselt]

Simple installation is more for development, there are no security considerations, but it uses the same idea of connecting to workers over SSH as production/advanced one.

If you have a VPS, you can treat it as "EVM" in the advanced installation. Main assumptions: you have Ubuntu 24.04 and use BTRFS at least for the /var/lib/lxc. Then the instructions may "just work" for you using the script. If these conditions are not satisfied, you may be able to modify the script, but I have never done it myself. For GCE deployment I am attaching a separate disk to format it as BTRFS and mount on /var/lib/lxc. For a couple of physical servers that people used to provide I asked local admins to do installation with BTRFS. The reason for this is efficient cloning of LXC containers. It can be done in other ways as well, but the commands have to be modified accordingly. Does this make some sense?

[TSSFL]

Thanks for the explanation! I'm using a Ubuntu 24.04 VPS and I hope BTRFS filesystem can be enabled at least for /var/lib/lxc. Since you mentioned treating the VPS like the EVM in the advanced installation, I'm assuming you're referring to the first approach ("Create the Enveloping Virtual Machine").

I'm a little confused about the distinction between using my VPS directly and your approach. Could you elaborate on the key differences? You mentioned the script may work – what are the potential stumbling blocks or scenarios where the script might fail on a standard Ubuntu 24.04 VPS with BTRFS support? Understanding the potential issues upfront would be very helpful.

[novoselt]

No comments on what can go wrong - the script is supposed to make maintenance very easy, but sometimes it breaks and needs fixing! Your VPS is the analog of EVM and thus you do not have to create it. If container_manager.py script works, you will get HAProxy bound to port 80 on your machine which you may want to modify depending on your situation, e.g. you may want to add security certificates and bind 443 instead.

[TSSFL]

Thanks for the tips! I'll start looking into the production approach with SageCell on my VPS. Will definitely reach out if I get stuck. Also, did you by chance see the fix I mentioned for the declarative_base() warning I encountered during the dev setup?